Buchanan

Kelly Fletcher with a favorite bottle

Kelly Fletcher
House of Tricks
114 E. Seventh Street, Tempe
480-968-1114, houseoftricks.com

See also:
-- House of Tricks: Happy Hour Report Card
-- Quiessence Chef Greg LaPrad Leaving the Farm at South Mountain for Sonoita

This is part one of my interview with Kelly Fletcher, executive chef at House of Tricks in Tempe. Come back tomorrow when Fletcher dishes about Thomas Keller and Chris Bianco -- and writes a clever limerick for his headstone.

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Buchanan

The bar at Windsor

Restaurant bars stopped being strictly bars years ago. Nowadays, many people consider them the best seats in the house for a casual dinner that doesn't require reservations, waiting, or a deep reservoir of patience. Because most of them operate on a first-come, first-served basis, customers are free to grab a stool and get the party started -- no pomp, no circumstance, and just a linen napkin to serve as a place mat.

See also:
-- Summer Mixology Classed with Travis Nass at the Last Drop Bar, Starting May 19
-- Top Ten "Reviews" of Amy's Baking Company on Yelp

Here are 16 great places to belly up to the bar for a full-blown meal.

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Buchanan

Greg LaPrad

It's the end of an era. Chef Greg LaPrad -- the talented farm-to-table chef who made Quiessence a destination restaurant and kept it in the media spotlight for eight years -- plans to wrap up his eighth and last season at the restaurant on Saturday, June 15. Sister restaurant Morning Glory Cafe closes for the season Sunday, June 16.

See also:
-- Greg LaPrad Dishes on the Ghost at Quiessence and Gives a Hilarious Answer to the Last Meal on Earth Question

This is sad news for those of us who consider Quiessence one of the best restaurants in town, a reputation LaPrad earned with considerable help from his close friend and executive chef Tony Andiario, who also will leave Quiessence at the end of this season. But if there's a silver lining here somewhere, it's that at least LaPrad isn't leaving the state.

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Buchanan

Taylor at front door with hostess

This is part two of my interview with Matt Taylor, executive chef at Market Street Kitchen. If you missed part one, where Taylor dished about Brad Thompson, Robert McGrath and what he likes and dislikes about the Southern Cooking trend, read it here.

See also:
-- New Southern-Style Cooking Spot Coming to Downtown Phoenix (Just Down the Street From Mrs. White's, Too)
-- Texaz Grill's Chicken Fried Steak is a Classic Phoenix Guilty Pleasure

Five words to describe you: Passionate, demanding, indecisive, goofy, loving.

Five words to describe Market Street Kitchen: Rustic, urban, heartfelt, genuine, comfort.

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Benjamin Leatherman

It may be lacking a few finishing design flourishes, but Gringo Star Street Bar, destined to be the coolest new hangout on Mill Avenue, is up and running and has been since last Thursday. Owner Julian Wright says he wanted to "capitalize on the graduation market" and did. The place was packed the first day.

See also:
-- Tempe Restaurateur Julian Wright To Open Cool, Concept-y New Bar on Mill in March
-- Tempe's Gringo Star Street Bar Opens Today -- Here's a Sneak Peek at its Art and Arcade Games

And why not? It sounds like the perfect spot for ASU students and Mill Avenue strollers to grab a little diversion, which is Wright's fortè despite his emerging reputation as the guy who brings a touch of class to Mill Avenue.

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Buchanan

Matt Taylor on the patio at Market Street Kitchen

Matt Taylor
Market Street Kitchen
20825 N. Pima Road, Scottsdale
480-278-7044, marketstreetkitchen.com

See also:
-- Matt Taylor Becomes Head Honcho at Market Street Kitchen; Robert McGrath Stays On as Consultant
-- Maple-Rye Creme Brulee at Market Street Kitchen

This is part one of my interview with Matt Taylor, executive chef at Market Street Kitchen. Come back tomorrow when Taylor dishes about John Besh, his experience with Michael Mina Group, and his favorite Southern restaurants.

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Courtesy of Noca

Burrida -- Mediterranean seafood stew at Noca

Arizona Restaurant Week -- the Spring 2013 Edition -- begins Saturday, May 18 and ends Monday, May 27 (which is Memorial Day, when most of us will be grilling burgers and drinking beer at home . . . but never mind). By the end of this week, ARW officially will be upon us: a 10-day eating extravaganza of bargain-priced restaurant food and a last hurrah for local restaurants who already have begun to feel the slowdown that comes with our long, hot summers.

See also:
-- Does Arizona Really Need a Second Restaurant Week?
-- Grab Your Favorite Dining Buddy: Arizona Spring Restaurant Week Is Almost Here

I've studied Arizona Restaurant Week's website extensively and found five places I'd not only love to visit but also consider a legit bargain. See what you think.

P.S. This list is based on what can be found on the ARW website as of this writing, and frankly, the pickin's are slim, which doesn't diminish the five noteworthy selections here.

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Buchanan

Tucker Woodbury has been keeping himself mighty busy lately. He and his partner, Jim Riley, have been refurbishing the historic house at Fillmore and 4th Avenue most recently occupied by Local Breeze and slated to become The Fillmore Vig by the second week in July, if all goes well.

See also:
-- The Vig to Open Third Location in Downtown Phoenix
-- The Little Woody Opens With a Little Help From The Vig

But that's not all. Woodbury and another partner, Charlie Levy (also his partner in Crescent Ballroom), opened a new country-Western bar called The Western at the edge of Old Town on April 25. (Check out Laura Hahnefeld's First Taste review, coming very soon.) And if that isn't enough, he has two other projects in the works: a fourth Vig in Flagstaff by late summer and a fifth in North Scottsdale this coming fall.

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Buchanan

Litzenberger in the kitchen at BLD

This is part two of my interview with Ehren Litzenberger, executive chef at BLD in Chandler. If you missed part one, where Litzenberger dished about simplicity, chocolate-covered grasshoppers and his beef with "foodies," read it here.

See also:
-- 11 Great Cooking Supply Stores in Metro Phoenix
-- Chris Bianco On One of the Most Under-Rated Chefs in America and What's Great About Italian Cooking in Italy

Favorite thing to eat growing up: Pizza, Round Table, dining in.

Favorite thing to eat now: Thai food. Thanks, David (Latitude Eight Thai Grill).

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Buchanan

Citrus salad with honey, watercress, hazelnuts at Bink's Midtown

Summer is just weeks away, which means it's panic time for those of us who packed on the lbs. over the winter. Yes, of course, we should've seen this coming, and what the hell happened to that exercise regimen we felt so enthusiastic about back in January? Now there's no place to run and certainly no place to hide, so we're going to look like mastodons in swimwear unless we start eating salads -- and little else -- ASAP.

See also:
-- Arizona Farmer + Chef Connection Conference on June 10 at Desert Botanical Garden
-- Three Greens That Will Dress Up Your Next Salad

Of course, vanity isn't the only reason to eat a simple, appealing salad built around fruits or veggies, but it's a bigger motivator than health or longevity any day of the week. Here are 11 gorgeous, imaginative salads to get us through the summer, most of them making use of fresh, local ingredients, most created by the city's most popular chefs. Dig in. This stuff is almost guilt-free.

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