In about a month, EATERAZ will venture out west for a new kind of BBQ Festival (well, for us). It won’t involve a parking scuffle with Nordstrom, unwatered grass, or neighbors complaining that there’s actually people outside their doors … we’re producing an event it seems the City of Surprise actually wants and covets, and one that’s easy to navigate for patrons. Taking place on the Surprise Recreation Complex, right outside the stadium where the Kansas City Royals and the Texas Rangers play, and right next door to thousands of parking spaces we will have access to, the March 3rd Surprise BBQ Festival is picking up steam.

The event attracted the attention of the Arizona Pork Council – so much so that they signed on as a Platinum Level Sponsor! What’s that mean, this event is going to have tons of ribs and smoked pork butt, for one. But also that the Pork Council will be out there reminding you that pigs are the most versatile things to eat in the world. Pork chops, bacon, pulled pork, pork ribs, pork loin … the list goes on.

They’ll also be out there reminding you that they exist to also make sure pork comes from farms that treat their pigs with humanity before they meat the reaper. We’d like to publicly thank the Arizona Pork Council for their support, and in honor of this sponsorship, will be doing up a nice bone-in pork chop from AJ’s tonight, a little salt and pepper, nothing too fancy, because pork stands on its own.

Just as New Year’s Eve is a night out for amateurs, Valentine’s Day is a night out for amateur couples. Forced romance from people dining out in restaurants that are smugly serving chipper couples – do something original, would ya?

Here’s an idea we just heard about from the Four Seasons Scottsdale. The Saturday before Valentine’s Day, February 11th, they’re holding “Feast for the Senses,” a series of cooking demonstrations tailored for the hearty holiday. Some couples will make this their big night out, likely booking a room around the class, while individuals will likely take the class so they have a “let’s stay in” game plan come February 14th.

So what’s up with the senses? Executive Chef Mel Mecinas and Executive Sous Chef Jesse Hansen will blindfold participants to “smell” certain ingredients as they get settled, and work to isolate components in the menu to understand why each ingredient is important. They will “hear” the champagne popping for a welcome cocktail, “touch” warm oshibori towels to clean their hands, “see” ingredients when the blindfold is removed …  And then, of course, there’s “taste,” the obvious one.

You’ll learn to cook the entire menu:

Red Beet Carpaccio
Butter Poached Lobster/Asparagus/ Black Mesa Goat Cheese/Passion Fruit Vinaigrette
Cocoa Chili Espresso Rubbed Rib Eye
Marsala Mushroom Demi/ Sweet Crab Whipped Potatoes/ Brown Sugar carrots
Valrhona Soft Center Chocolate Cake
Candied Hibiscus flowers/ Strawberry Sorbet

Since there are certain parts of this meal that are not easily found in your local Safeway, all guests will leave with a goodie bag, including hibiscus flowers, foil cake cups to cook cake in, a jar of vanilla or blood orange Queen Creek Olive Oil, a bag of chili cocoa espresso rub, and red wine Demi

“Feast for the Senses” runs $55 per person/$100 per couple. It starts at 11am and reservations are required at 480-513-5085.

Quick, call your therapist … not to schedule an emergency appointment, but to cancel the next few. Surely your overall life neuroses comes in part from dining out. You always seem to get the seat in the draft, under the poorly placed spotlight, or at the table that wobbles. Dining out is full of stress. and it’s enough to drive someone to seek professional help.

Lighting and draft issues are a plague of the human kind, but the wobbly table thing – well, that’s something easy band-aided with a few sugar packets.

But Eric Flatt, owner of Tonto Ba & Grill up in Cave Creek, was tired of seeing his customers fiddle with the wobble. “At Tonto we have Saltillo tile on our patios, which translates to ‘Nothing Level,’” he says. “The problem is that the table moves every time someone lifts their arms up. Usually, the patron fixes it with a sugar packet, but that’s just not right.”

So for a while, Flatt found a solution to the wobble in black rubber wedges called “Shuv-it’s,” but they were always getting lost, hosed off and on to the golf course, swept up, and then thrown away. Even the birds would steal ‘em. (And by birds we don’t mean customers, but yes, Flatt confirms that customers would steal them for their own wobbly tables at home … savages.)

As Flatt was having new tables made for the patio (Have you noticed all the 75-degree days lately?), he found a solution in a new table footing called the “SuperLevel”–a foot with an internal spring built into it. Although Flatt had to have all of the new tables custom made with these pieces, the problem is now solved and Tonto’s patio is one of the most neuroses-free in town.

No, tables aren’t bouncing up and down like Dre’s ’57 Bel Air, the SuperLevel Automatic Self-Adjusting Glide quietly creates a level table-top with an ingenious spring-and-ramp mechanism down below. Now, you can enjoy a view like the one you see below without having to look down, wondering which leg is craving some sugar.

And since Flatt just saved you a trip to the therapist, order a bottle of wine, enjoy the view, and set your elbows on the table. Now that’s livin’.

Tonto Bar & Grill
5736 E. Rancho Manana Blvd.
Cave Creek, AZ
480-488-0698
www.tontobarandgrill.com

Here are three signs that cocktails are the new food:

1) Last week, Chef Jose Garces of our very own Distrito and Old Town Whiskey chose Master Mixologist Tony Abou-Ganim as a team member in a Food Network showdown. Who needs a sous chef when you’re presenting Abou-Ganim originals with your competition food? It was an industry first.

2) Inside of this whole Shit Anyone Says trend, montage videos making fun of everyone from Asian dads to chicks who yoga, bartenders recently got one and the subject is… you guessed it: mixology. Check it out here: www.youtube.com

3) Even Arizona gets a Cocktail Week. See, our Arizona Cocktail Week was announced a few months ago with the shell of a website and very little buzz. But now, in the 11th hour, the thing is picking up momentum. Hosted by the Hotel Valley Ho, Arizona Cocktail Week is aimed at both members of the beverage industry and consumers alike, and it takes place practically tomorrow, February 19th-ish.

From an overall vodka discussion for bartenders led by Dale DeGroff and Don Lee, to a discussion about gin’s resurgence with folks from Hendricks, Tanqeray, Aviation, and the Juniper Society, this thing is shaping up to be a decent inaugural effort. Although not a week (it’s more of a Monday-Tuesday type of affair), what a great way to book a couple rooms at the Ho, learn about booze, sample tons of it, and then do it all again the next day.

Seminars run about $25 each, and cover ground on everything from trends (farm-to-table drinking) to, well, more trends (whiskies of the world). There’s a Grand Tasting each day for $25 each, and all-inclusive passes that go from $200 to $600, depending on how many amenities you want to pack in. Lots of big name cocktail people are coming in for the events, so this is a great opportunity to meet the people you see on Food Network or read about in cocktail books. It’s also a great way to drink.

Take a look at the ticket levels here: http://arizonacocktailweek.com/tickets. And then, count how many phrases you actually hear from Shit Bartenders Say. We bet it will be around 6,472.

It’s difficult to keep up with all that’s happening around Scottsdale. We know you read EATERAZ for food news, and, well, that’s probably all you read because the writing is so crazy good that your brain can’t handle any more input.

So there’s little time to digest other stuff. Since print magazines are so few and far between these days, turn your attention to a new digital magazine called “Scottsdale Business & Life.” It’s basically a walk around Scottsdale with people profiles, snapshots of businesses, chef interviews. and other interesting info you need to stay current. You subscribe by simply entering your e-mail address and some profile info, and then they’ll e-mail you each monthly issue, which you can flip through, click on, zoom in and out with, or do whatever, at your leisure!

The creators are currently running a subscription drive–enter your info before January 25th and you’ll be eligible to win four tickets to the Waste Management Phoenix Open and a $50 gift certificate to Sapporo in Scottsdale.

Here’s the link to subscribe: https://app.expressemailmarketing.com/Survey.aspx?SFID=121524

It’ll take less than a minute and you’ll quickly devour the first issue, also found here: http://scottsdalebusinessandlife.com. Then, start planning how you’ll distract golfers from the legendary 16th hole at the Open.

Let’s say you want a cocktail. And let’s say you want an ice pop at the same time. Or, let’s say you don’t and you just want to try a cool, new product … then we recommend SnöBar! It’s the world’s first cocktail infused ice pop. What’s that mean? SnöBar takes things like a vodka/triple sec cosmopolitan and puts it into a delicious icy pop. Same thing with a margarita, which sounds perfect for poolside sippin’, er, lickin’, doesn’t it?

The flirty, phallic gestures will surely run rampant this summer, as SnöBar is rolled out at pool scenes across the west. It will also be a hot, er, “cool” item at the Waste Management Phoenix Open next month. But not all flavors incite promiscuity with a popsicle–some come as good ‘ole ice cream – think brandy, creme de menthe, and creme de cacao for a delicious minty green flavor called Grasshopper; or brandy, almond liqueur, and creme de cacao for a pink sorbet-like flavor called Pink Squirrel.

Check out all the flavors here: http://snobarcocktails.com

SnöBar is hitting retail shelves now, but another place you can find it is at the Surprise BBQ Festival we’re throwing on March 3rd out at the Surprise Stadium! SnöBar has signed on as a Silver Level Sponsor, which means that they’ll be out there serving the good stuff to anyone hand-stamped 21 and over. So come on out and wash down those smoked ribs with a refreshing margarita popcicle.

In the meantime, like them on Facebook here: www.facebook.com/snobarcocktails

Some would say the best way to learn how to barbeque is to simply hit a BBQ festival and meet the pitmasters. Can’t do that because those guys usually have got their game faces on and want nothing to do with lowly novices while they’re competing for big $$$. Others would say you should take a class from this guy–he’s a star on TLC Pitmasters and actually gives away the secrets to winning/teaching people to ‘que. But perhaps there’s another way that doesn’t require a plane ticket to LA or coaxing competitors into liking you–perhaps all you have to do is read the new cookbook from Bryan Dooley, the owner of Bryan’s Black Mountain Barbecue up in Cave Creek.

“Stories and Recipes from Bryan’s Black Mountain Barbecue” comes from a pit master that’s not like the others–Dooley has done time as a fine dining executive chef, low-line cook, and everything in between. In the book, you’ll find recipes for his Bryan’s BBQ sauce and rub (they’re tweaked just a tad so he can keep you coming to his Cave Creek restaurant for the real thing) but the recipes are a virtual roadmap to some of Dooley’s best creations. There’s more than 48 recipes in the book, many of them interspersed with stories from his life.

The book is available at Bryan’s Black Mountain Barbecue (6130 E. Cave Creek Road) for $21.95. We suggest you pick up a copy and leaf through with a half slab and side of brisket. And don’t worry about keeping sauce off the pages, it’s a BBQ book for cryin’ out loud!

Look at yourself, sitting there eating without doing anything else. You’re such a time waster. It’s a new year and it’s time to get some things done while you eat. One of the things we suggest–learning to cook!

Back for round two, the Phoenix Public Market presents the Winter Chef Series, a month-long program of chefs doing cooking demos while you learn how to cook the dishes you’re sitting down to actually eat. Produced by Devour Phoenix, the events have a decidedly “eat and drink local” tone to them, with veggies and meat products often sourced locally as well as any drink pairings for the three-course meals.

The series kicks off with Elizabeth Meinz of Orange Table January 10th at 6pm, and then flows into weekly Tuesday night classes peppered with a few Saturday afternoons thrown in for good measure. Check out the post-opener schedule:

Jan. 17th, 6pm: Jared Porter of Parlor Pizzeria
Jan. 24th, 6pm: Matt Taylor of noca
Jan. 28th, 2pm Danielle Leoni of The Breadfruit
Feb. 4th, 2pm: Mark Tarbell of Tarbell’s
Feb. 7th, 6pm: Tracy Dempsey of Tracy Dempsey Originals
Feb. 18th, 2pm: Jennifer Woods of Chow Bella & Crooked Sky Farms

Each event costs $55 and includes a two-hour demo, three courses of food, and three drinks. It takes place in the Phoenix Public Market Community Room (14 E. Pierce St.). Organizers expect each class to sell out, so make your reservations online to ensure a seat: http://foodconnect.org.

On January 14th, Food Network star Tyler Florence is going to roll into town (literally) with over 25 food trucks for a food festival of big proportions.

Gourmet trucks, both local and, well, not local will come together for about seven hours of deliciousness at Salt River Fields near Talking Stick Resort for the New Times Street Eats Festival. Based on the success of the Food Network’s The Great Food Truck Race, this event will bring the flavors of this exciting and delicious trend together for all of us to sample. Florence is host of the show and will be on hand to host the event and provide a Q&A for VIP ticket holders.

The event will include bars, a remote control car track, live music, cooking demonstrations on a Sub-Zero/Wolf stage, and much more. It costs $10 to get in and $2 per food sample from each of the trucks. Full menu items will be available as well. VIP tickets cost $99 and include 10 food samples, four drinks, VIP access, and entry into that Q&A with Florence himself.

We expect it to be a great event, with killer weather and tons of room to just chill, eat, grab a beer, and push some kid out of line to ride the zip line (really, they’re planning on having a zip line!) Check out details and buy tickets here: www.ticketweb.com.

There are three types of people who don’t love a good burger.

1) Cow people.
2) Boring people.
3) Boring cow people.

Fortunately (and contrary to popular belief), scientists are not always part of group number two, especially when they’re scientist chefs like Maxime Bilet and Nathan Myhrvold. They’re authors of Modernist Cuisine and do the most molecularly catchy things with edible stuff you’ve ever seen–like make gummy worms out of olive oil, Thanksgiving dinner in a single stew, and take 36 hours to make the perfect burger. Thirty six hours!? Yep – from a molecular and Gruyere version of the perfect slice of American cheese, to achieving char on the patty without any gradient between outer crust and interior-medium-rare-deliciousness. It’s burger science, and we want one!

We found a video of them describing the perfect burger on Gizmodo. Watch it here.

But just as great, is something we found in the comments. Check out this Onion video with Ted Allen: www.youtube.com. Now that’s good YouTubin’.