Boll moves from Il Vinaio to El Chorro

During the recent kerfluffle over lion burgers at Il Vinaio, I wondered why chef Patrick Boll was conspicuously absent in all the media hype. As I suspected, he’s no longer working at the downtown Mesa eatery.

According to the Republic, the talented Boll is the new chef de cuisine at the recently renovated and reopened El Chorro in Paradise Valley. He promises to overhaul the historic restaurant’s lackluster comfort-food menu by the end of summer.

Boll, who spent a little over a year at Il Vinaio, previously worked as Robert McGrath‘s right-hand man during the heyday of Roaring Fork, then did stints at Old Town Scottsdale sister restaurants Drift, Geisha a Go Go and Stingray Sushi.

Renegade to finally open Monday in Scottsdale

Renegade Canteen, the much-anticipated and somewhat-delayed new Scottsdale restaurant featuring the cooking of James Beard Award-winning chef Robert McGrath, finally will open Monday, according to the Arizona Republic:

McGrath will be showcasing the kind of Western American fare that made his reputation. The idea, he says, is to create “a nice neighborhood restaurant with great food, environment and service.”

At dinner, look for appetizers like wood-roasted chicken hash ($9), smoked pork belly and poached egg ($10), smoked shrimp with Tabasco remoulade ($12) and his celebrated green chile pork stew ($10).

Among the main dishes are fried buttermilk chicken breast ($15), campfire-style wild salmon ($19), blackened catfish ($17) and pot roast with ancho chiles ($15). Meanwhile, the hunk-of-meat crowd can opt for the 12-oz New York strip ($28), 8-oz.filet mignon ($28) or 18-oz. pork porterhouse ($22).

Also:

And of course, McGrath will feature his signature hamburger.

He can’t call it the Big Ass Burger. The name belongs to Roaring Fork. So he’s dubbed it Bob’s Big Burger ($12). He’s also doing flatbreads ($14), including one topped with chicken, green chile and jack cheese.

Read the full story.

First taste: China Magic Noodle House

China Magic Noodle House, which recently opened in the Lee Lee Oriental Supermarket plaza on the northeast corner of Dobson and Warner roads in Chandler, has been on my list of places to check out. But it moved to the top of the list last week after Sweet Republic co-owner Helen Yung told me Magic Noodle actually pulls noodles to order. This I needed to see.

The restaurant, located on the south side of the shopping center facing Warner, is fairly non-descript. There are a few black booths along one wall, but most of the seating is provided at four-top tables. There’s also a small counter in the back, but a hostess greeted us and seated us. A server soon arrived to take our order.

The server explained that we could order our dish, choose the type of noodles we wanted and then go to the kitchen window to watch a staff member pull our noodles to order (pictured above). It was fascinating to watch skilled hands roll out the dough, stretch it, twist it, swing it, double it back again and again. My buddy Anthony and I each put a dollar in the window tip jar and received an appreciative bow from the other side of the glass.

Our food arrived very quickly. China Magic Noodle offers about a dozen Americanized lunch specials — sweet and sour chicken, Mongolian beef, Kung Pao chicken, etc. — for $5 to $5.95, but we stuck to the regular menu, which was still fairly inexpensive. First up was an appetizer of hot spicy pig ear ($4.50, pictured above). We chose the small size (a large order was $7.75) and got a heaping plate of thin slices of ear, which were served cold. I prefer pig ear served hot, so it has a bit of crunchiness in the middle. As I expected, the cold version was a little chewier, but not overly so, and had a slightly stronger pork flavor.

My friend Anthony is a soup fiend, so I wasn’t surprised he wanted the oxtail noodle soup ($5.95), which turned out to be a generously portioned bowl with a fabulous aroma. The shaved noodles, in this case, were large and had an excellent texture — cooked to the equivalent of al dente, making them just a little sticky.

I opted for beef fried noodles with spicy XO sauce ($7.95), one of the house specialties. The noodles ranged in diameter — some as plump as thick spaghetti, others as thin as angel hair pasta — and the beef was quite tasty. (One note: There was a container of chopsticks on every table, but no traditional silverware. I suppose you could ask if you wanted to, but I saw no one in the packed restaurant eating with a fork.)

The Lee Lee corner already had a wealth of worthwhile Asian eats, from the dim sum at to the Vietnamese sandwiches at Phoenix PalaceLee’s Sandwiches. With the arrival of China Magic Noodle, the rich just got richer.

Lola Tapas to close this weekend

CenPho.com broke the news earlier today via Twitter that Lola Tapas will close its doors for good after Saturday’s dinner service. The restaurant, located at Camelback Road and Eighth Street in Phoenix, opened in 2005.

There’s been no comment so far from owner Felicia Ruiz, but New Times’ Chow Bella blog got in touch with chef Eric Gitenstein, who explained:

“Slowly, sales have dropped over time. We tried lunch, but people would always go to Culver’s to get a burger instead of coming here,” he says. “We were busy on the weekends, but the weekends alone can’t support a restaurant.”

The closure does not affect the two Lola Coffee Bar locations in Phoenix that are owned by Ruiz’s ex-husband.

Chompie’s opens 4th deli near Chandler mall

The Republic reports Chompie’s, a small East Valley chain of New York-style delis, finally has opened its long-awaited fourth location just south of Chandler Fashion Center.

The city’s boroughs are highlighted in blue neon, while subway signs, posted over doorways, make you feel as if the tracks are just around the corner.

Huge murals capture iconic images and street scenes as well. But brightly lit deli cases, stocked with New York cheesecakes, cookies, rugelach, muffins, pastries, salads, deli meats, chopped liver, knish, smoked fish and pickles are probably the most compelling piece of scenery.

Read the rest of the story here.

The Chandler location, 3481 W. Frye Road, is open at 6 a.m. daily. Info: (480) 398-3008.

VegTourAZ: I won’t give up meat, but …

After a recent tour of Valley BBQ joints, it was time to turn the tables. Tuesday, four of us decided to check out some of the Phoenix metro area’s top-regarded vegetarian restaurants. Our goal: five restaurants in five hours.

MXSW’s fellow culinary adventurers were Gilbert restaurateur Joe Johnston (Liberty Market, Joe’s Real BBQ, Joe’s Farm Grill), Foodies Like Us co-founder Susie Timm and food-tographer Chanelle Richardson (who also was our group’s only real-life vegetarian).

Woodlands Vegetarian South Indian Kitchen

We began our quest at Woodlands, on the northeast corner of Ray and Rural roads in west Chandler. The strip-mall restaurant’s no-frills decor is utilitarian but spotless. Everything – entrees, soups, drinks — comes in Styrofoam containers. The friendly husband-and-wife owners helpfully steered us to the menu’s two dinner specials — the Grill Thali ($9.99) and the South Indian Thali ($9.99) — and an array of dishes and breads soon covered our table.

The former features iddly, a savory rice cake; vadai, a savory donut; and masala domai, a paste-stuffed crepe made from rice and lentils (all pictured at right in middle). The latter includes sambar, a tamarind-tinged vegetable stew; rasam, a tomato-based soup; dhall, a spicy lentil dish; and kootu, a thick vegetable-and-lentils dish (all four pictured at right on top); as well as papadum, a cracker-like flatbread, and chapati, an unleavened flatbread.

We sampled several of the offerings from a condiment bar — our favorite being a spicy green mint paste. For drinks, we indulged in a chickoo shake, which tasted very much like a date shake, and falooda, a unique concoction of rose syrup, ice cream, vermicelli noodles and tapioca seeds (pictured at right on bottom). Coffee and tea were included with the dinner specials.

Don’t let the atmosphere — or lack thereof — at Woodlands fool you. Everything we tried was delicious. Even the most committed carnivore could leave full and happy.

Grade: A

Pomegranate Indulgently Healthy Cafe

Next we zipped over to the recently opened Pomegranate Cafe, another strip-mall joint, on the southeast corner of Chandler Boulevard and 40th Street in Ahwatukee. Like Woodlands, it’s an order-at-the-counter place, but the menu is a little more raw-focused. It’s only open for breakfast and lunch.

We started with one of Pomegranate’s signature herbal elixirs, in our case the Celebration (pictured at left), New Age-ly described as “a deep Chi tonic and energy builder you can feel right away.” To be honest, it tasted more like watered-down pomegranate juice with a dash of cough syrup, but at least it came with strawberries and dark chocolate.

Things picked up considerably when our food arrived. The raw collard wrap ($10, pictured in middle) — two large leaves stuffed with carrot, tomato, avocado and a delicious house-made almond cheese — was so tasty I didn’t even bother adding the side of “living Caesar dressing,” which I’m guessing is yogurt-based.

Equally impressive was the smokey tempah BLT sandwich ($9.50, pictured on bottom). The thin, crunchy strips of tempeh, sort of a soybean cake, combine with a smoky miso mayo to produce a fair approximation of bacon. And the dried vegetable chips were bursting with flavor.

Pomegranate’s staff seemed a little overwhelmed at times — there was a Help Wanted sign in the window — but there’s no denying that the food is very good.

Grade: B+

Green New American Vegetarian

Our third stop was Green, chef Damon Brasch‘s funky eatery on Scottsdale Road just north of McKellips Road. Its proximity to ASU helps draw a steady stream of college-age diners, but an older clientele also is well-represented. Even though we arrived well after 1 p.m., a line soon stretched out the door, attesting to Green’s popularity.

Green’s menu features many faux versions of popular comfort foods, and there’s no better example than the spicy buffalo “wings” ($5, pictured on top). I have no idea how Brasch makes these, but it’s almost unbelievable how much they taste like real chicken. And the sauce is killer.

But for all the home runs on Green’s menu, there also are some strikeouts. On this day, the latter definitely includes the daily special, a BBQ rib plate ($10, pictured in middle). The “ribs” are squares of tofu on a stick — weird tofu Popsicles — covered with fried tempura batter. The fried batter and sauce are enjoyable enough, but there’s nothing enticing about the slabs of tofu.

Green redeems itself with dessert — a Better Finger Soy-nami (pictured on bottom). The soy ice cream is delicious, as is the faux Butterfinger candy bar filling.

I would be tempted to disregard the “ribs” in the grading process since they aren’t part of Green’s regular menu, but the staff enthusiastically recommended them, so …

Grade: B-

Nourish

Just-opened Nourish, our fourth stop, isn’t strictly a vegetarian restaurant, but advertises “comfort food with a healthy twist.” Located in Optima Camelview Village (the same complex where you’ll find Josh Hebert‘s fabulous Posh) on the northwest corner of Scottsdale Road and Highland Avenue in Scottsdale, Nourish offers many vegan, vegetarian, gluten-free and lactose-free options.

At this point, we’re all getting a little full. Fortunately, as we sipped organic cocktails, we noticed the menu lists a tapas plate ($7.50), which includes half-portions of any four appetizers. Chef Dan Santos even came out of the kitchen to chat with us as we sampled them. Owner Kirstin Carey also stopped by our table.

Our chosen apps (pictured above left) — in order of enjoyment, starting with the best — were a delightful salad of red and white quinoa with black beans, dried apricots and toasted almonds (normally $4); creamy lemon-artichoke hummus with garlic-sprinkled pita bread ($5); a chunky sweet potato and avocado salad with sweet soy dressing ($4); and the salsa of the day, which on our visit was a disappointingly bland pineapple salsa ($3).

Desserts made with Wei of Chocolate were tempting, but we decided to save them for another day.

Grade: B

Fresh Mint Cafe

Our final vegetarian destination was two-year-old Fresh Mint, on the northwest corner of Scottsdale and Thunderbird roads in north Scottsdale. It’s a friendly husband-and-wife operation, the wife being chef Mai Ly. The couple owned two Fresh Mints on Maui before following their college-bound daughters to the Valley.

We ordered spring rolls, which we were told are the restaurant’s most popular item. We soon discovered why. Working like a sushi chef behind the counter, Ly painstakingly crafted a near-perfect roll, then sliced it into sushi-like pieces ($5.95, pictured at right on top). The accompanying peanut sauce was fantastic — not thick and cloying as so many versions in the Valley.

The most popular entree, a heaping platter of Kung Pao Soy Chicken ($13.95, pictured in middle), kept our taste buds dancing. The spiciness wasn’t apparent at first bite, but a slow warmth slowly built. The vegetables were fresh, and the soy chicken tasted almost as good as a real bird.

We washed down our meal with four large green goblets of mixed-to-order mint tea (pictured at bottom), each sip a wave of refreshment.

If I lived in north Scottsdale, I could see myself dining at Fresh Mint every week to work my way through menu items like lemongrass curry eggplant, vegetarian citrus spare ribs and soy fish in a clay pot.

Grade: A-

Final thoughts: Per tradition, we stopped at Sweet Republic (where co-owner Helen Yung let us try luscious tofu and purple yam ice creams!) to celebrate another successful culinary tour. Joe Johnston and I agreed that, overall, the vegetarian restaurants were better than the BBQ joints on our previous tour. I’m not ready to give up burgers and  brisket. But if I ever had to, it might be easier than I thought.

Ra fights children’s cancer during Nicky’s Week

Ra Sushi has kicked off its sixth annual Nicky’s Week, a fundraiser for pediatric cancer research. One hundred percent of the proceeds from select menu items — such as edamame, shrimp nigiri, pork gyoza, tuna tataki and chicken yakitori — will go to St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital in Memphis, Tenn.

The Valley-based chain hopes to raise $125,000 this week. The fundraiser will be held at all 25 Ra locations across the country, including five in the Valley.

Nicky’s Week honors Nicholas “Nicky” Mailliard, the nephew of one of Ra’s co-founders. Maillard, a Scottsdale resident and longtime St. Jude patient, died of brain cancer in 2005 at age 13.