Scott’s Generations

One of the Valley’s few kosher perennials, this deli features kosher-style corned beef and pastrami on real, double-baked Jewish rye. The matzo-ball soup, seasoned with celery and dill and featuring a real-life matzo ball, is the real deal. Likewise the amazing New York-style cheesecake.

Shabu Fondue

In a strip mall and right next door to Johnny Chu’s other new restaurant, Red Thai Southeast Asian Kitchen, this hot-pot restaurant has finally brought shabu shabu to Central Phoenix. You choose from a short list of tasty broths, then order platters heaped with raw meat, fish, and vegetables to cook yourself in a hot […]

Simple Machine Brewing Co.

Simple Machine’s modern, bright, clean decor exemplifies the bar’s name – simple. But this north Phoenix brewery’s creations are anything but. Head brewer and co-owner Marshall Norris has a skill for taking simple ingredients and transforming them into flavor-packed beers, such as the aptly named Cucumber Crusher blonde ale, the cinnamon-and-vanilla-infused Dulces Suenos nitro porter […]

Slices

Some of the best, NY-style, thin-crust pizza in the Valley. The motto is ‘Shut up and eat’ so we’d advise you to do the same. Form follows function when it comes to atmosphere — just tables and stools and windows looking out onto the street. See, in this pizzeria, it’s all about melt-in-your-pie-hole-good triangles of […]

Souvia Tea Room

Tea is cool. Or hot. This cute little shop will lure you with delicious aromas that permeate the neighborhood. Perhaps that’s because the stewards of this one-of-a-kind establishment have collected about 120 varieties from the world’s greatest tea estates. The selection includes white, green, black, and oolong teas. Don’t expect to get right in and […]

Spinato’s Pizza

This family-run local chain has been serving top-notch pizza pies for over three decades. The oven-baked pizzas feature a thin, soft crust topped with Spinato’s sweet red sauce, handfuls of mozzarella, and fresh vegetables.

Spoke & Wheel

This cyclist-friendly tavern and restaurant (in the odd-shaped building at the end of Murphy Bridle Path in Sunnyslope) features mostly mediocre upscale bar food standards and snacks like burgers, wings, and fish and chips. Libations include beer, wine, and cocktails with names like The Drunk Biker and Easy Rider.