AZ Vibe – The Ultimate Phoenix Entertainment Resource

From now until December 29, 2009 at San Gabriel Restaurant in Phoenix they have a GREAT deal on a dinner for two for only $40.

The Deal includes:

Your Choice of one Tapas (appetizer)
Your choice of two entrees
Your Choice of one dessert

-and-

Your choice of 2 house margaritas or a bottle of wine.

Not bad, huh?

For contact information (to make reservations) please refer to their website:

http://www.sangabrielaz.com/

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Popularity: 8% [?]

If you haven’t made reservations for Father’s Day yet, you might want to head on over to your local Havana Cafe.  On Father’s Day from 4 to 9 PM Father’s eat free with the purchase of an entree of equal or greater value.  They will also have live music at all three locations.

http://www.havanacafe-az.com/events/index.php

Popularity: 5% [?]

Editor’s Note: Today marks our first article from Karyn Wyatt.  Karyn is our new contributing writer and will be writing about a whole array of topics.

By Karyn Wyatt

I have always joked about the odd location of this restaurant since it is tucked behind a veterinarian’s office. Because of this, I have always steered clear of eating there. However, on Sunday, March 15th I happened to locate a BOGO (Buy One Get One) coupon and figured I had nothing to lose.

When entering you just can’t help but feel like you walked in off the beach. The decor is very basic with a sea side feel. There are a handful of tables straight ahead. To your right and up a couple of steps there are some booths alongside the windows, which lookout to the parking lot and a gas station. To your left is a window with a cash register which is attached to the kitchen area.

The staff, although friendly was limited and very slow to recognizing that there were patrons waiting to be seated. On a busy day I could understand this and let it slide but there was only one table of four people in the whole place. We stood by the front door looking clueless (there is no sign asking that you wait to be seated) and then we finally sat ourselves at a booth.

After sitting at the booth for ten minutes we finally went up to the window to ask if we were supposed to order there. The girl seemed surprised that we were there and informed us that we were supposed to wait to be seated. She did apologize for not seating us, stating she was busy making more chips.

Anyway, we finally got our menus and ordered. The menu has a combination of the usual Mexican dishes and hamburgers, which I thought was odd. I ordered the Taco Salad with ground beef. My friend ordered enchiladas.

The waitress gave us chips and salsa to nibble on while waiting for our food. They were basic.

Finally, we got our food. And the drum roll please……my taco salad was in a crisp tortilla shell with lettuce and cheese and presumably nothing else. I couldn’t see past all the lettuce and had to dig to find the beans and beef. I think there were tomatoes and some sour cream in there too. The beef was not seasoned and it actually tasted like they had grilled up a burger and then broke it into pieces and tossed it into my taco salad.

I asked for salsa and the waitress asked if I wanted mild or hot. I said hot and she said, “Ok, but it’s not very hot I don’t think.” She was right. It was fairly flavorless.

I ate about half of my meal and asked for a box…which is what I usually do because I’m a tightwad and don’t waste anything.

My friend’s enchiladas were nothing spectacular and again flavorless. He ate about half of them and pushed the plate away. No box for him.

I have read reviews that say, “Rio Rico offers diners warm hospitality and mouth-watering cuisine that will not easily be forgotten” and “Thought the food was great!” Where are these people eating??? They must not know how to cook because I am Asian and can make better Mexican food than what I tasted at Rio Rico.

With the BOGO coupon the total for two drinks, chips, salsa and two meals was around $10.00. Not a bad price for good food, but it was a bad price for bad food.

Needless to say, I will not be returning to Rio Rico. And, since I decided I wasn’t getting my money’s worth either way, I threw away my leftovers when I got home.

If you decide to judge for yourself, Rio Rico is located at 747 N. Val Vista Drive, Suite 110 in Gilbert.  When I called for hours I was told they are open from 11:00 am – 9:00 pm everyday….actually, I was corrected, it is not everyday but Monday through Sunday.  You do the math.

Popularity: 6% [?]

I was doing some work online and came across the Celiac Support of Greater Phoenix’s website which has a list of Gluten Free Restaurants in the Phoenix area:

http://www.phoenixceliac.com/PhoenixCeliac_Restaurants.html

Among the Restaurants that offer Gluten Free Menus are:

Havana Cafe
Outback Steakhouse
Z Tejas Grill
PF Chang’s China Bistro
Claim Jumper
The Yard House

…and my Favorite Picazzo’s.

Enjoy!

Popularity: 12% [?]

This is going to be an ongoing project of mine where I’m going to be looking for places to eat between midnight and 6:00 AM that aren’t places like Denny’s.

I don’t know about you but after going to the bars or just going out on the town, there’s nothing like eating a big ol’ plate of scrambled eggs, bacon, and hash browns at 3:30 in the morning.  Especially if you are hangin’ with your friends re-hashing the evening’s events before everyone heads home to crash or, in the case of some cities, finding another club that’s open between 2:00 AM and 7:00 AM (I’m pretty sure places like that don’t exist in Phoenix).

Anyhoo, the first place to check out is in the perfect location as it’s no where near any major clubs in Scottsdale or Phoenix which means that people won’t pack the place for hours waiting for a table.  The place is the 5 and Diner in Phoenix near Camelback just a block west of highway 51.

The 5 and Diner is open 24 hours a day seven Days a week and offers a full menu at all hours of the day.

I went there Early Sunday Morning around 2ish with a hardcore jones for their Hot Fudge Sunday.  (In retrospect I probably should not have had it as I didn’t get to sleep until 5:30-6:00 AM. Oh well.) The place is pretty small inside like a classic diner should be but they have extra seating outside and ample parking.

I discovered this particular 5 and Diner when I first came to Phoenix as I like to drive around new towns and explore.  I found so many cool places in Seattle, San Diego, and now Phoenix in this manner and it’s the best way to get familiar with a city as well.

The 5 and Diner is a great place to go and just get a quick bite to eat.  It’s not the highest quality of food but it’s good eatins’.

5 and Diner Address:

5220 N. 16th Street
Phoenix, AZ 85016

URL to a map of the Restaraunt:

http://www.mapquest.com/maps/map.adp?searchtype=address&country=US&addtohistory=&searchtab=home&address=5220+N.+16th+Street+&city=Phoenix&state=AZ&zipcode=85016

Popularity: 5% [?]