Crudo

Some say tomato. Others, tomahto. But when it comes to to enjoying the flavor of this perfect summertime fruit, you'll want to say "reservations, please" when venerable East Phoenix restaurants Crudo and Noca join forces to praise it proper.

See also:
- English Rose Tea Room to Host Royal Baby Shower June 21
- James Beard Foundation Chefs and Celebrities Headed to Phoenix This Fall For The Taste America Tour -- Tickets Go on Sale July 8

At 6:30 p.m. Wednesday, June 19, Crudo and Noca -- along with their respective mixologists, Micah Olson and Jason Asher -- will team up to host an all-things-tomato cocktail dinner. And thanks to what's being called a "cocktail cruiser," a.k.a. a bus, guests can experience dishes at both restaurants.

Here's the menu and additional details.

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Buchanan

An elegant spin on Salade Nicoise at Atlas Bistro

Here in Phoenix, most of us take the saying "if you can't take the heat, get out of the kitchen" pretty literally come summer, knowing that the cooker can become the cook-ee in a matter of minutes. We can simmer in our own sweat at the stove or broil ourselves to rosy rareness at the outdoor grill . . .

See also:
-- 18 Favorite Indie Restaurants in Metro Phoenix with Summer Schedules

Or we can wipe our feverish brows, come to our collective senses and just go out to eat, where the AC blows cold, other people do the hustling and we can leave the dirty dishes right there on the table. Here are 13 dishes to give us cold comfort this time of year.

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Buchanan

Gio Osso at Virtù

Gio Osso
Virtù Honest Craft
3701 North Marshall Way, Scottsdale
480-946-3447
www.virtuscottsdale.com

See also:
-- Gio Osso Will Open Virtù Honest Craft in Scottsdale June 7, With Grand Opening June 13

This is part one of my interview with Gio Osso, chef-owner of the brand new Virtù Honest Craft in Scottsdale. Come back tomorrow when Osso dishes about Fred and Jennifer Unger, Beau Mac, and the notion of farm-to-table.

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Heather Hoch

Pig & Pickle's tostadas

Just because the weekend is over doesn't mean you have to starve. Here's what we've got on the books this week.

More events this week:
- Heirloom Tomato Dinner at Binkley's in Cave Creek June 19
- go lb. salt Launches Salt Education Series in Gilbert This Spring
- "Arizona History Dinners" Kick Off Wednesday, June 5, at Cartwright's

Pig and Pickle Beer Dinner with Odell Brewing Company

If you haven't made it to Scottsdale's pork-centric eatery Pig and Pickle, this week's beer dinner is a perfect excuse. This month's edition of the beer dinner series will feature brews from Odell Brewing Company paired with four courses from chefs Keenan Bosworth and Joshua Riesner. Among the dishes will be grilled peaches with fresh mozzarella, mixed greens and brown sugar-peach vinaigrette paired with Odell's Tree Shaker. The dinner will be tonight at 6:30 and costs $44.44 a person. Tickets are required. Call 480-990-1407 or visit the Pig and Pickle website for more information.

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New Times archives

Not even Short Leash Hot Dogs made the list

The first time the Daily Meal came out with its list of 101 Best Food Trucks in America we were neither offended nor surprised no food trucks in metro Phoenix, the sixth-largest city in the United States, made the cut. We often get overlooked when it comes to culinary awards. And as usual, the majority of the recognition went to Los Angeles, San Francisco, and New York.

But this time around, we're pretty annoyed.

See also:
- Six Phoenix Food Trucks, Rated
- Hey Joe! Filipino Food Truck on Cooking Channel's New Street Food Show, Eat Street
- Short Leash Hot Dogs' Recipe in Eat St. Cookbook Out This Week

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"How Much Fast Food Is Sold Every Second?" BuzzFeed video

A recent survey by Placed Insights, a location analytics company, detailed the eating habits of Americans and what they found is more than a little disturbing: We eat a lot of fast food. In fact, six of the 10 most-visited businesses in America during April 2013 were quick-service or fast-food restaurants.

Buzzfeed broke out the survey data to determine just how much fast food these chains are selling every single second. It's worth a view.

See also:
- Burger King Delivery Service, BK Delivers, Now Available in Phoenix
- This Is What 2,000 Calories Actually Looks Like

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Mabel Suen

Scratch Pastries macarons

Every week, there's a cornucopia of Phoenix food news, features, and reviews to report here at Chow Bella. If you're like most people, you probably just don't have the time to get to all of it. So, here's a recap of some of the top stories from the week that you may have missed.

Scratch Pastries and Scratch French Cafe Closed; Owners Duc and Noelle Liao To Declare Bankruptcy

Life got a little sweeter when Duc and Noelle Liao opened Scratch Pastries in a Scottsdale strip mall in 2008, bringing French café food and elegant, inspired pastries to an otherwise dreary corner in central Scottsdale.

And it got sweeter still when the couple opened a second location called Scratch French Cafe in the former Canvas space on Roosevelt Row just a few months ago. But it's all come to an abrupt end. The Liaos have closed both locations and Noelle told Chow Bella recently that they intend to declare Chapter 7 bankruptcy once they sell their family home.

Read the full story on the closing of Scratch here.

--Nikki Buchahan

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Heather Hoch

Live every day like it's the Schnepf Farms' Peach Festival.

The Spot: Schnepf Farms, Open Thursday through Sunday from 8 a.m. until 4 p.m.

See Also:
- Baiz Market in Phoenix: What We Bought, What We Skipped and What We're Still Lusting Over
- Peach Festival at Schnepf Farms 2013
- Heirloom Tomato Dinner at Binkley's in Cave Creek June 19

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JK Grence

Welcome back to the Blended Summer drink series. I can only start out this week's column by saying... Oh, man, do I love this drink. It's one that I first discovered during my days behind the stick at Trader Vic's. I was always eager to show it off, even though it wasn't on our menu.

See Also:
How to Make the Best Rum Runner
How to Make Perfect Frozen Margaritas

Suffice to say, it's about as Tiki as a drink can get. Rum? Check. Tropical fruit? Check. Lurid, licentious name? Big check. But for some reason, it fell by the wayside while the Zombie and the Mai Tai shot to stardom. I'm talking about none other than the Missionary's Downfall.

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Rachel Miller

A homemade cronut.

Is it a fad or here to stay? In the month since they debuted in a New York City bakery, cronuts have established their own black-market. The LA Times issued an open letter to their local pastry chefs to help relieve the city of "cronut fever envy."

See also:
- 10 Favorite Bakeries in Metro Phoenix

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