There’s no secret ingredient here; just nine culinary student teams competing for The America Culinary Federation’s Western Regional title. On Saturday, the Arizona team from the International Culinary School at The Art Institute of Phoenix will duke it out in three stages: cold-food preparation, skills salon and cooking. If the…
The Chow Bella staff can’t stay out of the kitchen. In anticipation of the Super Bowl, we’ve used our culinary talents to compete in a showdown of dips. After Jonathan’s heart-stopping, Nothing Left to Lose Beer Cheese, Claire’s family-fancy, Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell Artichoke Dip, Claire’s flurry of Curry Some…
Today’s headlines over on our news blog, Valley Fever, are full of local restaurant news. First Heart Attack Grill, and now James King comes at us with a story about Coopers’town. Turns out, Alice Cooper’s former business partner is full of allegations of bad behavior by the Valley’s favorite shock rocker, in connection…
Now that Phoenix is gearing up to tax grocery store bought food, we’re looking for ways to eat out all the time. I mean, if we’re going to pay tax on food, we’d rather have a beef torta from Gallo Blanco or a pulled pork sammy from Bryan’s Black Mountain BBQ than a boring homemade…
I decided to swing by Tammie Coe for a latte and a treat this morning, curious to see the shop’s recent remodel. Even before I walked through the door, the changes were evident, with more umbrella tables and seating on the sidewalk. It feels a lot more like a mini-cafe…
We mentioned it briefly yesterday, but today Ray Stern takes a deeper look at the Heart Attack Grill’s lawsuit against a Florida sports bar, over on our Valley Fever blog. (For earlier coverage of the concept, go here.) True, the name “Heart Stoppers Sports Grill” is awfully similar. But who…
Congrats to “food philosopher” Nikki Buchanan on her two-day-old baby, The Wild Lavender. The longtime local restaurant critic, who freelances for The Arizona Republic’s “Everyday Dining” beat and spent the better part of her career with Phoenix Magazine, just launched her own blog, where she’ll be writing about all the…
Selleck, sandwich and a waterfall, that’s the site, yeah, that is all. Just Selleck, sandwich and a waterfall. Waterfalls are pretty, sandwiches chunky, add some Selleck and you’ve got hunky. Here’s the link, now get there fast, ’cause everything’s better with a Selleck mustache. http://selleckwaterfallsandwich.tumblr.com/…
If you were trapped on a desert island and could only take five items with you, what couldn’t you live without? Toothbrush? Makeup? Deodorant? Teddy bear? Call us crazy, but we’d take a giant tub of mac ‘n’ cheese — our favorite comfort food. The plane could crash, the coconut…
He may be a bar expert now, but David Needham, manager of Vista Lounge at the JW Marriott Desert Ridge Resort and Spa, got his start as a culinary student at the Culinary Institute of America at Hyde Park in New York. Not that he didn’t always enjoy cocktails, though…
An early morning serving of food news, with no preservatives or additives. Scottsdale based Cold Stone Creamery had to yank all Grab and Go Shock-A-Cone ice cream containers from stores after customers said they found glass in one of the containers, according to this press release. Cold Stone Creamery later…
I was skeptical. By now, don’t we all have steakhouse fatigue? After three celebrity chefs opened upscale temples to premium beef over the past two years, the news that yet another high-end steakhouse was in the works invited collective head scratching. The fact that Modern Steak is located at a…
Nothing says, “I love you,” like meat and balls. If I’m interested in a gal, I usually get her over to the house for a time-honored dish of spaghetti and meatballs. The Italians had the right idea: Eat big tasty balls for dinner. In fact, meatballs are a sexy, simple…
No wonder food critics are feeling introspective. Between publishing’s industrywide troubles, the ever-increasing speed (and seemingly decreased value) of online information, the mushrooming presence of food blogs, and the unexpected closure of foodie bible Gourmet Magazine, the future looks like one big question mark — or, for someone like me who’s navigating the busy intersection…
This week’s “Forking” column depicts the romantic potential of meatballs. Want to cook up your own protein spheres of romance? Follow Colin M. Redding’s ball recipe. Meatballs are the perfect opportunity for your date to get dirty with you. I always have everything prepared ahead of time. Each ingredient will…
Yesterday we talked with Chef Jamie Santoro of That Italian Place. Today she gives us the rundown on her lasagna. She says the recipe has been in the family for years and it’s a popular dish with the Ahwatukee regulars. Here’s the scoop:…
In ancient times, Mayans drank cacao concoctions to achieve an altered consciousness believed to bring them close to a god-like state. It was this promise of elevated awareness and an interest in Divine Metaphysics that initially attracted Sam Filicetti, an electrical engineer, to chocolate-making. The Mayans drank the chocolate, but…
Does the food tax leave a bad taste in your mouth? It’s not too late to do something about it. Yesterday, the Phoenix City Council voted 6-3 to approve a two percent tax on groceries, intended to raise an estimated $62 million over two years to preserve the jobs of cops, firefighters, and other city employees…
The Chow Bella staff can not stay out of the kitchen. In anticipation of the Super Bowl, we’ve used our culinary talents to compete in a showdown of dips. After three heavy hitters like Jonathan’s Nothing Left to Lose Beer Cheese and Claire’s Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell Artichoke Dip, and…
Not for little boys under 21 at all, actually; but those of age can wipe the lipstick off the door and put away that kitchen knife because their (or the voices in their heads’ anyway) request has been granted. And it’s delicious…
Chef Aaron May says he was “being cat and mouse about it,” but his new gastropub Mabel’s on Main opened quietly a week ago, in the Old Town Scottsdale space that used to house Mabel Murphy’s (7018 E. Main). Right now, there are a dozen “gourmet bar snacky” menu items…
Who says you have to wait until the sun goes down to have a good time? At 7 a.m., my good friend and Day Drinker play date, Ronda, pulled alongside my car in the Ox Sports Bar parking lot, tucked behind a Circle K on 32nd Street. We were trying…
