Bar Louie Tempe Celebrates “Cinco” for two days May 4th & 5th All Day!

Strawberry Margarita
Strawberry Margarita

Celebrate Cinco the Bar Louie way! Bar Louie is celebrating Cinco de Mayo with two days of mouth-watering offers.

All day Saturday May 4th and Sunday May 5th, 2013
11a.m.-2a.m.

For only $3.00 guests can enjoy 14oz drafts of XX Dos Equis, regularly $5.00 or for $5.00 guests can enjoy a delicious hand-shaken margarita, regularly $10.00.

Bar Louie is offering the following Margaritas for $5.00

· Dos Sauza Margarita, a mix of Sauza Gold, Sauza Tres Generaciones Añejo, triple sec, fresh sour and lime

· La Fresca Margarita, Avión Silver, fresh orange, lemon and lime juices, agave nectar, lemon-lime foam

· Pomegranate margarita, Cazadores Reposado, pomegranate syrup, fresh sour, lime, cranberry juice,

· Strawberry margarita, Sauza Blue O3 fresh sour lime strawberry purée
Free Chips and salsa with any who purchases a Margarita or XX Dos Equis.

Bar Louie Tempe
Tempe Marketplace
2000 Rio Salado Parkway Suite 1220
Tempe, AZ 85281
480-658-1600 or https://www.facebook.com/BarLouieTempe[caption id=”attachment_836″

Chompie’s and Playworks team up to stop bullying on Phoenix area playgrounds

Donations from the new Chompie’s kids menu sales provide funding to run this much-needed program for cash strapped schools.

According to elementary school age kids, bullying occurs most often during recess. Teachers and principals explain that the transition from recess to classroom teaching time is often the most difficult and wasted time portion of each day. That’s why Chompie’s, Arizona’s New York Deli, through its “Chompie’s Cares” program, has teamed up with the nonprofit Playworks Arizona to put an end to bullying and increase teaching time in area schools.

Chompie’s and Playworks collaborated to make a new kids menu for Chompie’s that helps teach kids how to solve conflicts and promote inclusion within schools and on the recess yard. Chompie’s is making a donation to Playworks for every kids meal purchased from the new kids menu to help schools run much-needed programs that teach kids to be inclusive and boost self-confidence.

The new interactive and educational kids menu at Chompie’s offers 19 different breakfast, lunch and dinner kids meals and introduces a new gluten-free friendly section with menu items such as waffles, macaroni and cheese and flatbread cheese pizza. The regular kids meals include all-time favorites like chicken fingers, French toast and cheeseburgers, plus a selection of sliders. The new menu also includes fun interactive learning games that teach sharing, inclusion and conflict resolution.

“This partnership with Chompie’s is the first of its kind in the nation for our organization,” said Chuck Warshaver, Executive Director of Playworks Arizona. “Chompie’s not only is making a donation for each kids meal purchased, but they allowed us to help design the menus to include games and activities focused on our core values of inclusion. We couldn’t ask for a more effective partnership to talk to kids and parents to help reduce bullying, increase teaching time and increase physical activity in our schools.”

“We visited some of the schools using the Playworks program and were overwhelmed by the response from principals, teachers and students as to how successful the program is at reducing bullying and increasing teaching time for teachers thanks to fewer students being sent to the office for bad behavior and how the transition from recess to class time dramatically improved,” said Neal Borenstein, owner of Chompie’s. “We sought to create a new kids menu that encompassed the core values that Playworks teaches on the recess yard, and based on early responses from our guests we know we succeeded.” To view the menu and activities online visit: https://s3-us-west-2.amazonaws.com/chompies/FullKidsMenu.pdf

For more information about Chompie’s Cares and Playworks go to http://chompies.com/ccares.php

Celebrate Mother’s Day at Fleming’s Prime Steakhouse & Wine Bar With a Special Three-Course Brunch Menu

On the most special day for moms, treat them to a three-course brunch at Fleming’s Prime Steakhouse & Wine Bar. Guests can enjoy innovative brunch favorites for $36.95 per guest. In addition, each mom will receive a $25 dining card valid for a future visit.

Guests are invited to celebrate Mother’s Day with the entire family. Fleming’s offers a special three-course brunch menu for children under 12 available for $17.95. Mother’s Day – Sunday, May 12, 2013
Open early from 11:30 a.m. to 3 p.m. and open during regular dinner hours at each location.

Brunch begins with a choice of appetizer including Lobster Bisque, Modern Caesar or Fresh Seasonal Fruits; followed by a choice of entrée including Prime Rib with a Trio of Sauces or Baked Brioche French Toast with a Walnut Crisp, among other mouth-watering choices, and ends with a choice of dessert including a classic White Chocolate Bread Pudding. The full menu is available online at FlemingsSteakhouse.com

Guests can choose to accompany the celebration with one of our specially hand-crafted cocktails including the Bellapolitan ($8.95), Scottish Beauty ($9.95) or Blood Orange Mimosa ($7.95).

All locations – there are four Fleming’s in Phoenix in Peoria, Chandler, North Scottsdale at DC Ranch and Scottsdale at Lincoln Road.

o Scottsdale: 6333 N. Scottsdale Rd. / 480-596-8265
o DC Ranch-North Scottsdale: 20753 N. Pima Rd. / 480-538-8000
o Chandler: 905 N. 54th St. / 480-940-1900
o Peoria: 9712 W. Northern Ave. / 623-772-9463

Abe’s of Scottsdale Deli Is Offering Guests a Delicious Breakfast Special!

What’s better than starting your day with a delicious breakfast? One that doesn’t’ break the bank! Abe’s of Scottsdale Deli has created a mouth-watering breakfast special for guests to enjoy every Monday – Friday between 8am – 11am. Enjoy a delicious combination of the following for $5.49
abes breakfast

· Two eggs – any style

· Your choice of breakfast potatoes, cottage cheese, tomatoes, or fresh fruit

· Toast or a bagel with shmear or butter

· Bottomless coffee or hot tea

· Add bacon, sausage, or ham to your meal for $2.00 more

Abe’s of Scottsdale Deli
10050 N. Scottsdale Rd. Suite 127
Scottsdale, AZ 85253
(Off of Scottsdale Road and Gold Dust, located conveniently behind
California Pizza Kitchen)

As always, all of Abe’s menu specialties are available including piled high sandwiches, homemade soups and traditional East coast deli specialties for breakfast, lunch and dinner will be available.

Abe’s of Scottsdale deli and restaurant belongs to a very different delicatessen era, the glamorous age of 1930s Times Square delis where Broadway performers ducked out between shows for a pastrami on rye. With mouth-watering breakfast, lunch, and dinners, Abe’s of Scottsdale Deli set the standard by serving their guests the ultimate in east coast tradition by providing a unique mix of traditional deli favorites, atmosphere and service.

Abe’s offers a family tradition with table service as well as walk up ordering at our deli counter for your fresh daily hot sliced favorites like our own recipe pickled corned beef and pastrami along with smoked fish and all the traditional deli specialties. The dining room is stylish, with cityscape photos from these yester-years. Abe’s will have the classic deli bustle, filling its customers plates with piled high deli sandwiches, matzo-ball soup, delectable salads, NY style bagels with lox and schmear, and so much more! Abe’s brings a traditional deli experience daily from 8am-8pm Monday-Thursday, 8am-8pm Friday, 8am-8pm Saturday, and 8am-8pm Sunday in a contemporary, friendly, and social atmosphere.

For more information, visit www.abesdeliscottsdale.com and like them on Facebook www.facebook.com/AbesDeliScottsdale

Customers Pay it Forward at Mark’s Café

This past Sunday something amazing happened at Mark’s Café, a local mom and pop restaurant in Tempe.

Two ladies had just finished their meal, and quietly called Mark’s Café owner Karen Vojtek over to their table. They asked if they could pay the bill for another couple sitting just a few feet away.

The unknowing regulars received their “tab” just a short time later, and Karen shared with them that it had already been paid for. Grateful, they decided they wanted to pay someone else’s bill. So they did…and the chain reaction began. It happened over and over. Customers who didn’t know each other at all, all anonymously paid each others bills and it went on for hours. Mark’s total table count at the end of the day was around fifteen tables, all whom had paid for each others meals.

Coming up on the 2 year anniversary of their extreme community makeover, Mark’s Café is a locally owned cafe who is well-known for both giving back to the community and who has also been on the receiving end when local businesses teamed together and donated the time and materials to modernize the cafe, including changing its name, branding, the interior, exterior, etc.

The community’s successful makeover in May of 2011 continues to bring the cafe new breaths of life including Mark’s largest record-setting day which just happened on March 25, 2013 and has brought a very heavy meaning of giving to others in need.

Photo below is table #10 in the “Pay it Forward” succession.They received a meal and gave a meal.

Mark's pay it forward

Mark’s Cafe
6340 S. Rural Road, Suite 120, Tempe, AZ
7:00am-2:00pm Wednesday-Sunday
www.markscafeaz.com
480-839-6455
www.facebook.com/markscafeaz

Fleming’s and San Tan Brewery Announce Inaugural Steak and Beer Dinner

Fleming’s Prime Steakhouse & Wine Bar and San Tan Brewery raise the bar on the natural pairing of steak and beer, with the first-ever luxury Beer Dinner on Thursday, April 18. The two Chandler icons have joined to create a four-course meal highlighting Fleming’s outstanding steak and seafood and San Tan’s award-winning craft beers.

Guests can enjoy this special dinner for $65 (excludes tax and gratuity).

Fleming’s Prime Steakhouse & Wine Bar – Chandler
Thursday, April 18
6 p.m. (reception) 6:30 p.m. (dinner)
905 N. 54th St. • Chandler 85226

Please call (480) 940-1900 to make a reservation

This is the Chandler Fleming’s first beer dinner. Chip Mulala, the brewery’s Minister of Craft Beer, and Fleming’s Wine Manager Bruce Duffy will lead Guests on pairings.

Appetizer: Seasoned Prime Rib Flatbread with Carmelized Sweet Southern Red Onions and Gorgonzola paired with Hop Shock IPA

Salad: Chipotle Seared Scallops with Pineapple and Grapefruit Chutney with Arugula and Strawberry Salad paired with Hefeweizen Wheat

Entrée: Tri Tip Slow Braised in Epicenter Amber Ale served with Smoked Bacon Has, Roasted Asparagus and Natural Jus paired with Devil’s Ale

Dessert: Double Chocolate Porter Ice Cream Beer Float with Caramel and Sea Salt paired with San Tan Porter

http://.flemingssteakhouse.com/

Consumer Wine Demand Drives Restaurant Innovation

U.S. Wine Consumption Outpaces Both France and Italy;
Millenials Drive Growth

For the first time in 19 years, U.S. wine consumption per capita is outpacing France and Italy, as reported by Vinexpo. Currently, Americans account for a whopping 13 percent of total global wine consumption. The largest growing demographic of wine drinkers are Millienials, and their top reasons for wine purchase are varieties of wine by the glass and the ability to pair it with food. Additionally, according to Wine Market Council research, core wine drinkers want and expect choice.

However, despite the growing demand for wine and wine variety, the average list of wines by the glass only offers 25 selections, according to the Napa Technology 2012 Wines By The Glass Survey. This limits the variety of wine available to consumers.

Fleming’s Prime Steakhouse & Wine Bar, a leader in the fine dining industry, is bucking their competitors and creatively offering its guests 100 wines by the glass. Called the Fleming’s 100®, it is available at all 65 locations nationwide including its four restaurants in the Phoenix Metro area.

“It’s clear that choice and selection in most restaurants are limited compared to the growing wine demand. At Fleming’s, we are not just meeting demand – we’re exceeding it in an innovative way,” said Maeve Pesquera, National Director of Wine for Fleming’s. “We’re the only restaurant company nationwide to offer such an extensive selection of wines by the glass.”

The Fleming’s 100® takes a year to create and offers exactly what restaurant guests are clamoring for: variety. The comprehensive wine list is divided by varietals, including traditional offerings like Cabernet Sauvignon, Pinot Noir and Chardonnay and emerging trend-setters like sweet wines, interesting white varietals, Rieslings, Moscato and Sauvignon Blancs. There are more than 30 wines on the list priced at $10 dollars or less.

“We’re known for our impeccable steaks and award-winning hospitality, but with current trends and increasing demand, we’re highlighting wine and giving our guests what they want,” said Pesquera.

Wines from the Fleming’s 100® can be enjoyed several ways: by the glass, as part of a flight, with a Big Pour, or by the bottle. Wine flights are served on the Fleming’s Wine Vine. Guests can select three of the Fleming’s 100® to create their flight, and each selection is served in two-ounce pours and priced at one-third of the regular menu price. The Fleming’s Big Pour allows guests to savor a glass and a half of any Fleming’s 100® wine. All wines on the list are also available by the bottle.

There are four Fleming’s in Phoenix located in North Scottsdale (at DC Ranch), Scottsdale (at Lincoln Road), Chandler, and Peoria. For more information on the Fleming’s 100® or to make reservations, please visit www.flemingssteakhouse.com.

The Coffee Chop Presents “The Knowledge Series at Crêpe Bar”

Morning Sessions Blend Coffee Education, Award-Winning Food, Instagram Rock Stars

Chemex
Chemex

UPDATE: $10 from each ticket sold will be donated to The One Fund helping the victims and families of Monday’s Boston Marathon bomb explosion as Perry Czopp of Coffee Chop left Boston earlier in the day after a week of meetings and a coffee expo.

For coffee lovers, making a delicious cup of joe seems to have gone from putting water in your Mr. Coffee machine to setting up a science experiment. But while the tools out there may be varied and strange-looking, they are actually very simple to use at home. On Saturday, April 20, Perry Czopp of The Coffee Chop will share some coffee knowledge on how to use three of today’s alternative brewing methods. The morning sessions at Tempe’s Crêpe Bar will include coffee sampling, bites from the award-winning restaurant, and hands-on learning from experts in the Phoenix coffee industry.

V60
V60

Says Czopp, “Tools like the Chemex, V-60 and Aeropress are commonplace in today’s specialty coffee shops. Each is designed to get the best flavors from your beans, but you don’t need to be a certified barista to use them.”

At the Alternative Brewing Methods session, guests will learn about each of these techniques, sample the same coffee brewed in each method, then get to make their own cup themselves – all while noshing on bites from the Crêpe Bar kitchen.

The Coffee Chop “Knowledge Series” is a morning edition of Czopp’s popular Latte Art Throwdowns. While the throwdowns are evening events for the Arizona coffee industry, the Knowledge sessions are designed for the layperson interested in learning more about specialty coffee. Each session covers different aspects of coffee – from how to prepare it at home to learning about different roasts and flavors.

“The mission of The Coffee Chop is to put Phoenix on the coffee map. A big part of that is for people to be able to share the greatness of coffee in their own homes,” Czopp explains.

“There’s no stereotypical ‘barista attitude’ here. It’s all fun – especially at Crêpe Bar,” says Czopp. “It’s one of the best restaurants in town and they are doing amazing things with their coffee program. I think guests who have never been here before will be blow away by what Chef Jeff Kraus and Shelby Moore have going on.”

Alternative Brewing Methods will be from 8:30 – 10 am on Saturday, April 20 at Crepe Bar at 7520 E. Rural Rd. in Tempe. Cost is $45 per person for advanced registration and $52 per person on the day of the event. Pre-registration is available at www.TheCoffeeChop.com.

Follow Perry Czopp @thecoffeechop and Crêpe Bar Chef Jeff Kraus @garsdecrepe on Instagram and Facebook for more buzz on the Knowledge Series.

The Coffee Chop Presents: The Knowledge Series
Alternative Brewing Methods
Saturday, April 20, 2013
8:30 – 10 am
$45 advanced registration
$52 day of

Upcoming Knowledge:
Three Roasts – Saturday, May 18
Learn about the roasting process and taste from three different local roasts.
Crêpe Bar / 8:30 – 10 am

Crêpe Bar
7520 S. Rural Rd.
Tempe, AZ

Lawrence Dunham Vineyards’ is celebrating 5 years since planting with a party.

Grapes in the Lawrence Dunham vineyards
Grapes in the Lawrence Dunham vineyards

As the grapes in Arizona’s wine county begin to awaken from their winter slumber, Lawrence Dunham Vineyards is throwing a party. It has been 5 years since the vineyard planted its first wine grapes in the Chiricahua Mountain foothills in Cochise County.

“What a journey it has been from thinking about the next phase in our lives to ending up buying 40-acres to plant wine grapes and producing wines,” said Curt Dunham owner/winemaker at Lawrence Dunham Vineyards. The winery is getting ready for the annual planting season, with fingers crossed that the cold weather is done for another year.

Owner & winemaker Curt Dunham & owner Peggy Fiandaca
Owner & winemaker Curt Dunham & owner Peggy Fiandaca

The winery has become known for full-bodied Rhone varietal wines, particularly Petite Sirah. The vineyards’ 2009 Petite Sirah was awarded 88 points from Wine Spectator Magazine. “Plush, velvety,” and “solid range and character” were all descriptors used by James Molesworth to describe Lawrence Dunham Vineyards’ first vintage 2009 Petite Sirah made from 100% Arizona estate grown grapes. Mr. Molesworth evaluates wines from the Rhone Valley, Bordeaux, Loire Valley, and South Africa for the internationally-respected publication. Our winemaking process includes processing small batches of grapes, handled very gently, which we believe creates an extraordinary mouth-feel and well-balanced flavors,” said Dunham. “This was our first vintage and I was thrilled that my vision for this wine was interpreted and recognized by such a prestigious publication.” Help Lawrence Dunham Vineyards celebrate its first five years of the grape to glass journey.

Date: Saturday, April 13, 2013; 11:00 AM to 4:00 PM
$8.00 (includes wine flights, birthday cake, discounts, & other celebratory activities)
Winery Location: Lawrence Dunham Vineyards
13922 S. Kuykendall Cutoff Rd.; Pearce, AZ
More Information: 602-999-5626; http://www.lawrencedunhamvineyards.com/

First Ever Zoowalk For Autism Research Kick-off “Pajamas & Pancakes

pancakes

In honor of National Autism Awareness Month, ASU Autism Research Program is hosting their first ever Zoowalk Kick-off Pajamas and Pancakes event. It’s breakfast for dinner! Come in your pajamas and enjoy a delicious meal!

Sunday, April 28, 2013
4:00pm – 8:00pm
My AZ Kitchen
3821 E. Baseline Rd. #J140
Gilbert, AZ 85234
(East end of the Frys Plaza between HR Block and the Airsoft Arena)

Fun for the whole family! Entertainment includes Bread Making Class, face painting, T-Shirt design, and a mini Farmers Market. Door prizes for everyone dressed in their pajamas.

Enjoy a delicious meal with gluten-free and casein-free options. Prepared by Chef W and his assistants; including those with ASD (Autism Spectrum Disorder).
Enjoy from a selection of pancakes*, eggs, bacon, and sausage with your choice of coffee or orange juice available. *gluten-free and casein-free options available.

Suggested donation $5 for adults $2 for children under 12.

Volunteers are needed for set-up, cooking, to serve and clean up.