Battle of the Meat Chili

Saddle Ranch Chop House vs. Bison Witches Deli Now that fall has arrived (yes we know it’s still 65-70 degrees, but that’s sweater weather to most Phoenicians), there’s nothing that satisfies our bellies like a nice steaming bowl of chili. This week, we hit up two local restaurants to see whether their meat-filled versions warmed…

Food Network Star Guy Fieri Rock n’ Rolls into Town

Food Network star Guy Fieri is taking his show — and his rock and roll attitude — on the road with The Guy Fieri Road Show, a 21-city tour that combines Guy’s love of music and his passion for food. The tour will hit the Mesa Arts Center on Friday, December 18, with tickets…

New Urban Garden Ready to Launch in Downtown Tempe

Downtown Tempe’s getting a little greener thanks to a new Urban Garden designed to provide fresh produce to local chefs and residents. The project’s helmed by Caffe Boa owners Jay and Christine Wisniewski, head chef Payton Curry and the Phoenix Permaculture Guild. Curry, who’s been a champion of the “farm-to-table”…

Behind the Bar: Belle Alvarez at Palazzo

Belle Alvarez admits she doesn’t believe in vampires, period. It doesn’t matter if they’re the vintage bloodsuckers you read about in Bram Stoker’s tomes or the more sparkly sanguinators that will be flying across silver screens this weekend in The Twilight Saga: New Moon. According to the 28-year-old, they just don’t…

Limited Edition Sprinkles Cupcakes for Thanksgiving

The folks at Sprinkles come up with special cupcake flavors for pretty much every major holiday, but they’ve outdone themselves for Thanksgiving. A heavy pink “EAT box” filled with a dozen seasonal treats landed in our office today, and I’m pretty sure its contents amounted to lunch for most of…

Piping Hot Udon at Cherryblossom Noodle Cafe

Am I an honorary Phoenician now that eating hot soup and drinking hot tea in the middle of summer doesn’t faze me? No matter — the promise of a steaming bowl of noodles come fall still thrills me to the core. I can’t tell you what kind of mood I…

Peppersauce Cafe for Under $10

Blink, and you might miss South Phoenix’s Peppersauce Cafe, an unassuming little eatery with a cute patio and a country cottage interior. The restaurant, which serves traditional American breakfasts and lunches, is fast with sit-down service. Grab a menu and a drink, then wait at your table for someone to take…

Postino Starts Brunch Service This Weekend

Good things are happening at Postino, Phoenix’s ever-popular wine bar. Brunch is the biggest thing — starting this Saturday, Postino Central will be serving brunch (9 a.m. to 2 p.m., Saturdays and Sundays). The menu looks as scrumptious as Postino’s nighttime, wine-friendly fare . . …

Tuck Shop Rolls Out New Fall Menu

Fall is ushering all kinds of cozy new food at Tuck Shop, the Coronado District restaurant that’s transformed the corner of 12th Street and Oak into a popular CenPho dinner destination…

Dirty Dishes: Oh Breakfast Where Art Thou?

We love breakfast. The warm, bitter, coffee steam spiraling heavenward, the crispy bacon — fat and salty and crunchy — and crispy taters fried up like mom used to make. It’s an all-Am’r’can thing done best by corn-fed Midwesterners who know about a damned hard day of work since, according to…

This Week’s Meal Ticket is a Touchdown

Sports fans have it easy when it comes to choosing restaurants — sports bars are practically on every corner here in the Phoenix Metro. But finding an upscale restaurant where you can get your sports fix is another story. In this week’s Meal Ticket dining newsletter, find out which new…

Oakville Grocery Co. Coming Soon to Scottsdale Quarter

Oakville Grocery Co., a California-based market cafe founded in 1881 that’s considered by many to be the West Coast version of Dean & Deluca, is getting ready to open its doors in early December at the new Scottsdale Quarter shopping complex — already home to hot retailers like H&M and…

New in CenPho: Mid City Kitchen

Chef Michael DeMaria’s new Central Phoenix cafe, Mid City Kitchen, should have opened yesterday according to the announcement on its website, but today the Republic reports that it will be open for business tomorrow, Nov. 18. Such is the way with restaurant openings, which are never a perfect science. Located…

Chef Chat: Greg LaPrad, Quiessence

It’s hard to believe Greg LaPrad, executive chef and owner of Phoenix’s farm-to-table sensation, Quiessence Restaurant & Wine Bar, almost didn’t make it as a chef. The 28-year-old, originally from Connecticut, got his start cooking weekend meals with his father when he was a kid, but his parents weren’t too keen of…

It’s Not Too Late for Ballpark Eats

[jump] But I still got my bratwurst fix this past weekend, when one of my friends scored a bunch of tickets to an Arizona Fall League game. A group of us took a trek out to the westside, to Camelback Ranch in Glendale — during Spring Training, this is the…

Stacey Gordon, What Are You Eating?

​Stacey Gordon The puppeteer and improviser with Die Puppet Die and puppet maker at www.puppetpie.com has a puppet show for grown-ups on January 1 and 2 at 8 p.m. at the Great Arizona Puppet Theater. What’d you eat for dinner last night? California rolls from Cherry Blossom Noodle Cafe. Favorite food:…

Skip the Hassle, Pre-Order Your Thanksgiving

Thanksgiving is a time for family, friends, giving thanks for all you have. And for slaving away at a hot stove for six hours — basting and checking and basting and checking the turkey, peeling and mashing potatoes, cooking green beans, dicing onions and celery, stirring the gravy, etc. Whew. Hard work! You…

The Ginger Old Fashioned at Shady’s

The plush leather booths, dim lighting and retro jukebox tunes give Shady’s somewhat of an old fashioned vibe, but with Ted Grossman is behind the bar, you’ll swear you’re in a Brooklyn speakeasy circa the 1960s. He specializes in making classic cocktails, and even brings his own ingredients if the…