Inside the Fashion & Style section of today’s Arizona Republic, you’ll find a splashy spread on inventor Treg Bradly who dreamed up a genius solution for black-thumbed folks like me.
Commissioning industrial designer Karim Rashid, they sculpted a super-functional planter that suits design nerds like yours truly.
Here’s the article by Kara G. Morrison: ARTICLE LINK
Here’s the website : PRODUCT WEBSITE
See, I told you I was NOT drunk when I tweeted this story...
After a limited 5 days in the city, I’m woefully under qualified to declare a “Best Bar”… but I’m gonna do it anyway. So there.
Don’t expect detailed descriptions… after all, I was drinking like a champ.
Death + Company
Took me three tries to get into this place! No rezzos, but if you show up and give them your number, they’ll buzz you when a spot is open. Worth the 1.5 wait? Yes. (Tip, go around the corner some badass brooklyn style pizza. Seriously, go.
The graphic design nerd in me fell in love with the playful menu. The alcoholic in me loved the drinks and service. Dark and mysterious.
http://www.deathandcompany.com/lounge
Angel Share
By far, this was the most-recommended bar by all tweeps and peeps. Walk up narrow stairs into a busy little Japanese restaurant. Make a sharp left turn and pull open the unmarked wooden door…. bingo. One of my favorite drinks of the entire trip was a cinnamon and fuji apple laced take on a classic. A soft shell crab salad was a perfect light nibble, ordered from the restaurant next door.
No Website
PDT
I can’t say much about this place. Seriously. (Stands for Please Don’t Tell). Think hotdogs + phone booths. Secret spot hidden in the most unlikely of places.
Order a bacon infused Old Fashioned with your hotdog. Don’t expect big blowup of bacon flavor in your mouth or a stick of bacon bobbing in the drink. This a beautifully balanced and boozy drink.
Pegu Club
Drumroll…. THE WINNER. By far, the cocktail king of this trip was Pegu Club. In fact, I went a second night because it was just that good. Every single vessel was victorious and drew dramatic sighs of bliss from our group.
Best cocktail of the trip: The Earl Grey MarTEAni. The body shutters with each sip of this sexy love potion. This may have been the best drink of my life. Shout-out to Kenta behind the bar. You are a god among men.
má pêche
Although it’s not a bar, honorable mention goes out to má pêche of the momofuku restaurant clan. Our prix fixe lunch was terrific, but the cocktails left us buzzing. (literally). My traveling companion made it a point to seek out the bartender and give thanks for the splendid sippers.
http://www.momofuku.com/ma-peche
-JxP
I’m on day three in the city. But not enough time to write + eat + drink + work. If you wanna keep up, follow me on Twitter!
I’m taking a minute to recap the James Beard dinner.
1. The house is amazing. Four stories and you enter through the actual kitchen. Tons of funky history on the walls including Beard’s psychedelic chef coat.
2. Greg blew everyone away. Pasta was my favorite course.
3. Sat with new friends at Bon Appetit. Talked food, NYC and the ridiculousness of SB1070. Got encouragement to write an op-ed piece on the subject.
4. So proud of Greg and team. So nice to be in the company of giants in the industry.
VIDEO: Here’s a poor quality video of the main dining room.
-JxP
Whether I need to bike to burn the upcoming consumed calories OR bike to avoid driving while zonked out, here are my favorite nearby spots in my hood. Enjoy!
Essence Bakery Cafe – Heaven on Earth
Hands down, the best restaurant in Tempe. Period. Well, not period, there’s ton’s to say about the fresh pastries, breakfast and lunch menus. According to my personal trainer I’m “dangerously close to this restaurant.” -disclaimer, yes they are a client, but that just proves that 1.) I have good taste 2.) Only the best spots make it to my client roster.
Website | 480-966-2745
El Pollo Supremo – Grilled goodness
You can feed 50 people with 20 bucks. The menu is as basic as it gets, charbroiled chicken or beef. Don’t forget the beans, tortillas and vinegary onions.
No Website | 480-966-3713
Caffe Boa – My watering hole
This is my drinkin spot. Ian the bartender will take care of you! He makes my Negroni’s just the way I like em. Happy hours is a great way to sneak in some munchies with your wine or spirits.
Website | 480-968-9112
Boulders on Broadway – Bar & Grill
Skip the food and come for the beer specials. Odell draft is on the cheaps here! Comfy alternative to the sometimes too-sceney Casey Moores. (full of costume hipsters)
Website | 480-921-9431
Cafe Lalibela – Ethiopian
Tempe is great for ethnic gems, this may be the best. I don’t care if it’s 130 degrees in mid summer, I can always go for the wintry slow cooked, stewed dishes included beef, veg, and my favorite… lamb.
Website | 480-829-1939
-Your food pal, JxP
I loooove latex in my cocktails. Wait, what?…
Taking a cue from our server at Tinderbox Kitchen in Flagstaff, @azhotdish @petitefromageAZ @DoesntTweetAZ @thewildlavender and I braved the icy 40-degree weather and walked to a new cocktail joint in downtown Flag.
The cutting winds nearly froze me to the concrete. For a moment, I didn’t think I could go on. Luckily, Joel (@azhotdish) picked me up and carried my shivering body to the bar.
He was like my bar mule, and I was thankful.
I hitched my mule outside our destination; The Piano Room. You enter this “speakeasy” through a narrow doorway in the alley, walk up a few steps and your in a small bar surrounded by large brick walls and warm lighting. Think ski lodge rather than speakeasy. Cute and cozy with intimate tables, a handsome bar and even a VIP nook big enough to accommodate all 5 of us (including my mule).
The server was very kind and enthusiastically bragged on the Italy-trained chefs turned bar owners that infuse their own vodka in the basement below. Very cool! Clearly the place to be in Flagstaff.
The actual menus were a neat idea, but a little rough looking… Printed and pasted inside old books from the Flagstaff library. Laura suggested a little glu-stick on the menus might make them more presentable. The pages with actual menu items were randomly placed throughout the books, making it tricky to navigate.
At $8 bucks a pop, we all found interesting cocktails that were also easy on the pocket book.
And then it happened.
Yep. Those are frozen water balloons in the drinks.
According to the server, the owners/chefs decided that regular ice watered down the cocktails too much when melted.
The positive: The place has the bones of a winner. In fact, I really think it should be a winner. Lower the lights, fix the menus, and don’t ruin your handcrafted, house-infused drinks with rubber (or latex, or whatever balloons are made of these days).
Luckily, my fresh grapefruit juice cocktail was served tall, sans balloon. There were some interesting and good things happening with everyone ’s cocktails too, but we just couldn’t get past the balloons.
Bottom line, I’d love another reason to visit Flagstaff regularly! Hoping to come back up soon and I will certainly stop by again.
Hell, I might even save on gas and ride my mule.
-Your cocktail pal JxP
The Piano Room – Flagstaff, Arizona
http://theflagstaffpianoroom.com
No number available
Am I the only one who enjoys eating the pith of an orange? It’s that white spongy layer between the outer skin and the juicy flesh of the fruit.
Looking online, I see folks include the pith in marmalades, but are there any other culinary uses for it? I’ve eaten candied peels. What else is there?
And yes, I eat the entire orange garnish, pith and all, in my beloved Negroni cocktails.
Nope, never made it to San Francisco this spring. The work schedule chained me to Arizona.
But… I’ll be in New York City in July for a James Beard Dinner. So lets hear ‘em… what are your picks for NYC dining.
Build my food itinerary for the Big Apple.
Ready…. GO!
Yep, that’s me and mom.
Folks at the Phoenix New Times let me ramble about her in a recent story. She was a good sport, always is.
In fact, she’s a tough old bitch. I like to think I inherited that gene. I always say, “She kicked cancer’s ass but barely survived raising me.”
Seriously though, she’s great. I’m heading to Glendale to visit her today.
P.S. – Look how insanely happy I am with that fish.
Although I didn’t make it in to the preview dinner event *ahem*, I did stop in for a quick bite Friday evening. Read about the restaurant’s relocation here.
Marcellino and Sima Verzino have earned “Valley favorite” status thanks to their hands-on hospitality and fresh pastas so it was no surprise to see the place packed on opening night.
A few times throughout the evening, Sima clanged the wine glass to announce the in-house performance by two members of the Phoenix Opera.
The duo paced throughout the restaurant, singing crowd -pleasing opera standards. A little stuffy and old-school for my taste, but certainly a sincere performance and well received by most guests. Enjoy the performances every Friday and Saturday night.
Still a work in progress (I was told), the interior is a dramatic detour from Digestif’s old bones that Tutto never bothered to touch. Diners now enter through the East side of the building where buttery paint color and heavy doses of dark wood replace grey concrete and metal decor, taking the restaurant to an more mature Italian romantic place.
Pastas never disappoint and I’m looking forward to going back again soon. I’d be a regular if they relaxed on the prices.
I’m confident that Marcellino’s will shake off the bad joojoo of rotating Italian attempts in this space. Third-time’s a charm!
Cheers M & S, welcome to the ‘hood.
Nope. St. Francis is not worthy of the James Beard nom it received this year. There, I said it. But that’s OK! We all know it’s true so let’s get over it and experience the place with some realistic expectations.
A read a comment from a reader of Chow Bella that sums my feelings on the restaurant’s recognition and overly-hyped press.
Leslie writes…”It’s kind of like when it was announced that Obama would receive the Peace Prize. Everyone thought it was ridiculous, because while Obama most certainly should be able to win one in his lifetime, it shouldn’t have been this past year.”
Is it a good restaurant? Yes. And perhaps the most beautifully-designed dining space in Phoenix.
And you thought this was going to be a rake job on the place. Wait for it…
Perfection: An icy Almond Margarita ($9) in your hand while sitting on the shaded patio. This is easily one of my favorite cocktails in the city. Don’t worry, those nuts won’t smack you in the face. If you didn’t read the drink’s name or ingredients, the subtle almond flavor would have you guessing “Hmmm… what is that?” It’s a refreshing new take on a classic.
Also check out their Dark & Stormy. (Or make your own w/ my previous post, “Tornado Watch” my ass… Sip on this Mother Nature!)
Love the “Business Lunch” concept of in & out in 30 min. Too bad the dishes made me wish my stay was even shorter. Chicken Salad ($14) on flat bread was bland (needs acidic element?) and the French Onion Burger ($13) reminded me of the Sourdough Jack from Jack In The Box. (I know, vastly diff ingredients but similar taste, I swear!)
Things perk up at dinner time with a tasty Green Chile Stew ($12) that has everything you want in life, served in a skillet. Forbidden Rice is nice for the price ($15) starring fresh veggies and sweet dressing with spice. (I could’ve been a rapper with dope rhymes like that).
Skip over the apps, including the flatbread everyone seems to be gaga about. A bad romance of what should be a simple yet winning combo of ingredients. My dining pals had no trouble reading my poker face on St. Francis’ starters.
Sadly, the Seafood Cioppino seems uninspired, especially for $25 bucks. Same goes for an under seasoned Pork Chop for $24.
Prime Hanger Steak ($23) saves the day with parsnip and braised greens. This was a favorite for the group. Get it soon, seasons are changing.
It’s tough to focus on the food when the atmosphere and architecture of St. Francis is such an attention whore (in a good way.) The space always makes me feel big-city chic with dramatic lighting, rhythmically spaced wood beams and a loft fit for foodnik birds who like to perch and eat.
Visit St. Francis for the views and drinks. Don’t let me my words steer you away from grazing. Figure out the food for yourself. *Putting away the unused rake*
If I’m in the area, I’ll gladly stop in for a cocktail and a nibble.
-Your food pal, JxP
St. Francis
http://www.stfrancisaz.com/
602-200-8111
