Photo by Richard Maack “He said, ‘Chloe’s Corner: You should buy that, Ashly.’ I said, ‘With what? Monopoly money?’”

Ashly Young accomplished a historic first in the Valley’s restaurant scene: She bought a restaurant from Sam Fox.

Chloe’s Corner at Kierland Commons is a back-to-basics breakfast and lunch “upscale diner” where people rave about classics such as egg salad sandwiches and tomato soup. Fox, owner of Fox Restaurant Concepts, named it after his daughter and sold it to Young last year after making numerous changes to the restaurant since it opened. Among other things, he changed the name from The Counter, ditched the fashion retail portion and added seating.

“What we found out is, people were coming here for our food and not our $800 handbags,” Young says. “Over the past four years, we’ve gone from that to what I have now. I was fortunate to play a big part in the evolution.”

Young grew up in Phoenix, earned her bachelor’s degree at the University of San Diego, and then trained as a pastry chef at the California Culinary Academy in San Francisco. She started with Fox at The Counter when it opened in April 2004 and also helped open Olive & Ivy, True Food Kitchen and NoRTH Kansas City.

Young says she never imagined she’d take over a Fox restaurant for herself one day. It may be called Chloe’s, but it has Ashly’s hard work and heart in it.

How did you manage to buy Chloe’s Corner?
I can tell you the exact conversation. [Fox and I] were talking about what restaurant was doing this, what restaurant was doing that, and he said, “Chloe’s Corner: You should buy that, Ashly.” And I said, “With what? Monopoly money?” I ran the numbers and asked if he was serious, and he said, “I don’t know; are you serious?” It took a year, but I got the keys December 30 [2009].

Are you planning any more changes?
We just put a couple new menu items up. If anything, [we’re] trying to improve our grab-and-go case.

What about the name? When you Google Chloe’s Corner, the first hit is a porn site.
I know, I know. The reason I don’t [change it] is that people still call this place The Counter, and I’m afraid I would confuse people even more.

Will you keep the cheap cup of coffee? What kind is it?
We increased the coffee from a quarter to 50 cents. It’s still the best deal in town, though. We use Coffee Roasters. They’re a local company based out of Scottsdale. Being a local, independent businessperson, I like to support my fellow local, independent businesses as much as possible.

What’s the secret to the tomato soup?
It’s so simple. It’s the simplest soup you could think of. Canned San Marzano tomatoes. There are only eight things in it, and four of them are seasonings. That’s what makes us good, is that we are simple and we don’t try to do 10 steps when all we need is two. People like it simple. They like to know what to expect.

Ashly Young
Owner, Chloe’s Corner
15215 N. Kierland Blvd., Ste. 190, Scottsdale
480-998-0202
chloescorneraz.com