Arizona 2008 Official State Visitor's Guide - (Page 48) Phoenix and Central Arizona To Dine For new and notable Some of the best new restaurants in metro Phoenix aren’t about pretentious experiences or tortured presentations. Instead, the emphasis is on fresh food and a casual setting – so casual you might wind up sitting on a picnic table under the shade of tamarisk trees. Cool yourself under those shady trees at Joe’s Farm Grill in Gilbert, where an old farmhouse now puts forth pestotopped burgers and salads made with greens grown a few feet away. Schnepf Farms’ Fresh From The Farm in nearby Queen Creek also offers just-plucked produce and an American-French menu. RadioMILANO is a Phoenix neighborhood hangout, where you share tables with other diners, Euro-style. In downtown Phoenix, Palatte occupies a 1914 house and serves a French-inspired brunch menu. Try the wild mushroom tart or roasted sweet potato pancakes. In Scottsdale, FOODBAR at SouthBridge lets you choose food, urban-market style, either to go or to eat in its industrialmeets-comfy setting. Dish is also a hybrid – part gourmet market and part restaurant, where fire-roasted pizzas are a specialty. At Union Wine Bar and Grill, expand your palate by trying a “flight” of wine (three 2oz pours) and seasonally fresh small-plate selections, such as arancini with tomato sauce. residential loft projects underway and plenty already completed. Stroll the myriad art galleries that line Main Street and Marshall Way, particularly on Thursday evenings for ArtWalk, when galleries stay open late with special events. Shop for designer fashions, home accessories and even Arizona souvenirs at boutiques and shopping centers within walking distance of one another, then dine on everything from sushi and Mexican to pizzas and Polynesian. After dark, join the velvet-rope throng at nightclubs that range from tikibar casual to celebrity-studded sophisticated. Y will ou have danced all night. Scottsdale’s neighboring communities in the northeast Valley – Cave Creek, Carefree and Fountain Hills – have their own distinct appeal. T the north, Cave Creek o hangs on to its Western ranching heritage through its rustic shops and eateries. Try a guided hike through Spur Cross Ranch Conservation Area, a lush slice of the usually arid upper Sonoran Desert that was once a working cattle ranch. Adjacent Carefree – named by its master planners to infuse the town with a sense of whimsy – boasts a charming town center marked by a huge sundial, and attractive homes tucked between boulders and on hillsides. Fountain Hills, to the east of Scottsdale, is marked by its 560-foot fountain (visible from afar) and surrounding grassy park. At its doorstep is McDowell Mountain Regional Park, more than 20,000 acres of desert great for picnicking, wildlife 48 • A r i z o n A © o f f i c i A l S tAt e V i S i t o r ’ S G u i d e Joe’s Farm Grill, Gilbert
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