Seven Food Predictions for the Valley in 2012

It’s no secret that the Valley food scene is slow to hop aboard the gastronomical trend train, but that doesn’t mean it can’t surprise us every once in a while. And when it comes to food predictions for Arizona eaters in 2012, I’m certainly no fortuneteller, but given high food…

Fairy Adds Credibility to This Year’s Raw Spirit Festival

Billed as “the world’s leading, largest, and longest-lived raw vegan-eco-peace celebration,” this year’s Raw Spirit Festival, running from from Friday, December 30, to Sunday, January 1, at the JW Marriott Desert Ridge, has something most “elegant, sweetly spiritual, healthful, cutting-edge, fun-loving, conscious, abundant, musical, and interconnected” events don’t: a flippin’…

Laura Hahnefeld Looks at the Year of the Food Truck

As of early 2011, if you asked a Valley resident the best four-wheeled vehicle from which to score Filipino street food, freshly made crème brûlée, Cajun-Creole cooking, or a gourmet pizza, you would have been laughed right off the proverbial street food sidewalk. Not anymore. Following the popularity of mobile…

Five Favorite First Tastes of 2011

When a new spot opens in town, I can’t wait to check it out and to let you know my initial impressions. As the name implies, First Taste is not a full-blown review, but a peek inside restaurants that have just opened, sampling a few items, sharing a few photos,…

Six Best New Restaurants of 2011

Sure the economy blew this year, but several new Valley restaurants took a chance anyway and opened their doors in 2011. From Cambodian cuisine, to Texas barbecue, to “crazy cook” Italian, here are some of the new places we’re most excited about. ​Sekong By Night Opened: March 2011 | Cuisine: Cambodian…

The Five Most Memorable Things I Put in My Mouth in 2011

That’s right, laugh it up. Although the title of this post wasn’t my idea, I did consume a fair share of noteworthy eats in 2011. Whether crazy-delicious, crazy-exotic, or just crazy-crazy, many have managed to make quite an impression. Here are five of the most significant.  5. Pan-Seared Scallops from…

Giving Back: A Donation to the Association of Arizona Food Banks

Here at Chow Bella, we understand how important it is to give (and receive) the perfect foodie gift. So this season, we’re helping out by offering 21 food- and drink-focused gift suggestions, one each work day until Christmas, from a local business or provider. You get scads of rock-star ideas,…

For the Local Beer Lover: Four Peaks Gift Card

Here at Chow Bella, we understand how important it is to give (and receive) the perfect foodie gift. So this season, we’re helping out by offering 21 food- and drink-focused gift suggestions, one each work day until Christmas, from a local business or provider. You get scads of rock-star ideas,…

32 Shea: Coziness, Comfort, Coffee, and Killer Cocktails

32 Shea is the kind of restaurant where you could easily spend hours — the temperature is perfect, the seating comfortable, and its small size means the occupation of a few tables or barstools creates an intimate scene almost immediately. One might even feel, upon opening the door to its…

32 Shea: An Oasis of Cozy With a Cocktail Or Two

Have you been to 32 Shea? It is a place you could easily spend a few hours. Unpretentious and as welcoming as its small menu of simple staples, the feeling upon entering, even to first-timers, rings familiar. Here’s a taste: “There is a drive-thru where chai lattes pass through the…

For the Culinary-Minded Traveler: An Escape to Aravaipa Farms

Here at Chow Bella, we understand how important it is to give (and receive) the perfect foodie gift. So this season, we’re helping out by offering 21 food- and drink-focused gift suggestions, one each work day until Christmas, from a local business or provider. You get scads of rock-star ideas,…

Z’Tejas Versus Zipps Over Newest Location

Looks like the strip mall at the southwest corner of Bethany Home Road and 16th Street in Phoenix has become a controversy of concrete these days, positioning Z’Tejas Southwestern Grill and Zipps Sports Grill as this holiday’s Heat Miser and Snow Miser in a battle over a new location. The…

Locally Made Goodies All in One Place at Phoestivus Market

Here at Chow Bella, we understand how important it is to give (and receive) the perfect foodie gift. So this season, we’re helping out by offering 21 food- and drink-focused gift suggestions, one each work day until Christmas, from a local business or provider. You get scads of rock-star ideas,…

Fifteen Favorite Bakeries in Greater Phoenix

In the 16th and 17th centuries, the skills of the pastry chef were added to those of the bread maker so that in modern Britain (as opposed to France), domestic and commercial bakers used the talents of both. Though the lines have been blurred, the benefit of combining these two…

For The CenPho Restaurant Lover: Phoenix Dining Cards

Here at Chow Bella, we understand how important it is to give (and receive) the perfect foodie gift. So this season, we’re helping out by offering 21 food- and drink-focused gift suggestions, one each work day until Christmas, from a local business or provider. You get scads of rock-star ideas,…

Scottsdale Owners of 54 Arby’s File for Chapter 11 Bankruptcy

The slogan “It’s Good Mood Food” doesn’t appear to be case with several Arby’s restaurants in Arizona. In fact, the mood’s downright depressing. The Republic reports three related Scottsdale limited-liability companies, all led by Scottsdale businessman Charles Harmon, that operate 54 Arby’s fast-food restaurants in Arizona and one in New…

Rice Paper Is Stylish But Needs Soul, in This Week’s Cafe Review

Rice Paper, the Vietnamese restaurant on Seventh Street that opened this summer, is unquestionably stylish, but does its cuisine make the cut? Here’s a snippet from my review: “And if you’re in this midtown neighborhood and willing to sacrifice the more authentic and wallet-friendly dishes found in fluorescent-lit, no-frills Phoenix…