In honor of the season, we figured this week’s Battle of the Dishes should spotlight a treat we find on our own holiday dinner table every year. Pecan pie is a guilty pleasure — thick, rich and chock full of enough calories to bust any “this year I’ll stick to my…
‘Tis the season for a soft opening. On Tuesday, popular Tempe restaurant Caffe Boa is ready to open a second location, Boa Bistro, at Mesa’s Village at Las Sendas Center (2837 N. Power Rd.), pending final building inspections with the city. …
Just in time for holiday food shopping — and refueling after hitting the malls — Oakville Grocery opens today at the Scottsdale Quarter, 15015 N. Scottsdale Rd. The gourmet specialty store, founded in Napa Valley, boasts two well-known local talents on its staff, chef Walter Sterling (Autostrada, Sol y Sombra,…
When BJ Hernandez, chef and owner of the three Havana Cafe locations in the Valley, started making this recipe, it was only because it was a special she created for her guests. Now, it’s her most popular dish at the restaurants and has found a permanent home on the menu…
It’s no secret that we adore Sweet Republic’s artisan ice cream. Their delicious desserts were picked up by Whole Foods. The shop made it onto Bon Appetit’s list of the 10 Best Ice Creams in the nation. And now owners Helen Yung and Jan Wichayanuparp are headed to the big leagues. Sweet Republic will be featured on an upcoming…
How well do you know your favorite cookhouse contraptions? Can you tell a melon baller from a cookie scoop? See if you can guess today’s gadget and check back next week for the answer. Here are a few of our guesses. Feel free to add yours below: – “How Would…
Sometimes a particular restaurant location just seems cursed. Such is the case with 98 South Wine Bar & Kitchen, the Chandler bistro which was originally opened by restauranteur Ron Wojcicki of KiZake and 56 East. The restaurant folded in October of 2008 after Wojcicki filed for bankruptcy, and reopened under new ownership this spring. Less…
One thing that we always crave this time of year is shortbread cookies. The buttery, crumbly cookie is the perfect canvas for any flavoring. For our purposes, we took dark chocolate and drizzled it over the cookies, then sprinkled on some crunched up candy canes, and topped it all with…
It’s hard to believe BJ Hernandez never went to culinary school, considering the recipes she’s created and adopted from her family have kept customers coming back to the Valley’s three Havana Cafe locations for 20 years. Hernandez, who in a previous life was an art teacher for grade and high…
Not satisfied with competing in the art of making stuffing, the Chow Bella staff is at it again. This showdown is all about Jell-O. So far we’ve brought you Sparkling Grapefruit Pie and Berry Good Holiday Pie. Today things get a little naughty with cosmopolitan-inspired Jell-O shooters. Come and get ’em,…
Mr. P-bodyThe 15-year Valley resident, professional DJ and bassist for local band Elvis Before Noon is spinning at the Hotel Valley Ho this New Year’s Eve. He also spins and plays regularly at AZ 88, Olive & Ivy and The Vig. What did you eat for dinner last night? That’s somewhat of a…
Breaking up is hard to do. Even harder might be cooking for yourself when so many recipes are meant to be shared.Local food fanatic Joel LaTondress — you might recognize his Chowhound/Facebook moniker, azhotdish — feels your pain. He turned a defunct romance into a smart concept for a home cooking blog,…
Gallo Blanco chef-owner Doug Robson says he had no idea he’d be opening two restaurants in one year, but things just organically turned out that way. His new place, headed by chef Patrick Fegan (formerly of Fiamma and Olive & Ivy), is called Hillside Spot, and it just opened for breakfast and…
Not satisfied with competing in the art of making stuffing, the Chow Bella staff is at it again. This showdown is all about Jell-O. So far we’ve brought you Sparkling Grapefruit Pie. Today we’re bringing you a recipe that’s the culmination of our years of suffering through bad Jell-O molds…
Grabbing to-go food might not be the healthiest choice, but it’s often a heck of a lot easier than busting out cooking utensils, going shopping for ingredients and trying to make bean burritos and pad Thai ourselves. But with New Year’s resolutions of losing weight staring us down, we’re looking…
Used to be, you could easily find a weekday lunch for around five or six bucks. Nowadays, it’s tricky to get a bite for less than ten dollars, unless you stick to fast food joints or tacos. But Padre’s Modern Mexican just unveiled a new menu of lunch specials that…
It had been quite a while since I’d been to Chelsea’s Kitchen, and ages since I’d heard anyone talk about it. But I stopped by recently when I’d heard good things about new executive chef Bruce Kalman, who’s keeping some menu faves for the regulars but playing around with daily…
Most locals know Chef Beau MacMillan as the guy who bested Iron Chef Bobby Flay. MacMillan’s headed back to Food Network in January for a new show called The Worst Cooks in America, where he and Chef Anne Burrell attempt to whip some of the most pitiful home cooks into shape via a cooking…
Another week has come and gone leaving us to ponder the upcoming events that will shape our lives and, more importantly, our dinners out. But before we move on, let’s have one last look at the blog posts from this week: Dive Bar Dinner Club: Chino Bandido Takee Outee Sets…
Not satisfied with competing in the art of making stuffing, the Chow Bella staff is at it again. This show down is all about Jell-O. Jell-O? The last time we consumed Jell-O sans alcohol was fifteen years ago at a cousin’s outdoor wedding reception when Great Aunt Betty, mistaking her…
Upscale American cuisine with a Southwestern spin is the house specialty at CORE Kitchen & Wine Bar, which opens today at Tucson’s new Ritz-Carlton, Dove Mountain. Chef Joel Harrington, formerly of Fearing’s Restaurant in Dallas, incorporates plenty of regional ingredients in his dishes, such as barbecued quail and pulled rabbit…
For me, college was mostly a blur of all-day breakfast at Tom’s (the diner storefront always pictured in Seinfeld episodes), roast beef sandwiches from the student center, and bagels from anywhere I could get ’em. But college kids these days are eating a lot more sophisticated grub, it seems. Sodexo,…
