Tag Archives: #Scottsdale

Bad Food I got from Mostly NEW Restaurants in Metro Phoenix AZ

I was thinking even with the pandemic going on that the food I get out has been better than from previous years. Usually I hit a few really BAD ONES once or twice a year. The other thing that is different is that I am rarely going to restaurants that are new to me. I’ve been not entirely but mostly only going to restaurants that I know. Anyway I thought you might enjoy seeing some of the food I didn’t enjoy from mostly New Restaurants in Metro Phoenix.

Up top was the worst taco I ever had served to me in my life. The taco shell expired on it’s way to me. It was filled with the driest unseasoned chicken that you can ever imagine. It seemed like they just chopped off raw chicken and without seasoning or anything heated it up in the microwave until it got hard and dry. Don’t worry this restaurant that was located in Scottsdale is no longer in business. I wonder why?….

These falafels were very dry and lacked fresh herbs. This falafel place was written up as serving some of the best falafels in metro Phoenix. IDK what’s going on here…Did they get a new chef? Maybe they made better falafels for a professional critic? I’ll never know what happed here but honest… these were horrible falafels. This small restaurant is still in business so I am guessing some sort of recipe change has occurred. A great falafel has a crispy exterior and is moist and fluffy with lots of fresh herbs incase you were wondering.

What is this?

It’s a polenta tower that is unusually stiff and bread-like texture. It’s not very good and it looks like it’s happy to see me…..Or maybe that is the chef’s way of saying that he is pissed off and is trying to say f*** you? Don’t worry…this particular popular restaurant has changed chefs a few times since I had this plate.

I went to a new BBQ place and the brisket was tough with hard fat. I will say that the brisket might have been delicious if it was cooked maybe two hours more……..But the cheesy grits were even worst. They served them to me raw.

I can’t believe they served me this. We even told someone about this and instead of saying something like “I’m sorry” or “I’ll take it off your bill she just walked away.

We visited a restaurant that is no longer in business that was somewhere ion Scottsdale.

I don’t understand why they opened a restaurant before they learned how to cook. The sauce was bitter and acidic with harsh flavors. The meatballs contained hard crunchy carrots. Maybe they were hoping to just sell lots of drinks?

Went to a new sandwich shop somewhere in metro Phoenix.

Looks like my sandwich threw up on itself. My husband sort of liked his sandwich that didn’t look as bad. We did go back and this place did improve.

This time I went to a new Asian Chicken restaurant somewhere in Metro Phoenix.

They gave me the half good half bad plate. Chicken on the left was moist and edible. Chicken on the right was all dried out and very stringy.

Even pizza can be screwed up!

Imagine getting an individual pizza with part of it that doesn’t come with any topping……No topping on a pizza is like getting empty presents on your birthday…BAH!

This next restaurant was already in business but was sold to new owners and opened with a new menu. It used to be ok so I thought we’d give it another try. I was thinking that maybe it got better………Well I was wrong it got worst.

WOW this chicken salad was awful. It came with these processed tasting COLD chicken fingers that seemed like they previously exploded in the microwave and were served chilled to me on a mediocre salad. The chicken finger were sort of hallow in the middle and were crunchy in a microwave kind of way. WOW this was bad beyond all expectations.

Many people will not order fish in Phoenix for these reasons.

I’m thinking one of the worst plates I was served was the trout plate from somewhere in Metro Phoenix.

Wow this was bad on all kinds of levels. Mediocre questionably edible fish. I got lovely boiled from frozen vegetables. I got green mashed potatoes. I asked the waitress why the mashed potatoes were green. She runs back to talk with the chef. He said mashed potatoes turn green when you add black pepper. WOW I guess his pepper was green and moldy. This restaurant is still in business…..maybe some people like this kind of food?

The next one might not look as bad but something very strange was wrong with it.

I got this whole fish from a restaurant that I enjoyed before. This time the fish seemed like it was made out of rubber, We couldn’t eat it. I think they served us an embalmed fish.

Well The Forking Truth is that there is GOOD and BAD everywhere out there!

Be CAREFUL!

Everything is subject to change and we hope it does for the better.

The Forking Truth

Salads I took out in Metro Phoenix AZ

I often eat salads so I do a lot of take out salads too. Here is a collection in no particular order of the salads I took out in metro Phoenix. Up above is the Greek Salad with chicken kabob from Pita Kitchen in Glendale/Arrowhead/#UpperWestSide. The chicken has a delicious char taste and about 18 out of twenty times is juicy, super flavorful and delicious.

Next is the chicken fajita salad from Popo’s Fiesta Del Sol in Glendale/Arrowhead/#UpperWestSide.

This is a great big salad. It differs slightly every time I order it. But it is always BIG.

These salads from Skewers Mediterranean Grill in Glendale/Arrowhead/#UpperWestSide are really great and are only $7.50.

The side salads are very good too above is tabouli and below is beet salad ($3)

Below is the chicken and cabbage salad from Banh Mi Bistro Vietnamese Eatery in North Phoenix.

It’s always tasty and it only cost around $5.00.

Next is the strawberry and goat cheese chicken salad from Cucina Tagliani in Glendale/Arrowhead/#UpperWestSide.

They make their own dressings that are very good and this salad is always delicious. (It usually has more goat cheese on it)

Below is the strawberry and chicken salad from Bottega Pizzeria Ristorante in Glendale/Arrowhead/#UpperWestSide.

It’s also delicious and is also served with house made dressing.

From Phila-Deli in Glendale/Arrowhead/#UpperWestSide is the select-your-own $7.50 Salad.

It’s a BIG pretty nice salad too!

Below is a family style pear salad (lower left) from Fabio On Fire in Peoria #UpperWestSide. Also pictured is his amazing bread, gelato and pasta.

Next is a mista salad from Bottega Pizzeria Ristorante in Glendale/Arrowhead/#UpperWestSide

It’s surrounded by their delicious pasta.

Below are two salads from newly opened Stratta Kitchen in Scottsdale.

On the left is the mistral salad with added salmon and on the right is the chop chop salad with added steak. These salads were really unusually great with all kinds of yummy surprises in them.

Below is a lovely chopped chicken salad from Confluence in Carefree. This is an upscale modern American food type restaurant. Most of the foods they serve are more unique but sometimes you just need to eat a salad.

All kinds of goodies are here like beets and apples. There’s house made from scratch croutons.

In the middle of the picture below is the lotus root salad from Banh Mi Bistro Vietnamese Eatery in North Phoenix.

We even got a house salad from La Piazza Al Forno in Glendale.

Upper left corner is the house salad. On the right is their CRAZY GREAT Bianco pizza with added Calabrian Chili Peppers..(CRAZZZZZZY GOOD!)

Well that is most of the salads that I took out in Metro Phoenix.

Everything is subject to change and we hope it does for the better.

The Forking Truth

Take Out During The CoronaVirus Pandemic in Metro Phoenix AZ Week 21 – CHZBURGR, Stratta Kitchen, Glai Baan, Bottega Pizzeria Ristorante, Mrs Chicken

The GOOD NEWS is that not everyone will get sick or catch the coronavirus. The Bad news is that it is easier to catch coronavirus than to win big with the lottery. Anywho- We are doing take out because we want to support restaurants. On the news they reported that 16,000 of small business restaurants in the U.S. have already shuttered because of the lack of business due to the pandemic. Take out is a less risky option than dining inside these days so that is as risky as we get.

One restaurant we did the safer curbside take out from was CHZBURGR in Glendale. They serve amazing flat style cheeseburgers, chicken sandwiches, hot dogs, milk shakes and more. They are very above average and have an upscale twist for what they are despite being priced only slightly more than fast food.

This time we got (starting from the left) the triple CHZBURGR, in the middle is a special request no onion plain double cheese for my lucky dogs and on the right is the special of the day. It was a salt, sugar and herb cured chicken breast that also was brined. The sandwich came with marinated tomatoes, spinach and garlic aioli. It was suppose to also come with provolone cheese but I have some food peeves and that is too much fat for me so I did without the cheese and did with the garlic aioli. We also shared some potato tots. The food is ALWAYS delicious from CHZBURGR. My dogs got to enjoy a small portion of their CHZBURGR for dinner.

Our very own Michelin Award Wining Chef of Top Chef Masters Alex Stratta opened Stratta Kitchen in Scottsdale. It’s a casual health focused restaurant. They offer a menu of small plates, grain bowls, salads and a few other things where you add the protein and sauce of your liking. This restaurant offers dine in or patio dining and take out and curb side. We went with the safest option of curbside for our first time here.

In the left hand corner we shared the Sicilian Caponata that came with grilled Noble Bread. For my main I tried the Mistral Salad with added (expertly cooked) Alaskan Sterling Salmon. My husband tried the Chop Chop Salad with added strip steak and we shared a Double Trouble Chocolate Cake. WOW everything was AMAZING! My salad popped with all kinds of flavors. I also really enjoyed the harissa with this salad and the fish was really prepared to perfection. That cake was also really rich and very chocolatey. Everything was really GREAT! We save some salmon and steak for my dogs too!

Next we did take out from a little Thai Restaurant in Phoenix called Glai Baan. According to their website they serve Thai Street Food and Northeastern Thai Dishes.

We shared the son-in-law eggs, beef salad, chicken gra pow and mackerel fried rice. WoW it was interesting and different. Less saucy than from most places and the gra pow is very flavorful and much spicier than from most places. This type of food isn’t dog friendly so we gave them other leftovers.

Next take out was from Bottega Pizzeria Ristorante in Glendale/Arrowhead/#UpperWestSide. They are an Italian restaurant that specializes in serving Neapolitan Type Pizzas. Tonight we shared a salad and I got the papardelle al fungi and my husband got the sallsiccia.

I think Bottega does an extremely great mushroom pasta. The mushrooms are so meaty and so flavorful. My husband said that the sausage pasta is very good. Dogs got to eat some cheese here (and other stuff I saved for them)

We were able to squeeze in a 5th restaurant and we both like spicy chicken so we decided to try Mrs Chicken in Phoenix.

We both got the two piece dark chicken meat on the “Hot” level of heat. For our sides we both went the mustard slaw. The chicken is crisp and is coated with spicy heat that builds. The inside is tender moist chicken. We saved some moist, mild from the inside chicken for our dogs.

“Don’t worry we are in this thing together and are here to help you eat all that delicious food”

Restaurants we did take out from are –

CHZBURGR – Glendale

Stratta Kitchen — Scottsdale

Glai Baan – Phoenix

Bottega Pizzeria Ristorante – Glendale/Arrowhead/#UpperWestSide

Mrs Chicken – Phoenix

Everything is subject to change and we hope it does for the better.

The Forking Truth

My Four Take Outs from Twist Bistro and Gallery in North Scottsdale AZ

Twist Bistro and Gallery is a small modern Mediterranean style restaurant, bar and art gallery located in North Scottsdale Arizona. They opened for business during the coronavirus pandemic sometime around May 2020. I haven’t stepped in yet but my husband snapped the next two photos.

It’s colorful and cheerful. The walls are accented with colorful artwork.

On the other side (not shown) is the bar.

All four of our take outs included complimentary biscuits with honey butter.

The biscuits did differ some on every visit but all of them were tasty. Most of them were studded with feta cheese and some had fresh dill. The texture differed. Some were scone like and others were light as a feather.All were delicious.

On one visit we tried a mushroom crepe that was stuffed with black truffle ricotta cheese.

On two of my visits I had the Loch Duart Salmon. It’s EXTREMELY GREAT! It’s prepared to perfection. It came with delicious seasoned black rice, vegetables, tomato salad and pistou sauce. It’s very rare in metro phoenix to get salmon that is this good and prepared this well. …It’s grilled nice and is medium/mediium rare in the middle.

My husband enjoyed the shrimp and sausage diablo just as much as I enjoyed the salmon and he also had this meal twice. It comes with cheesy polenta.

We tried the house made beignets.

They are powdered doughnuts with delicious house made sauces.

Then we did take out again.

In the upper left hand corner is the southern breaded shawarma kabobs with minted cucumbers, marinated olives, jalapeños and preserved lemon basil syrup. We had the same dinners as last time (salmon & shrimp and sausage diablo). This time we tried an amazing dessert (left hand lower corner) It was the mascarpone cheese cake. It came with pistachio praline, salted caramel, whipped cream and fresh strawberries. It was a really great dessert. Just like from a fine restaurant that has their own pastry chef.

We tried a few different things on our third take out.

In the middle is an everything flatbread topped with house made lox. (yum!) On the right are two different dinners. Upper right is willed boar meatballs served with an different style of gnocchi. Bottom right is their “Twist” on chicken and dumplings. It’s really delicious marinated chicken that is moist and flavorful but because of my 30 minute car ride home in the hot heat the sauces and dumplings sort of baked together. It would have been much better to dine in with this one. However it still was delicious. There was all kinds of goodies here like goat cheese, berries, braised greens and a different kind of dumplings that they call gnocchi. On the left are the complimentary biscuits and a strawberry rhubarb cobbler (minus the ice cream because I knew it would melt).

My forth take out was really great too!

Top left corner we shared the Moroccan festival soup. It’s a vegetarian soup with spiced vegetables lentils, chick peas , preserved lemon and cilantro. It’s deep earthy and fabulous! I went with the grilled Hawaiian opah. The fish was prepared to perfection and came with a orange basil beurre blanc sauce, vegetables and scallion almond rice. My husband had the steak sandwich pallard. It’s a grilled tenderloin with mustardy horseradish sauce, mozzarella cheese, demi sauce on a garlic Noble Bread baguette. I tried a small piece of the tenderloin and it was so tender with a really great taste. WOW it was crazy good!

Those were my first four take outs from Twist Bistro and Gallery in North Scottsdale.

www.twist-bistro.com

Everything is subject to change and we hope it does for the better.

The Forking Truth

Take Out During The CoronaVirus Pandemic in Metro Phoenix AZ – Week 19 – Skewers Mediterranean Grill, Taylor’s Chowder House, Wraps ‘N’ Curry, Starlite BBQ

Dining out can be deadly during the coronavirus pandemic. Take out is a safer option and curbside pick up involves even less risk. Most restaurants are struggling and we are trying to support restaurants as much as we can with doing take out.

Our first take out of the week was from Skewers Mediterranean in Glendale/Arrowhead/#UpperWestSide.

Here’s a better look of the food.

We got DELICIOUS BIG salads for only around $7.50 each. I got the chicken kabob salad. The chicken was even better than usual. It’s always good but today it was far more flavorful and very juicy with a really good char taste. My husband got the gyro salad. We added some fresh herby tabouli to the salads to jazz them up. (tabouli was only $3.) These salads are really great! One of the best deals in town. I had plenty to share with my dogs.

Next take out was from Taylor’s Chowder House in Glendale (the North Mountain Area). TCH is a budget seafood house. I got the sole Florentine and my husband got a BIG fried plate called the two plus two (fried battered cod & shrimp).

They were very generous with the potatoes. I got enough for a family with my dinner. All was good and our dogs wanted to try some too!

We also did take out from a tiny casual Indian restaurant called Wraps ‘N’ Curry in North Phoenix. This is a very tiny restaurant with only a couple tables. The sign outside says they offer authentic Indian food. I noticed that the menu has expanded quite a bunch since my last visit. They offer some dishes I haven’t noticed from other Indian restaurants.

My husband got the tandoori prawns. I got the Goa fish (cod) curry and we shared some stuffed chicken naan.

Here’s a nicer picture of the Goa Fish Curry.

The sauce is really delicious. If someone gave this to me to taste and didn’t tell me what it was I would say it’s an unusually great tikka masala. The taste is very similar to tikka masala but has more depth and heat. The fish is cooked nicely and it came with my choice of rice or naan. My husband said that the shrimp were very tasty and cooked well. The stuffed naan was flavorful because the chicken inside of it was very flavorful. What an interesting and delicious take out!

For the last take out of the week we took a little trip by old town Scottsdale and did take out from Starlite BBQ. At the moment (subject to change) they are only open for take out. Incase you didn’t know Starlite BBQ is a sister restaurant of Ocotillo in Phoenix (closed for the month of July).

WOW! It’s abundant and DELICIOUS! We shared mesquite grilled cauliflower, hot chicken and hot fried catfish. Everything is so DARN GOOD! The chicken is a very big portion and we have enough leftover chicken (and extra vegetables) for two small lunch salads.Oh and even the breast meat was super moist and delicious. But gosh it all was DELICIOUS! My dogs were happy to try some.

“Don’t worry we are in this thing together and are here to help with all that delicious food”

The restaurants that we did take out from this week-

Skewers Mediterranean Grill – Glendale-Arrowhead-#UpperWestSide

Taylors Chowder House – Glendale-North Mountain

Wraps ‘N’ Curry – North Phoenix

Starlite BBQ – Scottsdale (By Old Town Scottsdale)

Everything is subject to change and we hope it does for the better.

The Forking Truth

Take Out During The CoronaVirus Pandemic in Metro Phoenix Week 16 – Pita Kitchen, Fabio On Fire, Scott’s Generations Restaurant and Delicatessen, FnB, Aioli Burgers

Dining out can be deadly these days during the pandemic. Take out is a less risky option. All restaurants are struggling and we have little else to do these days anyway so we are giving as much support as we can to restaurants.

Our first take out of the week was from a small casual Mediterranean/Greek restaurant Pita Kitchen in Glendale (#UpperWestSide). I didn’t go in to pick up but my husband said that they installed more plexiglass inside for our safety.

Pita Kitchen bakes their own fresh pita bread that is always delicious. I usually get the chicken kabob Greek Salad. The kabob always taste delicious with lots of flavors and always has a delicious char. 18 out 20 times it is also juicy. My husband usually gets the gyro meat on a Greek Salad.

My dogs always love Pita Kitchens’ food.

Next Take Out was from Fabio On Fire in Peoria (#UpperWestSide). This is a small Italian Restaurant that offers Neapolitan Pizzas, various Italian dishes, amazing breads and desserts (FORKING FABULOUS Gelato). They have a 100% contact free curbside transaction. You order and pay online and all the communication is done by text. They sanitize a table and your order is placed there.

We got family style pear salad, pappardelle con fungi and peach gelato. Everything was very good. Portions were very large. P.S. That peach gelato is the best in the whole wide WORLD. Fabio should go to shark tank to sell his gelato across America….YES IT’S THAT FABULOUS!

Pups were happy to try a little cheese from the salad.

We also did take out from Scotts Generations Restaurant and Delicatessen in Phoenix. They offer breakfast dishes and delicatessen favorites.

My husband got a pastrami sandwich (or actually 2) I got the smoked fish supreme platter and tomorrow we will try the latkes for breakfast. My platter is a really great value. My platter is large and I get three meals out of it. One of the fish I pick is Lake Sturgeon…..I don’t think any other restaurant sells it in Phoenix and it cost around $40. a pound. My platter also comes with a bagel, cream cheese, cole slaw, potato salad, fresh made pickles and vegetables. It’s a nice treat to have once in a while. We also like that Scott’s is open on most of the holidays.

Our dogs were very excited to try some of Scott’s.

FnB in Scottsdale had a take out special on fried chicken so we got two. In case you have been living under a rock…..FnB is co-owned by a James Bead award winning chef Charleen Badman so if she offers a take out special like this it would be advisable to try it.

Half a fried chicken with a peach and feta salad, macaroni and corn salad and potato salads. This is also way more food than anyone can possibly eat. But WOW! This take out was GREAT! Reminds me oof a similar take out from Thomas Kellers’ Ad Hoc. His fried chicken was also fabulous but FnBs’ sides are far more detailed and delicious!

Dogs are yappy….I mean happy to try some.

Last Take Out of the week was from Aioli Burgers in Phoenix. I heard about a Nashville Hot Chicken Style Sandwich that was on special for the Fourth of July….But it was Sunday the fifth and they were still offering them so we decided to give them a try.

We each got a Nashville Style Hot Chicken Sandwich with a side of roasted vegetables. Our sandwiches were suppose to come with green chili aioli but the aioli was forgotten….or maybe they ran out?. The sandwiches are tasty and the chicken is moist. They aren’t very spicy but they are tasty as chicken sandwiches. As per usual my dogs helped with the large portion of chicken. (I removed the coating for them since it might contain spices and vinegar that are not good for dogs)

“We are in this thing together!”

That was take out in metro Phoenix week 16 of the coronavirus pandemic.

We went to-

Pita Kitchen – Glendale/#UpperWestSide

Fabio On Fire – Peoria/#UpperWestSide

Scott’s Generations Restaurant and Delicatessen – Phoenix

FnB – Scottsdale

Aioli Burgers – Phoenix

Everything is subject to change and we hope it does for the better.

The Forking Truth

A little Taste of the Collins Restaurants in Metro Phoenix AZ- Grassroots Kitchen and Tap, Wally’s American Gastropub, Twisted Grove Parlor and Bar, The Colllins Small Batch Kitchen, The Macintosh and Sweet Provisions

The Collins restaurants are of the restaurant group Common Ground Culinary by a 4th generation restauranteur chef Christopher Collins. The restaurants listed are Grassroots Kitchen and Tap, Wally’s American Gastropub, Twisted Grove Parlor and Bar, The Collins Small Batch Kitchen and the Macintosh. The restaurants are similar….with different but somewhat similar menus of mostly a good variety of American Comfort Food Prepared extremely well and all the restaurants offer marvelous slices of pie. During the pandemic all the Collins restaurants are offering the safer curbside pick up option in addition to limited dine in. (subject to change during these uncertain times)

Below are some trips from Grassroots Kitchen and Tap in Scottsdale.

Scottsdale Location

I usually but not always get some sort of salmon from the Collins restaurants. They prepare salmon better than the majority of places. The salmon is always grilled nicely and cooked reasonably well but never dry. You also never have to worry about rubbery skin or the gross bloodline with any Collins Salmon.

American pastrami on a pretzel bun with cheddar. You can’t see but on the other side of sandwich is jalapeño cheese grits.

We did take out from the Grassroots (Scottsdale) in April.

I took out the house smoked salmon and orzo salad, brisket with cheese grits, beans and that FABULOUS key lime pie (made with 40 hand squeezed key limes).

Next to the Grassroots is Collins Sweet Shop called Sweet Provisions (Scottsdale). They serve ice-cream candy and desserts.

As of today I’ve only been to Wally’s American Gastropub (Scottsdale) once and it was for curbside pick up. I noticed that they do have a large patio that looks spacious.

We took out – pretzel asiago fondue, a veal and spicy pork meatloaf with horseradish mashed potatoes, crispy onions and asparagus. My usual salmon…this one comes with spinach…it might be the lightest of the Collins salmon dishes but it insures room in your stomach for one of the delicious slices of pie. We tried the coconut cream cream pie this day. EVERYTHING was delicious.

We made it to Twisted Grove Parlor (Scottsdale) and Bar.

I had a crispy grouper sandwich there with a side of spaghetti squash.

My husband had house made cavatelli carbonara.

We shared monkey bread for dessert.

We were at The Collins Small Batch Kitchen (Phoenix) a number of times.

Tasty Artichoke appetizer.

From The Collins in Phoenix AZ

The Twisted Noodle Salad is incredibly delicious. It just explodes with flavors. Love this salad.

My husband had a burger that he said was really great…but he wanted the slaw on the side…because he isn’t a fan of most slaws.

We went back again and I had a fish sandwich. Grilled nicely and prepared to perfection. It was served with colorful fresh vegetables.

My husband had the burger again.

. We recently did curbside takeout from The Collins.

I got my usual salmon. I am partial to this one because I really enjoyed the cauliflower and sweet tomatoes that came with it. My husband got the braised beef short ribs with risotto and Brussels sprouts. We shared a Ghirardelli mousse pie for dessert.

We even made it to The Macintosh (Phoenix).

I had a salmon and half chopped salad.

My husband had shrimp and grits.

Salmon with a different half salad.

Shrimp sandwich with grits.

Key Lime Pie made with 40 hand squeezed key limes

That was a little taste of Christopher Collins Common Ground Culinary.

Grassroots Kitchen and Tap – Scottsdale

Wally’s American Gastropub – Scottsdale

Twisted Grove Parlor and Bar – Scottsdale

Sweet Provisions – Scottsdale

The Collins Small Batch Kitchen – Phoenix

The Macintosh – Phoenix

www.CommonGroundCulinary.com

Everything is subject to change and we hope it does for the better.

The Forking Truth

Take Out During The CoronaVirus Pandemic in Metro Phoenix AZ Week 15 – Twist Bistro and Gallery, Confluence, Wally’s American Gastropub, Sala Thai

Going out to eat can be deadly these days during the pandemic. Take out is a less risky option. All restaurants are suffering these days so we are doing take out as much as possible….besides we have little else to do these days……. Our first take out of the week was from Twist Bistro and Gallery in North Scottsdale. They serve modern Mediterranean style food that may contain a “Twist” or two.

We got the take out combo for two special. They gave us these complimentary cheese studded biscuits that were buttery and light as air and delicious. Our appetizer was a everything flatbread topped with a layer of creaminess, house made lox and salad. My dinner was phenomenally cooked chicken that was very moist and flavorful. It came with braised greens, berries, goat cheese and unusual (Twisted gnocchi) that were very goat cheese to me. My husband got the wild boar meatballs with the twist version of gnocchi and were nothing like a traditional gnocchi. We also had a strawberry rhubarb cobbler minus the ice cream because I didn’t want it to melt on our way home. Some things were unusual but everything was delicious.

Our dogs helped me with the large portion of delicious chicken.

Next take out was from Confluence in Carefree. It’s a FORKING AMAZING restaurant that serves incredible Modern Cuisine.

We got spectacular fried chicken that came with unbelievably delicious chili Tepin honey sauce, blue corn bread and shredded snow peas. We also got carnitas with tossed salad, broccoli with hominy and popcorn butter and strawberry cobbler with dessert. Everything was so good it was a treat! The chicken is also an extra large portion and I can get three lunches out of it. Still had plenty to share with the dogs.

Our nest take out was curb side pick up from Wally’s American Gastropub in Scottsdale.

My husband was craving the veal and spicy pork meatloaf with horseradish mashed potatoes, onion strings and jumbo asparagus (he said it was VERY GOOD). We also shared the fresh baked pretzels with asiago fondue, For dinner I had the Norwegian Salmon that comes with caper sauce and spinach. You must get pie when you dine at a Collins Restaurant because his pies are outstanding. This time I tried the coconut cream pie and it was outstanding like all the other Collins pies. Even my husband who HATES coconut said the pie was very good. As usual I had plenty too share with my dogs.

Last Take Out of the week was from Sala Thai in Peoria (#upperWestSide).

We shared egg rolls and I had the spicy lemon chicken salad. My husband had the spicy pork basil. Dogs couldn’t wait to try!

“Don’t worry we are in this thing together”

Week 15 of take out during the coronavirus pandemic.

Twist Bistro and Gallery – North Scottsdale

Confluence – Carefree

Wally’s American Gastropub – Scottsdale

Sala Thai – Peoria (#UpperWestSide)

Everything is subject to change and we hope it does change for the better.

The Forking Truth

A little Taste of the Amazing FnB Restaurant of Scottsdale AZ

During the coronavirus pandemic I did take out from FnB restaurant in the arts district of Old Town Scottsdale. I thought my past experiences at the restaurant are more of a taste of what they are really like.

The Chef and co-owner Charleen Badman is a James Beard Best Chef Southwest Award Winning Chef. She serves an ever changing menu of global farm focused contemporary plates that are meant to be shared. The menu usually features a few obscure vegetables and is mostly vegetables but also contains enough meat to please meat eaters. This restaurant also features Arizonian wines.

The restaurant has three small dining areas. (I don’t have a photo of the bar area that was once a store)

FnB also offers a small plant lined patio for dining.

They always start you off with locally made Noble Bread and high quality olive oil.

Bellow are a collection of some of the dishes we’ve enjoyed from FnB.

Tuscan kale falafel
Gilfeather rutabaga topped with onion ginger cream
Snap peas, macadamia nuts, mint, tarragon
crispy chickpeas, beet falafel plate and famous award winning leek dish
My Half

This was half of the Langos. A sort of salad made with a fried Hungarian bread made with potatoes.

Melon Salad
House Cured Salmon
Butterkin Squash

Broccoli with tangerine and pistachios

Trout rillette

Soft shell crab

Radishes, dates, pumpkin seeds, with caper anchovy dressing.

Salmon gefilte fish, pickled beets, beet horseradish eggs and buttered matzo.

Corona beans with grilled radicchio, salsa verde, provolone.

This is 1/2 of the Pink Grouper
Pork Shank

Halibut

Lamb loin with Arizona grains, tepary beans, green beans, chermoula and mint.

Halibut
Duck
Poppyseed tangerine cake with mascarpone and cherries
Apple Sharlotka
Berry Shortcake
Deep chocolate whiskey cake

That was a little taste of the amazing FnB of Scottsdale AZ

During the pandemic FnB is take out only.

For now you order and pay on line and a server places your bag on the table.

This was my take out.

Peruvian chicken egg rolls with quark sauce, lettuce stems and tofu in broth, blue nose bass with citrus and couscous, house made pasta with pancetta.

www.FnBRestaurant.com

Everything is subject to change and we hope it does for the better.

The Forking Truth

Take Out In Metro Phoenix During The CoronaVirus Pandemic – Week 14 – FnB, CHZBURGR, La Piazza Al Forno, Popo’s Fiesta Del Sol

Leaving your house can be deadly during the coronavirus pandemic. The numbers of the infected and dead are rising. Take out is a safer option than dining in.

Our first take out of the week was from FnB in Scottsdale. FnB is a contemporary restaurant located in the arts district of old town Scottsdale. They offer a farm focused menu of innovated globally inspired cuisine. They serve dishes that are meant to be shared. It was a contactless transaction. I ordered, payed and tipped on line. Then we arrived and our order was placed on a table outside of the restaurant by a server wearing a mask.

We got Peruvian Chicken spring rolls, celtuse (obscure stem lettuce) in ginger broth with tofu, house made pasta and blue nose bass dinner. All was delicious and the food traveled well.

Our pups couldn’t wait to try. (They don’t know how lucky they are to get FnB cuisine…..incase you’ve been living under a rock…..This is a James Beard Awarded Chef Owned Restaurant)

Next stop for take out was CHZBURGR in Glendale. CHZBURGR serves incredibly GREAT flat style cheeseburgers, Forking awesome fried chicken thigh sandwiches, hot dogs, kids meals, milk shakes and a few other things.

We did curbside takeout. I ordered over the phone, called when we got there and paid from our car by someone wearing a mask.

My husband got a juicy triple CHZBURGR, we got kids chicken strips for the dogs and I got an incredibly delicious fried chicken thigh sandwich with added Calabrian chilies.

Everyone enjoyed!

Next take out was from La Piazza Al Forno in Old Town Glendale. This is a small Italian restaurant that specializes in serving certified pizzas.

We got a house salad, a Mediterranean Pizza made with house made pesto, house made mozzarella, sun-dried tomatoes and feta cheese and a spaghetti alla puttanesca (anchovies, olives, capers, garlic, oregano, parsley). All was delicious and the dogs wanted to try too!

Last take out of the week was Popo’s Fiesta Del Sol (a Sonoran Style Mexican Restaurant).

I got my usual chicken fajita salad and my husband got the carnitas. We also took out the margaritas that are extremely strong.

We had plenty to share with the dogs.

“Don’t worry we will get threw this thing together”

Week 14 we did take out from-

FnB – Old Town Scottsdale

CHZBURGR – Glendale

La Piazza Al Forno – Old Town Glendale

Popo’s Fiesta Del Sol – Glendale (#UpperWestSide)

Everything is subject to change and we hope it does for the better.

The Forking Truth