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…

See also: 92: Silvana Salcido Esparza and 10 Favorite Chefs in Metro Phoenix. This year has been a busy one for Valley taste maker Silvana Salcido Esparza. On the heels of opening two new restaurants (and closing one of them), she’s celebrating the 10-year anniversary of Barrio Cafe and has…

Looks as if partners Jennifer Brya and Karen Linkins will be making whoopie (sorry) in a couple of new Valley locations this year. The two started their business, Whoopie Baking Co., in 2010, with a single focus on whoopie pies, those spherical sweet treats that are part cookie and part…

The list of food styles for Tempe’s new Desert Roots Kitchen reads like a global grocery list: American, Asian Fusion, Brazilian, Caribbean, Ethiopian, Moroccan, Thai, etc. But the new breakfast and lunch spot, which opened Monday at 414 South Mill Avenue (Mill and Fifth Street, in the former home of…

Barrio Queen is not the restaurant it was originally intended to be. From chef/owner Silvana Salcido Esparza, the casual eatery in Scottsdale’s SouthBridge complex opened late last December with a focus on inexpensive Mexican street food and more than 350 kinds of tequila. But Barrio Queen’s sophisticated sister, Silvana Bistro,…

Mr. Scrib’s, a fast-casual pizza chain based in West Michigan, is planning its first venture out of the Great Lake State with plans to open eight to 10 locations in the Valley over the next 18 months. In business since 1961 and touting daily-made fresh-baked dough, signature sauce, and a…

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. This year, it seems like we’ve seen more Angus beef,…

Someone’s been sleeping on the job. Recently, Nation’s Restaurant News ranked the top five fastest-growing chains in the United States, and one of them does not have a presence in the Valley. Whaaat? As the state which refuses to allow itself an official food and the birthplace of the first…

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…

When you’re seeking new restaurants to check out, the last place you’d think to look is inside a sleepy “terminal” at the Scottsdale Airport. But, then, you haven’t had Zulu Caffé’s incredible housemade chips. Sliced thin enough to border on translucent, a small nest of them sits in a wide-rimmed…

It’s been a big year for restaurateurs Greg Donnally, Brian Chittenden, and executive chef Andrew Nam. As the team behind the Old Town Group responsible for such Scottsdale spots as Stingray Sushi, Geisha A-Go-Go, and Spanish Fly Mexican Beach Club, they opened El Santo Restaurant + Patio Bar and Big…

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. It’s no secret there’s a connection between food and music…

See also: Crudo at New Location: Get. In. The. Car. If you haven’t yet treated yourself to an evening at Crudo, chef Cullen Campbell’s relocated comfortable and contemporary restaurant of raw seafood, handmade pasta dishes, and killer drinks by cocktail artist and sommelier, Micah Olson (Merc Bar) — or just…

See also: New Grilled Cheese Food Truck, CheddaTruck, Rolls Into Phoenix This Saturday On Saturday, June 30, Cheddar Truck owner Nick Watts’ five-year dream of owning a food truck was about to become a reality. After months of preparation and scraping up $1,000, his mobile kitchen, dedicated to cheesy cuisine…

See also: Johnny Chu Moving Sens Asian Tapas to CenPho, Opening New Restaurant in Peoria Citing a drop in business, in April, Johnny Chu, chef-owner of Tien Wong Hot Pot in Chandler and the defunct Lucky Dragon in Tempe and Fate in downtown’s Roosevelt Row district, made the announcement he…

A year ago, the question used to be, “Where are the food trucks?” Now, a better question might be, “Where aren’t they?” From Food Truck Friday and Wednesday Night Mania at the Phoenix Public Market to Tuesday aftenoons at the historic Phoenix Seed & Feed Building and at events, farmers…

“I grew up in Arcadia, and went to Arcadia High School, so this location just felt right.” That’s Reed Johnson, owner of Milagro Grill, a new Mexican-American fusion restaurant planned to open in mid-August at 4280 East Indian School Road, at the corner of a strip mall and in the…

On the heels of Royal Coffee Bar shuttering its location in Downtown Phoenix, Next Coffee Company, a neighborhood java shop in Glendale, has announced it will be closing its doors as well. First opened in 2008 and across the street from Midwestern University, Next started as a hangout for college…

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…

After you’ve finished giving your what-I-did-for-the-Fourth-of-July recap to your co-workers for the zillionth time, you’re going to need something else to discuss. Here’s a suggestion: Scottsdale-based Pita Jungle, the Mediterranean-inspired healthy eating chain with over 15 locations throughout Arizona and California, has released its very first commercial. It’s kind of…