Restaurants

I’m beginning to sense a trend.  Most of the restaurants I miss back in the states are chain restaurants.

Is that a bad thing?  I suppose to most Europeans, who enjoy independent, Mom-and-Pop type establishments all across the country, it amounts to a certain kind of heresy.  But it’s just the way of things in Suburban America.  If you aren’t eating out in a big, cosmopolitan city (or a tiny, little one cafe town), you are probably headed to a chain.  And most of the time, that doesn’t mean you are going to get a bad meal.  On the contrary, you can usually count on getting a pretty darn good one at a fair enough price.

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Kristine Hansen is a freelance writer and true wine connoisseur.  In fact, if you love wine, you’ve probably read one of her articles about farming grapes or wine-bar trends in publications like Wine Enthusiast, National Geographic Traveler, American Way and Budget Travel.  She really knows her stuff.

She also knows enjoying good wine doesn’t mean emptying your bank account – which is why she has now launched a new blog, Uncorked Value.

“Uncorked Value addresses the question of whether or not wine has to be an expensive habit,” she says.  “And the answer is no!  I want people to know that there are lots of ways to explore wine even if you don’t have a lot of money to spend.”

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Flagstaff Arizona is a great place to make “home base” during a vacation to the Grand Canyon, and its

Historic Flagstaff AZ

historic downtown (which abuts historic Route 66) is a blend of charming, hip, and fun. Most travelers don’t cross the train tracks there, though; my favorite new restaurant in Flagstaff, Tinderbox, should be a compelling reason to do so. Right on San Francisco Street and just a few storefronts south of the railroad crossing, Tinderbox Kitchen is like a breath of fresh air.

The Southside of Flagstaff in the historic downtown area is hardly known for fresh, creative fare and modern restaurants with clear, crisp architectural interiors, but Tinderbox changes that. It just opened in May 2009, and is already making a name for itself in the Flagstaff foodie community.  I spoke with Kevin Heinonen, the co-owner and manager of this remarkable little restaurant. He told me that his cousin, chef Scott Heinonen, made something of a name for himself at another Flagstaff restaurant (Cuvee 928) after refining his skills at the Culinary Institute of America in Napa Valley, California. The Tinderbox Kitchen chef’s well-earned reputation for adding unique touches to standard American fare, in other words, precedes him.

Best new restaurant in Flagstaff makes me happy

The menu changes constantly, so it’s hard to know exactly what to recommend – suffice it to say that lunch there was a real highlight of the meals had on my most recent trip to Arizona. For example, at other casual American restaurants, tuna melts are usually pretty benign: You get the chunk of canned tuna, a slice of sad cheddar on top, and toast. Still warm, if you’re lucky. At Tinderbox, the tuna was fresh (really!) , with some really interesting herbs added that gave it a unique flavor. The cheese was extra thick, and the fresh sourdough as good as any I’ve had from San Francisco. I don’t remember the last time I got so excited over a tuna melt! A simple tuna melt sandwich, transformed by the creative chef, into a memorable lunch. The side salad was also made from fresh, locally grown lettuces, with a just-made vinaigrette and crumbled feta.

Historic Route 66 in Flagstaff

Because the menu changes more frequently than the seasons, I don’t know if my favorite tuna melt sandwich will be on the menu the next time I’m back at Tinderbox Kitchen in Flagstaff. What I do know is that I’ll definitely be back.

Tinderbox Kitchen
34 S San Francisco St
Flagstaff AZ
(928) 226-8400

People familiar with Sedona know that the main (and fun, touristy) part of town on Rt 89A has just about every type of store – from cheapo knickknack shops to high end art galleries – a traveler needs. One of my favorite restaurants in Sedona AZ is right here: The Cowboy Club is a terrific grub joint, with Southwestern specialties like cactus, bison and rattlesnake (in a tamale, tastes like chicken) along with entrees less threatening to the tender American palate. The owner of the Cowboy Club recently opened up a new restaurant down the road a stretch: The Barking Frog Grille is is beautiful restaurant, with some of the same menu items as the Cowboy Club along with standard all-American fare.

The Barking Frog is in a large, gorgeous series of dining areas, making for a much less crowded lunch or dinner that the smaller Cowboy Club. Plenty of drinks here, including Fat Tire Amber Ale (on tap) and the Prickly Pear and Horny Toad margaritas, add to the Southwestern ambience. It’s always a bit jarring to see seafood listed on a landlocked state’s restaurant menu, but the shrimp tamales (with green chilis and poblano sauce), grilled BBQ salmon, and even the grilled fish sandwich are great and still remarkably fitting. Just like the Cowboy Club, visitors to Sedona can order those cactus fries, buffalo burger (I love this) and even filet mignon. However, most of the menu items are unique to the Barking Frog here and in Park City.

Tom Gilomen, the owner of the two Barking Frogs and Cowboy Club, has a talent for running

Barking Frog's Filet Mignon

restaurants that impart a sense of place as well as great, I’ll-come-again food and drinks. Even though the Barking Frog in Sedona is down the road from the busiest part of 89A, it’s easily worth the 5-minute drive. But watch out – those mouth-watering churros for desert are over the top! Dieters, consider yourselves warned…It’ll take a big hike to work off those delicious treats. The next time I’m lucky enough to vacation in Sedona AZ, I’ll make a point of returning to The Barking Frog.

Barking Frog Grille
2620 W Highway 89A
Sedona AZ
(928) 204-2000

Have you tried the Mosaic Cafe Dos on La Cholla? I have and am here in Tucson to tell you all about it. The Cafe is located on La Cholla in Tucson, across from the Foothills Mall in a nondescript strip mall. I would never have known it was there, thankfully my mother-in-law knew right where she was going.

The seating area was packed with patrons, but we found a table in the corner and with a little adjustment we were able to seat our party of five. There were about 12-15 tables total so we were fortunate to walk in at the right time.

We ordered a cheese crisp with green chilies because, do you know how hard it is to find one in California, let me tell you, it’s really hard. We have yet to find a restaurant in California that makes them. The cheese crisp  was just like we remembered it should be: crispy, cheesy, and yes delicious. We were half way through before I remembered that I needed to stop and take a picture. The kids even liked it, we had to battle them to the last piece.

As an entree I had the Alfonso’s special. It was a combo with chicken, steak, cheese enchilada and chili rellano. I figured I should get that so as to taste as many flavors as possible. It was really good.

Yummy!was really good.

The Alfonso’s special was tasty and had a great mix of flavors. The bell pepper and onion mixed really well with both the chicken and the steak. It was even better after the lime was squeezed over the top. The rice and black beans came on the side and I almost would have liked them better on the plate. By the time I remembered them I was full and couldn’t eat another bite. The special also came with homemade flour tortillas, they make them right in the restaurant and are available to the public for sale.

For the kids we chose the taquitos because there are four and you know they have to have the same amount or there is fighting. Something I try to avoid when heading to a restaurant. The boys liked the taquitos, however I did have to bite the little end pieces of guacamole off of the ends. The boys like guacamole, but I think they like mine and to have control over the amount they get on their chips.

Taquitos

The Mosaic Cafe doesn’t have a kids menu, which is fine, but they might want to take into consideration that kids are finicky to some extent and may not want guacamole all over their food.

On the whole I liked Mosaic Cafe, but it didn’t wow me, I like to be wowed. We took the family to the Mosaic Cafe Dos for lunch because everyone raves about the food. We weren’t disappointed in the food, it was rather good, however the service left something to be desired. The poor girl was overworked, was she new and not used to taking all the tables in the place, did they get an unexpected rush, I don’t know. All I know is that she needed help.

Mosaic Cafe

7354 N La Cholla Blvd
Tucson, AZ 85741

My friend Raven and I were looking for somewhere to kill some time away from the hot Tucson sun last week and found ourselves wandering around La Encantada, an outdoor mall in the foothills. We weren’t too  hungry, but wanted a snack to cool off with and happened upon FROST.

This Looks Delicious

The presentation of the Gelato is fantastic and it took us a few minutes to decide which flavor we wanted to try first.

Raven settled for a lemon/strawberries with champagne medeo and I could not resist the pineapple/mango presentations, they looked so good and refreshing. Raven spent time in Italy and raved about the gelato there,  she said that the lemon at FROST was just as good as the lemon gelato in Italy.

High praise indeed.

The mango/pineapple mixture was heaven, so cool and tropical. I also learned something new that day, their gelato has less calories and fat than ice cream. That’s reason enough to go back, time and time again.

Picture courtesy of frostgelato.com

The staff behind the counter were also very helpful, they let us taste test to our heart’s content, a must when visiting a new venue. The company has received high praise from other Tucson residents by being awarded the   “Best Ice Cream” award by the Tucson Weekly and Tucson Lifestyle magazines for 2009.

FROST has this to say about itself, “Our gelatos and sorbets are made fresh daily with the finest raw ingredients imported from Italy.  Our assortment of intense, colorful, and delicious flavors make for an authentic Italian gelato experience.”

FROST also caters events and makes gelato cakes, which I would like to have for my next party. Look a the presentations, they would add a flair of drama to any gathering.

I want one of these!

Frost is located around the Tucson Valley at these fine locations.

2905 E Skyline Dr Ste. # 286
Tucson, Arizona 85718

7131 N. Oracle Rd, Ste. 101
Tucson, Arizona 85704

7301 E Tanque verde Rd.
Tucson, Arizona 85715

Picture source- My iphone

Oh BisonWitches, how do I love thee. I have such great memories of you that you’ve become a must visit every time I’m in Tucson.

BisonWitches is located on the very eclectic 4th Avenue, which is just a short trolley ride from the University of Arizona campus. It’s the perfect hangout for college kids as well as the business folk that always seem to be ahead of you on the wait list. You can either wait for one of the few booths inside or you can head out to the back patio which, if you have time, is the place you want to pass a hot summer afternoon with a nice pitcher of Hefeweisen.

The sandwiches are huge, even the half sandwiches are ginormous. Some of the sandwich choices are the: Grilled PB&J, Beef & Brie, Corned Beef, Hawaiian Chicken, Green Turkey and the ever popular Wildcat, you’d have to check out the website for the full rundown of sandwiches.

Photo Courtesy of azstarnet.com

That’s not all that is on the menu though, you can get a half a sandwich and a bread bowl of soup or a salad of your choice. Oh my gosh, it’s so yummy.

The bread is warmed or toasted and all the ingredients are fresh, they also have a full bar for your drinking pleasure. I’ve even had a few Jello shots there in my time. It’s no wonder it’s a Tucson favorite.

Say the name quickly and you’ll hear the origin of the name. Bi-Son Witch-es – Buy-Sand-Wich-Es

BisonWitches

326 N. 4th Ave. Tucson, AZ
[520] 740-1541
Kitchen Open 11am – 12am
Bar Open 11am – 2am
7 DAYS A WEEK