Tacos Chiwas is a small casual state of Chihuahua Style Taqueria located in Phoenix Arizona. They offer about eight kinds of tacos (some are a little tongue and cheek), gorditas, quesadillas, burritos, breakfast burritos and a bean soup.
You order at the counter.
Pick a table on the patio.
Or pick a table indoors.
Soon someone runs your order to you.
Today we tried an asada taco, a carnitas taco and a pollo taco.
These are street sized tacos (smaller sized) but they are very well packed with lots of fillings. You can eat them the way they come or spike them up a little more with the salsa bar.
All the tacos were very good but the one that stood out today was the asada (beef) taco. The beef (today…maybe not tomorrow) was the most developed with flavors. It was tender and had this delicious smoky char on it. All the tacos were well worth the $2.50 that each of them cost.
I’d say my trip to Tacos Chiwas was Worth a Fork!
Worth a Fork!
www.TacosChiwas.com
Every FORKING Thing is subject to change and your experience may or may NOT differ.
The Upper West Side of Metro Phoenix has a New Restaurant Opening with Greek Palace…..OPA!……This is a full service Mediterranean Restaurant. The atmosphere is airy modern with some Greek accents.
We ordered and the first thing that comes out are freshly made Greek Salads that are part of our lunch platters.
Next comes out our Combo Appetizer.
We received creamy Hummus, smoky Baba Ghanouj, lemon-ee Domas, Falafels, Tzatziki Sauce, (ultra garlic) Tahini Sauce and Lots of Warm Pita Bread.
The falafels are on the dense side and not so herby……but they taste fresh made and have a nice chick pea flavor.
Then our lunch platters arrive. I got the Chicken Kabob Platter.
I received juicy slightly charred marinated chunks of chicken breast, yellow basmati rice, grilled tomato, pepper and onion, tzatziki and more pita bread. All is A-OK here! I should note that the menu description differed slightly for the platters and reads Greek Pickles and Turnips instead of the Grilled Vegetables…..Our waiter explained that is due to the soft opening and they weren’t able to get them in………
My husband tried what is named the Fire Fighter Platter.
He received a plate of thin seasoned beef and lamb that was charbroiled on a vertical skewer, grilled onions, tomato, pepper, hot peppers (that might be giardiniera), yellow basmati rice, tzatziki and warm pita bread. The meat is moist and flavorful all is good here too!
Portions were large and we had leftovers to pack up…..
OPA! Muchas Gracias! LOL
If in the area you might consider giving Greek Place in Peoria a try!
OPA! Greek Palace recently opened in Peoria!
Opa!
www.GreekPalace.net
Everything is subject to change and your experience may or may not differ.
********UPDATE was CLOSED FOR BUSINESS during pandemic and is NOW OPEN AGAIN*****The HOT Chick Restaurant recently opened in Scottsdale by Old Town. This is a FUN casual chicken restaurant that offers a bar, games, videos to watch and of course food with a retro 70s vibe.
The bar
They also offer all kinds of seating. You can be by the video games.
One of the patios
You get full service only if you sit at the bar.
For all other seating you order yourself at the trailer that is located behind the bar.
The trailer is the counter where you order and pay if you are not sitting at the bar.
Here’s the menu. All the chicken is organic, free range, antibiotic and hormone free.
They offer Fried Chicken in half or whole in original or Hot Chick, 2 kinds of wings, chicken nubs, snacks and sides, salads, seven varieties of chicken sandwiches but ONLY ONE is HOT Chick. They also offer a brunch menu limited to the weekend and two desserts.
We walked up to the trailer and ordered and paid. Took a pager with us and sat at a booth. We checked out the cocktail menu while waiting. In reasonable time our pager was blinking and buzzing.
I got the HOT Chick sandwich.
It’s a crispy hot chicken breast with house slaw and house pickle on a rich eggy bun. (they also had a condiment area and we picked up deviled egg sauce and some sort of Thai sauce)
First I taste a small amount of chicken by it’s self……WOW is THAT FORKING CRISPY and MIGHTY Flavorful……it’s also moist! It is HOT but VERY Flavorful. I think around a number 4 Thai Hot out of 5. I can taste a lot of flavors like cayenne, but there is something in there that makes the cayenne taste very delicious, there’s something very sweet but it’s balanced, not too sweet…..not sure but I think a taste some secret crushed potato chips…? Well whatever all this is …….This is Forking AWESOME with well made slaw and well crafted pickles. It’s getting very messy with sauce or and juices squirting out everywhere…….It’s a DELICIOUS HOT MESS! It’s also a Forking hum YUM Dinger! (only $9.00…..WHAT THE CLUCK!…..is that a misprint?………..only $9.00…… ((price is subject to change..))
Mu husband ordered the 1/2 hot chicken…..but it was cut into 6 pieces. It came with house made biscuit and house made pickles. I think it was suppose to come with maple butter?
He got a wing (cut in two), thigh, breast (cut in two) and a leg. I took a small bite out of the thigh. NO FOWL PLAY HERE! The Thigh is Forking awesome……Crunchy succulent flavorful…….really Really Great…..Not sure but seemed hotter than the HOT Chick sandwich…maybe because it didn’t have the slaw, bun and pickles to cool things down…? . (only $12.00) subject to change
We shared two of the sides The pimento macaroni and cheese and the green goddess green beans. ($5.00 each and subject to change)
pimento macaroni and cheese and the green goddess green beans
The pimento macaroni and cheese was topped with crunchy chicken skin. I taste the macaroni……..This is smoky……to me it doesn’t taste like pimento because the smoke taste over powers everything else. My husband taste it and agrees that it is smoky. The green goddess green beans are more of a cold salad with a lot of arugula and smoked almonds.
I’ll say find that HOT Chick and buy a sandwich and all the day you will have good Cluck!
Hot Chick is Worth a Fork!
Worth a Fork!
www.TheHotChick.com
Every FORKING THING is subject to change and YOUR experience may or may NOT differ.
Can any salad be a Caesar salad if you stab it enough? (incase you didn’t know Julius Caesar was stabbed 23 times by his assassins)
I recently went to Pappadeaux Fresh Seafood Restaurant located in Phoenix.
I ordered the Creole Caesar Salad with blackened Salmon with house made Caesar dressing. ($24.95)
My plate arrives and the first thing I notice is that the fish isn’t very blackened….(for $24.95)
It should look more like this Blackened Salmon from Ocean Prime below.
The Blackened Salmon Salad from Ocean Prime
.(blackened is the technique of darkening the protein in the pan or on the grill) The second thing I notice is that the dressing doesn’t look like Caesar Dressing?
It doesn’t taste like Caesar Dressing either…..
Trust me I was a Caesar Expert….I was a professional…and preformed Caesar salads Table-side when I worked in fine dining. Maybe you are wondering WTFork is Caesar dressing anyway?
I was taught that Caesar Dressing should only be made in a large wooden bowl. You start by breaking down a garlic clove with a fork. Then you mash in the anchovies, add an egg yolk and slowly drizzle in olive oil while you are stirring real fast and you get the mixture to emulsify. Then you dance around with other ingredients and go back and forth as much as you can to make a show with red wine vinegar, you squeeze a fresh lemon, add a dash of Worcestershire sauce, back and forth with the olive oil bunches of times, stir stir stir, toss in a big bowl of hand torn romaine, add lots of shredded parmesan, add croutons and finish with fresh ground black pepper. That is what Caesar should be. The dressing should be somewhat thick, deeply flavorful and is a sort of grout color.
What The FORK is this?
It’s a loose white dressing that is almost tasteless except for the chunks of cheese that taste like a weak parmesan.
I get my husband to taste some salad….He gets mad because this salad cost $24.95 and this house made Caesar Dressing isn’t Caesar Dressing.
He flags down our waiter and questions him. We were told that the dressing is made without anchovies and egg……I didn’t ask but I think it was made without garlic and also lacks black pepper and maybe everything else…..
Maybe these days any salad can be a Caesar salad if you stab it enough?
Fun Photos were used from www.Pinterest
Can any FORKING Salad be a Caesar salad if you stab it enough?
Tap and Bowl is a unique little restaurant located in Old Town Scottsdale on the end by the waterfront. They offer about a dozen different varieties of fresh made to order artisan bowls that are seasonal and some that are globally inspired. They also offer craft beers, cider, hand crafted artisan sodas, appetizers and more!
They offer lush patio seating.
Seating at the bar, traditional tables, a sofa and high tops.
We were given water and at the time it seemed like the best water I’ve had in a long time. The waitress said that it was filtered with their Italian soda machine. So we tried a hand crafted cucumber/watermelon soda made with real cane sugar.
WOW! It was so light and refreshing! I never had a soda like this before. It was delicious and not too sweet either. It was perfect.
I went with the Atlantic Salmon and Cali Rice Bowl.
My bowl was packed full of delicious vegetables and perfectly prepared salmon that was enhanced with a delicious slightly Asian sauce. The salmon had crisp tasty edges and was towards medium rare in the center…it was really great! The bowl included cauliflower rice, edamame, carrots, avocado, onions, peppers, mushrooms, snap peas, cilantro, sesame and ponzu sauce. I’d love to eat this every week! It had so many great textures and flavors!
My husband tried the Fried Chicken Mac and Cheese Bowl.
The Chicken seemed free of oil and had a very crispy tasty exterior and was juicy inside. The pasta was prepared well and was in a tasty cheddar sauce. The bowl also included broccoli, corn, tomatoes, cotija cheese, scallions and pickled onions added some interest.
We both enjoyed our meals very much at Tap and Bowl in Scottsdale.
I have to say Tap and Bowl is Worth a Fork!
Worth a Fork!
www.TapandBowl.com
Every THING is subject to change and your experience may or may NOT differ.
Confluence is a small but upscale restaurant located in Carefree Arizona. They prepare painstakingly detailed farm to table elevated modern cuisine. The atmosphere is classic with an open kitchen and modern touches.
Seating is available at the bar, traditional tables and on the patio with mountain views.
Tonight they started us off with house made country bread and a smear of perfect guinea hen yolk.
The yolk was jammy and very rich….The bread was just delicious..this was a treat.
Then we shared the Medjool Dates.
I don’t think I’ve ever had dates that were this fresh before…….or this creamy? The sweet dates sat on top of little mounds of labne. The rest of the plate was couscous that was studded with pistachios and golden raisins. Everything harmonized very well together.
For my dinner I tried the Scorpion Fish.
I never had scorpion fish before……It has a similar texture and taste to monkfish. It’s a dense firm fish. The crust on it is spectacular….It’s paper thin but so crisp and crusty. Bonito flakes add an unexpected smoky taste….The plate turns magical… The tomatoes taste like slow roasted tomatoes but have the texture of fresh tomatoes…..I don’t know how the Fork that can be possible….The Chinese Cabbage taste better than Chinese Cabbage…it was cooked in some sort of magical potion. The little purple potatoes just melt in the mouth in that brown butter hollandaise….and the sweet pops from the crisp snap peas are delicious and add a nice contrast.
My husband surprised me and got the Gurnard Fish from New Zealand. (I was surprised because he almost never orders fish)
It was a fresh tasting mild fish that was well seared crispy. It was served with crisp gnocchi, mushrooms, English peas and the finest Iberico Chorizo. (from a special black footed pig that was kissed by Jesus………..((only kidding))…… eats nothing but acorns……ultra expensive like around $90.00 for 4oz. )
Desserts are usually stunning so we tried the Caramel Apple this time.
It’s like a deconstructed apple pastry……On the side is a cinnamon walnut crisp that is shattering crispy. So you break it up and slice off some apple and taste it in the different sauces of honey vanilla, milk jam and apple cider. This one is delicious and really great!
Confluence is always worthy of a Mention and is – Worth a Fork!
Worth a Fork! The kind of place that you would travel across town for.
www.restaurantConfluence.com
Every thing is subject to change and your experience may or may not differ.
Some of the previous dishes we enjoyed from Confluence
SnapperDuckcucumber salad made with five kinds of cucumberpeachMonk Fish Guinea HenFruit Granite (all the desserts were great but this one was my favorite)This Chicken Sandwich was to DIE FOR!!!!! One of the best things I’ve ever eatenSea Bream The Forking Truth
Veneto Trattoria is an Italian Restaurant located in Scottsdale Arizona. They are a full service restaurant that specializes in serving Northern Italian Regional Foods and also several fresh seafood dishes.
The decor is very homey and classic. The tables are linen topped neat with polished silverware and wine glasses. All kinds of Italian souvenirs are decorations for the walls. It’s like you are in an Italian Grandma’s house. They offer some bar seating, patio seating.
There is also seating in the main dining room and the room off the main dining room.
They start you off with a basket of crusty breads, butter and oil and balsamic in adorable Italian made pottery.
One specialty of the house is the Venetian Style Cod that is very popular in Italy but seldom found in Italian Restaurants in Metro Phoenix.
Baccala Mantecato (Venetian Style Cod)
The Dried Cod (baccala) is rinsed in water for two days (or more) and then gets blended with olive oil, maybe some dairy till it turns into a mousse-like consistency and is served over grilled polenta.
But tonight we started with salads…They were fresh made and large enough to share. I started to eat mine and Forking forgot to photo it. I thought the Venetian Style Cod I just showed you from a previous visit was by far more interesting anyway.
I was pleasantly surprised with all the seafood specials they offered this evening. They offer six seafood items on the menu and tonight they offered an additional THREE More seafood dinners and one was a special branzino that was roasted in a salt crust and prepared table side.
I went with the Sea Bream Special because I don’t come across that one very often. It just so happens that one of the finest and most expensive fish dishes I ever had in my life was the Sea Bream from Bartolotta in Las Vegas. With the memory I had of that dish I had to go with the sea bream.
It’s very fresh…I don’t think it’s more or much more than a day old. It’s extremely mild and moist with unusually delicious grill marks served with some simple mixed vegetables and chunks of potatoes that taste like they were simmered in something tasty …..maybe a broth and lightly fried. The fish head is split for slurping if you care to suck out all you can….This is a really fine plate of fish for 28.95.
Someone else at our table had the Birodetto di Pesce Alla Veneta (Cioppino – fish stew)
In a fish infused tomato broth are shrimp, clams, mussels, calamari, scallops and sea bass…..To be finished off with garlic toast.
Little Miss BBQ is well known as the best BBQ in Arizona. They do central Texas Style BBQ and only the highest quality prime brisket is used. Little Miss BBQ has two locations in Phoenix. The original is close to the Phoenix Airport and the other is in the Sunnyslope area of Phoenix (considered to be North Phoenix). The original location is very busy and it’s normal to wait in line one-two hours to order. I thought I’d try the Sunnyslope location today that has expanded hours, more tables, alcohol and a few more menu items.
We pull up and there isn’t a long line outside…. (wow that’s unexpected)
We walk in.
There is a sort of lobby and we see a big smoker and a menu on the wall.
Now we’re in like Flynn….WHOOOO Hoo! It smells all BBQ-ee here!
Not bad.
Someone hands out samples of sausage while we’re waiting.
We move up in line and see some house made sauces, beverages and T shirts for sale.
It was only 15-20 minutes wait till we got to order.
I order and they weigh out the meat.
Sides get added next.
My husband gets his plate, we pay and pick up plasticware, napkins and drinks and then we are off for a table.
Do I want to sit inside?
Or Outside?
The weather is nice today so we went with outside.
WOW! Where to begin?
I got the Lean Prime Brisket, Turkey Breast, Macaroni and Cheese and the Cole Slaw.
I start with the turkey.
WOW! This turkey is even FORKING BETTER than from the Original Little Miss BBQ Location. It’s stunning with the perfect amount of smoked BBQ flavor and it’s very moist and basted with butter………………This is Forking Delicious Turkey…..It’s the best Turkey ever!
Now I go for the Lean Prime Brisket today because the fatty I tried from the original location was too fatty for me (but it did taste better than the lean). It’s really good but not close to what I remember……. I taste my husband’s Fatty Brisket….Now this is outstanding with the perfect seasons and perfect smoke….I can eat this………….It’s not too fatty for me. This Fatty Brisket at Sunnyslope (today) doesn’t seem as Fatty or succulent as the one I tried at the original location……but it is delicious! I think it’s perfection!
Fatty Brisket and Turkey from Little Miss BBQ Phoenix AZ – University (original location)
Let’s get back to Sunnyslope where I am today.
The Turkey is Forking incredible! The Prime Lean Brisket is very good…… The coleslaw is fresh, tasty and not over sauced. I was really surprised that the macaroni and cheese was pretty good….It was creamy and cheesy…
My husband got the Fatty Brisket, Pulled Pork and Sausage with Meaty Beans and Jalapeño Cheese Grits.
Everything is a WINNER HERE! My husband said, “when can we go back?”
Little Miss BBQ – Sunnyslope is Worth a Fork!
Worth a Fork!
www.LittleMissBBQ.com
Everything is subject to change and your experience may or may not differ.
The Forking Truth
Went back on a Thursday to try the Thursday special pastrami.
You have your choice of lean or fatty with the pastrami. I picked half and half. The fatty piece on the bottom did taste the best. The lean tasted stronger with salt. One of my pieces came from a different package……really I had three flavors of pastrami today. One peice had far more of an allspice kind of taste than the other pieces….(but it is normal for pastrami to be inconsistent because of the nature of the meat………This is also is a big portion…I ate a third of the meat and made two lunch sandwiches with the rest. The coleslaw tasted about the same but the macaroni and cheese did taste different today….This did taste less like cheese and had something added that wasn’t as delicious to me…..but everyone likes something different. My husband was happy to jump in and clear out the macaroni and cheese for me.
Sometimes when you travel you find yourself eating airport food. I heard about many local Metro Phoenix restaurants opening branches of their restaurants in Phoenix Sky Harbor Airport. I had to leave extra early for a flight and decided to give one restaurant a try. In general I’m not a big of breakfast foods so I was pretty thrilled to find Los Taquitos offering their full menu as the other two restaurants (Humble Pie and Nocawich) were I was were only offering breakfast.
I thought oh cool I’ll try a chicken torta…….I haven’t had a chicken torta since my last trip to Mexico. A torta is basically a sandwich on a French inspired Mexican roll.
They have a good amount of variety seating here.
They have a long table with traditional seats, a few tables with stools and a high top seating with outlets for computer use.
It’s walk up to the counter and ordering goes sort of Chipotle Style……(they ask you what you want as you walk down the line). My husband orders the food as I grab a table and guard the suitcases. He tries to order me a chicken torta. He tells the girl behind the counter that he wants to order a chicken torta. She says what do you want on the chicken torta? He says whatever a chicken torta comes with. ***********She says I don’t know what goes on a chicken torta.*********WOWEE who knew that whoever works behind the counter doesn’t know what goes on a chicken torta?
I wind up with this.
I guess it doesn’t look bad but the bread is very heavy and thick. The chicken is a generous amount of very dry flavorless chicken breast with some amounts of inedible grizzle. I also received wilted lettuce, unripe tomato slices and a smear of liquid avocado. On the side was dry seasoned rice and plain black beans.
My husband received.
Carnitas Torta with the same rice and drippy refried beans.
www.LTGrill.com
Coming back to the airport we were brave and decided to try airport food again because we were really hungry, short on time and had to be somewhere. We landed at terminal 4 this time and were walking by Zinc Brasserie.
We’ve enjoyed many dinners from the Zinc Bistro Location in Scottsdale and have enjoyed the take out at the Le Petit Zinc window here before. We waited a little while to get seated but once we were our order was taken quickly.
I got the grilled chicken salad.
It’s basically a Caesar salad. It’s a lot of romaine leaves, thinly sliced (what taste like marinated) moist chicken breast with black pepper, shaved toasted bread and shaved parmesan dressed with an emulsified slightly creamy dressing. It’s not the most exciting salad in the world but everything is fresh and good. It seems healthy and is satisfying.
My husband got the Short Rib Banquette.
Wow look how big and nice this is! This sandwich is actually bigger, better and more detailed than the last sandwich my husband got from Zinc Bistro in Scottsdale. The sandwich was delicious. The Zinc Ketchup was nicely spiced. The fries were fresh and hot and lightly dusted with smoked paprika.
Zinc Bistro Pastrami Brisket Sandwich Platter from Scottsdale
www.ZincBistroAZ.com
Airport food is rated at 1/2 a Fork because it could go either way.
1/2 a Fork…Could be good! Also could suck.
Everything is subject to change and your experience may or may not differ.
The Black and White Cafe is located in North Glendale in the area that is considered to be the upper west side of metro Phoenix. They are hidden in a shopping center with a Home Depot on west Behrend Dr just off of 59th avenue. This is an adorable small cafe that only has 6 tables inside and a few outdoor tables. They offer an interesting breakfast menu, nicely made salads, sandwiches, fresh pastries, soups, cappuccino, latte, espresso, juices and more.
Look how cute it is inside.
On one side are big tall mirrors reflect lots of light and there are bright colored paintings for sale on the wall.
In general I’m not a fan of most breakfast food but the banana kahlua French toast and the Florentine Benedict with avocado and fruit got me interested.
Today I ordered the California Chicken Salad ($13.00)
WOW! What a nice salad! The chicken was fresh grilled to order and is nicely seasoned. There’s mixed greens, candied walnuts, sliced grapes, fresh sliced mandarin oranges, avocado and balsamic vinaigrette.
My husband got the BBQ Chicken Salad.
This salad also had fresh grilled to order chicken, romaine lettuce, corn, black beans, cheese, tortilla strips with ranch and bbq sauce. ($13.00) That’s a nice salad too!
We also shared a croissant for dessert.
It was so fresh and seemed so light it just melted in the mouth. ($2.00)
I didn’t even know this place was here until a few weeks back when we went to the Home Depot. What a great surprise!
Black & White Cafe in Glendale is Worth a Fork!
Worth a Fork!
www.BlackandWhite.cafe
Every thing is subject to change and your experience may or may not differ.
