Chef Chat: Amol Agarwal of Rita’s Kitchen

He may be cooking Southwestern fare now, but Chef Amol Agarwal is bringing worldly sensibilities to Rita’s Kitchen at the Camelback Inn in Paradise Valley. The Indian-born Agarwal has really filled up his passport, having lived and worked in Singapore, Thailand, Sri Lanka, California, Jamaica and China before coming to Phoenix…

Justin Schmid, What Are You Eating?

Justin SchimdThe guitarist for Hung Dynasty, blogger for http://wanderingjustin.com/ and nonprofit writer performs with his band at Donna Jean’s Libations Friday, January 22. What’d you eat for dinner last night? Pho ga from Da Vang in Phoenix. Favorite food: Korean food is really starting to shoot up on my list…

Guess That Gadget

How well do you know your favorite cookhouse contraptions? Can you tell a melon baller from a cookie scoop? See if you can guess today’s gadget and check back next week for the answer. Here are a few of our guesses, add yours to the comment box below: – Alien…

Fairytale Brownies in Bite-Sized Morsels — a Dream Come True

We know there are those of you out there who strongly believe that pie is the next big thing, and we see the signs, sure, but we’re also betting on the brownie. On a recent trip to ABC Baking in Phoenix, we couldn’t help but notice the prominent display of brownie-making and…

George, Jim and Hanny’s and Maple Hook Manhattan at Hanny’s

We’re a little scared of absinthe, the high alcohol-by-volume spirit that tastes like black licorice, though it’s certainly a fascinating drink, as one of our colleagues discovered years ago. Drinking it on its own can be pretty nasty, but several local spots — including Hanny’s in downtown Phoenix — have incorporated the…

Now Open: Touch of Thai in Old Town Scottsdale

Will new Touch of Thai give Malee’s on Main, a long-running Old Town Scottsdale Thai spot, a run for their money? Time will tell, but a little competition never hurt anybody, especially in a neighborhood where sushi is plentiful but spicy Thai cuisine is hard to come by. Located at 4th Avenue…

Kai Hosts Five-Star Culinary Seminar

Slow Food Phoenix is teaming up with Kai, the highly acclaimed fine dining restaurant at the Sheraton Wild Horse Pass Resort & Spa, for a special interactive culinary event geared toward the truly food obsessed. Since attendance is capped at 60 guests, reservations are a must for afternoon of Saturday,…

Just Desserts: Costco’s Very Berry Sundae

In the end, we get what’s coming to us. Let’s hope it’s sweet. The Balloon Dad went to jail, Google unveiled its new phone, and Jay Leno is going back to late nights where he can continue a career of not being funny. As news nuggets go, pretty small potatoes…

Culver’s Brings ButterBurgers to CenPho

It was tempting enough to take frequent jaunts to the East Valley when Wisconsin-based Culver’s debuted in Mesa a couple years ago, but now the Midwestern favorite is heading to Central Phoenix, bringing its famous ButterBurgers to a stretch of the city that’s surprisingly sparse when it comes to fast food burger chains…

St-Germain: Patron Saint of Modern Cocktails?

With the recent resurgence of “classic” drinks, it’s nice to see a relative newbie that combines tradition with innovation like St-Germain, an artisanal French liqueur made from handpicked elderflower blossoms found in the foothills of the Alps…

Petite Maison Gets Props From Restaurant Business Magazine

One of Restaurant Business Magazine’s 50 Great Ideas for 2009 comes from Petite Maison, one of my favorite new restaurants in the Valley. Wendy Goldman, the restaurant’s marketing gal, says their Staff Meals were featured in the January issue. Available only between 10 p.m. and midnight, Thursday through Saturday, the bargain-priced…

Monday Night Martha, Sticky and Sweet

For this Monday Night Martha, we did something decidedly un-Martha. We baked Sticky Toffee Pudding while still wearing our pajamas. Yeah, that’s right. We were in our pajamas past noon. It’s hard for us to imagine the super-achieving, real Martha cooking in her pajamas. And even if she did, we’re…

Festival Foods Services Brings Deep-Fried Twinkies to Mills Mall

It was probably inevitable. In light of the excitement generated by deliciously bad-for-you deep-fried goodies traditionally found at the fair and at festivals, now there’s a new restaurant called Festival Foods Services, dishing up said naughty treats all the time. And not ironically, it’s in the Arizona Mills Mall food court, which…

When Life Hands You Meyer Lemons, Make Pasta. Or Cake. Or Alcohol.

A lemon is a lemon, right? That’s what we thought when our high school chorus instructor told us to suck on cut lemons before a performance. Or when granny used to prescribe lemon wedges for cold and sore throat relief. If only we’d been older and wiser and known about Meyer Lemons, the delicious…

Honey Makes One Hot Toddy

January evenings are chilly in Phoenix; not exactly ear muff weather, but certainly cold enough to justify a hot drink with a little kick. ​A Hot Toddy is a warm drink usually made with bourbon or scotch and a varying combination of sweeteners and spices.  The Hot Toddy was believed…

Bakerella Sweetens the Day with Snow Pops

​It’s not likely to snow any time soon in these parts — and the holidays are long gone — but if you’re still fighting the post-Xmas blues, like we are, check out the cavitity-inducing sweetness over at www.bakerella.com, a super-cute blog we just discovered. Talk about eye candy. And hey,…

Caffiend: Bomberos’ Mate Latte

Bomberos Cafe and Wine Bar is easy to find — the fire station-turned-hip eatery sits on Central, just a block south of Dunlap in Sunnyslope. The joint is a great place to start one’s day, as the breakfast menu includes a variety of omelettes and breakfast wraps, as well as…

Five Culinary Wishes for 2010 and Beyond

Last week we identified the top ten food trends of the 2000’s. Today we’re looking ahead to toward new culinary adventures. If we were alloted five wishes to change the way America eats in the next year and beyond, these would be them. Asian Ice Overthrows Fro-yo – We’re big…

Eat More Bananas, Lose Weight?

That’s the message Dole wants to convey. The company recently launched a “banana diet” plan that includes lots of consumption of the yellow fruit in hopes of trimming down waistlines of consumers. According to www.dolebananadiet.com, bananas are high in resistant starch, which boosts fat burning and calcium absorption. They also…

This Week In Chow Bella

Another week has come and gone leaving us to ponder the upcoming events that will shape our lives and, more importantly, our dinners out. But before we move on, let’s have one last look at the blog posts from this week: Dirty Blonde Cocktails Hit Scottsdale and Tempe Resolve to…

Eat like Elvis

​Today Elvis Presley would have celebrated his seventy-fifth birthday and thousands of fans will gather to spend the weekend honoring the Rock and Roll music legend at his home in Memphis.  Even if you don’t consider yourself a fan, there is no denying that Elvis Presley’s contribution to music was…