Food, Glorious Food!

When you combine the top chefs and restaurants in the Valley, and you gather them in one place for foodies to mingle with and enjoy, it’s a total pandemonium.

Jeff and I were first timers on this annual Phoenix event and we are sure that Phoenix Cooks! will be a Labor Day weekend tradition for us. Held at the JW Marriott Desert Ridge Spa and Resort, this gastronomic symposium had a lot to offer for foodies or OHP (ordinary hungry people) alike.

Restaurants and chefs in the Valley presented some of the popular dishes and best sellers in their menu in bite size, taster pieces. Jeff particularly like the pulled pork bonanza on a sesame seed waffle cone, pork ranch tacos, banana-pineapple muffin con coconut italian ice from the Ritz-Carlton. District American Kitchen and Wine Bar made this strawberry shortcake spin-off that we could have sworn tasted like red skittles! Yum!

Staff From Chelsea's Kitchen Prepare A Brussel Sprout Salad

There was a big feast of Asian and ethnic food that I loved, thanks to Roka Akor, Sushi Roku, Cafe ZuZu, The Arrogant Butcher, The Melting Pot, Mastro’s and PURE Sushi to name a few. Indulgence was the name of the game. Several live cooking demos made the whole event an educational and inspiring event. Who would know that farm raised salmon are usually injected with dye to make them appear redder thus fresher?

So whether you like to eat or you love to cook, Phoenix Cooks! is a sure-fire way of nudging that hungry soul out of you.

Homemade Pasta Crafted While You Wait

Brittney Shipp (3TV) and Chef Michael Cairns (Urban Chefs AZ) Serve Freshly Prepared Salmon