Hapa Food Co.

Considering the plate lunch’s popularity, you’d think the local Hawaiian scene wouldn’t be so overrun with chains. Standout independents in Phoenix are few, and Hapa Food Co. is a tremendous recent addition. Wildly popular, the menu at Hapa is short, and the lines are long. Load up your plate with popular favorites such as sweet, […]

Happy Baos

Restaurants come and go from the food court inside Mekong Plaza in Mesa. But Happy Baos, a little eatery with its own space just off the main dining area, is a mainstay. This spot, as the name suggests, specializes in bao and dumplings. We’re partial to the satisfyingly chewy handmade dumplings, and you can try […]

Harkins Superstition Springs Luxury 25

This twenty five-screen theater is located off the Superstition Freeway near the Superstition Spring Center. In addition to twenty five screens, the theater offers all digital and 3D projection as well as rocket love seats and stadium seating, an expanded snack bar, and both online and self-serve ticketing.

Health for Life North

Don’t be fooled by Health for Life North’s modest appearance; inside, there are beautiful, modern bud-tending stations stocked with an array of quality medicine. Deli-style service allows customers to see their order weighed out right in front of them. Although their most popular offering remains the large selection of flower, which is grown in house, […]

Helados Zacatecas

A Mesa must-stop for all things fruity and frozen, Helados Zacatecas has been whipping up homemade ice cream, pretty paletas, dreamy fresas con crema, and standout raspados since 2003. The name of the game here is fresh. The family-owned hotspot uses all-natural ingredients and crafts raspados with crushed-to-order ice layered with real fruit syrups. Whether […]

Henry’s Private Kitchen

Located in the corner of an otherwise uninspiring strip mall, Henry’s Private Kitchen doesn’t look like much from the outside. But upon entering you’ll find a medium-sized dining room filled with large round tables, each fitted with a tabletop lazy susan. The menu offered options like Taiwanese Bamboo Salad, Three Cup Pork Feet, Taiwanese Tofu, […]

Hodori

Korean food in Phoenix has gone on a helluva run over the past decade. We’ve watched a smattering of barbecue and soondubu joints explode into a variety of culinary subgenres. But through it all (plus a change of ownership), jack-of-all-trades Hodori continues to stand tall as the grand dame of our Korean restaurant scene. It’s […]

HoHoKam Stadium

Since 1997, the folks running Hohokam Stadium have kept the price of the lawn seats at five bucks. Five bucks to watch the Cubbies, for God’s sake! Five bucks to watch the ebullient Cubs fans before the Cubs have been able to begin losing any real games, when Cubs fans are still happy-go-lucky drunks rather […]

Hollywood Alley

It’s been more than two decades since Hollywood Alley swung open its doors to the public, and since those late-80s days, the iconic club’s stage has hosted sessions by some of the biggest names in the Valley’s recent rock history. From gigs by punk legends the Sun City Girls back in the day, to the […]

Home Run Stadium

We played all sorts of sports in our younger days, but when it came to baseball, strikeout was our middle name. That’s until Daddy took us to Main Street, Mesa just west of Gilbert Road to this batting range where a friendly fellow took us into the slow-pitch baseball cage and taught us to stop […]

Hue Gourmet

Focusing on the distinctive food of Hue (pronounced “hweh”), located in the center of Vietnam and the country’s one-time imperial capital, this counter-service stand in the food court of Mekong Plaza, the Asian-themed mall in Mesa, is a rare treat for lovers of Vietnamese food and a one-of-a-kind experience for everyone else. Highly flavorful, ridiculously […]

Il Vinaio Restaurant

This uniquely elegant wine bar and restaurant (its name means “wine merchant” in Italian) serves breakfast, lunch, and dinner. Chef James Bacon prides himself on a talent for pairing food and wine, and it’s evident at this family-owned downtown Mesa staple. Start with the Share Platter, a mélange of roasted vegetables, olives, artichokes, caper berries […]

India Oven

India Oven has been serving an extensive menu of Indian specialties for years. The restaurant — which also operates as a banquet hall — offers lunch and dinner buffets, as well as traditional dining. And with more than a dozen vegetarian menu items, there’s likely to be something for everyone. We enjoy the flavorful chicken […]

Inside the Bungalow

Inside the Bungalow is the coolest place for strong, tasty coffee in Mesa. The java here is robust and potent, with house blends strong enough to put a spring in one’s step without leaving a bitter taste in the mouth. But Inside the Bungalow’s appeal doesn’t end with the coffee – the building itself is […]

The Iowa Cafe

Phoenix has a lot of transplants from other parts of the country: New England, the South, and especially California. But Arizona seems to draw more Midwesterners than anything else. So it’s no surprise that one Mesa restaurant serves a taste of America’s Heartland. The Iowa Caf

Jalapeno Bucks

You might think it unlikely to find great barbecue in a citrus grove. But that’s just what Jalapeño Bucks is — one of the best and most underrated haunts for smoked meat in our metro area. It’s a gathering place for pork that collapses with the faintest touch and for peanut-butter brisket in a treed […]