today’s city guide comes from one of my favorite crafty ladies, catherine slye. not only is catherine an incredible sewer and artist, but she’s the first person who got me to sit down long enough to finish sewing my first bag at squam. today catherine is taking us on a tour of her adopted hometown- phoenix, arizona- starting with a breakdown of her “perfect day in phoenix” from morning to night. after the sun sets, she takes you through the town by category, covering art, coffee, food and drink, and shopping. i hope you’ll enjoy catherine’s guide as much as i did- thanks to cat for all her hard work!
CLICK HERE for catherine’s full phoenix guide after the jump!
My Beautiful City – PHX Guide
Phoenix, city of abundant sunshine. It is best to visit after August or before June. I’m not saying don’t visit during the summer, just be prepared for the heat and the ghost town effect, what would you expect though, we are “out West” and Phoenix did incorporate in 1881 at the height of the Wild West days. You just have to know when to go as much as where to go. Sundays are unusually quiet and some of the best places aren’t even open on Mondays. Your best bet is to arrive on a Monday afternoon get settled in before venturing out early Tuesday morning to start your perfect Mid-Century Modern day in Phoenix.
Love Phoenix or Leave Phoenix*, the locals will say, and there are a lot of them, Phoenix is the fifth most populous city in the United States. Not called the Valley of the Sun for nothing, Phoenix is known for the country’s hottest temps for over 5 months of the year – those being May through September. By 1937, the year FLW opened Taliesin West, Arizona had been a state for only 25 years, as it was the last to join the contiguous United States in 1912. By the time Sun City was holding HOA meetings – 1960s, thousands of retirees had come bringing with them their original Mid-Century Modern furnishings. Now, 40+ years later much of this stock is coming into the marketplace. Lucky us. With the likes of Al Beadle and Ralph Haver designing here through the mid-century, Phoenix sports more Mid-Century Modern homes and buildings than any other city of this size.
First spend some time reviewing the Modern Phoenix web site: modernphoenix.net , our best online resource for all things beautifully designed, then head over to Maizie’s : 4750 North Central Ave : maiziescafe.com for their $3 Burger Night – not to be missed. Get ready because, by the end of your 24 hours I bet you’ll be a lover not a leaver.
Matt’s Big Breakfast : 801 North 1st Street : mattsbigbreakfast.com, Go for the food and go early, the wait can be up to an hour, skip that by getting there when they open at 6:30 am. The food is fantastic and like the name says, Big. Get the fresh squeezed O.J. and The Hog and the Chick and save your coffee fix for the next stop.
Lux Coffee Bar : 4404 North Central Ave: luxcoffee.com, Super busy, super wonderful, super all the time. Lux is more than coffee, it’s the people who go there and the people that work there that make this coffee house a sacred hangout for many of us. One visit will not be enough.
Now that you’ve satisfied your basic needs it’s time for some serious shopping. Start high end at Haus Modern Living : 4700 North Central Ave #102 : hausmodernliving.com for a taste of beautiful new modern design then head over to Red Modern : 201 East Camelback Road : redmodernfurniture.com for the real deal, amazing original vintage Mid-Century Modern. Classic, iconic plus two floors to boot. After all the oohing and ahhing you’ve done by this point you should have just enough time and energy to stop at D.A.’s Modern : 527B W McDowell Rd, to check out their vintage wares – small shop, but big on quality style, before a spot of lunch at La Tacqueria Hacienda : 198 East Buckeye Road. Order 3 beef tacos and grab a bottle of Mexican Coke, Spanish speaking is helpful, but not required – gringos welcomed. Visiting Phoenix without having legit Mexican food would be sacrilegious, don’t tempt fate by skipping the taco truck.
After your authentic lunch, start your afternoon with Paris Envy : 4624 North 7th Ave : parisenvyblogspot.com : for French inspired design, handcrafted treasures and trendy women’s clothes, then Frances : 10 West Camelback Road : francesvintage.com : for hip, current and vintage clothing and jewelry to cleanse the palate before diving back into vintage mid-century modern bliss with Vintage Solutions : 3604 North 16th St an eclectic shop filled with slick barware, Dean Martin LPs and gems from ashtray small to living room large. By 5 pm you should be ready for Happy Hour. Head over to Durant’s : 2611 North Central : durantsaz.com, relax and unwind old school Rat Pack style with a cocktail before dinner. Sit at the bar and order the “Debris” – succulent bits of meat, the perfect accoutrement for something stirred not shaken. Dinner is at eight at The Parlor Pizzeria : 1916 East Camelback Road, skip the wait, sit at the bar and order your food there, you’ll get fab food and service. To properly finish off the night go to the Compass Restaurant : 122 North 2nd St : Phoenix Hyatt, for a 360° skyline view, dessert and a champagne cocktail toast to your new favorite beautiful city, Phoenix.
Venues by Category (alphabetical) – you’ll notice once you start plotting these on a map that many are near or next door to each other, this makes for easy “art-bar-shop hopping”, specially with our new fancy dancy Metro Light Rail. Just remember that numbered Streets run north-south on the East side of Central and numbered Avenues run north-south on the West side of Central, easy, right?
ART : Phoenix has a huge emerging art scene, with many small independent galleries and is home to the most successful First Friday (self-guided art walk put on by Artlink : artlinkphoenix.com) in the nation. Our most recent addition is Civic Space Park with the permanent installation of the public sculpture, “Her Secret is Patience” by Janet Echelman.
Art map : phoenixartspace.com/map
Civic Space Park : 424 North Central Ave : phoenix.gov/PARKS/civicprk.html
Five15 : 515 East Roosevelt Ave. : five15arts.com
Eye Lounge : 419 East Roosevelt Ave : eyelounge.com
Gallery Celtica : 509 East Roosevelt Ave
Heard Museum : 2301 North Central Ave : heard.org
Holgas : 821 North 3rd St : holgas.wordpress.com
Icehouse : 429 West Jackson St : theicehouseaz.com
Made Boutique : 922 North 5th St : madephx.com
Modified Arts : 407 East Roosevelt Ave : modified.org
Monorchid : 214 East Roosevelt Ave : monorchid.com
Phoenix Art Museum : 1625 North Central Ave : phxart.org
Pravus : 501 East Roosevelt Ave : pravusgallery.com
Red Dog Gallery : 812 North 3rd St
Space 55 : 636 East Pierce St : space55.org
COFFEE : Eight reasons to be caffeinated, eight reasons not to go to Starbux, eight more reasons to love Phoenix.
Conspire : 901 North 5th St
Copper Star : 4220 North 7th Ave : copperstarcoffee.com
Drip : 2325 North 7th St : dripcoffeelounge.com
Fair Trade : 1020 1st Ave : fair-trade-café.com
Lola : 4700 North Central Ave
Luci’s : 1590 East Bethany Home Road : lucishealthymarketplace.com
Lux : 4400 North Central : luxcoffee.com
Royal : 209 West Jackson St : royalcoffeebar.com
FOOD & DRINK
Aiello’s : 5202 North Central Ave : aiellositalianrestaurant.com : Mmmh…antipasto plate.
Bar Bianco : 609 East Adams : pizzeriabianco.com : The place where you cool your jets while awaiting your table at Pizzeria Bianco, oh it’s not such a bad thing to wait afterall.
Barrio Café : 2814 North 16th St : barriocafe.com : Go for the tableside made guacamole!
Calabria : 1001 North 3rd Ave #6 : calabriadeli.com : meatfilled rice ball smothered in red sauce, you will think you’ve died and gone to heaven.
Cheuvronts : 1326 North Central : cheuvronts.com : wine and cheese, did I say cheese? Cheese. Blissful cheese.
China Chili : 302 East Flower St : chinachilirestaurant.com : vegetable chow fun and eggrolls.
Cibo : 603 North 5th Ave : cibophoenix.com : green olives at the bar with a white plus the pesto salad, yum.
Compass Restaurant : 122 North 2nd St : Phoenix Hyatt : dessert and for the 360° view found nowhere else.
Coronado Café : 2201 North 7th St : coronadocafe.com : a sandwich for lunch, pork tenderloin for dinner.
Durant’s : 2611 North Central : durantsaz.com : steaks, cesar salad and red flocked wallpaper.
Fez : 3815 North Central : fezoncentral.com : pomegranate cab with a wedge of pink grapefruit tickled my fancy almost as much as the house made hummus and pita, oh!
Fuego Bistro : 713 East Palo Verde Dr #D : fuegobistro.com : nothing small here, large and amazing food.
Hannys : 40 North 1st St : hannys.net : once THE department store of downtown Phoenix, now a sleek and swank bar and restaurant.
La Piccola Cucina : 2241 North 7th St : huge sandwiches and entire dinner meals to go.
La Tacqueria Hacienda : 198 East Buckeye Road : the real deal.
Lisa G : 2337 North 7th St : lisagwinebar.com : oh those meatballs!
Local Breeze : 606 North 5th Ave : localbreeze.com : full bar, but the mojito lemonades rock this house.
Lost Leaf : 914 North 5th St : thelostleaf.org : beer, wine and art.
MacAlpine’s : 2303 North 7th St : macalpines1928.com : soda fountain, ‘nuff said.
Nine 05 : 905 North 4th St : Asian, so yummy!
Paisley Violin : Grand Ave : byob and live music.
Pane Bianco : 4404 North Central : pizzeriabianco.com : caprese salad sandwich, outdoor seating and only open for lunch.
The Parlor Pizzeria : 1916 East Camelback Road : personal 8” pizzas and more.
Pasta Bar 705 North 1st St : pastabaraz.com : handmade pasta.
Pizzeria Bianco : 623 East Adams St (Heritage Square) : pizzeriabianco.com : amazing pizza but be prepared to wait for hours.
Postinos : 5144 North Central Ave : postinowinecafe.com wine & multiple bruschetta varieties.
Ranch Market : 1602 East Roosevelt St : prosranch.com : Mexican comida!
Rokerij : 6335 North 16th Street : burningembersphoenix.com : Go to the wine bar downstairs. OMG – Blue Crab Tostadas!
Roosevelt Tavern : 816 North 3rd St : swank local hangout, wine and beer.
Rose & Crown : 628 East Adams St (Heritage Square) : English + Irish, no fighting.
Sapna Café : 1301 West Grand Ave : Fusion + vegetarian, goat cheese and red pepper marmalade quesadilla, mmh.
Seamus McCaffreys : 18 West Monroe : seamusmccaffreys.com : for a pint, or two, strictly Irish.
Sens : 705 North 1st St : sensake.com : ginger cosmo + broth filled pork dumpling = heaven.
St. Francis : 1111 East Camelback Road : so cool it made the list even though it’s not open yet.
Switch : 2603 North Central Ave : switchofarizona.com : fab outdoor patio to match their fab Bloody Marys.
Tammi Coe Cakes : 610 East Roosevelt, #145 : tammiecoecakes.com : tiny muffins, bread and sandwiches, oh my!
Turf : 705 North 1st St : 99 bottles of beer on the wall, 99 bottles of beer…
Urban Cookies : 4711 North 7th St : urbancookies.com : to die for homemade cookies, you will not regret a single calorie.
SHOPS : Every city offers alternatives to the mall, many of our fab independently owned stores are babies really, between 1 and 3 years old, but not a poopy diaper amongst them.
Bards Books : 3508 North 7th St #145 : bardsbooks.com : much better than Borders.
Bunky’s Boutique : 812 North 3rd St #2 : bunkysboutique.com : men and women’s hip clothing.
Butter Toast : 1028 West Grand Ave #4 : Paisley Town : vintage and recycled apparel.
D.A.’s Modern : 527B W McDowell Rd : mid-century modern furnishing and design.
Frances : 10 West Camelback Road : francesvintage.com : oh the jewelry! Women’s and men’s clothing, housewares and more.
Haus Modern Living : 4700 North Central Ave #102 : hausmodernliving.com : Yummy modern, new baby, new.
Hollywood Regency : 708 W. Montecito : myspace.com/hollywoodregencyvintage : vintage and retro housewares and clothing.
Luci’s Healthy Marketplace : 1590 East Bethany Home Rd : lucishealthymarketplace.com : coffee bar, vitamins & supplements, natural foods, beer and wine.
MacAlpines : 2303 North 7th St : macalpines1928.com : vintage and retro furnishings and clothing.
Muse : 742 E. Glendale Ave #152 : shopatmuse.com : fine women’s apparel.
Noble Beast Pets : 1005 East Camelback Road : noblebeastpets.com : best natural market for pets.
Nostalgic Alley : 4532 North 7th St : myspace.com/nostalgicalley : recycled apparel, vintage men and women’s.
Paris Envy : 4624 North 7th Ave : parisenvy.blogspot.com : French inspired design, handcrafted home furnishings.
Practical Art : 5070 North Central Ave : practical-art.com : useful objects handcrafted by local artisans, the only shop of its kind in Phoenix.
Poor Little Rich Girl : 5202 North 7th St : poorlittlerichgirlresale.com : women’s consignment clothing.
Red Hot Robot : 14 West Camelback Road : redhotrobot.net : toy and urban culture shop.
Red Modern : 201 East Camelback Road : redmodernfurniture.com : be still my heart.
Revolver Records : 918 North 2nd St : revolveraz.com : old school LPs.
Smeeks : 16 West Camelback Road : candy and novelty shop!
Stinkweeds : 12 West Camelback Road : stinkweeds.com : indie music – indie shop since 1987.
Vintage Solutions : 3604 North 16th St : vintage, mid-century modern furnishings.
*”Love Phoenix or Leave Phoenix” coined by Georgeanne Bryant, owner of Frances and Smeeks.
58 Comments
thx for all the great stuff – my family goes up to Phoenix every now and then, so we are always looking for new things to do
OOps! Phoenix is misspelled in the listing (which I’m sure has been pointed out to you by now). Looks like another great guide!
YAY! Finally something on Downtown Phoenix. I’m so happy. FYI – The Paisley Violin on NO LONGER byob :) See how helpful I am?
I have lived in Phoenix all of my life and have never visited half of these! Now I have a great list of new places to check out!
I grew up in Phoenix/Scottsdale, and I’d say this is a pretty great list!
I second the recommendations of Lisa G’s and MacAlpine’s and would also suggest Radio Milano (right across the street from Postino’s) for the best dinner I’ve ever had in the city. Also Chelsea’s Kitchen for lunch or dinner and The Vig for drinks/burgers!
This is a great list, thanks!
Oh man, wish I’d had this guide when I went to Phoenix a couple months ago. I did manage to check out a few of these spots (did the 3 hour wait for Pizzeria Bianco) but would have loved to have hit up a few more. Maybe next time!
These suggestions are all amazing! I’ve lived in the Phoenix metro area for 13 years and couldn’t agree more. Here are a couple other food suggestions:
- Rito’s: (907 N 14th St.) Rito’s probably has the best burritos in Phoenix. The menu is short and sweet, but it’s a good thing. This place is a true hole-in-the-wall “restaurant,” tucked away in a inner-city neighborhood. The only downside is the hours — I think they close at 4 on weekdays and aren’t open at all on the weekend.
- Delux: (3146 E Camelback Rd.) A high-top, blue-lit community table really sets the mood for this little burger shop. Every time I’ve gone to Delux it’s been packed, and I’m not surprised. Their burgers have just the right combination of toppings (like caramelized onions, gruyere and arugula) and the sweet potato fries are the best. Ever. Plus, they have tons of beers on tap.
- Cornish Pasty Co.: (960 W University Dr # 103, Tempe) Downtown Phoenix is great, but Tempe (home to ASU) has some amazing eats, like Cornish Pasty Co. Owned by Dean, a cute British guy, this place serves up pasties … best described as glorified hot pockets. I’m probably not selling it well here, but just know that the Pasty Co. is in the heart of Tempe and it might as well be the lifeblood of the city. It’s cheap (about 6 – 7 bucks for a huge brick of food), it’s fun and it’s the most deliciously bad for you food you’ll ever eat.
- The Farm at South Mountain: (6106 S 32nd St.) I didn’t even know this place existed until two years ago when I attended a wedding there. The Farm is really … unique … in AZ. First of all, it’s a pecan grove. That’s unexpected. The Farm has a couple different restaurants –a breakfast/brunch spot, a lunch place and then the upscale Quiessence, which is well-known to the Valley as being a top-notch eatery. All of the restaurants use locally grown produce (a lot of it comes from the garden plot at the back of the property). Diners can take their checkered baskets and sit at the well-worn picnic tables underneath the pecan trees. It’s beautiful!
This is great! I hardly get the chance to go downtown, but you’ve definitely given me a reason to. Thanks!
I’m a native and happy to see Vintage Solutions on your list. Stop in at Lizabel’s Treasures down the street. Also: if you’re in the Melrose District (7th Avenue, Indian School to Camelback), check out Retro Redux (great Steelcase selection), FIGS, and all the other shops on both sides of the street.
Great guide! You hit all my favs. I used to live in the Woodlea District and loved walking the dog over to Copper Star for a coffee. I highly highly recommend the Barrio Cafe, but get there before it opens so you don’t have to wait hours for a table. La Grande Orange has great breakfast, and Postino was my favorite drinks and appetizers spot. Sushi Eye in Tempe is amazing.
Since I am Phoenix native…I love this post! There are great recommendations here and some new places I hadn’t heard of. I will definately be giving them a try in the near future.
Thank you!
Wow, that is quite a list. I love the scenery of the southwest. Next time I am down that way I’ll have to drop in and visit some of those places to eat.
Awesome list! I second Celeste above–Delux is not to be missed! My favorite date spot in all of Phoenix!
What a great list! There are so many of my favorite places listed here. Yay Phoenix!
oh wow! have never been but always wanted to and now am dying to!! great job, Cat!!
Thanks for a great guide! I just moved downtown and I’m always looking for new spots to check out. Way to do our city proud! :)
Also have to second Delux and The Farm at South Mountain as worthwhile additions. Every single restaurant on the original list is fantastic. Love the focus on Central Phoenix – so much vitality and charm there that often gets overlooked.
I’ve had the pleasure of experiencing most of these places. They really are fantastic spots and are helping Phoenix shake off it’s “strip mall”, “chain restaurant/store” persona.
If you enjoy those spots, you’ll enjoy the Grand Avenue Festival, taking place September 26th. It is celebrating local artists, small business owners and the adaptive reuse of historic buildings. There will be tours of historic buildings, open artist studios, musical performances and fashion shows all built around the theme of adaptive reuse and recycling. For more information, check out the website at http://www.grandavenuefestivalaz.com. I’ll see you there!
Thank goodness for this list. My parents live in Chandler so I’m in the PHX area at least once a year. Also, my family friends who are my age and have grown up and still live in Phoenix are amazingly uninformed when it comes to non-chain shopping and eating. So thanks so much!
I am an AZ native and grew up in the ‘burbs of Phoenix. My husband and I moved to central Phoenix about three years ago. Every single one of these places is worthy of your visit.
A new place opening up in the Melrose District is the Two Hippies Breakfast Joint. They have a fabulous taco shack on Camelback Rd. (Two Hippies Beach House) so I’m sure their new place will be just as tasty.
You can get the satisfaction of Urban Cookies without coming to Phoenix and order online. They have the best cookies ever!
What a great city guide, thank you! There are a couple new-to-me places I’m going to be sure to visit.
Wow, this is amazing! I recently had an Arizona feature on my blog {http://nicoleossola.com/arizona/}, but we mainly focused on Tucson…I’ll be sure to point readers here for the definitive guide to Phoenix! Thanks!
Thai Rama was great on my last visit, Galleries are great too!
I’m so excited for this list as I have been a local for most my life and never even heard of half of these establishments.
Thank you!
Excellent guide, Catherine! I’m a born and raised phx native and am so thrilled with the growing art and indie scene. No longer are we dominated by strip malls, box stores, and chain restaurants.
Nice guide! There’s more than a few places in town that I hadn’t checked out yet- now I will!
Good job, Catherine. You make Phoenix sound like a great place to visit. Can’t wait to come out and experience all the cool places you’ve discovered.
DA Modern is actually gone. :(
Aw, this list actually made me homestick for Phoenix. So many awesome places, and it’s just great that Phoenix keeps growing in this cool arty direction.
If you visit in March, there’s always Art Detour. It’s like First Fridays but during the day and all weekend long.
This is a great list. I am a Phoenician myself and agree with the reccomendations listed here. One place I would love to reccommend is Sundrops Nail Spot. I usually take people there after we have visited LGO. Great mani/pedi place so cute and locally owned.
Love the Phoenix list!
Could you include places in
North Phoenix/Scottsdale in this list?
Anyone who knows about La Tacqueria Hacienda, Conspire and others on this guide knows Phoenix well. May I recommend Gallo Blanco Cafe at the Clarendon Hotel, muy nice. Also, Lola Tapas has great food and drinks. Thanks!
Thanks so much for the tips! I live in Yuma, AZ which is about 2 1/2 hours away. We go visit family and they always go to the malls. How nice to be able to show them some new places!
OMG!!! Thank you!!! I’ve been reading DS for so long and always wish there’s a list for arizona!!! This is really helpful, thank you so much!!
another Phoenix native (born and raised!) chiming in with my glee at my city being featured here! We get overlooked a lot because people think that we’re all about chains and big box stores…couldn’t be further from the truth!
And be sure to ride that “fancy dancy” light rail- it’s fabulous: cold clean and quick!
Arizona’s desert is amazing and reading this makes me so homesick! I’m going to be corny for a second – to hear people speak so highly of my hometown warms my heart. Thank you!
-Desert girl living in Portland
We love these suggestions! We have reviews and more things to do in the Phoenix area here: http://www.thehotsheetblog.com. Enjoy!
I am from phoenix and this is a great list. I am actually in the airport right now on my way home from school to arizona! Perfect timing.
I would also add Chino Bandito!! Its chinese mexican fusion in a low key/very causal (ok its in a strip mall) location, but the food is so interesting and delicious! The chile rellenos and jerk chicken with refried beans are to die for.
A couple of Scottsdale and north Phoenix must visits:
Old Town Scottsdale -
The Mission – the succulent tacos, the guac, the Mexican street corn… mmmm!
AZ88 – old standby – fabulous martinis
Cowboy Ciao – the chopped salad is the most amazing, crave worthy thing, it will haunt you! And then head over to Kazimierez for vino and a great grotto atmosphere
North Phoenix –
Bomberos – fab. wine bar with some of the best South American bands out on the patio
Richardson’s – once they reopen – incredible New Mexican cuisine – thier menu will be served at Dick’s Hideaway and the Rokerij until they rebuild (after the fire!)
Yeah Phoenix!
- A proud native
Postino is great, one more to add is Cave Creek Coffee Company – Great music venue, and even better food!
A+++!
I’m so proud of you, Phoenix!
This is an awesome guide to Phoenix! Nice job! There are a lot of familiar places on here :)
I am a new transplant to Casa Grande and have been sorely disappointed out here with restaurants or the lack of or anything of any artistic resemblance. I moved from Sonoma, Ca. so needless to say had everything wonderful around me. I will definitely be adventuring out to try some of these places and looking forward to having rave reviews of my own to add to your site. Thanks
Wish I had this list last year!!!! I love AZ and found Phoenix to be not all that exciting. I think I was just with the wrong company….
Another great place to find hand made amazing gifts is PRACTICAL ART, located at 5070 North Central Phoenix AZ 85012 .One and a half blocks north of Camelback . Perfect place to find unique useful items of all types, in all media, exclusively handcrafted by local artisans!!! Awesome!
Hallelujah! I’ve been waiting patiently for a long time for a guide to Phoenix! Looks like a lot of fun places I’ve never visited…can’t wait to get out to these spots!
I love living in Phoenix, and this is really a great guide! Thank you for putting this all together! I would love to see a list of people’s favorite thrift stores around Phoenix as well.
Awesome guide! But could you please change the Holgas website link to http://www.holgasart.wordpress.com ? The other one isn’t running anymore
Do any of the Phoenix readers have a suggestion for sofa manufacturers/ custom sofas? I’m looking for an alternative to stores like pottery barn and crate & barrel…thanks!
You missed my shop! It’s on the way to Cave Creek, which is a “suburb” of Phoenix. Check out my website at http://www.someoneshouse.com. Hopefully, I will find the time to look at all of the guides. I will definitely look at the guides before going on our next trip. Thanks!
Thank you so much for this! I’ve recently moved to Phoenix and this looks like the perfect way to get to know the city better!
and don’t forget to head out to the Sun Cities, and forage for all those delightful treasures you could find on garage sale days. My Grandma Dorothy lives there permanently, always going on about the great market out there. There’s also a goodwill if you don’t have time for garage sales… one of the best in the country?
So happy to see Phoenix represented well here. Props to those who mentioned the Cornish Pasty Co. (get the porky!), Delux, La Grande Orange and my fave CHINO BANDITO. I mean c’mon, where else can you get shrimp fried rice, a jerk chicken quesedilla AND a tee shirt featuring a big ass panda wearing a sombrero?
Also,if your tastes run more “hole in the strip mall wall” than “fancy pantsy wine and cheese” check out Tokyo Lobby on Bell for sushi (desert sushi can be scary, but this place is safe) and Mrs. White’s Golden Rule for the catfish and sweet potatoes. For incredible yet cheap mexican food try Las Glorias on 19th Ave & Northern (99 cent margaritas) or Mariscos Sinaloa in Tempe (get the camarones aguachile and enjoy being surrounded by mexican cowboys).
I just moved to Phoenix ,and this blog was incredibly helpful! Catherine Slye is spot on with her recommendations, and I’ve already found my favorite coffee shop (Luci’s) and can’t wait to try out the different restaurants…Thanks more making Phoenix feel more like home!
I just moved to Phoenix, and this blog was incredibly helpful! Catherine Slye is spot on with her recommendations, and I’ve already found my favorite coffee shop (Luci’s) and can’t wait to try out the different restaurants…Thanks for making Phoenix feel more like home
check out my mom’s blog about the arts in arizona at http://www.rakstagemom.wordpress.com
Love living in Phoenix and can’t believe I just found this guide. There is so much to do here…don’t forget to get out to the desert….it’s beautiful!
love the suggestions! cant wait to head out there on a roadtrip soon!
anyone have hotel suggestions?
I would add the succlentia located at 6106 S. 32nd St. – Amazing cactus and succulent collection from all over Arizona and the world. Also a good lunch spots located within “The Farm”. We went to red modern and I will agree that the collection is pretty amazing. Yet the owner was unbelievably rude and his prices were very unrealistic. Hence why there was no one there! I would not recommend this stop.
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