Tag Archives: #foodies

My Trip to True Food Kitchen Phoenix AZ – Healthy Delicious Food

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True Food Kitchen is a full service casual restaurant located in Phoenix Arizona at the Biltmore Fashion Plaza. There is another True Food Kitchen in Scottsdale and somewhere around forty other locations and many new locations to open in the United States. True Food Kitchen offers foods that are based on the science that to maintain your best health by choosing foods that don’t contribute to chronic inflammation by alternative medicine celebrity doctor Dr. Weil. True Food Kitchen offers vegetarian, non vegetarian, vegan and gluten free foods. They are happy to customize a meal for you. A few locations offer yoga brunches.

The Phoenix location offers a foliage lined patio.

Inside is bright, woody with green accents and modern light fixtures.

Today I went with the winter immunity bowl $14.00 (470 calories V) and added chicken $4.00 (160-180 calories)

This bowl was filled with mushrooms (That is why I wanted to try this…..OR THEY WERE SUPPOSE TO BE lion’s mane mushrooms????????), farro, quinoa, carrots, broccolini, garbanzo beans, bean sprouts, edamame, organic kale, garlic broth and added chicken. I’ve recently had lion’s main mushrooms a few times and these did differ in texture and taste and seemed very similar to shiitake mushrooms(???????????????). The bowl was tasty. The chicken was abundant and moist and tender. It was filling but didn’t weigh you down. I am sorry now that I didn’t pull out the mushrooms to photo…I can see one mushroom floating near the top. This does not look like a lion’s mane mushroom. It’s the wrong color, wrong taste and wrong texture. It’s the piece above the chicken and below the kale. But someone from the restaurant claimed it was lion’s mane mushrooms…………????????????? so I can’t say it wasn’t but I have my doubts. Most of the mushrooms in this dish seemed similar to shiitakes.

Here are raw lion’s mane mushrooms. They have a lacy texture and look like tribbles from Star Trek. Mine that I cooked were very very tender.

Here are the same lion’s mane mushrooms cooked

I did question my server about the mushrooms and she thought that my dish was made with lion’s mane mushrooms. I know that I did get one small piece of lion’s mane mushroom in my dish but most of the other mushrooms did seem different. A week after I contacted the restaurant management from True Food Kitchen contacted me back and said that I got lion’s mane mushrooms in my dish. They said that the texture might have changed because they soak the mushrooms. (???????????)

ANYWHO- the dish was still very good tasting and seemed very healthy. I really did like the dish. I apologies for doubting the mushrooms. I could be wrong but I don’t think I am. (That’s The FORKING TRUTH)

My husband had the grilled fish tacos $19.50 (570 calories GF).

We got two grilled red fish tacos with pickled jicama, avocado salsa, coconut crema, dried corn, radish slices and cold grilled lime with anasazi beans on the side. I tried a bite and I have to say this was very flavorful. Even the beans had very good flavors going on. This is enough food for a woman but most men might still be hungry after this.

Last time I tried the limited summer red fish ($26.00 480 calories). (this one was really delicious!)

My husband had the limited summer spinach and mushroom pizza $15.00 970 calories. (this one was made with vegan cheese)

The food we tried seemed to be flavored well and all of it seemed healthy.

www.TrueFoodKitchen.com

Every THING is subject to change and your experience may or may NOT differ.

The Forking Truth

Vino & Panino Cave Creek AZ – Groovy Sandwiches

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Vino & Panino is a little sandwich and wine restaurant in beautiful Cave Creek Arizona. They are in the spot where the original Binkley’s was. Vino & Panino is soon to expand to a full service Italian restaurant and pizzeria and take up all of this small strip mall eventually.

It’s small but friendly, cozy and fun. Psychedelic colors, Young Frankenstein on TV, disco balls, Sputnik light fixtures, flowers, a rainbow whisk, twister and so much more crammed in this little place.

Today’s menu

You order at the counter, pay and seat yourself.

I went with the angry turkey sandwich ($14.00) Fries ($2.00).

The bread is good quality bread and is nicely toasted. The menu reads roasted turkey but it taste like lunch meat turkey…to me…anywho ….I LOVE the giardiniera! It’s a BOMB of flavor and heat….It wakes everything up! The provolone cheese is delicious and it sticks to one side of the bread. You can fold it and make two sandwich treats. A tasty grilled cheese and a tasty turkey sandwich. The fries came out hot and are fluffy, a little crisp and seem free of oil. There is also a condiment bar behind me with very good pickles and Chicago peppers.

My husband went with the Castellano sandwich ($14.00).

It was made of hot gabagool, soppressata, 24 month aged prosciutto, pistachio mortadella and aged provolone.

I only ate half the bread so I’d have room for dessert and we tried pistachio and hazelnut gelato.

The gelato was $4.00 a cup. The texture was a little off with the pistachio…….it seemed a little dried out but the flavor of both gelatos was very good.

Vino & Panino – Groovy!

www.VinoandPanino.com

Every Thing is subject to CHANGE and your experience may or may NOT differ.

The Forking Truth

Blue Cheese Mashed Potatoes with Pickled Red Onions and Celery Leaves Recipe

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I was reading a review of a restaurant somewhere and the food critic was very impressed with blue cheese mashed potatoes with pickled onions from somewhere. I happen to have blue cheese and potatoes that I have to use up so I thought that is what I should make so I did. My idea of serving size might differ from yours. I think 2 pounds of potatoes is about eight servings but those are very small servings. You might figure 4-6 servings depending on how much you dish out. This recipe will also come out better if you make the pickled onions the day before because they need a day to get best.

ingredients for around 6 servings

1 large red onion – (cut in half so strings aren’t too long) – sliced very thin on mandolin.

1 cup white vinegar

1 Tablespoon kosher salt

2 Tablespoons sugar

1 bay leaf

1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper

1/2 teaspoon yellow mustard seeds

2 springs fresh thyme

2 lbs potatoes – peeled – cut in half (6-7 average size potatoes)

1 Tablespoon salt (I love course sea salt)

1 egg – washed well (you will only be using the yolk)

3 oz unsalted butter – room temperature and optional more butter for serving

4 oz blue cheese – crumbled – room temperature and optional more for serving

2 Tablespoons celery leaves – torn or chopped for finishing

Directions

Make the pickled onions. Put the sliced onions in a tub or container and set them to the side. In a sauce pot bring to boil the vinegar, kosher salt, sugar, bay leaf, ground pepper, mustard seed and thyme. Cook until the salt and sugar is dissolved and pour over onions. Let this sit out on the counter until it’s room temperature and then refrigerate. If you have extra leftover onions you can use them on a sandwich. They should keep good in the refrigerator a few weeks.

When you are ready to make the potatoes put them in a pot with enough water to cover them well. Add the salt. You need to bring the potatoes to a medium high boil. depending on the size of the potatoes they need to cook usually 15-20 minutes. In the last 7 minutes of boiling carefully add the egg and let that cook. The egg will be medium cooked but on the soft side…if that isn’t good for you then you can cook it more. You will need to remove the egg and peel it. Save the egg white for a salad or just eat it as a snack. The yolk gets mashed into the hot drained potatoes along with the butter and blue cheese. Serve with the pickled onions and celery leaves. You can serve with extra blue cheese and melted butter if you desire.

Blue Cheese Mushed Potatoes with Pickled Onions and Celery Leaves

ENJOY!

The Forking Truth

Dining out with DOGS in Metro Phoenix January 2020

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Dining out with dogs in Metro Phoenix is just a “Fluff” story about taking my dogs out to eat. It all sort of started when my dog Louie was diagnosed with aggressive cancer. He was already old and couldn’t do much but enjoyed going out to eat. I took him out as often as I could and instead of the 3-6 months the vet gave him he made it another 17 months. Today my current dogs enjoy going out to eat.

There are many things to know before dining out with dogs. Many restaurants in Phoenix do have patios but not all patios are dog friendly. It’s ALWAYS BEST to call the restaurant the day of your visit and ask if it’s ok to dine there with your dog. It is also ALWAYS BEST to dine at off times. It’s best to avoid people with allergies. It’s best to avoid people that don’t share your love of dogs. It is also BEST to avoid other people with dogs because dogs tend to bark at each other and you might get asked to leave. Call restaurant first and dine at off times

There are some rules for dining out with dogs. Your dog(s) must be close and by your side at all times. Dogs are NOT permitted to sit on restaurant furniture or EAT off of restaurant plates. You also must get a list of what foods to avoid from your veterinarian. Most food and drink that you consume can be harmful or TOXIC to your dog. Usually a small lean piece of sauce free meat is usually a safe bet. It’s VERY IMPORTANT TO KNOW that your dog is not as heat tolerant as you. All dogs like people have a different tolerance for heat. Not all but most younger healthy dogs can tolerate up to 90 degrees BUT ONLY IN SHADE. OVER 90 DEGREES F IS TOO HOT TO DINE OUT WITH DOGS.

Now I will turn The Forking Truth over to my dogs to tell about their dining experience.

“We are on our way to The Twisted Italian in Peoria.” “They are an Italian Restaurant that actually does offer some twisted different things like an Italian Chili Relleno and Pierogis.”

“Ummm I’m going to do well today!” “She got a strawberry and goat cheese salad with added chicken.” “There’s a Forking lot of chicken and it’s juicy and warm!” “SCORE!”

“We did alright with the chicken parmigiana”……….”but we did even better with the strawberry goat cheese salad because we got to eat more chicken and more chicken is always better than less chicken.”

“We enjoyed everything we ate at The Twisted Italian!”

www.EatTwisted.com

“We are on our way to Bottega Pizzeria Ristorante in Glendale.”

“Today we got to try a little bit of speck and cheese from a brie and speck pizza made with imported speck, brie and mozzarella cheese, tomato sauce and extra virgin olive oil .”

“OMG that was delicious!”

“We also ate mostly grilled chicken from panarea panino that was a half sandwich and small soup.

“I enjoyed the chicken very much!” “The NICE waiter also brought us a beverage of water today!”

“We always enjoy everything we try from Bottega Pizzeria Ristorante.”

www.BoteggaRistorante.com

“Fill my belly Phila Deli!” “We are on our way to Phila Deli in Glendale.”

“Phila Deli might be the most dog friendly restaurant in all of metro Phoenix.” “As soon as they saw us coming one person runs out with a BIG bowl of fresh water for us.” “Then another person runs out and ask if we would like some ham or turkey scraps (we went for turkey).”

“WOW!” “Look at all that delicious turkey!” “I FORKING LOVE Phila Deli!” “They are the best!”

“Our male human likes the cheese steaks here.” “We love the meat and cheese too!” “Sorry for the blurry picture.”

“Our female companion is trying a turkey wrap today.”

“Ummmmm it’s all delicious!” “I can’t wait for my next bite.”

“We enjoyed everything we had at Phila Deli.”

www.PhilaDeliAZ.com

“We missed one week of Dining Out With DOGS in Metro Phoenix because one dog (guess who) had something growing on her leg that got cut off.” “We’ve been told that it wasn’t cancer so we are all so happy now!”

“We hope that you’ve enjoyed Dining Out With DOGS in Metro Phoenix.” “We hope to see you next month!”

The Forking Truth
In Memory of Louie 5-5-2001 – 3-3-2017

Dog Haus made the Forking BEST Impossible Burger of the FIVE I’ve Tried (so far)

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I’m not a vegan or vegetarian but I am selective about the ground beef that I eat. I like that there are no ground beef worries with the impossible burger. The impossible burger (at this time) is the only vegan burger that contains an ingredient called heme that comes from soy roots that makes the patty taste meat like. It is also suppose to make the patty bleed but I have never gotten an impossible burger that bleeds so far but when and IF I ever do I’ll be jumping for joy and you will hear about it.

The first Impossible Burger I tried came from The Cuff in Glendale AZ.

It’s wasn’t bad but it was a little dry and crumbly. It left a sort of butter like aftertaste that I didn’t like. My husband took a bite and said, “I’m never trying an Impossible Burger again.”

He didn’t try my next one from PNPK in Scottsdale (now closed for business).

This one was slightly better. Still dry but not crumbly. No weird buttery aftertaste.

My 3rd one came from Orlando Florida at Disney’s Food and Wine Expo at Epcot.

Impossible Burger is on the right

This Impossible Burger was also dry but was covered in delicious wasabi cream and Asian style slaw.

My fourth Impossible Burger came from Burger King.

This is the first Impossible Burger that wasn’t dry but it is odd. It has a soggy mushy center. The exterior is almost like a shell. This one doesn’t have much flavor. The ketchup and pickle are very over powering to this almost tasteless burger.

The FORKING BEST IMPOSSIBLE BURGER I’ve tasted so far (as of January 2020) was The Impossible Burger from Dog Haus in Scottsdale AZ.

They did have their regular Impossible Burger on the menu and an Impossible slider but I went for the special of the month Impossible Burger. I’m not taking about the toppings here (But the did happen to be delicious). I’m really just talking about the burger. It was nicely caramelized but thin burger. It was the only Impossible burger that was actually juicy like a real burger. This one my husband tried and he also said that it was very good. This Impossible burger actually stood up to the very flavorful SPICY HOT toppings. This one was the December/January Special by Chef Ilan Hall. It was all Vegan and was adorned with chili oil, pickled vegetables, fresh jalapeño and cilantro, hoisin sauce, spicy vegan mayo on a ciabatta bun. It was FORKING HOT and FORKING SPICY but delicious and even with all that heat and spice the Impossible burger still did taste good.

Dog Haus made the FORKING BEST Impossible Burger that I tried so far. (as of January 2020…subject to change)

I just got this in an email that on February the 2nd is potato tot day and Dog Haus is dining away FREE potato tots when you order a sandwich. Thought you might want to know if you are thinking about trying the Impossible burger from Dog Haus.

Every Forking thing is subject to change and your experience may or may NOT differ.

The Forking Truth

Desert Island Eatery Phoenix AZ – Forking SCRUMPTIOUS Caribbean & Vegan Food

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Desert Island Eatery is a small Caribbean and Vegan Take Out Restaurant located in North Phoenix Arizona. You can dine in if you are lucky enough to get one of the three small tables the restaurant has.

Desert Island Eatery has limited hours. They are open for dinner from 5pm-9pm Tuesday-Saturday. They are located in an older strip mall on Bell Road behind a Taco Bell so you will not be able to see them from the road. The inside is very small but is decorated with homey things.

The mother and her youthful son will wait on you.

I look at the menu. What will I get this time?

Maybe next time I might change things up? I’m getting my favorites from last time again.

We start again with the lentil balls ($5.00).

I have been told that the recipe was changed. The lentil balls are now gluten free and do have a different texture. They are noticeably more lentil like and less falafel like. Still delicious and covered with a bit of jerk mayo and guava drizzle.

Last time I had the tri-plate with three kinds of chicken (jerk, curry and bbq). They all were delicious but for my taste the most special flavors were the curry and jerk so I had to get a combo plate of curry and jerk chicken ($16.00).

Both chickens are incredibly moist, flavorful and are falling off the bone. The curry is just as delicious as I remember from last time. Today the jerk is also delicious but maybe one notch spicier. I do believe this jerk chicken is the best jerk chicken I’ve ever had anywhere. The yellow rice is very flavorful (and abundant) and the cabbage is delicious. This is a very large portion and is two dinners for me (SCORE! WHOO HOO!). ((I love bringing home leftovers when the food is delicious))

My husband asked for a special combo of jerk chicken with jerk shrimp with rice and peas ($18.00).

Everything was prepared well and everything was delicious.

We expressed interest in the vegan Mac and cheese. We were told it was made with cashew milk, potatoes and carrots. That doesn’t sound so tasty to me but a small sample did come out and I have to I was wrong…It actually was delicious. It looked just like macaroni and cheese. It didn’t taste really cheesy but had a very good flavor and it felt like macaroni and cheese in your mouth. I think it might have been laced with vegetable soup flavor. I might order some next time.

The desserts do differ depending on the day.

Today they had Johnny Cakes with spiced apples ($5.00).

They weren’t what I was expecting….I thought they’d be yellow pancakes but we got balls that were sort of doughnut-like with a tasty not too sweet apple topping.

Last time we had-

Tri Plate Combo curry chicken, jerk chicken yellow rice with cabbage ($18.00).

Jerk Seafood Combo (Jamaican Jerk Style) Shrimp Swai, rice and peas ($20.00)

Desert Island Eatery is Forking SCRUMPTIOUS Caribbean and Vegan Food.

Worth a Fork!

Worth a Fork!

www.DesertIslandTucson.com

Everything is subject to change and your experience may or may not differ.

The Forking Truth

Radish Date Pumpkin Seeds and Fried Radishes and Capers with Caper Anchovy Dressing

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This recipe was inspired by a salad I ate at FnB restaurant in Scottsdale AZ. The Chef is a James Beard Award Winner so everything she makes is amazing. This salad was simple but delicious. It had very few ingredients so I figured I could do something similar at home. I pretty much made the same exact salad but I added two ingredients the original didn’t have. I added fried radish slices and fried capers for an added interest and texture. This salad is very good and it’s something you might want to try. The dressing is enough to dress four servings. I can’t give you the exact amount of radish you need because radishes differ so much in size. For two people it was about one watermelon radish, 6 regular radishes and about two dates but they were smaller servings.

Ingredients for around 4 servings

2 watermelon radishes sliced very thin on mandolin (or more depending on size) (reserve about a dozen slices for frying)

12 regular radishes sliced very thin on a mandolin (or more depending on size) (reserve about a dozen slices for frying)

2 teaspoons small capers – reserve one teaspoon for frying

4 (or more) dates pits removed sliced in thin strips

5 teaspoons pumpkin seeds

pinch urfa pepper (you can substitute another pepper like black pepper but urfa is better for this)

6 anchovies

1 Tablespoon anchovy oil

1 Tablespoon extra virgin olive oil

1 small lemon – just the fresh squeezed juice

1 clove garlic – ground to paste or microplane

neutral oil to fry with

Directions

Get a sauce pot on medium-medium high heat with about an inch of oil in it. If you are using a thermometer you don’t need a high heat. You only need about 250 degrees F if your slices are very thin. Carefully add 1/2 of the reserved radish slices and fry them. They get done quickly and use either paper towels on a pan or a cooling rack to drain them. Then do the other reserved half. Be real careful when you do the capers. They have a lot of liquid that you need to squeeze out and they get done even faster and look like little crispy flowers. Set them on paper towels to the side when you are done.

Blend the anchovy’s, anchovy oil, olive oil, lemon juice, 1 teaspoon capers and garlic till it emulsifies and set to the side.

On your serving plate add the radish slices, dates pumpkin seeds and lightly add dressing. Top with some fried radish slices and some fried capers. Finish with a pinch of Urfa pepper.

Radish Dates Pumpkin Seeds Fried Radishes, Fried Capers and Caper Anchovy Dressing finished with Urfa pepper

Everyone will love this.

The Forking Truth

Chauncey Social Scottsdale AZ – Newly Opened

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Chauncey Social is a New American restaurant and bar with a DJ table located in North Scottsdale Arizona. They have a wrap around patio with lots of TVS and an unusual but interesting plant boarder.

Inside looks groovy with pops of bright colors and some retro furniture.

Next to the orange booths in the bar area is a DJ table.

There’s a great big bar.

The dining tables are around the bar and are all high tops.

Further back they have booths with small cocktail tables and outside on the patio are traditional tables.

We started with Kung Pao Cauliflower ($12.00).

It’s fried really perfect! It’s not oil at all. It’s firm but cooked threw. It taste like very mild take out Chinese Food. It’s very tasty. I especially like the fresh micro cilantro on it….I think that adds something nice here. There are also some bell peppers and crushed cashews. I’d like it even better if it was kicked up a notch with a small amount of heat but still it’s very tasty.

For my main I went with the Hawaiian Steak and Noodle Salad ($18.00)

This salad is suppose to contain steak, pickled pineapple, tomato, peanuts, carrots, cabbage, basil, mint and ginger vinaigrette. The best part of my salad was the steak. It was developed with delicious flavors that seemed like from marination. It had a nice crust and was tender and juicy. The Steak was really Forking GREAT! THE FORKING TRUTH is that I want to FORKING tell you how amazing this salad should have been……but The Forking Truth is that the steak was topped with lots of micro herbs. I think they might have been micro basil but taste more like vegetal sprouts. I didn’t taste any peanuts, basil, mint or ginger in this salad. I don’t know if any were in it. I ate mostly just the meat sprouts and carrots. Because the rest was just oily but nicely cooked spaghetti with a couple chunks of pineapple. My husband loves spaghetti and took one big forkful after I finished and he said, “It’s just taste like oily spaghetti.” Well at least the steak really was very good. I didn’t complain because I forgot what was suppose to be in the salad when the waiter checked on us. I thought I had really good steak with a very bland salad.

Anywho-

My husband went for the Open Faced Steak Sandwich ($17.00)

There’s nicely prepared skirt steak, arugula, apple, pickled onion, parmesan vinaigrette and country bread. It sounds really good. I didn’t try it but my husband said the steak and bread were really good. He showed me his sandwich and it had spread on it that taste like a really mild Caesar dressing. He had trouble eating his sandwich because it was hard to eat. He said when he ate a big green leaf all the cheese fell off and he was left with a mouth of dry greens. He might have had less trouble if his sandwich came with a steak knife. I don’t know if his sandwich was made right.

I did try two fries and ketchup. The fries are really good. They were super fluffy with a crisp exterior and fried just right. The fries also had a nice potato taste. The ketchup grossed me out……it’s kind of gelatinous, sort of sweet and not as flavorful as Heinz. Maybe I just got a weird batch that someone mixed up?

The wait staff were all friendly and attentive.

The Kung Pao Cauliflower was delicious and in both plates we tried the steak was very good.

That was my trip to Chauncey Social.

wwwChaunceySocial.com

Every THING is subject to change and your experience may or may not differ.

The Forking Truth

BREAKING NEWS – Mr Peanut involved in Tragic Accident – He might be Peanut Butter Now ****UPDATE***SUSPENDED out of respect for Kobe Bryant

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******UPDATE ******SUSPENDED out of respect for Kobe Bryant.

The Planter’s Peanut Company just released that Mr Peanut was involved in a tragic accident. The 104 year old Mr Peanut lost control of the Nut mobile to avoid hitting an armadillo.

According to someone from Planter’s, Mr Peanut had Wesley Snipes and Matt Walsh as passengers in the nut mobile. It’s not confirmed but someone was heard screaming that Mr Peanut was driving like an “OLD NUT.”

The tragic accident has been filmed and leaked on the internet. It’s been written that Mr Peanut died in an explosion and the funeral will be shown at during the 3rd quarter of the Super Bowl.

The Planters Peanut Company was founded by Amedeo Obici. He was an Italian born American from Wilkes Burro PA.

The Planters Company some time back merged with Nabisco foods and is currently owned by Kraft Heinz.

Many decades back there was a Mr Peanut Store on the Atlantic City NJ boardwalk.

Photo from Pinterest

Planters Peanuts was once a fixture in Atlantic City.

Things like this were sold in this store along with peanuts that smelled delicious.

Photo found on Pinterest

Mr Peanut Born 1916 – 2020 ?????

The Forking Truth

www.Wikipedia.com

www.Planters.com

www.Yahoo.com