Sometimes, I scratch my head when I see various restaurants in the Valley. Most of these times occur when I pass by a restaurant like Olive Garden and see the line out the door and down the street with people dying to get in while the outstanding Mom-n-Pop place next door is concerned that the [...]

At least twice a week, I get emails asking me to check out particular restaurants in the Valley. Most are just places that people tried and thought I might be interested, which I usually am. Some turn our great, some not so great and some end up closed before I even get a chance to [...]

Montreal. Montreal. Montreal. That is all J. and I have been talking about and I was certain that most people were sick of hearing about all our plans. Most thought we were nuts for planning a trip to Canada in the winter, but I have always been an “off season” traveler where I can get [...]

My experiences with BBQ in Arizona have been extremely mixed. There are some really good BBQ joints and there are some places that seem to just go through the motions. By and large, the BBQ tends to be mediocre, with a few shining stars thrown in. I wish that we had quality BBQ here in [...]

Dad has been a great sport about letting down his defenses and allowing me to take him to restaurants that serve – in his eyes – strange and exotic foods. So far, Dad has tried Thai, Vietnamese, and a host of others, often leading to sensory overload for a man who was a meat-and-potatoes farm [...]

On the southwest corner of Thomas and Hayden Roads in Scottsdale, there are two of my favorite places: Sonic Drive-In and a store that sells British imports. I love Sonic because I can get my guilty pleasures of a Diet Cherry Limeade, Chili Cheese Tater Tots and a Coconut Creme Pie Shake all in one [...]

One of my favorite things to do in Arizona is take the tour of Colossal Cave just east of Tucson. It has been overshadowed these days by the draw of Kartchner Caverns, but I still like taking the 45 minute tour down into the cave to see the beautiful formations. Several years ago, I visited [...]

Last year, I had great concerns about finding decent Mediterranean food in the Valley. After trying several places that were mediocre at best, I found that I was in a rut until I discovered some cheap eats in Tempe that fit the bill nicely. But that was last year. Now, the bane of my existence [...]

It’s a holiday weekend. A summer holiday weekend. Three full days of fun, sun and food. In the past, my summer holiday weekends usually had me over at the home of my folks where Dad would be trying to get the Kingsford Charcoal squares lit and a nice fire glowing so we could feast on [...]

I will make a confession. I hate, HATE, writing about BBQ restaurants. It is a losing proposition because no matter what you say about the BBQ – good or bad – there is instant disagreement. There are raging debates on BBQ all over the Internets and, ultimately, they end up in shouting matches with someone [...]