The imminent departure of chef Payton Curry from Digestif is the big news from this weekend.After cooking at the restaurant through the Crave Arizona weekend (October 22 to 24), he’ll join Caffe Boa, restaurateur Jay Wisniewski’s popular restaurant just off Mill Avenue in Tempe. (Another Caffe Boa, in Ahwatukee, is unaffiliated.)Wisniewski also plans…
Seven different signature burritos include organic black bean, vegetarian, green chile beef, and carne asada. Tacos, a house salad with meat add-ins, and combo platters are also available. And yes, there’s dessert — Cabo Coco Cake (chocolate cake with Mexican cocoa, butter cream, and cream cheese filling over chocolate ganache)…
Seems like the Arizona State Fair is ground zero for extreme eats. Every year, the fair outdoes itself for taking decadent, beyond-bad-for-you snacks and making them even naughtier, usually by dunking them into a deep fryer. What’s on the menu this year? How about deep-fried, battered bacon on a stick…
It’s not just a rumor. According to Daniel Wayne, owner of Lola Coffee, the old Calabria Italian Deli space in the historic Gold Spot building (Roosevelt and 3rd Ave) will soon become a second outpost of Lola Coffee. Wayne has negotiated a lease and everything’s underway. He hopes to open…
Live in Tempe? Lucky you. Starting today, there’s a brand-new daily farmers market taking place at the southwest corner of Unversity Drive and Farmer (seriously!). That’s right, I said daily. The Tempe Farmers Market is an indoor market specializing in local, organic produce, hormone-free meats, and other homemade local products…
It will be an all-you-can-eat extravaganza for charity tonight, when the third annual Taste of the Biltmore party takes over the National Bank of Arizona Corporate Center (6001 N. 24th St.) from 5:30 to 7:30 p.m. Admission is free. Participating restaurants from the upscale ‘hood include Donovan’s, Frank & Albert’s,…
The first dish I ate at Nine 05 pissed me off, and the second one depressed me. But it pretty much went uphill from there, and now I’m looking forward to returning. When you’re a restaurant critic, first impressions aren’t always everything. I’d gone to the stylish new “modern Asian”…
The folks at Edible Phoenix aren’t just putting out a seasonal food magazine anymore. Starting tomorrow, they’re also kicking off a monthly food-centric film festival, held at Madcap Theaters (730 S. Mill) every second Thursday to benefit the new Tempe farmers market, Market on Mill. Edible Film Festival features the documentary film…
One of the neatest things I saw when I was out and about on First Friday wasn’t actually a painting or a photograph, although you could call it a work of art. Giant Coffee isn’t open just yet, but Matt and Ernie Pool of Matt’s Big Breakfast (get it?) opened up…
Food critic John Mariani’s annual list of best new restaurants for Esquire magazine hasn’t hit the streets yet, but it’s already shown up on the web, courtesy of the Eating Las Vegas blog. For 2009, the lone Arizona pick in Mariani’s roundup is Prado, chef Claudio Urciuoli’s Spanish-themed fine dining spot…
A little more than six months ago, the grand opening of an independently owned neighborhood grocery called Luci’s Healthy Marketplace stirred up excitement in the neighborhood around 16th Street and Bethany Home. But that was nothing compared to the shocking news that came in July, when Richardson’s, the legendary restaurant…
Looking for somewhere new to go for lunch in Scottsdale? Add Estate House to your rotation. Last week, the SouthBridge fine dining restaurant launched a casual, reasonably priced list of starters, flatbreads, salads, sandwiches, and pastas available at lunchtime (11:30 a.m. to 2 p.m., Monday through Saturday). Prices range from…
I need another cup of coffee.The big, big, big shocker news of the a.m. today: the New York Times reports that Conde Nast is closing Gourmet magazine, which has been in publication since December 1940.A must-read for food fanatics for its impeccable writing, lust-worthy photography, and of course, recipes, Gourmet…
One of the more high-profile fine dining destinations in the Valley is no more.Chef Deborah Knight released a statement explaining that she and her husband, GM/wine director Matt Rinn, will not be reopening their restaurant Mosaic after their summer hiatus.”We are closing Mosaic because we have decided it is the…
The other day, a friend and I stopped by the new La Casita Ice Cream & Deli on 16th Street, and recognized a familiar face. The girl behind the counter was a longtime employee at Calabria Italian Grocer & Deli, so we were surprised to see her out of context.Sure…
It’s no secret that the Lone Star State — and all of its legendary down-home cooking — is the inspiration at TEXAZ Grill. All year long, the place serves up chicken-fried steaks and barbecued brisket fit for any Texas-sized appetite.There’s a little extra love right now, though, since the restaurant…
Start saving your appetite now.This Sunday will be a splurge worth blowing your diet for, courtesy of more than 20 high-profile chefs from across the Valley who’ll be dishing up mouthwatering tastings at Scottsdale’s fourth annual Dine Out With the Chefs event.The festivities, which run from 4 to 6:30 p.m., are…
This is only the fourth week of downtown Tempe’s own farmers market — called the Market on Mill — and it looks like things are already growing, from the latest list of participating vendors. Hopefully the community will rally around it and it’ll continue to expand its offerings. Check it…
Can any metropolitan area top the Valley for sheer quantity of culinary festivals? Seems doubtful, since the number of food-centric events across town only continues to grow. This Saturday happens to be the debut of TASTE Chandler’s Culinary Festival, which will take over AJ Chandler Park (between Arizona Ave. and…
Is it finally fall? It doesn’t feel like it today, but this Saturday, between the forecasted mild temperatures and the start of chef Vincent Guerithault’s farmers market, it most certainly will. This is the 19th season for the Saturday market, and it’s a favorite tradition among Phoenix epicureans. Set outdoors in…
Ready for a steak-out? As of October 1, you no longer have to wait until dinnertime to stuff your face with all the grilled meat you can eat. Fogo de Chao, the Scottsdale location of the upscale, Brazil-based churrascaria, will offer its full dining experience — namely 15 cuts of meat, grilled on skewers in…
Fresh from a trip to Japan, chef Nobuo Fukuda is geared up for another special “Japanese street food” event at Welcome Diner this Saturday night, from sundown until midnight. This is the third street food dinner that the James Beard Award-winner has hosted for his hungry masses of fans since shuttering Sea…
