When a new spot opens in town, we can’t wait to check it out — and let you know our initial impressions, share a few photos, and dish about some menu items. First Taste, as the name implies, is not a full-blown review, but instead a peek inside restaurants that…
Welcome to Chow Bella’s Bites & Dishes, where Valley chefs and restaurateurs respond to a question New Times food critic Laura Hahnefeld has on her mind. Have a question you’d like to ask? E-mail laura.hahnefeld@newtimes.com. Miss a question? Go here. When it comes to food, everyone has their vices. But…
Editor’s Note: We inadvertently reported that Breakfast Club hadn’t yet opened at CityScape. The error has been fixed. Chef-restaurateur Aaron May got a little surprise late last week from RED Development, the commercial real estate company behind CityScape in downtown Phoenix. The larger-than-life owner of Vitamin T, a taco shop…
On the heels of opening a new concept and acquiring a majority interest in True Food Kitchen,, Scottsdale-based P.F. Chang’s announced today it is selling more than spicy chicken and wontons…
Chef Chat this week has brought you into Costantino’s Kitchen, where Chris Costantino is cooking up small, handmade batches of his Grandma Angie’s Tomato Basil Sauce. On Monday, we talked about how he broke into the culinary world from his past corporate life, and got the scoop on the sauce…
It seems as if Arizona hasn’t had its fill of chain restaurants just yet — even if they come in the form of anniversary presents. Togo’s Eateries, a chain of fast casual sandwich shops based in San Jose, California (once owned by the same parent company of Dunkin’ Donuts and…
Today’s culinary travelogue takes us into tall-tale land, at least for this dish’s most unusual name. The story goes that a very poor man whose family was going to his home for dinner could not buy enough food to feed them. So he went to his closet, gathered some old…
Apparently, April is a good month to open a restaurant in the Valley. Everything from Somali food to a reopened classic threw a hat into the Phoenix culinary ring last month…
Lately, in this In Season/Meatless Monday series, we’ve taken a look at what I take home from Crooked Sky Farms each week and see what I’ve done with my CSA share, or part share. This week, I’m using roasted sweet potatoes, but you could use anything like butternut squash, carrots,…
OO.ready(function() { OO.Player.create(‘ooyalaplayer’, ‘ZndDZobjpWmaOr5dxq8n2Ry4MCtFa_gN’); });Please enable Javascript to watch this video Meat Cutting: A Lost Art? But seriously, have you ever stopped to think about just how much skill it takes to cut a huge hunk of meat into sellable steaks? Local butcher Chris McFarland has. In fact, he’s probably…
When a new spot opens in town, we can’t wait to check it out — and let you know our initial impressions, share a few photos, and dish about some menu items. First Taste, as the name implies, is not a full-blown review, but instead a peek inside restaurants that…
In Chef Chat this week we introduce to you Chris Costantino of Costantino’s Kitchen. After years working in the corporate world, Costantino decided to pursue what he loved most: cooking food. In 2003, he graduated from Scottsdale Community College’s culinary arts program and turned his passion into a business by…
Everyone knows that Arizona has incredible Mexican fare, but who knew that Glendale is home to an award-winning German restaurant? Located in historic downtown Glendale, Haus Murphy’s serves traditional specialties like Bacon-infused Paprika Schnitzel, Krakauer Wurst, and Hackbraten. The interior is decorated with German flags, beer signs and steins, and…
Until a few months ago you couldn’t get Seven Cups tea, the finest nearly anywhere, in Metro Phoenix unless you ordered it online or knew a friend visiting from Tucson, willing to stop by the tea house on their way to Phoenix. Things changed when Cartel got a Scottsdale location…
We’re always on the look out for new and creative food sites and this one is from a local woman. Valley resident Kristi Murphy has started Saucy Pants. She’s created a “universal recipe box” where you can add your favorite recipes to be able to refer to them later on…
In February, chef Johnny Chu, whose former restaurants included Lucky Dragon in Tempe and Fate in downtown’s Roosevelt Row district, told me that Sens, his chic Asian small-plate restaurant and lounge located on the periphery of downtown’s bustling core, has seen a drop in business. Then, earlier this month, Chu,…
With the flood of new restaurants opening up in Phoenix, restaurateurs Robert and Linda Gabrick of Carefree Station, the upscale, North Valley eatery featuring a massive patio and American-Southwestern cuisine (including the hell-hot Desert Tears), are planning to take their next venture elsewhere. Elsewhere as in Prescott…
On Thursday, we told you about the PDT Cocktial Book, the awesomely illustrated, if overly complex, book of recipes from PDT owner Jim Meehan. Today, we’ll share one of our favorite recipes from the book: Benton’s Old-Fashioned, which combines three of our favorite ingredients: maple syrup, bourbon, and bacon. Created…
Since it opened earlier this month, Crudo, chef Cullen Campbell’s establishment serving inventive raw seafood, handmade pasta dishes, and signature mozzarella, has been waiting on the completion of its bar area to give guests the total restaurant package. But starting today, Crudo fans wanting a libation or two before dinner…
This summer, north Valley residents in search of Italian flavor without the guilt may want to get into the kitchen — you know, the thin Italian one. The Skinny Italian Kitchen, a new concept from Mancuso Restaurants Inc. (led by New York native and longtime Valley restaurateur Bobby Mancuso, who…
When a new spot opens in town, we can’t wait to check it out — and let you know our initial impressions, share a few photos, and dish about some menu items. First Taste, as the name implies, is not a full-blown review, but instead a peek inside restaurants that…
It’s weekend time and there is a whole bunch of foodie stuff to do. Whether you’re hitting up the Greek Festival, meeting Giada de Laurentiis in Scottsdale, or just make a nice dinner at your house, I hope you get to eat something delicious! Here’s what’s on my plate this…
