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Photo courtesy Campo Italian Bistro and Bar    All the news that’s fit to nosh.  Brunch Time: It seems every week I come bearing brunch news, and this week is no different:  After settling into a nice happy hour and dinner rhythm, Campo Italian Bistro and Bar is opening for brunch service starting this Saturday, August 14. Expect Italian-inflected brunch classics like eggs Benedict topped with spinach, capicola and roasted pepper hollandaise, and a savory Dutch baby gilded with prosciutto, pesto and...

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Ask Rabbi Jordan Brumer why he purchased Kitchen 18, a kosher restaurant in Scottsdale, and  he’ll tell you he fell off a chair, banged his head and the next thing he knew, he owned a restaurant. All kidding aside, “It was a childhood dream of mine,” says Brumer, the former director of Jewish Arizonans on Campus. When Brumer bought the restaurant from Nathan Uvaydov in May 2021, the kitchen and dining room had recently been...

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At Los Milics Vineyards in Sonoita, we’re hosting tastings on our crush pad while the tasting room is built. If I am not in the weeds, I give tours of the production facility. Invariably, someone asks about barrels. Questions like “Where do you get your barrels?” or “Are they all new?” are common. There are three major reasons to use oak barrels: to add aromatic and flavor compounds; allow for slow oxygen exchange through porous...

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THE SCENE Like any The Real Housewives of New York City fan worth the salt on her Skinnygirl Margarita, I have a bit of an obsession with the Hamptons. I live for Ramona’s volcanic dinner parties (and questionable design choices), Luann’s out-of-touch pizza order (“Mrs. de Lesseps… The Countess!”), Sonja’s kooky jitney bathroom rituals, Bethenny’s avoidance of guests at her own home, high-stakes brunch battles and, of course, Barbara’s clambake, complete with doggie bags full of lobsters.   Alas, I am but a desert girl in an average tax bracket, so I figured my Hamptons enjoyment would remain vicarious unless I somehow befriended a celeb –...

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Lean but not especially mean, this highly quaffable sour from Tucson-based 1912 Brewing Co. takes its name from the Spanish slang toma güey, or “take that, dude.” True to its word, the beer delivers a clean punch: tart but not pucker-y, with jabs of lime zest and crisp apple courtesy of Ekuanot and Citra hops. Known for his preoccupation with fruited beers, owner and brewer Allan Conger takes a more austere route here. No fruit....

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photo courtesy Kähvi Coffee + Cafe   Open 36 Below A new speakeasy has taken over the former UnderTow space located beneath Sip Coffee & Beer Garage. 3620 E. Indian School Rd., Phoenix, 480-336-8812, 36belowaz.com BlackSheep Wine Bar & Merchant “Uncork and unwind” at Chandler’s newest wine bar and eatery. The restaurant serves everything from brunch to late night snacks. Watch for daily specials. 98 S. San Marcos Place, Chandler, 480-912-1212, blacksheep.wine The Bread &...

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Root Beer Float Feel like a kid again with this combination drink and dessert at Joe’s Real BBQ in Gilbert, where the root beer is made in-house ($4). joesrealbbq.com Vegan Pistachio Cherry Ice Cream No dairy? No problem. Downtown Glendale’s Papa Ed’s Ice Cream stocks vegan flavors from local ice cream maker Karen’s Kreamery ($3.50/single scoop; $4.75/double scoop). papaedsicecream.com Butterscotch Bread Pudding There’s a beautiful alchemy when vanilla gelato meets whiskey caramel atop this luscious...

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Photo courtesy Pronto   All the news that’s fit to nosh.  Taco the Town: Love the customizable menu, fast service and efficiency of Chipotle, but long to support a local restaurant over a chain? East Valley institution Serrano’s Mexican Restaurants has a new fast-casual concept for you. Pronto will open in Serrano’s Tempe location (6440 S. Rural Rd.) this fall. “We’ve learned a lot over the past two years, and we know that fast-casual concepts have experienced significant recent growth,” says CEO Ric Serrano. “Our Pronto concept will offer...

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Grilled Maine Lobster | Photo by Madison Rutherford   A serpentine stroll through We-Ko-Pa will take you to a calm corner of the casino that doesn’t feel like you’re in a casino at all. Such is the charm of Ember, the casino and resort’s new fine dining destination – a culinary oasis that is well worth the trek to far-flung Fort McDowell. The kitchen is helmed by critically acclaimed chef Richard E. Pelz, who places...

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THE SCENE I almost can’t believe my eyes when I walk into CHAR Pizzeria Napoletana in Peoria. There’s a sleek, clean and downright Euro feel – silvery tin tiles on the ceiling, modern black light fixtures, gleaming wood and metal chairs congregated around marble-topped tables, brown leather banquettes and booths, a contemporary wooden bench and a clean white counter.   I grew up in the West Valley and went to high school just minutes away from this pristine pizzeria at the corner of Lake Pleasant Parkway and Happy Valley Road. Let me tell...

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Spicing It Up: Hot on the heels of its partnership with Mark Tarbell on a citrusy vodka (which we awarded a Best of the Valley editor’s pick for Best Spirits Collaboration, NBD), Blue Clover Distillery is shaking up another collab. This time, owner/distiller Weston Holm has hooked up with the folks at Scottsdale liquor hot spot Trevor’s. The booze enthusiasts created a private-label Mango Habanero Vodka, available exclusively at Trevor’s for $19.99 for a 750-mL bottle.    Raising a Toast: Wine Spectator recently released its esteemed “Best...

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THE SCENE  I am a lot of things, but two things I certainly am not are a beer drinker and a vegan. I often wish I could be both! Life – especially concerts, dive bars, festivals and my alcohol budget – would be so much easier if I loved beer. While I can find merit in a porter or stout redolent of chocolate, coffee or caramel, or in a fruity light beer like Papago Orange Blossom, I’d always rather skip the brew in favor...

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If you’re a big fan of watermelon, now is the time to indulge – the juicy fruit is at the peak of its growing season. Watermelon is not only sweet and refreshing, it’s also a low-calorie snack that provides much-needed hydration during scorching Arizona summers. You can eat watermelon straight from the rind or use the luscious red fruit in a variety of dishes. To that end, we’ve rounded up five places in the Valley to enjoy watermelon salad.    Alma West x...

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I fell in love with the Hawaiian plate lunch back in the ’80s. Not in Hawaii, where I somehow missed it, but at Aloha Kitchen in Mesa, the first Hawaiian fast-casual in town, if memory serves. Of course, nowadays, island cuisine can be found all over the Valley, and one of the newest places for an excellent Hawaiian plate lunch is Maui Hawaiian Grill in Tempe.   It’s a clean, well-lit place, but I can’t help noticing that men outnumber women here by something like 10-to-1, and I’m pretty...