Tavistock Restaurants Acquires Sapporo in Scottsdale

Sapporo will not be swimming with the fishes, thanks to Tavistock Restaurants, a boutique restaurant company based in Emeryville, California. Tavistock purchased the bankrupt Scottsdale sushi spot on December 22, promising “uninterrupted service,” according to a press release last week. Other restaurants in Tavistock’s portfolio include ZED451, Napa Valley Grille, Alcatraz…

DownUnder Wines & Bistro Opens at New Gilbert Location

Santa arrived early for Roger Carpenter and Phil Roberts, owners of DownUnder Wines & Bistro. Just before the holiday, they opened their new, expanded restaurant in Gilbert (1422 W. Warner, at McQueen). Just like at their previous location in Chandler, they’re still serving distinctive Aussie eats to go along with…

Monday Night Martha, Sandwich Time

We’ve made it to that week between Christmas and New Year’s. The final week of the year 2009. The pressure is off. We don’t need to wrap or bake or buy anything. This week we are not going to worry if our dishes match, or our floors need mopping. It…

Grilled Foccacia at Postino Central

Yesterday I finally hit up the new weekend brunch at Postino Central, and it was pretty much exactly what I expected in the way of breakfast-y grub from the popular wine bar. Grilled focaccia with herbed butter and asparagus hit the spot, with thick, barely charred bread that soaked up…

Coffee Talk: Starbucks Author Bryant Simon at Changing Hands

Ever wonder how big name coffee companies convinced the general public to shell out five bucks for a cuppa joe? Author and Temple University Director of American Studies Bryant Simon thinks he has the answer. Simon will sign his latest book Everything but the Coffee: Learning about America from Starbucks…

Pimm’s Cup at Metro Brasserie

As more restaurants incorporate local ingredients on their food menus, some places are also putting fresh produce in their cocktails. At Metro Brasserie, you can get what seems like a serving of fruit in one refreshing Pimm’s Cup, which is jammed with cucumber, lemon and apple, not to mention fresh…

Caffiend: Encaff Energy Stix

Imagine if Pixie Stix candy were full of sugar and caffeine; that’s pretty much what Encaff Energy Stix are. These little .11 ounce (three gram) pouches are packed with powder that’s supposed to provide an energy boost. The idea is that instead of troubling oneself by actually drinking a beverage…

Top 5: Holiday Party Gifts (Leave the Wine)

Holiday party invitations can come with a BYOB- or “everyone bring their own hors d’oeuvres”-type tag line. Other invites, however, leave party-goers wondering what exactly to bring. While wine tends to be a go-to item, selecting a bottle can be a daunting task. Enter these five gift ideas, which do…

Irish Martini at Casey Moore’s

With the holidays come a strong sense of nostalgia, and there’s nothing more nostalgic for us than sipping Hot chocolate (with a shot of Bailey’s, of course) bundled up near a heat lamp on the Casey Moore’s patio…

12 Foods For Xmas I Wish My True Love Gave to Me (Finale!)

To get you in the holiday spirit, we created a holiday song based around local foods we’d love to get for Christmas — sung to the tune of “The Twelve Days of Christmas.” Could be some good gift ideas for food lovers, or places to treat your sweetie to a post-holiday dinner. So far, we’ve brought you…

Tempe Bakery Offers Pork Buns, Pies for Pennies

We grew up in New York, where ethnic bakeries were practically on every corner. When Mom showed up with a white bakery box in hand, wrapped neatly with a red-and-white striped string bow, we knew we were in for a treat. Creamy cannoli with chocolate chips. Raspberry jelly-laced rainbow layer cookies…

Just the Right Candy for You

The holidays inevitably mean lots of candy and chocolate to go around, but it’s not always easy to choose just which type of goody to stuff your face with. While we’ve attempted candy binges before, maybe it’d be a good idea to take a look at this chart from www.eatingtheroad.wordpress.com…

Behind the Bar: Jennifer Banaszewski at Casey Moore’s

When informing a potential love interest of your plans to hit Casey Moore’s this weekend, there’s no romantic deal-breaker quite like the “Who’s Casey?” response. The neighborhood bar housed in a historical property built in 1910 is as much a Tempe landmark as the old flour mill, but pulls a…

The Provisional Poet: Holiday Log Cake

Billy-Boy Wordsworth defined poetry as “the spontaneous overflow of powerful feelings.” Fitting then, we should apply this definition when we speak of fabulous fare. See if you can relate to this week’s victual verse and feel free to pen a few lines of your own, should you be so inspired…

Jell-O Showdown: And the Winner Is . . .

Today I’m counting my Christmas blessings, and they’re named Jonathan, Wynter, Cheri, and Laura. These overachieving Chow Bella contributors went above and beyond for our Jell-O Showdown, where each of them brought a tasty, Jell-O-centric dessert to the office one day, all in the hopes of getting some blog props…

Jell-O Showdown: Scented English Creams

Not satisfied with competing in the art of making stuffing, the Chow Bella staff is at it again. This showdown is all about Jell-O. So far we’ve brought you Sparkling Grapefruit Pie and Berry Good Holiday Pie, and Jell-O shooters. Today we head to the UK for some inspiration in the…

Next Week: Sucker Punch Sally’s Opening on Mill

Local old-school chopper manufacturer Sucker Punch Sally’s is branching out into restaurants with Sucker Punch Sally’s Old-School Diner, set to open for dinner on New Year’s Eve at the corner of Mill Avenue and University in Tempe. The former Ruby Tuesday’s will now be decorated with vintage motorcycles and Fender…

Battle of the Pecan Pie

In honor of the season, we figured this week’s Battle of the Dishes should spotlight a treat we find on our own holiday dinner table every year. Pecan pie is a guilty pleasure — thick, rich and chock full of enough calories to bust any “this year I’ll stick to my…

Next Week: Caffe Boa Set to Open New Mesa Location

‘Tis the season for a soft opening. On Tuesday, popular Tempe restaurant Caffe Boa is ready to open a second location, Boa Bistro, at Mesa’s Village at Las Sendas Center (2837 N. Power Rd.), pending final building inspections with the city.  …