HDFB Weekend Recap: Uptown Farmer's Market

Early last week, I stumbled upon an instagram account for a local farmer's market, Uptown Farmer's Market, that is open every Wednesday and Saturday morning. Since I had the weekend off, I talked Andrew into getting up on Saturday morning and heading out in search for some local goods. When we arrived, we were blown away by how many different vendors there were. From local honeys, produce, milk, eggs, flours, kitchen ware, breads, clothing, and even a tamale stand. We may or may not have eaten a red chile pork and green chile chicken tamale for breakfast. The market even has live music by local artists, covered seating with games for the kids, and a bouncy house! We saw plenty of people walking their dogs, where you can even visit a local dog treat maker. Each week they have different vendors, so there is always something new to try. We got plenty of samples from vendors, and left with full bellies and bags full of goodies. My favorite find was a tie between a local hot sauce from Homeboy's Hot Sauce and a bunch of kale, larger than my head, for only 50 cents!! Andrew would argue that the best find of the day was a caramel pecan sticky bun, which we quickly devoured outside of the car on our way out of the market. Hunger knows no limits. So if you are an Arizona local, I definitely recommend that you head on down to the Uptown Farmer's Market on Bethany Home Road and Central Avenue to support local business. Also, don't blame us if you get Bruno Mars' "Uptown Funk" song stuck in your head like we did. Andrew's version went a little something like "Uptown Farm you up, I said Uptown Farm you up!". I'm marrying a winner.

*This post was not sponsored by any of the above mentioned vendors. I just love spreading the word about great products!

HDFB Takeout: Barrio Queen

Last week I met up with my wedding planner, and long-time friend Kris, 1/2 of of the Konsider It Done team, for happy hour. Her and her husband, Tyler, are helping Andrew and I plan the wedding of our dreams, but in order to talk wedding, we needed some food to tide us over the hours of idea swapping. We ended up at Barrio Queen in Scottsdale for their Taco Tuesday special. All tacos are $2.50, and you all know my love for tacos is infinite, so needless to say I was in my happy place. We grabbed a quiet corner table out on the patio, surrounded by fresh flowers, where we dined on tableside guacamole and tacos on tacos on tacos. Being as I have dines here dozens of times before, I was feeling adventurous, and went for the Nopalito taco. In other words, this taco was stuffed with tender cactus, serrano pepper, onion, tomato sauce, and queso fresco. Cactus was something new to me, other than the occasional prickly pear margarita, and I can't way that I would order it again, but I am glad that I tried it. It had somewhat of a mushy-mushroom-esque texture to it, and not much flavor. I am one who loves BIG flavor in my tacos, so this was a miss on my mark. An otherwise impressive as always visit to Barrio Queen left me wanting to share some of my favorite things with you all in case you find yourself in Scottsdale looking for a great place to dine.

Barrio Queen
7114 E. Stetson Dr. Suite 105
Scottsdale, AZ 85251
480-656-4197

What to Order:
Any of their 400+ tequilas
Barrio Guacamole (made to order tableside)

TACOS!
Pictured below: the Cochinita Pibil, Nopalitos, Carne Asado y Huevo

I never met a taco I didn't like.

HDFB Take-Out: The Upton

Tucked away, behind the hustle and bustle of Scottsdale, sits the perfectly placed, and named, The Upton. Previously known as Le Petit Maison, the cutest little french restaurant, The Upton has kept the same charm, but offered the space a much needed facelift, and updated menu. After struggling to solidify a reservation weeks ago for my birthday, I was left with a bad taste in my mouth, however, when we finally made it in for brunch last weekend, they totally redeemed themselves both in food and service. Their Sunday brunch offers a moderately sized menu, including bottomless mimosas and your standard run of the mill bloody mary. We sat outside on their front patio where a DJ and live saxophonist played up-beat music while we dined under an umbrella. Our waiter was extremely attentive, rarely leaving a glass with an instant refill, but the food was the main attraction. From sweet to savory their menu covered all of the bases. It's not an extensive list of choices, but what we got was nothing short of mouth-watering. I thank The Upton for not letting me down this time and I look forward to returning and trying out their dinner service.

The Upton
7216 E. Shoeman Lane
Scottsdale, AZ
480-991-6887

What to Order (Brunch):

Scottish Smoked Salmon (creme fraiche, caper berries, toasted brioche)

Captain Crunch Griddle Cakes (not pictured- eaten too fast)

Angus Beef Hash (caramelized onions, breakfast potatoes, over-easy eggs)

Pork Pibil Tostada (fried egg, avocado creme, shisito salsa)

French Toast Sticks (with a maple honey dip)

HDFB Take Out: The Parlor Pizzeria

Recently my fiance and I went out to eat at our favorite local pizza joint, The Parlor Pizzeria. I couldn't believe that it's taken me this long to introduce it to you all. Andrew and I have been eating here for years now, and time after time we always leave having had an amazing experience. We were recently;y lucky enough to have seats at the pizza counter, where we had a front row view of the kitchen, watching them cook numerous pizzas in their wood-burning oven. The Parlor has rightfully won awards such as Best of Phoenix from the New Times, Best of Our Valley, and even 50 Best Pizzas from The Food Network. Aside from the excellent set up that their space has, including the original chairs from when the space used to be a beauty parlor, there is a large bar where you can find them creating unique cocktails using fresh herbs from their very own garden out front. Or grab a table outside on their covered patio by the fireplace. Wherever you sit, just be sure to come hungry.

The Parlor Pizzeria
1916 E. Camelback Rd.
Phoenix, AZ
602-248-2480
Closed Sundays

What to Order:
Arrancini (saffron risotto balls)
Roasted Beet Salad
Spicy Barbeque Chicken Pizza (my personal fave)
Salsiccia Pizza (pictured: sausage, radicchio, sage)

Funghi Pizza (mushrooms, goat cheese, truffle oil)
Tiramisu

HDFB Review: Sumo Maya

A lot has been happening within my Tini Tuesday happy hour group. Some members have moved away for job opportunities, others have joined, some re getting married, others are having babies, but one thing still remains the same, we gather, we eat, and we continue on like no time has passed at all (add the fact that we hadn't met in months since I sold my house and all). Recently we tried out a new Mexican Asian kitchen in Scottsdale called Sumo Maya. From the moment you walk up their larger than life front door, you are whisked away into a bright atmosphere as the hostess placed us at the back of the bar, passing under a larger than life tree in the dead center of the dining room, and perched us atop a high top table, complete with neon orange barstools. Having 6 friends to eat dinner means getting to try little bites of everything on the menu, and allowing me to take pictures before devouring them. If the atmosphere wasn't vibrant enough for you, wait until you taste the food. Granted we only had happy hour, I am greatly looking forward to expanding my palate to their dinner entrees like the Chile-Crab Garlic Noodles, and maybe a few more of their cocktails!

Sumo Maya
6560 N. Scottsdale Rd.
Scottsdale, AZ 85253
(480) 397-9520

What to Order:

Grapefruit Hefeweizen or the Lemongrass cocktail (Gin, Elderflower, lemon, and seltzer)

Salmon & Avocado Roll

Chicken Taco

Al Pastor Taco

Tempura Cod Taco

Korean Beef Taco

HDFB Does the Sonoita Winery Trail

On Wednesday I made my way down to Sonoita, AZ to visit the Kartchner Caverns and three local wineries. Sadly, the caverns did not allow any cell phones or photography of any kind, so I have nothing to share form that part of my adventure, but I do have some things to share regarding wine. This was my first trip down to the southern part of my hometown state, and I can't believe it took me this long to make my way there.

We stopped for lunch at this cute place called The Cafe. When I asked what was recommended, they told me the APE Burger. No two burgers are the same, you just let them know of any food allergies, spicy, or not spicy and to the kitchen your order goes. Naturally I told them to make mine spicy, and the waitress questioned me like she thought I couldn't handle it. Little does she know what kind of hot sauces I put into almost every single one of my meals. When she emerged with my plate it was a burger cooked medium, topped with chipotle peppers in adobo, crispy bacon, a large hatch green chile, and some sriracha. It was like the heavens opened up and made a burger just for me. But we're not here to just talk about burgers, let's get to some wine!

The 1st winery we visited was Callaghan Vineyards, who actually opened up solely for our visit, so big shout out to them!  We sipped on a flight of 5 wines of our choice, where I chose to indulge in 5 of their reds, 3 of which won the Jefferson Cup Silver Medal, and 1 which has been served numerous times to multiple presidents in the White House, so if that's any indication of how good they were, then so be it. They allowed us to keep our wine glasses as we headed to the next vineyard, which was a nice little souvenir to remember the day, in case the wine decided to flow a little too freely!

Next up on our tour was just down the street at Keif-Joshua Vineyards, where he runs the winery out of his own home, and was actually making wine as we pulled up. This wasn't your ordinary tasting room, as we soon found out when they offered to let us try any and all wines that they offered, no 5-tasting-cap. We sipped, laughed, and indulged on reds and whites of all varieties, my favorite being the Cabernet Franc, which also happens to be the only bottle I ended up buying (wine snob). As if the wine wasn't enough, out pops their pet kangaroo. No joke. A real life freaking kangaroo, which was the coolest thing I'd ever seen in all my 27 years. Who gets to say that they wine tasted with a kangaroo. I can.

Last stop on the trail was Wilhelm Family Vineyards, owned by winemaker Karyl Wilhelm, who just so casually happens to be an Air Force vet, so she's pretty badass if you couldn't tell. I learned the most about wine here, as I was feeling a little more "bold", blame the wine, to ask questions, like "how DO you get all of those amazing flavors into something that came from a grape?". Karyl was so sweet and took the time to go through the process with me, dumbing it down of course, and then even let me into her wine laboratory as I like to call it, and get a good look at all of her equipment, bottling devices, etc. She is most notably known for her creative ports, with flavors such as Chocolate Orange, White Chocolate Almond, Chocolate Mint, and Mocha, which are just some of the 18 different varietals that they offer.

All in all I dubbed this a 10 out of 10 trip in my book, for I learned, I laughed, and I drank. Who can say no to that? So if you are ever in the Sonoita area, just southeast of Tucson, AZ, I suggest that you grab yourself an APE Burger and head on down for some of the best wine and people you will ever come into contact with!

HDFB Review: Fractured Prune Doughnuts

I've been waiting to post about this incredible jem of a confectionery until I could find the right words to describe it, but after 2 weeks, I still can't seem to put together a coherent sentence that doesn't sound like "me likey douhgnuts". So, I am scratching all drafts and just writing this in the moment. I had heard about Fractured Prune about a month ago from friends on Facebook and Instagram. And after seeing things like "chocolate covered cherry" and "cookies and cream" doughnuts, I knew that I had to treat the boyfriend to this one of a kind place. Upon walking in, we were greeted by 3 extremely friendly and outgoing employees. A girl behind the register kindly came over to us and explained how everything works, seeing as it was our first rodeo.

Simply put, you can order from their menu of 16 pre-designed doughnuts, or get creative and make up your own confectionery concoction.

We decided to order 6 doughnuts, some from their menu, and others we designed ourselves. While they don't offer a variety of doughnut types, cake doughnuts only, they do offer a multitude of glazes like marshmallow, mocha, and key lime, and toppings from your standard sprinkles to bacon, sea salt, or vanilla wafers. What I love most is that nothing is pre-made, they don't even begin to fry up the dough until you order, and then while you wait they offer you samples of their glazes and toppings. For the curious eater like me.

Once they handed us our box of warm, freshly-made doughnuts, we couldn't wait to dig in. And. Oh. My. Douhgnut-Loving-King-of-all-Doughnuts. These are what heaven tastes like. No joke. I could write about these all day long, but instead why don't you just drive over to Fractured Prune in Chandler and grab one or a dozen for yourself!

Fractured Prune Doughnuts
4910 W. Ray Rd., Suite 1
Chandler, AZ
(480) 820-5438

 

Pictured above: Clockwise from top left- Carmel Bliss, Carnival, Fresh Toast, Maple Bacon x2, S'More

HDFB Takeout: Matt's Big Breakfast

There are so many amazing things to be said about Matt's Big Breakfast that I'm not even sure where to start. My first culinary experience here was many years ago where I simply ate 2 eggs, hash browns, and bacon. But that meal was anything but simple. The cage-free eggs from humanely raised chickens and local citrus, pork, and beef products really make all the difference at this local hot spot. Add a side of Wildflower Bread Company's sourdough toast, and pile it high with their homemade strawberry jam. Or check out the specials board because you might just find some Bourbon Cherry Sausage to devour like I recently did. You may have seen them on Diner's, Drive-ins, and Dives on the Food Network, or caught them on just about every top breakfast list made here in Arizona. And they deserve every single drop of praise. Be prepared to wait a bit for a table, but once you're inside, Matt's staff is friendly, and the kitchen is quick. The menu is not extensive, yet I still struggle every time to make a decision, because every thing is just so damn good. If you don't get the chance to eat at their restaurant on 1st Street and Garfield in Downtown Phoenix, maybe you will have the pleasure of stopping by their hub at The Sky Harbor International Airport in Terminal 4. Either way, just make sure that you get here!

Matt's Big Breakfast
Open Daily from 6:30am - 2:30pm
825 N. 1st Street
Phoenix, AZ 85004
602-254-1074

What to Order:
Everything & Anything!

HDFB Take-Out: Brat Haus

Brat Haus in Old Town Scottsdale is by far my new favorite place for casual dining. Whether it's for a late bite on a Saturday night after some cocktails with friends, or on a Tuesday afternoon for happy hour, this place does not disappoint. I'm pretty sure most of our friends are sick of us talking about it so much, but I'm obsessed. They have quite a unique outdoor space with life-size Jenga, tether ball (umm hello 3rd grade recess games), and ping-pong tables, not to mention a movie screen on the patio for Sunday movie nights or for playing photo slide shows for large retirement or birthday parties. The bar is located inside and holds a great selection of beers on tap, bottles, and cans. But let's be serious here; I came for the brats. Brat Haus does everything in house, from the bacon to the brats to the 4 different mustards; all of which you can purchase to enjoy in your home. So next time you're looking to try something different than your average Scottsdale bar, be sure to check out Brat Haus. 

Brat Haus

3662 N. Scottsdale Rd.

Scottsdale, AZ 85251

(480) 947-4006

What to Order:

 Pretzel Fundido

Chorizo Grilled Sausage with Apricot Chutney

Pepper Jack Brat with Rootbeer Onions

 Incredible Beers on Tap

Joy Ride Taco

Opening a Mexican restaurant in the southwest is a pretty risky adventure, seeing as there seems to be one on almost every corner here in Phoenix, but aside from the standard tacos and burritos, they each seem to bring something unique to the table. Joy Ride Taco House is an Upward project facility (think Postino's, Federal Pizza, Windsor, and Churn), and has two locations now; one in Gilbert, and the other down the street from my house in Phoenix on Central off of Camelback. After a day of wandering around the Desert Botanical Gardens, we recently stopped in for happy hour ($5 drinks and pitchers of beer until 5:00pm) and a bite to eat. And while the food was good, the ambiance and decor was great! Teal hexagonal tiles covered the walls (i am so impartial to anything teal), while over sized copper lighting fixtures hung over the bar, giving it an old Mexican feel, with modern touches. The servers are pretty laid back and wear street clothes, and it seems that everyone helps everyone out (i.e. a different person took our drink order, lunch order, re-filled our water, chips, etc.). An added bonus: we didn't order and appetizer because the free salsa and chips that they bring to your table was so satisfying. So if you're looking for a casual spot to hang out in the sun on their large patio, or bring the kids in for a fun lunch in the large padded booths, head on over to Joy Ride today!

Joy Ride Taco House
302 N. Gilbert Road (480) 632-TACO
5202 N. Central Ave (602) 274-TACO

What to Order:

Blood Orange Margarita (pictured right)

Cucumber Serrano (spicy deliciousness)

Chicken Tinga Torta (spicy chicken sandwich)

Taco Plates2 N GIBERT

Valley of the Sun: Take - Out

Take-Out is where you will find some of my recent trips to local eateries around the Valley of the Sun. It's no secret that I love to indulge, so when I do I want to share it with you!