Details were announced this week for the inaugural Gilbert Pizza Festival on Saturday, March 21st 2020. 15 pizza vendors will meet up south of downtown at the Gilbert Civic Center for six hours of pizza heaven starting at 11 a.m. Slices will be sold for $2-$4 and whole pies will be available.
Local pizza makers Fiordino’s Pizza Muffin Truck, Il Bosco, Freak Bros., NYPD and Jimmy & Joe’s are a few scheduled to participate. Local craft brewer Arizona Wilderness will be pouring beer and wine for festival goers. The festival will offer a dessert station to sweetin’ things up along with lawn games from AZ Board Source, live music and a kid’s craft zone.
Tickets for the Gilbert Pizza Festival are available online for $10 at their website. The festival is expected to sell out in advance like the Phoenix Pizza Festival from the same event organizer. Kids 12 and under are free. More pizza vendors are being added and stay up to date by checking their website.
The Gilbert Civic Center is at 50 E. Civic Center Drive, Gilbert, AZ 85296.
The owners of Pomo Pizzeria, Mora Italian and Meat the Ball have announced their newest restaurant that’s expected to open in early 2020. The Americano will be a contemporary Italian steakhouse offering European style personalized service and the finest meats, seafood and more.
The restaurant will feature an open kitchen concept with a wood fired grill for preparing steaks and seafood. Testani Design Group and LGE Design Build collaborated on the interior design of The Americano. Dark gray and light green colors will set the tone for the large dining room. Modern art, crescent shaped booths and butcher block tables will be eye catching and functional. Seating will also be available at the island bar, in the lounge and on the patio.
A world class team at The Americano
Pomo Restaurant Group has brought together an impressive team to run The Americano. Canadian born Executive Chef Matthew Taylor comes from Mora Italian and with his team will serve steaks from purebred Piedmontese cattle & American Wagyu beef, pasta & antipasti and Mediterranean seafood. The restaurant will also have a raw bar and caviar service.
“We are thrilled to introduce our carefully curated menu to guests,” says Executive Chef Matthew Taylor. “The Americano will bring the best of both worlds from Italy and America to provide some of the finest steaks, seafood and pasta that Arizona has to offer.”
Swiss born Paride Guerra will serve as General Manager and comes from the Hays-Adams Hotel In Washington D.C. Guerra has worked in restaurants and hotels around the world including South Beach, Beverly Hills, Switzerland and Australia.
Elya Coffman will be re-locating from south Florida to serve as Director of Service & Beverage. Coffman has previously worked with Philadelphia’s Starr Group & the Michael Mina Group.
An Italian and American wine list will be curated by Head Sommelier Nicholas Padua. The wine list will feature vintage bottles along with wines from boutique and iconic producers. Padua has worked as a lead sommelier here in Scottsdale for the Michael Mina Group and Four Seasons Resort.
The Americano will be at 17797 N. Scottsdale Rd. Scottsdale 85255. For information about the restaurant and hiring visit their website.
Tis the season for wine and food and Grimaldi’s Pizzeria has collaborated with Villa Pozzi for its new winter menu. The seasonal menu, Pizza & Pozzi is available until March 2nd, 2020 and features wines, pizza, cheesecake and more.
“Winter is a great time to introduce warm, rich ingredients and flavors to our menu,” says Grimaldi’s Executive Chef, Cory Lattuca. “Through my collaboration with Daniele Pozzi, founder and winemaker for Villa Pozzi, we crafted sausage and Villa Pozzi Nero d’ Avola braised red wine onion pizza, evoking the comforting feelings we share during the holiday season.”
All photos courtesy of Hannah Johnston of Evolve Marketing
The Sicilian winery was originally built in 1860 and has been owned by the Pozzi family for 5 generations. A new modern winery was completed in 2000. All grapes are hand harvested and picked in the evening or early morning during cooler temperatures. The winery makes 6 varietals of food friendly wines.
The Pizza & Pozzi menu includes the Winter Harvest Salad with roasted Brussel sprouts over a bed of Arugula, Sausage & Wine Braised Onion Pizza, a Resse’s Peanut Butter Cup Cheesecake and Eggnog Cheesecake.
Nero d’ Avola and Pinot Grigio are the featured wines along with Winter Citrus Sangria and a Holiday Cranberry Mule.
Downtown Scottsdale’s Tommy V’s Urban Kitchen will be hosting a wine pairing dinner on Thursday, December 19th with wines from Orin Swift.
The popular California winery was founded by Dave Phinney in 1998 with a couple of tons of Zinfandel after studying in Italy and working harvest at Robert Mondavi Winery. Today the winery makes 15 wines with four of them being poured during this 5-course dinner.
Dinner starts at 6:30 p.m and is $90 per person plus tax & gratuity. To make a reservation call 480-427-2264. The locally owned Tommy V’s Urban Kitchen is at 7303 E. Indian School Rd. Scottsdale 85251. For more information visit their website.
Served that night will be……
1st Course-Seafood Salad
Octopus, Calamari & Scallops
Orin Swift ‘Blank Stare’ Sauvignon Blanc, Russian River
2nd Course-Tortellacci
With Butternut Squash in Butter Sage Sauce
Orin Swift ‘Mannequin’ Chardonnay, California
3rd Course Eggplant Involtini
Eggplant stuffed with ricotta topped with a light tomato sauce
Orin Swift ‘8 Years in the Desert’ Zinfandel Blend, California
Entrée-Surf & Turf
Small Filet with Shrimp, Mashed Potatoes & Roasted Tomatoes
Orin Swift ‘Palermo’ Cabernet Sauvignon, Napa
Dessert-Chocolate Temptation
Chocolate and hazelnut cream with hazelnut crunch, finished with chocolate glaze
Locally owned Barro’s Pizza has opened its 43rd location in a re-modeled shopping center a mile from Grand Canyon University. The new location at 6531 N. 35th Ave. in Phoenix is the first owned by Gina Barro, sister of owners Ken, Mike & Bruce Barro. The brothers opened their first restaurant over 40 years ago using their Italian grandmother Angelina’s pizza recipe. In addition to serving fluffy crust pizza with sweet and savory sauce, Barro’s serves chicken wings, subs, pasta and salads.
“This is the perfect neighborhood for Barro’s Pizza,” said Gina Barro, owner. The area has a lot of families that have lived there for many years so we can’t wait to provide a comfortable, homey, neighborhood restaurant where families can come any night of the week or for any occasion and enjoy a good meal.”
Gina’s son Chris and daughter Kylee are helping to manage the restaurant.
The modern contemporary decor of the restaurant has an urban vibe. The restaurant has 10 big screen TVs letting customers watch their favorite teams, video games and a play area with books and games for kids of all ages.
For more information about hours of operation and to see the menu head to their website.
Critically acclaimed Pizzeria Bianco will be donating a part of its profits to Food for the Hungry on World Food Day, Wednesday October 16th. Guests can dine at either location at Heritage Square in downtown Phoenix and at Town & Country Center at 16th St. & Camelback Rd. to help raise money for the non-profit.
The Phoenix-based non-profit is an international relief and development organization is trying to establish a zero-hunger world and eliminate all forms of poverty.
“Currently, 821 million people suffer from chronic hunger and almost 15,000 children under the age of five die of malnutrition-related causes every day,” said Beth Allen, Senior Communications Manager of Food for the Hungry. “To combat this statistic, people around the world come together on World Food Day to promote awareness and action to eradicate hunger in our lifetime. We are so grateful to Pizzeria Bianco for joining us in our efforts to end hunger in some of the hardest areas of the world.”
Pizzeria Bianco’s two Phoenix locations at 623 E. Adams Street and 4743 N. 20th Street.
Mid-week on the cape finds laid back days at the beach and exploring what goes on around Harwich Port. Waking to foggy and humid mornings for coffee and my morning walk lead to sunny and warm days.
Tuesday was a beach day and lingering around town before heading to dinner in Dennis Port at The Oyster Company. A family favorite for dinner we shared quite a bit of oysters, Portuguese and Bangkok mussels and more for appetizers. Still needing to get my fill of lobster I went with the Lazy Man Roasted Lobster. The stuffed lobster with crab meat stuffing satisfied my craving for the local delicacy.
Nauset Marsh
Fun and adventure around Harwich Port
Wednesday had us checking out a few attractions within a few miles from the house. Stopping at Cape Cod Lavender Farm was new to me and had me enjoying the aromas of one of my favorite scents. From there we needed to keep my 10 year old niece happy going to the go-kart track and bumper boats. The adults acted like kids as we all had fun trying to beat each other around the track and getting soaked on the bumper boats. A fun afternoon of playing like a kid.
Dinner had us going to the highly rated Buca’s Tuscan Roadhouse in Harwich Port. Plenty of shared appetizers including polenta, charcuterie, proscuitto wrapped artichokes and Aracini had me practically full before our entrees arrived. A grilled romaine salad before my Buca’s Bolognese arrived had me packing up it after only a few bites. It made for a great breakfast the next couple of mornings with the wild boar ragu spread on crispy bread leftovers for my homemade breakfast bruschetta. A breezy sunset made for a great after dinner walk on the beach and through town during its weekly festival with live music and more.
Gorgonzola & Bacon Burger at Mooncusser’s Tavern
Kayaking the marsh
Thursday brought out our adventuresome side with a 3 hour guided kayak tour through the Nauset Marsh. After meeting up with Matt of Cape Marsh Kayaking we made our way with the outgoing tide towards Nauset Beach. Paddling through the marsh Matt pointed out native birds looking for fish. Did you know there is no such specie as a “sea gull” as it’s a general term for the gulls found in and around the water.
Arriving at the beach 70 minutes after of paddling we had time to explore the beach and watch the seals bathing in the sun and poking their head out of the water to greet us. Before heading back Matt taught us about the different kind of clams, scallops and horseshoe crabs found in the area. Horseshoe crabs are related to spiders more than they are crabs. Paddling back to the boat launch made for quite the workout as we were paddling into the outgoing tide.
Getting hungry
Working up quite the appetite after kayaking we headed up Route 6 to Arnold’s Restaurant in Eastham. Packed with families getting their fill of fried seafood for lunch, my Wedge Salad with lobster meat was well earned. Hanging by the pool for a little while it was time to freshen up for dinner at Mooncusser’s Tavern.
Steamers at Arnold’s Restaurant in Eastham
Mooncusser’s is a inn and tavern built in the 1700s for retailer Jordan Marsh and his family. Mooncusser’s were land pirates who destroyed lighthouses and set fires on the beach so ships would run a ground to be robbed of their cargo.
My nephew and I shared an appetizer of PEI Mussel Dijonaise followed by my duck infused Gorgonzola & Bacon Burger. The first burger I’ve had on the cape in several years was delicious topped with the melted blue cheese, Crimini mushrooms, Cabernet caramelized onions, garlic aioli and smoked bacon. Saving room for dessert we made our way back to Schoolhouse Ice Cream for the homemade sweet treat.
Heading home from Harwich Port
Friday has us packing and getting ready to head out for the 5 hour drive down I-95 to NJ for the weekend before I head back to Scottsdale. Another great week on the cape full of fun, adventure and eating.
To see more of my visit Follow me on Instagram @SandyWass
Thursday nights will be better than most the next 12 weeks at Nico Heirloom Kitchen. The downtown Gilbert restaurant is launching a weekly dinner series on Thursday, July 25th. The chef driven restaurant will offer 4-courses with drink pairings for $70 which includes tax and gratuity.
Guests can expect dishes that may include hand-rolled pastas, fresh and locally grown produce and family recipes. Below is a preview of the first weeks dinner.
Sweet Corn Fritter | Green Chili Aioli |Tomatillo Chow Chow | Ferrari Carano Rose
Warm Cauliflower | Crispy Kale | Caper | Golden Raisin | Girard Sauvignon Blanc
Porchetta | House Made Sausage | Tomato Barley | Arugula | Jackson Estate Petaluma Gap Pinot Noir
If you haven’t made your way to Mora Italian yet like me, their new happy hour menu might convince you to head there today. Monday – Friday from 4-6 p.m. you can save some dough on pork ribs, veal meatballs, salumi & cheese and more.
For $20 choose from combos including a Rimini pizza or Salumi Board with a bottle of rose or a carafe of an Aperol Spritz.
Artichoke soup
Cocktails are also included on the new menu including Sangria & Aperol Spritz for $5, an Americano for $7 and more.
Mora Italian new summer dishes
Celebrity chef & restaurateur lends his culinary creativity to Mora Italian and is showcased in three new dishes for summer. Chef Matt Taylor and his team execute the menus in the kitchen. These new dishes are perfect for lighter and cooler summer dining.
Artichoke Soup with truffle, Parmesan bread and pignoli.
10 oz. Prime Niman Ranch NY Strip with charred potato panzanella and grilled ramp vinaigrette.
Roasted Summer Squash with smoked yogurt, Feta and neonata.
10 oz NY Strip
The Phoenix restaurant offers guests a modern osteria experience with Neopolitan pizzas, pasta dishes, satisfying entrees and delicious desserts. Progressive cocktails and a wine list round out the experience.
Mora Italian is at 5651 N. 7th St. Phoenix 85014. (602)795-9943
Like many of us living in Arizona, I too came from somewhere else. Across the river from New York City in suburban New Jersey I grew up on take-out pizza, diner food, and bagels. Despite many New York and New Jersey transplants opening restaurants serving food from our home state those foods just taste better back east. Whenever I head back for a visit I head for my favorite foods and I was back a couple of weeks ago.
Most people wouldn’t visit these family restaurants in suburban Bergen County unless you’re visiting family or friends in the area. But if you live there or happen to be traveling through the small towns that dot the metro area they’re easy to find.
Let’s eat
When you don’t know what you want or everybody wants something different a local diner is always a good call. So with family who flew into town we headed to to Matthews Colonial Diner in Waldwick. Wanting a char-broiled burger I opted to eat healthy knowing there would be plenty of food this week. The Beet & Goat Cheese Salad was a solid and out of the ordinary choice for me. My family knowing my eating habits gave me the “are you feeling ok” look when the word salad came out of my mouth.
Seems like Italian food reigned the week with 2 or 3 meals as we wound having pizza or pasta delivered. A favorite of my sister and her family is The Sicilian Sun in Ho-Ho-Kus. Whether we walk over to dine-in or have it delivered it rarely disappoints. Ordering take-out I went pasta free ordering Chicken Scarpello with sausage, pepperoncini, mushrooms, garlic and a touch of garlic. So good I may have to head back sooner than later to get it again.
Chicken Scarpello from The Sicilian Sun
Wednesday lunch had a group of 20 family and friends at the Ho-Ho-Kus Inn & Tavern for a 4 course lunch. Lots of history at this place that was constructed in 1796. The entree course had your typical, beef, chicken and fish option along with Bolognese Tagliatelle. I had the latter, I told you there was a lot of Italian food.
In the city
A trip to New Jersey isn’t complete without a visit to New York City. Thursday I caught a ride to lower Manhattan’s Financial District to play tourist and walk off the calories I consumed.
Getting into the city early I grabbed a a quick lox, egg & tomato bagel from the Park Place location of Lenwich, a local chain of sandwich shops I’ve never experienced before. Not my typical bagel and lox combination but it gave me the fuel I needed to pound the pavement.
Meeting a friend for lunch who had little time we opted for “street meat” from a food truck nearby. The city is know for it’s food trucks and carts offering a quick and reasonably priced lunch. We went for Mediterranean food and I opted for a falafel sandwich and my friend with a chicken and rice. Filling portions for only $5 each. The weather was one of the nicer days so we opted for a park bench to eat and chat.
NYC Falafel
Back on the Jersey side
Thursday dinner had us ordering in…… pizza from Anthony Franco’s Pizzeria. A visit to Jersey wouldn’t be a visit to Jersey without a couple of pizza pies. Sausage, onions, mushrooms and more topping our pies a few slices for now and few left for later.
In between rain drops on Friday I decided to give in to my burger craving at Red Cedar Market Season Kitchen for their RCM Mushroom and Swiss burger. This busy cafe made the best burger I’ve had in a while. Made to order and cooked to my preferred medium rare and drizzled with truffle oil and served with delicious fries.
RCM Mushroom & Swiss burger
Dinner had heading to the State Line Diner, a couple of miles south of the New York state border on Route 17. So much to choose from I didn’t know what I was going with until the words “Roat Beef & Swiss Cheese Triple Decker sandwich with a side of Steak Cut Onion Rings” came out. The rare roast beef was good but I wish I hadn’t ordered the onion rings as I compared them to a hometown favorite pile from the defunct Louie’s Charcoal Pit.
A quick trip upstate to Saratoga Springs
Saturday afternoon I drove up the New York Thruway to visit a friend I met in Arizona who re-located back home to upstate New York.
Once arriving I made my way to Broadway, the main drag in Saratoga Springs, waiting for my friend to get off work. The best weather of my visit had people out & about on this late Saturday afternoon and I found Druthers Brewery for a cold Raspberry Nut Brown Ale. It hit the spot before I strolled the downtown to Congress Park to taste the spring water known for in the area.
Meeting my friend at Purdy’s Discount Wine & Liquors where she got off work but not before I tasted New York State made sangria and sparkling wine.
With other friends taking the train from Boston for an overnight visit the plan was for a festive Paella dinner. After wine, a generous portion of charcuterie and realizing it was late our Paella dinner was tabled until Sunday brunch. Made from scratch with each the chicken, shrimp and chorizo cooked separately we all watched and helped prepare as we sipped on our cups of Spot Coffee, an upstate coffee roaster.
The Cortile at Solevo
Dinner on Sunday night in Saratoga had us paying a visit to get this, a new Italian restaurant Solevo Kitchen & Social. For an appetizer we ordered the tasty Eggplant Chips drizzled with Calabrian Chili Honey and basil. My friends ordered the Sunday Sauce, rigatoni and meatballs in a San Marzano plum tomato sauce and Gnochhi with wild mushrooms, arugula, rosemary in a brown butter sauce.
After seeing several Items I’d already had that week I went with The Cortile, a mix of prosciutto, sweet peas, ground veal in a plum tomato & cream sauce with tagliatelle. Red wine and my Pinky Ring cocktail accompanied our meal and all were satisfied for our walk home.
Back to Jersey then back to Arizona
After a fun visit upstate I made my trip back down to New Jersey Monday morning. Deciding to raid my sisters cabinets and refrigerator for late lunch and early dinner I opted not to order….Italian food for dinner. Despite my best efforts to taste my niece and nephews Chicken Parmigna their like me very protective of their food. Early Tuesday I was on a plane back to my current home, Scottsdale.
More New Jersey and New York eats on my next visit east. See my Instagram for pictures of my visit @SandyWass
