Name-checking the water theme park at Disney World, this citrus-forward refresher is far more sophisticated than any brilliantly blue, Curacao-tinted cocktail you’ve likely sipped before.
Fratelli la Bufala is a Naples-based chain of pizzerias with outlets all over th world, but this tidy, upbeat spot in McCormick Ranch outclasses most owner-operated one-offs.
Everything about Bodega in Westgate Entertainment District exudes an upbeat Latin vibe inspired by Miami and its Cuban culture.
Asian libations, K-pop and rambunctious, Seoul-inspired street food make for a fine time in west Mesa.
Temper your expectations at thus slickly appointed modern Mexican restaurant in RoRo.
Hush maestro Dom Ruggiero reloads with this sexy and stylish gastropub on the Phoenix/Scottsdale border.
Señor Al Pastor burger with onion strings | Photo by Nikki Buchanan You’ve surely heard of Cold Beers & Cheeseburgers, the Arizona-based chain of neighborhood burger joints/sports bars dedicated to — you guessed it — cold beers and cheeseburgers. Well, Terry and Randy Bortin, brothers who have long been in the restaurant biz here in Phoenix, have put a fun Mexican spin on that simple, straightforward concept, opening Hamburguesas y Cervezas on First Avenue just...
PHOTO BY NIKKI BUCHANAN For a week or two there, it seemed as if every food-friend I spoke to had recently been to Source — Claudio Urciuoli’s new restaurant in Epicenter at Agritopia — and to a person, they raved about it. Many of the superlatives zeroed in on the bread, some declaring that Urciuoli’s bread-baking chops have reached an all-time high, others gushing more specifically, as in, “Oh my God! You’ve gotta try the...
In the worst-news-I’ve-heard-all-day category, there’s this: Bryan’s Black Mountain Barbecue in Cave Creek is closing. Its last day of operation is Saturday, April 22nd, which is also chef Bryan Dooley’s birthday. He and his wife Donna, who has worked side-by-side with him at the restaurant, are throwing a big going-away/birthday party on that day. Naturally, there will be barbecue as well as music and lots of regulars and old friends (which are basically one and...
The banoffee, a divinely inspired British dessert whose name is a conflation of its two major ingredients – bananas and toffee – has been transformed into a blissfully boozy martini milkshake at The Parlour Room.
Yes, this archly macabre vegetarian restaurant on Roosevelt Row is to die for.
Chef Ivan Jacobo’s reconceived Downtown restaurant is the swank, citified hideout we need.
Always solid, this Chandler sushi stalwart veers abruptly into greatness under the reins of a new chef.
Dom Ruggiero has two superpowers. One is cooking; the other is sniffing out dodgy restaurant neighborhoods and making them cool. Case in point: his first restaurant, Hush Public House, set in a nondescript strip mall on Scottsdale Road near Thunderbird. Before Ruggiero showed up, who headed to that intersection for a fantastic, creative meal? Ever? Precisely no one. Now, customers haul butt to get to Hush when it opens at 5 p.m. to snag a...
Paco’s Taco’s trio | Photo by Nikki Buchanan I’m always on the lookout for quick, inexpensive Mexican restaurants turning out great food. In a perfect world, they’re located within five minutes of my house, but hey, I’ll take what I can get. I’ve found a great one that checks most of the boxes, but alas, it takes me nearly 20 minutes to get there. Still, it’s going in the mental Rolodex for a couple of...