Haldi Indian Cuisine is located in North Phoenix. By day they are an all you can eat buffet and for dinner they offer an extensive menu of North and South Indian Cuisine. On their website they say they specialize in all kinds of Biryanis and Tandoor Items.

The dining room is casual but soon after I took this picture was completely filled with people.

This restaurant has only been open a few weeks but already has a great following and I can see why.

They give every table a picture of ice water.

Fresh made potato stuffed dosas with sauces. (a sort of crepe)

Fresh made hot buttery naan bread.

Then your off to the buffet. (at the time of this review the weekend price is $13.99…of course subject to change)

Here are photos of most of the offerings.

We were both surprised on how tasty and delicious everything was. (that is very unusual for a buffet as things are usually old, dried out and too salty or oily) Even the dishes that contained meat for flavorful and moist. Nothing ran too spicy…even my husband said that this was one of the best buffets he has ever been too!

The Buffet from Haldi Indian Cuisine is certainly Worth a Fork!

www.HaldiAZ.com

Worth a Fork! A pretty good value!

The Forking Truth is that everything is subject to change and your experience may or may not differ.

The Forking Truth

My view of the patio at Mora Italian Restaurant

We enjoyed the food very much on our last visit to Mora Italian Restaurant so we decided to try Mora again. This is newly opened restaurant co-owned by Celebrity Chef Scott Conant. The atmosphere is hip, interesting, rich, masculine and energetic. The menu is creative Italian style.

This time we started with Ricotta Fritters.

The fritters were filled with fresh milky cheesy goodness. It was like hitting treasure when I tasted little hidden delicate pops of lemon and chili. The crust was thin but sturdy and seemed oil free. Not too sweet honey peperonata and shredded cheese garnished the tasty fritters.

This time we shared the Fettuccine with mushrooms, roasted garlic and escarole.

1/2 portion of fettuccine

Not too much and just enough perfectly cooked pasta in the perfect amount of sauce. The mushrooms and escarole went really well together in this dish.

For dinner I tried the Chicken in Potacchio. (Chicken and Fennel with Slow Cooked Tomatoes)

The 1/2 Chicken was expertly prepared and melt in your mouth tender and sat in a pan sauce. I enjoyed the chicken but what blew me away was the fennel. I never tasted fennel that was that good before….What kind of magic cookery did they do? The fennel had this amazing texture and flavor.

My husband order the Grilled Scaloppine of Beef Short Rib again.

It had a slightly different presentation and preparation from last visit. (see photo below)

I don’t know if the recipe was changed or if each chef puts his or her own spin on things? Both were good but one was awesome.

I planned ahead to save room for dessert to try the Apple Crostata.

The dessert was decadent and delicious and sat in a pool of creamy caramel mascarpone cheese. The crust was flavorful and was filled with seasoned apples, ribbons of not too sweet caramel and a scoop of toasted almond gelato. It was a perfect ending to a nice meal.

Mora Italian Restaurant in Phoenix AZ is Worth a Fork!

Worth a Fork! You’d drive across town for this one.

www.MoraItalian.com

The Forking Truth is that EVERYTHING is subject to change and your experience may or may not differ.

The Forking Truth

Twisted Italian Restaurant in Peoria AZ serves up traditional Italian favorites and some very NON TRADITIONAL Italian Food. This is a small locally owned restaurant that was established in 2010 and changed ownership and menu in late 2015. The decor is sort of a mix of traditional and nontraditional just like the menu.

They started us off with complimentary bread and balsamic dotted extra virgin olive oil.

We decided to start with something “twisted” and ordered the Pierogi of the month that was Corned Beef and Cabbage.

Our Pierogi were served “crispy” and had a potato filling mixed with tasty corned beef and a little bit of cabbage. A horseradish laced sauce with served on the side. Our corned beef and cabbage pierogi were surprisingly delicious. Who would ever guess to find something like this at an Italian Restaurant?

For dinner I tried the European Sea Bass (also called Bronzino)

I received a generous portion of meaty mild white tender fish that was lightly crusted and had crispy skin. The plate also contained grilled asparagus, tomatoes and lemon and caper angel hair pasta. Everything was prepared reasonably well and everything tasted great!

My husband tried the Italian Relleno.

It was a Poblano Pepper that was stuffed with House Made Italian Sausage and cheese and was topped with a creamy tomato sauce. Three generously filled fried cheese ravioli were served on the side.

Everything we tried was tasty. Service was efficient and prices were reasonable.

www.EatTwisted.com

Twisted Italian serves Pierogi and Italian Relleno Oh My!

The Forking Truth is that everything is subject to change and your experience may or may not differ.

The Forking Truth

Paradise Valley Pizza Co. recently opened in Phoenix AZ. They serve Arizona Style Pizza and more. I thought that Arizona Style Pizza sounds interesting so I wanted to give it a try.

This is a small family owned business. The restaurant is very casual. You order at the counter and seat yourself.

It was hard to decide on what pizza to try because they all sounded different and interesting.

I decided on ordering the one called Margarita …like the drink…..

My pizza was covered in a tangy sauce called marinara verde. Other ingredients were, spicy serrano chili pickled in tequila, queso fresco (cheese), avocado, lime and cilantro. The pizza is fresh and hot so I pick up a slice and try and started with the the crust. It’s unique and unlike any other pizza crust I ever tried. It’s shattering crisp, maybe a little buttery and sort of flaky and the crust underneath is thin and crisp. The pizza seems very light when you eat it and doesn’t weigh you down. I like the heat and the fresh cilantro. The pizza is good and tasty but a little hard to eat. The avocado rolls off and my teeth don’t cut threw the cilantro stems. All they need is a chop and all is good.

I don’t really think of this as pizza but it’s unique and different.

My husband got the Ditka Pizza.

He got house made sausage, roasted green chili marinara, oregano and fried onions.

Besides mostly non traditional pizzas they offer a short menu of wings, salads and cannoli in of Non Traditional Varieties of Lucky Charm, Oreo and Maple Bacon.

If your in the area you might care to give them a try.

www.ParidiseValleyPizzaCompany.com

The Forking Truth is that EVERYTHING is subject to change and your experience may or may not differ.

The Forking Truth

The Blazin Mongolian BBQ is located in a half deserted strip mall that surrounds the nearly deserted Metro Center Mall located in a busy area of Phoenix Arizona.

This is a very casual and not at all fancy………

heathy style Asian stir fry buffet. This isn’t fancy food but what I tried seemed heathy and tasty. It’s the type of place you go to when you want something better than fast food that’s fast. A healthy bowl packed with your choices of protein and vegetables , noodles that’s dressed in Asian flavors.

You have your choice of size bowl small or large or an all-you-can-eat option called the “Warrior” bowl. once you decide and pay you fill your bowl with your choice of meat…….

…………vegetables,

noodles and sauces with a suggested sauce menu.

Then the chef that operates the Mongolian grill cooks up your bowl for you.

They provide some extra add ons like a few extras like white and fried rice, soups, peanuts and fried noodles. Beverages and complimentary  serve yourself ice cream are included.

My verdict is that both bowls came out tasty!

The vegetables came out tender crisp and not boiled like from some other Mongolian BBQs. But what really matters to me is that the food did actually taste good. I haven’t had the same experience at some of the other Mongolian Grills. I am not much of a meat eater and I must add the razor thin rolled meat takes up some room in your bowl and I wound up with a very small portion of meat that pretty much dissolved into the vegetables (I picked dark chicken). My husband’s choice of beef stayed more in the dish. If you are a bigger meat eater you might be most happy with the warrior bowl. So you can go back for more meat.

Besides a tasty meal were you can control the amount of starch and fat in your meal you can also do some interesting people watching here.

I noticed some people don’t pay for the “Warrior” (all-you-can-eat option) yet they fill their bowl to the sky and continue to add on soups, rice fried noodles and even the cut lemons. To take home.

No kidding I saw a different woman taking 5 or 6 bowls of fried noodles a bowl of lemons and more. Her bowl and her husband’s bowl were piled twice as high as the one in this photo. I also saw a man using a paper towel to squish the food flat to fit in as much as he could.

It IS The Forking Truth!

You might want to visit Blazin Mongolian BBQ to get a tasty inexpensive meal and to witness the actions of people. It was entertaining to me and would make for a good TV show.

NO..You are not going to drive across town to dine here…but if your in the area and want something casual and healthy you might want to give this place a try.

www.BlazinMongolianBBQ.com

In the end the food was tasty and what I thought was a good value.

The Forking Truth is that EVERY FORKING THING is subject to change and your experience may or may not differ.

The Forking Truth

Fox Restaurant Concepts New Restaurant Doughbird just opened this week in the Arcadia parts of Phoenix AZ. This is a full service Free Range Chicken Rotisserie and Organic Pizza Restaurant. (Get it Dough …..  Bird …….Doughbird) I’m not an interior decorator but the interior reminds me of the near by Ikea Store…..I’d call the decor a sort of Swedish Farm House type of decor mixed with touches of retro but I read in the local newspaper it’s California Style.

The dining areas include a mix of high top tables, low top tables, some with banquettes and booths. Doughbird also has a full bar and a narrow patio that wraps around the restaurant.

We start by sharing a smart sized Truffle Cheese Stromboli.

It’s indulgent bursting with creamy rich Italian Cheeses and completely flavorful and laced with truffle. The dough also has a nice great crisp crust.

Of course we have to try the Chicken……Do we get a half or a whole….well the whole seems to be the right answer value wise…..it’s only a few dollars more than the half…Both the half order or the whole order include one side and one sauce. For a small amount more we try an extra side and an extra sauce.

We tried Delicious juicy Rotisserie Chicken with Jalapeño Pesto and Spicy Buffalo Sauce, Quinoa Tabbouleh and Macaroni and Cheese. I have to say the Chicken is really melt in your mouth delicious…..it was a nice very light smoke….nicely seasoned good meaty chicken……both sauces are good but I think the unique Buffalo Sauce is extra special….and far more complex…You get a lot of mild mustard kinds of flavors and a good zing of apple cider…..I don’t think I’d call this sauce buffalo sauce but who cares…It’s Forking Delicious! The Non-Traditional Quinoa Tabbouleh hits your mouth with quality ingredients….My mouth can taste those expensive sweet vine ripened tomatoes in there…..yum……While this isn’t my style of Macaroni and Cheese…I do have to say it’s better than most macaroni and cheese I’ve eaten out at a number of restaurants……If you like American Cheese then you will love this Macaroni and Cheese….

As it turns out food wise a half Chicken here is enough for two people because they use plump chickens and not those little tiny chickens…….but I’d say you need to have – one side and one sauce a person for dining portions. I took home a half chicken and some of the sides….because I was saving room for dessert.

The desserts from Fox Restaurants are usually worth the calories…so I tried the Butterscotch Cream Cake.

It’s a not too sweet sort of corn cake soaking in butterscotch and topped with high quality vanilla bean gelato. This was impossible not to like…..

I’m so happy to say that all the food was delicious! Service was great and atmosphere is nice! Can’t ask for anything else except a new location closer to my house!

www.FoxRC.com

Worth a Fork!

Winner winner Chicken Dinner….Doughbird is Worth a Fork!

I note that EVERY FORKING THING is subject to change and your experience may…or may NOT differ.

The Forking Truth

Miu’s Bistro serves authentic style Chinese Foods that includes the hot and spicy mouth numbing Sichuan Style. This is a very small restaurant with only a few tables and a three booths that isn’t fancy. They also seem unaware or don’t care about looking like Christmas to all in March. Miu’s Bistro has an outdoor banner with Christmas trees and the inside Christmas garland and lights. If you’ve visited the former Miu’s Cuisine Restaurant then you know they had a Christmas Tree set up in the middle of the restaurant all year long. They also didn’t purchase a new sign yet and the sign out side at the time of my visit 3-17 reads Ding Hao Shanghai.

The menu isn’t for everyone that thinks they love Chinese Food.

One page of menu that may be in the process of change.

We start out out cucumbers in Spicy Sauce.

It’s not for the faint of hard or people with delicate stomachs. It’s mouth numbing fire carried by oil on crispy light cucumbers, freshened up with a little cilantro. It makes you feel like you ran a mile without getting tired. It’s a legal rush.

I wanted to try something new that I wasn’t familiar with so I tried Spicy Chicken on the bone with Vine Pepper. I don’t know what kind of pepper is the Vine Pepper but I did spot jalapeños floating on the top.

Large Bowl in the middle is Spicy Chicken on Bone with Vine Peppers

This dish, the Spicy Chicken with Vine Peppers is another fiery, mouth numbing dish. It’s soup-like but it’s not a soup. The flavors are unusual to me but start with a very developed tasting chicken stock, I taste cumin and something very citrus. They really give the chicken the chop here that’s very flavorful and moist but almost impossible to eat to me. This might be a half of a small chicken that’s chopped in very small pieces and contains soft skin and shards of broken bone everywhere. Actually I’m afraid I’ll choke on bone. I’ve had a similar dish at a Taiwanese Restaurant where they prepared the chicken the same way so this way of preparing chicken in Asian Cookery. I watched someone else in the restaurant having the same or similar dish and that person was constantly spitting out bones like it was nothing. It seems that some people are used to this kind of dish.

My husband gets the Flour Steamed Pork that our waitress told us was the most requested dish in the restaurant. She said most people order two orders each. One for now and one for latter. I’m guessing this is a Chinese Comfort Food I never heard of.

The Flour Steamed Pork is surrounded by potatoes. My husband said it was different and almost like eating an Asian Tamale.

Miu’s Bistro  certainly was like a Taste of China in Mesa AZ.

Currently Miu’s Bistro website is not up and running but you can find them on Facebook.

****UPDATE NOW CLOSED FOR BUSINESS

The Forking Truth

Part of the Pedregal Mall that is part of the Boulders Resort that is now (2017) owned by Hilton

The Spotted Donkey is located at Pedregal, the deserted South West Style Shopping Plaza in North Scottsdale that borders Beautiful Care Free Arizona. Pedregal is part of the Boulders Resort that is owned by Hilton.

A few years back there were around 50 luxury shops and cafes. Pedregal hosted special events like live music and salsa and wine tastings that used to bring in crowds of people. This was at one time not to long back a happy fun upscale place to visit that happens to be in a gorgeous area. I used to enjoy the kitchen store, the rock shop and the upscale footware  store and the special events….

Currently (2017) Pedregal is next to deserted since Hilton’s purchase. Even the goldfish and koi have left the Pedregal Pond.

As we stroll the once lively mall it seems that we are living the twilight zone. The episode were there was one last man on earth by himself.

Is this a precursor of things to come?

The only life left is one small shop that sells interesting trinkets and The Spotted Donkey Restaurant of Pedregal.

We enter and it’s pretty quiet but the restaurant has an interesting kind of charm to it. The walls and floors are inlayed with interesting vintage tiles. The ceiling holds detailed beautiful vintage looking fixtures.

The interior is a mix of Mexican, South West, Leather and Wood.

Our waitress seems chipper and friendly. Our orders arrive in reasonable time.

I decided to try the Mexico City Carne Asada.

I look at my plate and my eyes zoom in on old looking picco.

I see a large side of cow with a side of pond scum…What did I order????? This place is owned by Hilton….This plate looks unappetizing……I’m thinking.

My husband sees the look on my face and suggest that we leave and eat out someplace else. I look at him and I say I’ll try the food…….

Maybe it taste better than it looks?

First I taste a piece of steak. It’s chewy….and doesn’t taste delicious…I’m hoping that it might be aged..?……..There are a few poblano pepper strips and onions…I taste them….um…..I don’t know if the chef added too much vinegar and lime juice because they have a sour taste to them…I asked my husband to taste the poblano peppers and onions…he said, “they are weird”….”they taste funky.” I bravely taste the green that looks similar to something that reminds me of the movie Poltergeist. It taste like a blend of honey, lime juice, avocado and tomatillo….it’s on the sweet side…and it needs something….It doesn’t seem seasoned enough and has an off-putting  texture similar to pond slime…….(possibly left behind from the goldfish and koi that vacated Pedregal)………..Off to the side I had some potato cakes that were suppose to contain chile. These were the best things on my plate and I am thankful I had something to eat…. Oh JOY!…… I don’t mean to stick it to the Donkey but the potatoes in the cakes are gluey. However the cakes are fried to perfection and seem oil free with a nice clean panko crunch. The chile is missing but maybe it’s for the better.

My husband tried the Poblano Chile Relleno.

He said his Poblano Pepper contained mushy pork mixed with greasy rice that was topped with weird tasting tomato sauce. He said as mediocre as it was that it wasn’t as bad as my plate.

Donkey Chow………

www.TheBoulders.com

NOT WORTH A FORK!

The Forking Truth is that your opinion may or may not differ and everything is subject to change.

The Forking Truth

Chula Seafood is a Family Owned and operated Fishery located in South Scottsdale AZ. They specialize in offering sustainable fish caught off the Pacific and they feature Harpooned Swordfish. At the fish counter they offer several kinds of fresh fish cut in mostly six ounce portions. They also offer a limited menu of a few Poke Bowls, a Tuna Confit Sandwich and on “Saturdays Only” a Bagel sandwich made with House Smoked Salmon. In addition to the limited menu they also sell local artisan food items like Noble Bread, Home Boy’s Hot sauce and other locally made goods.

The interior isn’t fancy but does seem clean. You order what you want at the fish counter, have a seat and wait for the man at the counter to run your purchase to you.

Besides purchasing some fish we decided to share two items from the menu.

Here’s the “Saturday Only” Bagel with House Smoked Salmon. The salmon is quite tasty and the sandwich has unexpected heat from jalapeño peppers. Other fillings are cucumber, capers, and cream cheese. The everything bagel is very above average for Phoenix.

The other menu item we tried was the Confit Tuna Sandwich.

This sandwich has great textures and flavors and is also surprisingly spicy but not too spicy. This sand contains lively house made giardinia, creamy avocado, a zippy aioli, cucumber and Phoenix’s Famous Noble Bread. The tuna is dry but the dryness isn’t noticeable with all the fillings as it is just delicious. A generously sized fresh salad came on the side.

It’s Forking Great that a store like this has opened in Metro Phoenix.

Chula Seafood is Worth a Fork!

Worth a Fork!

www.ChulaSeafood.com

The forking Truth is that your experience may or may not differ and everything is subject to change.

The Forking Truth

Brocoli, Spinach, Ricotta Stuffed Pizza from Gio’s Pizza in Anthem AZ

Gio’s Pizza in Anthem Arizona serves Italian/Sicilian , New York and what they call…Authentic  Pizza and more. This is a small family owned pizzeria located across the street from The Anthem Outlet Mall. On Gio’s Website they state that they use their family recipes and only use the highest quality ingredients. This small restaurant isn’t fancy and only seats about five small tables inside and two tables outside. As you enter the tight entrance you see all kinds of pizzas on display. In the dining room I noticed a few Sicilian trinkets on the walls and I heard thick Italian accents in the energetic noisy kitchen.

This pizzeria differs in offerings from any other pizzeria I’ve been to in Metro Phoenix. They offer Spaghetti Rolls. They are made with very mild red sauce…just right for children or those who are children at heart!

Spaghetti Roll

Stuffed Pin Wheels that look like fancy stars, garlic knots, calzones, wings, salads-

Regular crust pizza……..Not the most unique but every pizza place offers a plain slice.

Regular Crust Pizza

A Regular Crust Bianca Neve of Mozzarella, Garlic and Ricotta Cheese At the time I had it I know they used Polly-O Brand a popular East Coast Brand. I heard the guys chanting in the kitchen. “Yo we use the Polly-O” as mixers were whirling and the sounds of hands were slapping dough.  I saw a big tub of Polly-O ricotta on the table.  This pizza was my favorite at Gio’s so far……

Gio’s offers Sicilian Thick Rectangular pizzas like the-

Nonna – Bread Crumbs, Onion, Tomato and Mozzarella

Stuffed Pizzas like the Broccoli, Spinach and Ricotta (Pictured at the start…..well it seemed healthy…LOL…..Lots of Spinach and Broccoli…….It’s quite enormous and in my opinion is two or more meals) The top is very unique….the crust folds over and turns into a thin crisp cheese crust)

and

Stuffed Sausage, Pepperoni and Potato my husband had the last two times.

They offer cannoli, espresso and sell small tubs of a frozen confections..(gelato or Italian Ice? not sure..didn’t look too close and couldn’t even consider a tub of confection after eating here)

Unique little Pizza Place that offers something different.

I’d say Gio’s Pizza of Anthem AZ is Worth a Fork!

Worth a Fork! Not a fancy place……. Small. You might want to give them a try if you are in the area.

www.GiosPizzaAnthem.com

The Forking Truth