THE SCENE Like the phrase “meltingly tender,” the term “upscale gastropub” has become a tired cliché in food writing, and yet here I am invoking it to describe Pig & Pickle. I just can’t think of a better way to sum up what it’s serving its lucky South Scottsdale neighborhood: scratch-made comfort food with fancy flourishes (full disclosure: my favorite kind of food) and a well-stocked bar with familiar favorites and fun surprises, all in...

THE SCENE The Roosevelt Row location of Keith Shanks and Patty Gii’s Uptown Phoenix wine bar Rott n’ Grapes is a dreamy urban bistro: cool exposed brick walls, antique-y mirrors, non-cheesy wine bottle displays, chic low-top tables and chairs abutting plush magenta seating running the length of the restaurant, an open-window bar, a second-story loft and even a subterranean “speakeasy.” Fleetwood Mac, The Mamas and the Papas, Wings and Billy Joel play on the sound...