(bright music) - I'm Chef Mark Tarbell.

Welcome to "Check Please!

Arizona."

The show where Valley residents recommend their favorite restaurants.

Coming up, we have three guests who are passionate about their picks.

They've dined at all three and are ready to share their reviews with each other and with you right here on "Check Please!

Arizona."

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(bright music) - I'm Chef Mark Tarbell.

Welcome to "Check Please!

Arizona."

In this episode, we're enjoying a bit of Arizona's history and its future.

Let's meet our diners.

Brooke Morrison is a full-time travel blogger.

Her favorite travel buddies are her two kids and her husband.

She grew up in Prescott and was once in a Super Bowl commercial.

Stephanie Jackson is a property manager.

She loves to spend her free time exploring Arizona with her husband, but up first is Amore Cianciola's choice.

Amore works in event planning at a historic inn in Prescott.

Before moving here for good, she spent a lot of time in Arizona and grew to love Indigenous cuisine.

Her favorite is found in a James Beard Award winner.

This is Fry Bread House.

(upbeat Indigenous music) - Fry Bread House is a unique restaurant, one of the very few restaurants locally that uses frybread as a main part of their menu.

The frybread was created by Native Americans as a result of the need to create food from the supplies that the government were providing them.

And it's just continued to thrive throughout the years.

My mother, Cecilia Miller, began the Fry Bread House.

I had no question, I had no doubts that the restaurant was gonna be successful because everything she put her hands on really did well and really succeeded.

My mother, who first received notification that she had received the James Beard Award, was taken back a little bit by it because it really humbled her and thrilled her.

When she went to New York to receive the award, it was really spectacular.

Not only for her, but I believe for the Native American community because it really recognized what she was able to accomplish, not only for the native community, but the community at large.

Fry Bread House is a unique restaurant that I believe has become a pillar of the community.

It really makes you proud that you can offer to people locally as well as people from various parts of the country, an opportunity to experience Fry Bread House and to learn about the history of frybread.

(upbeat Indigenous music) - So Amore, this place is the perfume of Arizona.

When you smell that frybread going, right?

- Absolutely.

- It's amazing.

- It's amazing.

So tell me about what you love about it.

- So just the whole quintessential experience of Indigenous food that you can find at the Fry Bread House.

Walking in, just the welcome, you're walking into somebody's living room.

- Yes.

- And the smell from the kitchen.

It was just beautiful.

- This is your place, but tell me a little bit about what you love there.

- So, I mean, hands down the native taco is my favorite.

I think the reason why I like that in particular is just the refried beans are just, it's just simple, little bit of cheese, little bit of tomato, little lettuce.

Just beautiful, simple, basic.

- On a puffy piece of frybread.

- On a puffy frybread.

And then if you're really, really lucky, they don't burst that bubble.

- Ooh, my favorite.

- Yeah.

- Yeah 'cause the steam comes out a little bit.

It's like, ooh baby, you're nodding your head Brooke.

Stephanie?

- I'm kind of reliving it right now.

- You are?

You're reliving that, having this?

- Kind of watering of my mouth going on.

Yeah, it was really good.

- That's awesome.

What'd you have, Brooke?

- So I had the pozole and the beef taco because I like to eat a lot, but the pozole was so delicious.

They had such big meat chunks in it that I really, really enjoyed and I actually had leftovers.

So yeah.

- But it's like entree portion of meat.

- Exactly.

- It's not like little skimps.

Where's my meat?

- Exactly.

You're not fishing for it or anything.

They're coming out big and nice and it's a good quality meat.

- Tender, juicy.

- Tender, juicy.

Everything it should be.

- I'm just looking for some pozole.

Stephanie, you had some pozole too, right?

- Yes, I loved it.

I loved it so much.

I will say it does come in a cup like this, but do not have that cup to define the size.

You will get full from it because it's just solid tender juicy meat.

And when you get the pozole, they give you lemon and cilantro and I really recommend putting that cilantro, putting that lemon, that lemon really breaks down like the acidity of the pozole.

And it just brings all those flavors all together.

- Now you had pozole a lot and this was a little different for you, right?

- Yes, because I am part Mexican and all the pozole that typically we would have would be the clear white pozole.

So when this pozole is from a red sauce, that's typically you would see in the noodle.

But this was a red pozole, so this was a different palette I ever had before.

It really gave me the Native American twist of their version of their pozole.

It's not Mexican, it's Native American, but so good.

- So you also had some taco, right?

- Yes, I did the native beef taco.

But one thing I really like to do, I like to mix it with the green chili and the red chili.

You have to do two separate orders?

So I do one for my husband, one for us, and then we'd split it in half.

So it's the best of both worlds.

- Yeah, it's like you gotta have both.

- Yeah, yeah.

- I always say both.

Where's the question?

- Yeah, Christmas style.

- Yeah, there you go.

- I was always scared of the red sauce, but I actually tried it, my daughter dared me.

- Yeah.

- And while it was hot right up there at the front, it just, the heat went away but the flavor stayed.

So I really enjoyed the red salsa.

- Yeah, yeah, it's not too spicy.

It's more flavor from all the chilies they use.

It's not like extremely hot.

It's just subtle enough where you just get that flavor.

So it's not too hot.

- And with that lemon, that just squirting it over a little, cools it down.

- It does, but it also bursts out the flavor.

- Yes, it does.

- So you want things to be hot.

That's what I love about this place is it is red chili, but chili is supposed to support flavor and not to dominate it.

You don't want to go away saying, oh that was hot.

You want to go away saying, oh that was flavorful.

And that's what they do So well there.

It's really good.

I'm glad your daughter dared you.

That's really cool, thanks to her.

- That's why I took the middle child.

- Okay, dessert.

I think you had a little bit of the sweet frybread.

- Yes, I did the sweet frybread.

I did melted butter and chocolate and how I would describe it, it's just like having a chocolate glazed donut but on a totally different level with this amazing cloud of like air dough that's just so yummy.

- It is the best.

- With that butter.

Yum.

- Yeah, you had it too, right?

- I did too, I just had honey powdered sugar.

So very traditional.

- The classic.

- Yeah, the traditional one.

It reminds me of the 4th of July for some reason when I have frybread.

And it's just, it brings me back.

So, loved it.

- Okay, now we're gonna talk about service energy vibe.

Who wants to jump in?

- It's a walkup counter, which you know, it's fine.

They bring the food out to us.

But what my favorite part was is my daughter and I sat outside at community tables.

So we met some new friends out there in the patio area and while we were waiting we did some shopping at the local artisans and you know, we just had a really great afternoon.

- It's in a great neighborhood too.

Awesome neighborhood.

- One great thing I love about this place, it's always easy to park.

There's always plenty of seating.

It is packed quite a bit, but it's for a good reason 'cause the food is that good.

Everybody that you see 'em sitting, they just have like a happy smile on their face.

They know they're just eating that yummy frybread.

- Yeah, well it's packed a lot.

I mean James Beard Award winner, the first Indigenous restaurant that was awarded that.

- I don't think you can be like of the valley unless you've tried there because it's so good.

It's just, it's kind of like coming home.

- So now it's time for pro tips.

What is the one thing that the audience needs to know?

- So my pro tip is always buy that second piece of frybread so that when you're eating your first taco, you have a second taco.

When it all falls apart.

- I agree with Amore.

Get that second piece of bread and the pozole so you can dip it in and just savor it, it's so yummy.

- So we're two for two on second piece of frybread.

- I am two for two for the pozole, I would say you can't leave without getting the pozole.

You have it the next day.

And also they make takeout very, very easy.

- And if you want to try Fry Bread House, they're located on 7th Avenue just north of Campbell in Phoenix, an average meal costs $22.

And they do not take reservations.

(upbeat music) Now to Stephanie's choice, this place holds a special meaning for her and her husband.

They ate here several years ago on Valentine's Day.

And it's still the place for them.

This is LON's at The Hermosa Inn.

(bright music) - The history of The Hermosa Inn is that this was the original home of the cowboy artist Lon Megargee.

It was built in the 1930s, and in 1992, the Unger family coined LON's as the new name for the restaurant at The Hermosa Inn.

LON's is a special place.

It's rich in history, it's got a great wine and art culture, as well as an incredible cuisine culture.

On the brunch menu, you can find a variety of items like waffles, pancakes, signature egg dishes.

Our dinner menu is made up of all globally inspired Arizona cuisine.

It's sectioned out into steaks, seafood, some pasta dishes, and incredible, incredible spins on classics.

LON's ambiance throughout the day really changes, during the day for breakfast, lunch or brunch, it's a more casual atmosphere, but in an upscale environment.

And then for dinner, it really turns into the white tablecloth, high-end dining service that you would expect from a top caliber restaurant in the Paradise Valley area.

The patio here at LON's is unlike anywhere else.

Beautiful flowers, incredible trees.

The Lysiloma tree here on the patio is a champion tree.

So the largest of its kind.

And it is just an incredible experience where you can come when the weather's beautiful out and there's tons of space, it is a special place.

From the moment guests walk in to when they leave, I want their experience to be an incredible journey of the five senses.

The minute they get outta their car at valet, they smell the alligator juniper that we're burning on the wood fireplace.

As they walk into the restaurant, they see the beautiful flowers and they have an incredible meal.

And I want all five senses to be engaged and satisfied.

(bright music) - Stephanie, three things.

Romance, patio, LON's, go.

- I can't think of a more romantic restaurant in Arizona than LON's at The Hermosa Inn.

We first dined there nine years ago when my husband didn't know where to go for Valentine's Day.

The only thing available at the time was LON's.

Didn't know nothing about the property or the restaurant, went there, was blown away by the whole extravagant of the flowerbeds and the sculptures and just the fountains and the fireplace.

And coming into this 1930s old Adobe home cowboy home.

It blew me away.

- It like screams Arizona, right?

Adobe, the cowboy.

All right, so we're dining now, apps.

We're gonna start with 'em.

We're gonna go around the table, but we'll start with you.

- We got the foie gras.

It was a pound cake with it with strawberry.

- So it had a little sweet to it.

Sweet tart, sweet tart.

- Sweet pound cake.

And then the foie gras was seared.

And I asked the waiter, one thing I really love about LON's, they are extreme experts in every fine detail.

And they said the foie gras that they serve at LON's is like the Lamborghini of foie gras.

- I love that.

- There's nothing higher than that.

That's the things you get when you go to LON's.

You're gonna have a dining experience you weren't expecting to have, but it's gonna be memorable for life.

- Amore, what did you have?

- So I didn't have a starter-starter.

I started with a salad and made a little modification and had a cherry vinegarette.

And I will say, like you were saying, it is definitely an experience in the servers, the server assistant, everybody knows what they're doing and wants to take care of you and make sure that you have a great experience.

- Awesome.

Butter lettuce and tart cherry.

I'm gonna love that.

Brooke?

- So I had the burrata and it was really good and it was served very unique, which I haven't seen before.

And it was a separate little dish and it was warmer, almost like a fondue consistency, but not quite.

And it was really good because you put it on this really crispy little piece of toast, really thinly sliced.

And it was just kind of an explosion in your mouth, right?

It was good, and I pretty much licked the bowl clean.

- Yeah, well as you would with burrata, right?

- Why not?

- Why not?

What did you have for entrees?

- I had the Chilean sea bass.

And let me tell you guys, it was cooked perfectly.

It was so good.

The crust on it, it was buttery.

It had just a little bit of a crunch when you bit into it.

But the middle was just decadent.

It was really decadent.

- I love it when sea bass has that crunch on top and you can drop a fork through it and it just falls apart.

- It is so good.

The best, probably the best cooked Chilean sea bass or actually piece of fish I've ever had.

Just it happened that LON's.

Oh, it had yams and it had mushrooms, but it had kind of a Japanese edge to it, which was very unique for me.

But it paired perfectly with a Chilean sea bass.

Yeah, it was delicious.

- Amore?

- So I did a filet mignon.

It was a beautiful cut.

They have a bordelaise sauce.

It was just super, super yummy.

I did the peewee potatoes instead of the boursin potatoes that normally come with it.

Totally accommodating in the kitchen.

I was really excited.

And we'll talk about these brussel sprouts in a minute.

- Okay, good.

Don't talk about 'em now.

You can't make me wait, you're gonna make me wait.

- So these brussel sprouts, Fresno chilies, peanuts, hot honey.

Just totally roasted.

They were so yummy.

And when they came by and they asked if I wanted dessert, I was like, no, I'm just gonna finish my brussel sprouts.

- Can I have another one of those?

Thank you.

That's awesome.

Stephanie.

- I also went with the filet, beautiful cut.

I didn't go with the same potatoes you went with, I went with the boursin potatoes and that was just like a buttery, like a cloud potato that just complimented the filet so well with the sauce and everything.

It's just, it's always perfectly cooked.

And the steak, it just cuts like butter.

- Oh, nice.

All right, we're gonna go to dessert now.

Brooke.

- I had the peanut butter bar.

And I asked the server and he guided me towards that and was delicious.

And he knew I was gonna take some of it home.

So he said it was really stable for transportation.

And he was right, it was delicious about five hours later.

- Oh, it didn't last until the next morning apparently.

- No it didn't.

- Stephanie, did you have it?

- Yes.

What we had for dessert was the churro tree.

It comes in a beautiful arrangement, just when it comes out is a piece of art.

And I would say these are the best churros I ever had in my entire life.

And the reason why is that it is a secret recipe of LON's.

It first originated from their original pastry chef 25 years ago when LON's wanted to have a staple for dessert they could have forever.

It comes with three sauces, the two sauces they always have.

The first one is from Abuelita Chocolate.

Being Mexican, I love that.

Never seen that before.

A caramel.

And then they do a seasonal one each season.

And at time it was like a apricot strawberry.

So you're getting a different experience with each of those sauces.

- Let's talk about atmosphere.

You had not been there, Amore or Brooke, what did you think walking into this place?

- I loved it.

So it started right from valet, just pulling right in, meandering through the walkways over to the hostess stand.

Being able to see the garden paths and the diners out there.

It was just an amazing experience.

- It's jaw dropping gorgeous outside.

It really is something special.

- Also very Arizona.

You get a great view of Camelback Mountain.

So pro tips now, yours Stephanie, it's you.

- Make sure to valet and have the whole experience of walking into the property, seeing the flowers, seeing the artwork, seeing the patio.

Don't cheat yourself.

Make sure you valet.

- So my tip is to talk with the servers.

The servers are so knowledgeable and go with their recommendations because they will not guide you wrong.

- Love it, thanks Brooke.

- So I would say if you're, you know, a little worried about the price point, maybe participate when they're doing their specials, like restaurant week, et cetera.

- And happy hour.

- And Happy hour is amazing.

- If you want to try LON's, it's located inside The Hermosa Inn in Paradise Valley.

An average meal will cost you $150.

And they do take reservations.

(upbeat music) Our last pick is Brook's.

She dined all over the world.

But when her feet land on the ground back home, she enjoys comfort meals at her favorite spot.

This is Soul Cafe.

- I would describe Soul Cafe as kind of the heart of the community.

A place where you can have breakfast, lunch, and dinner.

I think my influences when I created the menu were things that I like to eat.

Things that I ate myself growing up.

Our most popular item on the menu, and it's something we've had since we opened, is our buttermilk fried chicken.

I almost didn't even put it on the menu 'cause it just seems so basic, but it's so good.

I think our buttermilk fried chicken sells so much and so well is because we make a country gravy out of chicken, comes with mashed potatoes, it comes with a corn medley that we make.

And it's really a great dish.

Very comforting.

Our cocktail program here is just as important as our dinner menu.

To me, it is.

We've taken a lot of time when we created it.

It has a lot of unique items on it.

I'm pretty proud of it.

The restaurant vibe throughout the day is so different.

In the morning, you're gonna find people that are working from a table, working from the bar.

And then at night you have people that come from all over and they come here and they come dressed up.

They are looking more for a more quiet, intimate dinner experience.

And you can find that here too.

I want my guest experiences to be like, they're coming home or they're going to a friend's house for dinner.

Being here as long as we have and opening the restaurants that I have, the only way I can do it is because I get up in the morning and I feel, I'm gonna get choked up, so grateful that I have this community to come to.

And they make me feel so good when I come in here because without this community, I wouldn't be here.

(bright music) - So Brooke, why did you pick this place?

- I love Soul Cafe because it's a comfort food that we all want in life.

And it's like coming home to your little local spot and it always feels like that and it's always consistently good.

- Tell me a little bit about your appetizer.

- I had a classic Caprice, but what was special about this Caprice is the olives.

They tasted like they were imported, but the finest ones you've ever had, they had this explosion that went with the freshly made pesto and it just kind of married together.

And I'm all about flavors marrying together, you know, and they get in your mouth and it was just delicious.

- Amore?

- I had the crispy cauliflower.

Which I just thought was just totally yummy.

They had this little cream sauce on the bottom.

And then, I don't know, my third line is probably the hot honey.

They had some hot honey on it.

- Another hot honey.

- And again, I took that middle child with me out to dinner and I got her to have a vegetable.

And she liked it.

- Because of the crispy cauliflower.

- It was crispy.

- Like, who loves the fact that cauliflower is in our lives now?

It used to be like, no cauliflower for me.

Now it's like everywhere.

It's like perfect, cauliflower rice, cauliflower this.

Anyway, Stephanie, what'd you have for an appetizer?

- So my mom and I went for brunch.

We shared the banana bread.

The banana bread, so good.

Probably my mom said it was the best banana bread she ever had in her entire life.

This was our first time coming here and we're gonna come back just for the banana bread.

It was moist.

You could tell it was definitely from scratch.

Like they made it just that morning and then the butter, you know, just complimented it.

- Nothing better when you put butter on buttery banana bread.

I love that.

- The best.

- Okay, Brooke, this is yours.

What'd you have for an entree?

- So I had the salmon and it was really good.

It was perfectly cooked.

What I really enjoyed about the salmon is what it came with though, which was almost like a chutney.

It had squash with it.

It had cranberries.

It had nuts.

It reminded me, kind of Thanksgiving, something you'd wanna bulk order and say you made for Thanksgiving.

And maybe people would believe you, maybe they wouldn't.

- It depends how you sell it.

- Yes, exactly.

Exactly.

It was delicious.

- That is really interesting.

I would love that.

And I think that salmon's interesting 'cause when it's got a nice sear on it, it can take a little bit of sweet tart.

- Yeah.

- It actually likes it.

Salmon's interesting like that.

- It really is an interesting thing.

And it's so hard to cook salmon correctly.

- Yeah.

- But they did it and they always do it.

They're very consistent.

- I love that.

- Which is why it's my comfort.

- Amore, what'd you have?

- I had a hard time choosing and I decided to go outside my comfort zone and not get the beef stroganoff.

Not get the chicken piccata.

So I got the cod and the olive oil.

The fish was cooked beautifully.

They did a really great job with the fish.

I really liked the tomatoes and the Kalamata olives.

It was a really, that was a nice, I didn't care for the mashed potatoes underneath.

I just felt it like, it was just a little too, didn't jive.

Just wasn't my thing.

- Go back to the Kalamatas and you're happy again.

- But I was happy again that fish, honestly, it was really good cod.

- But Stephanie, what'd you have?

- Since we went there for brunch, we got the Too Good to Be True.

We got the lemon ricotta pancakes.

They said it was their best seller and it's like the size of like a medium pizza.

And I do not know how they could get that pancake so fluffy and so airy.

Just like a cloud of just lemon heaveness.

And it's very light.

It's not heavy.

So it really compliments, you know, with the saltiness of the bacon.

And then you got some lemon ricotta pancakes.

I mean, where can you even get that?

Only the Soul Cafe.

- You know, I don't know how they did it, but I can say maybe a hack would be they, they whipped their egg whites and fold it in.

And then they bake 'em 'cause that is a way to do that.

Sometimes the Japanese do that.

That's pretty cool.

That's really cool.

All right, we're going to desserts now, Brooke.

- So for the dessert, and this is a big tip, get their pie.

And that's what I had.

It was a blueberry pie.

They make it from scratch and it's just a little thing.

It's like, I mean, it's not a whole slice or anything, it's just, just the right amount.

And it's so good.

The crust, everything and the blueberries are fresh.

It's not like a frozen taste or anything.

It's what a blueberry pie should taste like.

- Oh.

Amore?

- So I had my daughter and I split the cherry pie.

And with a scoop of ice cream as well.

What's perfect about this pie is it is a little individual pie instead of a slice.

So there's enough crust for everybody and they do make it in house.

So it's really, it was amazing.

Sweet but flaky and buttery, was really yummy.

- All right, pro tips Brooke.

- If it's your first time dining there, pro tip.

Get their fried chicken because it's a staple and everyone loves it and they go for it.

- Order your pie when you sit down 'cause they run out.

- They're so good, apparently.

- That's a good tip, that's such a good tip.

- Stephanie.

- Pro tip, especially if you're coming for brunch, come early.

They do get really busy on the weekend, especially Saturday and Sunday.

So I would make sure you get there early because there is a little bit of a wait, but they do get you in fast.

But it is a hopping spot for brunch.

- All right, if you want to try Soul Cafe, it's in North Scottsdale, near Hayden and Pinnacle Peak Roads, an average meal will cost you $50.

And they do take reservations.

I want to thank Amore, Brooke and Stephanie for joining me at the table.

And thank you for joining us for "Check Please!

Arizona."

If you'd like to share your favorite restaurant, head to our website, azpbs.org/checkplease and nominate your must eat-out spot.

Who knows?

You could be joining me at the table.

Be a part of the foodie conversation in Arizona on Facebook and Instagram using #CHECKPLEASEAZ Join us next time when three new guests make their recommendations right here on "Check Please!

Arizona."

I'm Chef Mark Tarbell.

Have a delicious life.

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Arizona" is supported by.

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