Best Tableside Drama
Flaming Saganaki at Cala
Impress your tablemate by ordering the flaming saganaki – Greek kasseri sheep’s milk cheese doused in Greek brandy and lit on fire at the table. The pyrotechnics alone are worth the shtick and will definitely turn heads, but the dish also rocks with cheesy, tangy, lemon-kissed flavor. Pair with house-made focaccia for the win. 7501 E. Camelback Rd., Scottsdale, 480-972-5600, calascottsdale.com
Best Potatoes
Eat Up Drive in
The folks who brought us Original Chop Shop are behind this fast-casual joint that pairs homestyle meals with drive-thru convenience. And boy, do they know their spuds! The creamy horseradish aioli au gratin is a stunner, and stuffed baked potatoes come with barbecue short ribs or vegan chili. 4001 E. Indian School Rd., Phoenix, 602-441-4750, eatupdrivein.com
Best Cocktail Pre-Game
Chicago Hamburger Co.
We love every concept in the Century Grand cocktail compound – UnderTow, Platform 18, Grey Hen Rx – but, alas, you won’t find substantial bar bites in any of them. The best way to fill your tum before imbibing chez Jason Asher: a slew of sliders across the street at Chicago Hamburger Co. Or a Chicago dog. Or an Italian beef. Pick a meat-stuffed carb, any meat-stuffed carb. 3749 E. Indian School Rd., Phoenix, 602-955-4137, chicagohamburger.com
Best Quiche
Quiche Lorraine at Francine
Sinfully rich yet ethereally light, this classic pie is based upon pâte brisée, France’s short-crust pastry dough, famous for its buttery flavor, fine texture and flaky crust. Combined with a light, eggy, custard filling enriched with Gruyère and studded with crispy lardons, it’s enough to make real men eat quiche. 4710 N. Goldwater Blvd., Scottsdale, 480-690-6180, francinerestaurant.com
Best Flatbread
Sangak at Ava Bakery
Originally baked on hot pebbles by the armies of the Persian Empire, this sesame seed-encrusted sourdough flatbread, made with whole wheat, is still laid over hot rocks in a rotating oven at Ava, where it emerges golden brown and faintly blistered, a soft, stretchy, deeply flavorful vehicle for Ava’s luxurious shallot yogurt. 814 E. Union Hills Dr., Phoenix, 480-906-9757
Best Place to Pig Out
Cielo Rojo
It’s hog heaven for pork-lovers at this new Guanajuato-inspired Mexican restaurant on Calle 16 in Central Phoenix. Some of the fine-swine highlights include guacamole with salt-flecked chicharrón; grilled pork chops with chimichurri; spicy-sweet pork ribs; cochinita pibil (slow-roasted pork shank smothered in salsa roja); chopped pork ribs napped with chile negro; and carnitas with cueritos, slippery ribbons of pickled pork skin. Oink, oink! 1919 N. 16th St., Phoenix, 602-358-7882, cielorojo.restaurant
Best Tortas
TEG Torta Shop
This family-run sandwich shop – formerly Tortas El Guero – has been cranking out excellent tortas since 2002. Yes, they’re a little pricey ($17), but you get what you pay for – namely, quality meats hot off the grill, served on soft, toasted telera bread with fresh, neatly stacked ingredients (avocado, tomato, jalapeño) that have serious eye appeal. 2518 N. 16th St., Phoenix, 602-252-9228, tegtortashop.com
Best Chile Relleno
Casa del Taco
Though this cozy hole-in-the-wall is tucked away among a strip of used car dealerships in Glendale, its charred poblano – oozing with melted cheese and bathed in house-made tomato sauce – certainly stands out. Served with generous sides of rice, beans and a stack of warm, homemade tortillas, all for $13, it might also be the best deal in town. 4938 W. Glendale Ave., Glendale, 602-854-1331, @casadeltacoaz
Best Mole
Casa Corazon
Fans of the Calle 16 dining corridor could always amuse themselves debating who made the Valley’s best mole: Barrio Café or Casa Corazon across the street. Now that the former has closed, the debate is pretty much closed. The secret behind Corazon’s rich, cappucino-toned mole? Could be the cocoa. Could be the house-ground pumpkin seeds. Whatever it is, the sauce is padrismo, and we want to bathe in it. 2637 N. 16th St., Phoenix, 602-334-1917, casacorazonrestaurant.com
Best Vegan Paella
Tapas Papa Frita
This lively Spanish restaurant on the Scottsdale Waterfront offers half a dozen incarnations of Valencia’s renowned rice dish – seafood, chorizo, chicken. But it also provides a delicious alternate version for its plant-based patrons, in which aromatic saffron rice is mixed with a medley of seasonal veggies that may include bell peppers, squash, peas, onions, carrots, artichokes and tomatoes. Live flamenco performances every Friday and Saturday evening add another layer of spice. 7114 E. Stetson Dr., Scottsdale, 480-699-5004, tapaspapafrita.com
Best Latin-Asian Mash-Ups
Vecina
We like Chino Bandido as much as anyone, but this is a whole new ballgame. Chef-owner James Fox likes to mix it up at his Arcadia hot spot, adding yuzu kosho aioli to salmon tacos, tomatillo nam prik to smoked chicken and smoked tomatillo salsa to hiramasa collar. His masterpiece: Japanese karaage (fried chicken) jacked up with Peruvian ají amarillo. Delicious unorthodoxy. 3433 N. 56th St., Phoenix, 602-675-2000, vecinaphx.com
Best Chaat
Feringhee
India’s famous snacks are beloved for bringing a head-spinning number of flavors and textures together. Chef Karan Mittal honors and elevates this tradition, combining crispy, ghee-seared potatoes with curry-like white pea ragda, mint and tamarind chutneys, sweet yogurt mousse, battered and fried shiso leaf, crunchy sev and dried raspberry spice powder. It’s a party in your mouth, and all of the subcontinent is invited. 3941 W. Frye Rd., Chandler, 480-534-7178, feringhee.com
Best Regional Indian Restaurant
Vayal’s Kitchen
Encompassing the cuisine of Bangalore, Madurai and other South India cities, this Midtown charmer got foodie tongues wagging when it opened last spring, shining a long-overdue spotlight on a geographic corner of Indian cooking that never saw much light in the Valley. Case in point: ghee roast masala dosa, a feathery, ultra-crispy crêpe made of fermented rice and lentil batter, stuffed with curry-spiked mashed potato, and griddled until golden-brown. 507 W. Thomas Rd., Phoenix, 480-401-2206, vayalskitchen.com
Best Over-$200 Tasting Menu
Christopher’s at Wrigley Mansion
When you’re spending big bucks on dinner, it better be special. Christopher’s delivers on every count, beginning with its spectacular, glass-enclosed perch atop the Wrigley Mansion. But it’s chef Christopher Gross’s perfectly executed, globally inflected French food – capped with a course of divine A5 Wagyu in Béarnaise – and unrivaled wine cellar that ultimately justify the splurge. 2501 E. Telawa Trail, Phoenix, 602-522-2344, wrigleymansion.com/christophers
Best Sub-$200 Tasting Menu
COURSE
Elaborate tasting menus are catnip for foodies, but not everyone wants a restaurant bill to match their mortgage payment. For a more approachable culinary splurge, chef Cory Oppold offers two seasonally changing prix fixe menus: 10 courses for $190 or five courses for $135 (not including optional beverage pairings). And, while Oppold employs the matter-shifting wonders of molecular gastronomy, he does so with flavor foremost in mind – no foam for foam’s sake. 7366 E. Shea Blvd., Scottsdale, 480-687-0491, courserestaurant.com
Best Gourmet Fries
Polenta Street Fries at Persepshen
Chef-owner Jason Dwight fashions his classy version of fries (nothing “street” about ’em) from chilled, sliced polenta dipped in tempura batter and fried to puffed, crispy cylinders of earthy goodness. Sprinkled with salty cotija, cilantro and stellar lime-pickled onions, the plate smeared with zippy chipotle crema, these crispy sticks of cornmeal will make you forget all about spuds. 4700 N. Central Ave., Phoenix, 602-935-2932, persepshenarizona.com
Best Big-City Restaurant
Anhelo
Sometimes you just want a little peace and quiet, some tablecloths, a knowledgeable sommelier and maybe even a tasting menu (or three, in varying price points?) that lets the night slowly unfold. And, gee, some beef Wellington would be nice. Set in a historical high-rise walkup, with a menu from chef Ivan Jacobo that offers classics but doesn’t feel stodgy, this is the grown-up restaurant that Downtown has always desperately needed. 114 W. Adams St., Phoenix, 602-596-7745, anhelorestaurant.com
Best Tail-to-Snout Feast
Virtú Honest Craft
The Virtù Maialino Experience is a four-course, Italian-inflected pork orgy for six, which includes Italian salame and cheeses, grilled sausages, salad, pasta and – the star of the show – a maialino (suckling pig), slow-smoked then grilled until the skin crisps. For dessert, a chocolate date cake with maple toffee and, of course, bacon. 3701 N. Marshall Way, Scottsdale, 480-946-3477, virtuhonestcraft.com
Best Burrata
POMO Pizzeria
Drenched in a rustic, fire-roasted cherry tomato sauce and adorned with fresh basil and cracked pepper, POMO’s burrata di bufala arrives on your plate as pearls of creamy, dreamy deliciousness. Enjoy them as an appetizer or atop a blistered Neapolitan crust with hot soppressata and honey. Three Valley locations, pomopizzeria.com
Best Fancy House-Made Pasta
Marcellino Ristorante
Chef-owner Marcellino Verzino takes pasta to higher ground, hand-making filet mignon-stuffed tortelloni (tossed in a light butter sauce and strewn with truffle shavings) and porcini fettuccine (rich with lobster, shiitake and white wine butter sauce and a splash of white truffle oil) as well as a half-dozen other luxurious pastas worth every pretty penny. 7114 E. Stetson Dr., Scottsdale, 480-990-9500, marcellinoristorante.com
Best Bomba
Mora Italian
Update: Mora Italian announced via social media on July 29, 2024 its permanent closing.
Mora’s modern osteria menu changes with the seasons, but we’re marking our calendars for the return of the restaurant’s fiery bomba this fall. The coral-colored sauce made from Calabrian chiles comes with fresh focaccia and additional ramekins of olive oil and house-made pesto butter for boundless dipping possibilities. 5651 N. Seventh St., Phoenix, 602- 795-9943, moraitalian.com
