Culinary chops matter, but the owners on this list aren’t afraid to take risks. Get to know eight women who are leading in the restaurant industry and making exciting moves.
Michela Ricci and Koral Casillas
Strip Mall and Monsoon Market3508 N. Seventh St., #100 and #140The duo behind the hip bodega Monsoon Market returned to their roots for their latest venture. The longtime friends who met working at Dutch Bros. Coffee launched the cafe Strip Mall in February. The coffee bar serves simplified coffees – think cold brew, lattes and Americanos made with Peixoto Coffee, oat milk and a handful of flavored syrups. Much like Monsoon, the pair has curated a bevy of locally made quick bites and is using this space to host pop-up eateries, including La Rue Crepes. The cafe’s name nods to the ubiquitous Phoenix building that often hides stellar restaurants and bars in plain sight. Strip Mall is located in the same strip mall as Monsoon – the Mercury Building on Seventh Street just north of Osborn Road.
Talk about a grind. Chef Nik Fields opened The Grind by Chic Chef in December, followed by reopening her wine bar Chic Chef 77 in January.
Nik Fields
Nik Fields
The Grind by Chic Chef45 W. Jefferson St., Suite J
Chic Chef 77
523 W. McDowell RoadChef Nik Fields knows what it means to grind. Fields has been hustling since she left the banking industry to become a private chef, then restaurateur. Fields, who has branded herself as “Chic Chef,” opened the downtown coffee shop The Grind in December. The cafe serves coffee made with beans from women farmers and tea blends created by Fields. The opening of The Grind was quickly followed by the revival of her wine bar, Chic Chef 77, in January. The restaurant and wine bar originally opened in Tempe in February 2023. After a hiatus that began in May while Fields relocated the wine bar to Phoenix, Chic Chef 77 is now welcoming guests to this reservation-only spot.
Saturday is game time for hospitality veterans Audrey Corley (left) and Kat Moore. The pair have teamed up to open a women's sports bar. Title 9 Sports Grill will open on March 15.
Title 9 Sports Grill
Audrey Corley and Kat Moore
Title 9 Sports Grill4221 N. Seventh Ave.Two long-time Melrose District neighbors and former athletes have teamed up to open a sports bar that centers and celebrates women. Audrey Corley and Kat Moore will welcome guests to Title 9 Sports Grill beginning Saturday. Corley owns nearby Boycott Bar and Dahlia Tapas, Tequila and Wine. While she was running Boycott as a roaming party, she was also a basketball coach. Moore founded Short Leash Hotdogs & Taproom with her husband Brad and previously played competitive soccer. After the Moores decided to sell their hot dog and beer spot, Kat and Corley took the opportunity to partner on a women’s sports bar – an experience that is springing up across the country but will be a first in Arizona. In addition to providing a place to gather to watch a game, Title 9 will serve elevated bar bites and drinks using women-made products.
Megan Greenwood made it to the Jumbotron. The Greenwood Brewing owner has partnered with the Phoenix Mercury, which serves the Phoenix breweries beer during games.
Megan Greenwood
Megan Greenwood
Greenwood Brewing922 N. Fifth St.One of the woman-made products that will be served at Title 9 is coming from downtown Phoenix’s Greenwood Brewing. An engineer by trade, Megan Greenwood left a corporate gig behind to open the craft brewery in 2020. Her aim was to carve out a space with women in mind. In just five years, the chic taproom has become a mainstay, pouring pints of Herstory Pale Ale and Rosemary IPA. Now WNBA fans can find Greenwood’s craft brews at PHX Arena. Greenwood partnered with the Phoenix Mercury in September to give Herstory cans a fresh look and make Greenwood the official craft beer of the women’s team.
Madhavi Reddy founded Zest Hospitality Group with the launch of the fine-dining Indian restaurant Feringhee in 2022. The group will open its second restaurant this month.
Zest Hospitality Group
Madhavi Reddy
Feringhee and Faava3491 W. Frye Road, #1 and #2, ChandlerMadhavi Reddy has a way of anticipating what diners want. She first jumped into the restaurant business opening the bakery and restaurant Pastries N Chaat, which grew to several locations around the country. Reddy then founded Saffron Indian Grocery N Restaurant, which has locations in north Phoenix and Scottsdale, in 2020. During the pandemic, Reddy also began exploring another idea, a fine-dining Indian restaurant. Reddy launched Feringhee in 2022 with chefs Sujan Sarkar and Karan Mital, who have worked at Michelin-starred restaurants. The high-end restaurant has quickly become a favorite for special occasions. Now, the founder of Zest Hospitality Group is returning to the casual dining world with Faava, which opens next door to Feringhee on Tuesday. With Sarkar curating the menu of scratch-made Mediterranean fare, Redd aims to bring fresh flavor to fast-casual dining.
Melissa Maggiore Meyer opened Patricia's Pizza, a pizzeria serving two styles of pie and boozy milkshakes, on Jan. 3.
The Italian Daughter
Melissa Maggiore Meyer
Patricia’s Pizza32607 N. Scottsdale Road, #107, Scottsdale
The Italian Daughter
23655 N. Scottsdale Road, ScottsdaleMelissa Maggiore Meyer never forgot where she came from, and she’s continuing to tell that story with her latest restaurant. She opened Patricia’s Pizza in January, a nod to the first restaurant her father Tomaso Maggiore opened in New York after emigrating from Sicily. He named that restaurant for his wife, and Meyer’s mother, Patricia. Meyer’s Scottsdale restaurant serves fluffy square Sicilian-style “grandma pies” and Neapolitan pizzas. Patricia’s is Meyer’s second eatery. Her first, The Italian Daughter, opened in 2021. It is a tribute to her father, whose eponymous Camelback Corridor restaurant was a fixture for more than four decades.
