“Fancy hot sauce.” That’s what Natalie Cutino calls the hot sauces she and her husband, Jacob Cutino, make in small batches. They blend miso hot sauce and strawberry hot sauce, deftly balanced and neatly packaged. Their rust-red and marigold-orange bottles have become a common sight at specialty shops and local eateries. Some, like The Larder + The Delta, even use Cutino Sauce Co. products to brighten select dishes. These days, though, restaurants have fallen...
Like many small businesses across the country, Blue Clover Distillery in Scottsdale is struggling to stay afloat during the coronavirus crisis. “The past few days have been an interesting frenzy,” the distillery’s owner, Weston Holm, says. “We’ve gone from having to lay off restaurant employees to having to transition our focus to stay alive.” Known for its vodka and gin, Blue Clover had to get creative to keep up. Its solution? Start making hand sanitizer...
A few days before the city of Phoenix shuttered bars and restaurants for everything but takeout and delivery, Drew Pool felt optimistic. The co-owner of Wren House Brewing Company noted, around when the number of recorded infections in Arizona reached a dozen, that business was “relatively unaffected.” But that time, just before mid-March, feels like ancient history. Since then, Phoenix mayor Kate Gallego limited bars and restaurants (to wide industry approval), hoping to...
This week’s Recipe Friday is courtesy of Christina Barrueta, author of the upcoming Phoenix Cooks cookbook, which will be published later this year. PHOENIX magazine is the first outlet to share a recipe from the book. Barrueta also pens Write On Rubee, a popular food, beverage and travel website and is the author of Arizona Wine: A History of Perseverance and Passion. The award-winning food writer offers a recipe from Pomo Pizzeria owner Stefano Fabbri,...
Good lord, what a week. I don’t know about you, but I need a drink. Normally for this recurring blog, I’d visit a local restaurant during happy hour and report back to you with all of the details – the vibe, the discounted drinks, the most delicious dishes and any “insider secrets” I can scrounge up. This week, of course, nothing is normal. Some restaurants are closing – some for the time being, some potentially for good – while many more have transitioned...
The dining maestro weighs in on to-go dining and state support amid the coronavirus crisis. Uncertainty and intense anxiety is gripping the Valley restaurant and bar industry following the coronavirus closures mandated by Phoenix Mayor Kate Gallego, and a similar statewide policy expected from Arizona Governor Doug Ducey. Only takeout and delivery services will be permitted for the foreseeable future. Unfortunately, one of the Valley restaurant owners who preemptively ended in-restaurant service last week, FnB...
Amid concerns about the spread of COVID-19, local eateries have transitioned to takeout, delivery and curbside pickup options only. That doesn’t mean you can’t still support your favorite Valley restaurants. In fact, many of them are offering deals and discounts. Here are a few suggestions. Pomo Pizza and Mora Italian Two locally owned Italian eateries are offering select free appetizers to those who have purchased tickets to sporting events, galas, concerts and festivals that are...
Lightening flashed and thunder crashed outside as we descended into the subterranean chamber that is UnderTow. The rare Arizona stormy weather set the perfect tone as we embarked on UnderTow’s newest chapter, Drake’s Pass, for a recent media tasting. The frosty adventure unfolded throughout the evening as we sipped on UnderTow’s newest imaginative cocktails and submerged into the fantastical icy atmosphere proving, once again, that UnderTow is a lot more than just your average tiki...
THE SCENE You can see Agave del Scottsdale from the street at the corner of North Hayden Road and East Via de Ventura – it has a lovely patio looking out onto North Scottsdale – but once you turn into the labyrinthine Mercado on Hayden plaza, it can be challenging to locate. Tip: It’s between Village Coffee Roastery and Mail and Parcel Express, on the ground floor – don’t be distracted by the elevator. Inside,...
Looking for something to munch on while you’re catching up on Netflix this weekend? Chris Purcell of Ted’s Refreshments shares the Tempe restaurant’s whiskey barbecue wing sauce. At Ted’s they smoke their wings in an electric smoker with hickory wood chips. “If people are making them at home, they could bake, grill or fry them,” Purcell says. “Then, just toss in the sauce.” You can use any type of bourbon that you like, Purcell says....
Blue Hound Kitchen and Cocktails executive chef Dushyant Singh wants people to stop staring at their phones and socialize over good food. That’s why he created his new cooking series, “In Season.” On the second Wednesday of every month at 5:30 p.m., the patio of the Downtown Phoenix dining establishment will transform into a scene straight from Singh’s backyard. “Most of the series that you see, it’s very formal. What if people just come and...
Kaleb Copenhaver believes that passion is the most important ingredient when it comes to making pizza. “You can buy the good flour, good products and a good oven, but you can’t buy the passion,” says the 22-year-old chef and entrepreneur. “That’s the most important thing.” Copenhaver’s passions include pizza and music. He recently rolled his two obsessions into one with his new culinary concept, Reel Pizza Pies, slated to open in Surprise in early April....
Aioli Gourmet Burgers started six years ago as a food truck. Now, the team behind Aioli has four food trucks and a fast-casual brick and mortar in Phoenix, with a second location slated to open in April inside of Fry’s Marketplace in Litchfield Park. Aioli is the brainchild of three lifelong friends who combined their collective skillsets to create culinary success. “One’s a chef, I was in a marketing background, the other one had a...
Do you want to shop local while eating healthier? Soil & Seed Garden at The Farm at South Mountain is now accepting spring sign-ups for its seasonal Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) Program. The 10-week program provides weekly bags of fresh items harvested from the garden. Each week’s bag will include greens, vegetables, herbs and edible flowers. Some weeks may also offer eggs and citrus. These are the same ingredients used each week at The Farm’s...
Planning an elegant brunch in the near future and need a sinfully rich and delectable entrée to wow your guests? If so, you’re in luck because Maple & Ash’s executive chef and partner Danny Grant shares one of his Sunday brunch recipes with us this week. To pull this off, you’ll have to make the bulk of the dish at the last minute so that everything stays warm. As always, make sure you have all...
