Thank heaven for food spies. Slow Foodie-about-town Valerie Paxton was at FnB last night for a special fundraising dinner for local Slow Food advocate Natalie Morris, who’s about to head to Italy to get her master’s in food culture and communications at the University of Gastronomic Sciences. Paxton took lots…
To a Southerner, chicken and waffles seems as natural a combo as peanut butter and jelly, rum and coke, Brad and Angelina. To the rest of us Yankees, it seems a little strange — fried chicken is clearly a lunch/dinner/picnic food, while waffles are for breakfast or dessert. Right? A couple of Southern transplant friends…
The beauty of the stealth dining trend is how it’s so free-form. Who’s running it? Where will it be held? How to do they organize their dinners? Each incarnation is unique. MF Tasty is the newest to emerge on the local scene, a “secret supper club” run by a local…
I bet you already have a favorite local French spot for your onion soup fix, or for a decent plate of steak frites. But what about crepes? Sadly, they’re not so easy to come by. I usually get mine at the Saturday market at Vincent’s on Camelback. That’s what’s so smart…
Could Thai food possibly get any more popular? The last few years have seen a boom in Thai food across the Valley, and still more new restaurants are opening their doors. The newest is Lao Thai, which opened last week in the former Kam’s Garden space on Scottsdale Road at…
Like flower buds almost ready to bloom, a new crop of local restaurants is gearing up to debut in March, and from the looks of it, this will be one busy season. The trend is toward accessible, affordable fare, even at a couple of upscale resorts. At the InterContinental Montelucia Resort…
Winning a James Beard Award is the holy grail of culinary achievement. (Yes, despite what you might think, having your own Food Network show is not quite as important as the Beard Awards.) Last week, when the nominees for this year’s awards were announced, it got me thinking about how life…
Julian Wright learned the art of opening restaurants the hard way. When he introduced La Bocca Urban Pizzeria + Wine Bar in 2008, food critics (including our own) offered lukewarm reviews. A little more than a year later, he’s back with a vengeance. “La Bocca has been a challenge,” he…
When the press release arrived, we practically fell over ourselves, reaching for the phone to call for reservations. A Friday aftenroon tea party at the Ritz-Carlton, with members of the cast of the touring production of Mary Poppins, currently in residence at Gammage Auditorium in Tempe? How perfect! We already had…
How well do you know your favorite cookhouse contraptions? See if you can guess today’s gadget and check back next week for the answer. Here are a few shots at the answer, add yours to the comment box below: – Pasta-shaped bathroom tile – Dollhouse picture frame – Matchbook cozy…
Bill Campana The Valley poet, who has participated in poetry slams both locally and nationally, hosts Sound Effects poetry open mike every Friday night from 7-9 p.m. at Mama Java’s Coffeehouse in Phoenix. What’d you eat for dinner last night? A chicken and mushroom stir fry with fresh ginger and…
In the hours since RED Development’s announcement that Oakville Grocery will be the new tenant filling the space originally planned as an AJ’s Fine Foods at CityScape, locals have already begun bitching via social media. Along with collective groans about yuppie retail from skeptical individuals on Twitter and Facebook, Downtown Voices Coalition’s Steve Weiss…
We freely admit it — we have a blog crush. It’s Posie Gets Cozy, penned (okay, typed, but penned sounds so much more romantic) by Alicia Paulson — creator extraordinaire, to the point that it would get nauseating or infuriating if she wasn’t so self-effacing and dear and resident, natch,…
After Basha’s Supermarkets’ bankruptcy proceedings led to AJ’s Fine Foods falling out the the CityScape lineup last year, locals have been wondering which retailer — if any — would step up to fill the void for a much-needed downtown grocery store at the 1.8 million square foot mixed-use project. Today,…
Downtown Tempe’s couple of block radius now has not one, but four farmers’ markets. What sounds like a great idea in theory is actually a hot mess. Only the brick-and-mortar version has an identity of its own, and even that is shaky. The Tempe Farmers Market is located in the old Levi’s exchange…
After a day chained to the computer, eating nothing but carbs — pretzels and cookies and candy, oh my! — my friend’s dinner invitation to Maizie’s sounded like exactly what I needed. As much as I enjoy the salads here, I was haunted by the recollection of my previous visit, when…
Looking for the latest in tasty television? Need to know the need-to-watch episodes of your favorite foodie shows? Chow Bella is here to help with reviews of the most delectable and dreadful, and a week-long, must-see schedule so you won’t miss a thing. Whoa. Is NBC sure it wants Guy…
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: Women Call Bullshit on Dodge’s “Man’s Last Stand” Commercial,…
It cracks me up to think about it, but some people honestly do think I spend my days eating nothing but the most luxurious foods imaginable — foie gras, sashimi, prime steak . . . Um, no. I often eat on the company dime for professional purposes, but I’m certainly…
It is going to be one busy spring, people. Are you hungry yet? There’s something food-related practically every weekend from now until summer hits, and since it’s a lot to keep track of — I was updating my calendar when blog inspiration struck — I thought I’d share the rundown…
Paradise Valley’s landmark El Chorro Lodge reopened yesterday to a sold-out dinner crowd anxious to see all of the changes and improvements that have taken place since Jacquie Dorrance acquired the property last June. Dinner reservations are nearly booked solid for the next two weeks. Luckily, we’ve got a little preview of what you…
At some point in the future, it’s slated to become a Marriott Hotel, but for now, an empty lot in the middle of downtown Tempe is getting a new life as the Downtown Tempe Urban Garden, a community food source operated by more than 70 local volunteers. Called “the first…
