Summer is pushing in on us here in Phoenix, and it is time to start prepping for toasty days and sweltering nights. Kiss our patio dinners goodbye until fall. When the temperature rises, the last thing you want to do is turn on the oven. Here are our 5 desserts…
With amateur mixology on the rise, it was only a matter of time before amateur spirit-making, its highly-illegal cousin, started gaining steam. Circumventing the whole messy legality business with home distilling, Darby Smart is offering a way that you can feel like you made your very own gin without actually…
Two of the best foods in the whole world are now officially words in the 11th iteration of the Merriam-Webster Collegiate Dictionary. Joining 148 other new (less important) words like turducken and freegan, the food world is making its mark this year, along with the ever-expanding requisite bunch of social…
Back when we were growing up, the pinnacle of pancake artistry was probably the Mickey Mouse pancakes at Disneyland. However, springing out of the ever merging worlds of food obsession and technology, the PancakeBot crafts beautifully intricate designs out of pancake batter, resulting in the best breakfast you’ve probably ever…
You might remember Shine Coffee as an airstream trailer coffee spot outside of farmers markets around town, but since April of last year, the shop has had a brick and mortar location with a detached lounge area located off of Central Avenue just south of Thomas Road. Since then, Christiaan…
It’s not often that we find ourselves seething with envy over Tucson’s dining scene. Sure, we like the cocktails at Scott & Co. and who can resist a late-night trip through the Eegee’s drive-thru, but Tucson Weekly’s announcement that the late-night fast food chain U.S. Fries will be hitting the…
Normally when the Lannisters send their regards, we aren’t super-psyched, but with Second Story Liquor Bar’s Kingslayer specialty cocktail, we’re more than ready to take on the lion sigil. Bartender John Christie says the drink, which has a Maker’s Mark bourbon base and a heavy hand with fruity flavors, “should…
We often feel the desire to wear bathing suits instead of clothing to work when temperatures break triple digits, but we don’t do it because gross. As some coffee brewers and roasters in town (Cartel, Press, and Giant) elevate the coffee experience, a new coffee drive-thru called Bikini Beans Espresso…
It’s going to be a long summer. If your plan is to hunker down and get a bunch of work done in hopes that it’ll make the heat pass more quickly, we understand, but you’re going to need some help. Now you can enjoy all of the smooth, caffeinated goodness…
I love excellent packaging on the products I buy. Even when I’m baking up a few nibbles for my family and friends, I want my goodies to look fabulous. You can find a wide variety of colored and patterned disposable baking cups and loaf pans, but here are a few…
Bad news, whiskey lovers. According to the Smithsonian, we’ve all been drinking more whiskey than distillers can make. Representatives from the highly en vogue Buffalo Trace Bourbon said in the article that the situation isn’t likely to be fixed anytime soon either: “The increase in sales, coupled with the aging…
Eric Leidlein has been roasting coffee in town for eight years, so if anyone knows the ins and outs of the coffee bean world, it’s him. Starting as a barista, then roaster at Lux, and eventually working with Four Barrel beans at Giant Coffee, Leidlein says his experience as a…
In a near 17-minute YouTube manifesto, Mark Phillips, founder of Palcohol, explains how we’ve all got it wrong. He even shows how to use a Palcohol pouch. Though the company currently is not accepting interview requests, this exhaustive video says pretty much all we need to know about the perceived…
With more and more delivery-centric businesses like Papa John’s and Domino’s creating apps to make it easier to place an order and get food without really ever speaking to anyone, ordering take-out and delivery is obviously changing. Then when you add in apps like GrubHub, Eat24, and Seamless, which act…
America’s Taco Shop says it will donate 20 percent of all proceeds on Friday, May 9, to Phoenix Children’s Hospital. The initiative, called “Carne for a Cause,” combines the local chain’s cheap tacos and burritos with charitable giving inspired by the founder’s young daughters…
Where food, art, rap, and nerd culture meet, you’ll find @tishacherry’s Instagram feed. Her playful use of edible materials like French fries, honey, soy sauce, and Oreos to create pieces ranging from intricate portraits to simple pop culture designs will have you scrolling through her feed for hours. From Kimye…
Add this to the reasons your Starbucks barista secretly hates you: barista elbow. Apparently, making complicated lattes and other coffee drinks is more than just annoying (what’s so bad about regular coffee?); it also can be bad for your health. An increasing number of coffee shop employees are developing elbow,…
We have talked buttercream, in 8 Steps to Making Perfect Buttercream, and I have received a lot of questions about how to perfect that lovely vehicle to get the buttercream to your mouth. No, not spoons or fingers — cake. Even if you aren’t going to become a professional baker,…
Not everyone is a cold brew addict. That’s fine. Espresso certainly has its place in my heart, but it’s not the most conducive to at-home coffee connoisseurs–right? Wrong. The moka pot came to me a few years ago when I thought drip coffee or French press were pretty much the…
What? You didn’t realize it was Cinco de Mayo until this very moment? Well, you’re probably going to be craving tacos about right . . . now. And you’re in luck, because there are a few places around town where you can cash in on taco deals today. Oh, and…
If you’ve been to a wine, beer, or spirit event recently, you know that by the time all the tasting is finished, you’re pretty much past the point of classy sampling and have embarked on a drunken descent of nonsense and not really tasting anything anymore. Oh, come on, that…
Did you have breakfast yet? Okay, good, us neither. So that means you can go over to Einstein Bros. and buy a bagel sandwich and get a free one for us, too, right? Today only, Einstein locations are offering a free applewood bacon and cheddar egg sandwich when you buy…
