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Many spicy foods aren’t for the faint of heart, but luckily, it doesn’t all taste like biting into a ghost pepper. It ranges from tasting a slight tang to experiencing watery eyes after only a whiff. In Phoenix, there’s no shortage of spice. Here are five dishes for Valley heat freaks, from mellow to merciless. NO SPICE Although Korean food can really pack a punch, the Hawaiian Chicken at Gen Korean BBQ House is nothing...

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Recently, Jessica Dupuy, a contributor to forbes.com and Texas Monthly, was tapped by book publisher Infinite Ideas to contribute to its Classic Wine Library series, which profiles both benchmark and lesser-known regions, from Burgundy and Rioja to Greece and Georgia (the country). Dupuy’s entry is The Wines of Southwest U.S.A. and includes wine regions in New Mexico, Texas, Colorado and – you guessed it – Arizona. Dupuy writes about each region’s history, climate and personalities...

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Opening Barrio Queen Barrio Queen expands to the West Valley, opening its sixth location in the shuttered Rock Bottom Restaurant & Brewery. 7640 W. Bell Road, Glendale, 602-287-8226, barrioqueen.com Cold Beers & Pizza, Scottsdale The folks at Cold Beers & Cheeseburgers are venturing into new territory with pizza in Old Town Scottsdale. 4222 N. Scottsdale Rd., Scottsdale, 480-758-4994, coldbeers.com/pizza Copper 48 Copper 48 takes over Nico Heirloom Kitchen in Gilbert featuring seasonal menus. 366 N....

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The Valley has lost one of its culinary luminaries. This past weekend, legendary Italian chef/restaurateur Tomaso Maggiore died after a long battle with lung cancer. He was 73 years old.  Maggiore immigrated to the United States from Sicily as a young man and worked his way up the restaurant ranks in New York City before moving west. He and his wife, Patricia, opened Tomaso’s Italian Restaurant in the Camelback Corridor in September 1977. Their children, Joey and Melissa, grew up in the industry and joined their parents in running a...

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“Luckys is not the new chic RoRo dive bar,” the man behind the bar says as he sets down a couple coasters and a bottle of hand sanitizer. He also tells me that mimosas and bloody Marys are “breakfast drinks” and should not be consumed at 6 p.m. on a Thursday, which happens to be when I pay my first visit to Lucky’s. He then proceeds to offer me a mimosa-flavored jello shot. Who am...

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UnderTow was one of Scottsdale’s premier bars before its closure in December due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. However, that didn’t mean its staff was done working. A new UnderTow pop-up recently opened at Hotel Valley Ho in Scottsdale. I took a visit to see how the Valley’s standout tiki bar has fared during the sea changes. Location 6850 E. Main St., Scottsdale Opened: January 2021 The Scene: This tropical oasis feels like you’re taking...

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“Houston’s for seafood fans.” That was my Yelp-assisted initial impression of this high-toned California import, which debuted in upper Scottsdale’s Gainey Village area in November. It’s the latest and most-inland (by far) location in the emerging chain, which has found success delivering highly repeatable, upscale-but-not-astronomically-priced cuisine to diners in Ventura and Santa Barbara counties. For his Arizona landfall, owner David Cortina – a part-time Chandler resident who, interestingly, was arrested in Taiwan two years ago...

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THE SCENE These irreverent, British pub-influenced bars (locations in Old Town Scottsdale and Uptown Phoenix) draw raucous patrons for sports viewing, bar games, off-track betting and general merriment. A wooden bar, plentiful barstools and plush banquette booths set the stage for lingering at both Bevvy locations.   THE FOOD Our go-to at the Old Town location is the juicy Bevvy burger, topped with American cheese, tomato, arugula, red onion, pickles and red relish on a buttermilk bun. It’s way better than your average bar burger. The...

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We’ve lost so many restaurants to COVID-19 this past year — Amuse Bouche, Barrio Gran Reserva, Delux, El Zocalo, Josephine, La Marquesa, La Piazza al Forno, Phoenix Public Market Café, Razz’s, Sierra Bonita, The Dressing Room and Yasu Sushi Bistro, to name a noteworthy dozen — and just as is true with the virus itself, the devastation is nowhere near over. Brace yourself for more fallout because the next to go is Cotton & Copper,...

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Attention fellow potato lovers: Tuesday, Feb. 2 is National Tater Tot Day. While many people turn up their noses at the thought of tater tots rather than french fries, I’m here to tell you that the deep-fried cylinder-shaped potato shreds need no defense. To wit, here are five places in the Valley to get tater tots. Cold Beers & Cheeseburgers This Valley-wide burger joint puts out two crave-worthy tater tot dishes: Original “Tot Chos” smothered...

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Winter dining al fresco is usually a treat in the Valley of the Sun – we devoted a whole cover story to patio dining, after all. This week’s dreary, drippy weather has limited outdoor dining options, though. As if anticipating this, Scottsdale Quarter and Culinary Dropout have been plotting Desert Domes, partially closed geodesic domes for outdoor dining.   They follow in the wake of several major U.S. cities whose restaurants have introduced private dining structures to provide “COVID-safe” experiences. These pop-ups huts – from New York City’s yurts to Chicago’s greenhouses – are technically outdoors, yet they protect patrons from the elements, which...

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Sure, the Stetson chopped salad is the Valley’s preeminent leafy entrée, with its tidy rows of air-dried corn, Israeli couscous, avocado, tomatoes, pepitas and currants all snuggled atop a bed of peppery arugula bathed in creamy basil buttermilk dressing. But plenty of other salads around town have developed a well-deserved cult following. Here are our best bets to depose the king. Turkey & Avocado Cobb at Flower Child Among the cornucopia of made-to-order salads on...