Kitchen Doors: Where we ate this month, May 2017
MARKET STREET KITCHENDC Ranch
DC Ranch Marketplace is home to this modern pub. Their lunch, dinner and weekend brunch menus are filled with modern twists on American pub fare. There is a great list of shareables, including deviled eggs with Tabasco, drunken mussels (cooked in Kiltlifter Ale) and brussels sprouts cooked with bacon, garlic and horseradish. The MSK burger is loaded with smoked onions, roasted poblano, cheese and bacon — yum! And there’s something for everyone – vegan gnocchi with smoked squash, lobster rolls with house-made aioli and a Saltine-crusted sh and chips. The brunch menu offers 10 different eggs benedict, or “bennys”. The restaurant hosts monthly fun and tasty pairing dinners and the April version with Southern Glazer’s Wine and Spirits was a blast. Stop by after your next hike or golf outing in the North Scottsdale area! – Andrea Tyler Evans
PEDAL HAUSTempe Mill Avenue
After a couple hours walking around the Tempe Festival for the Arts, I was on the lookout for a place to sit, have a beer and a snack… and to use the restroom. That’s when the impressive beer silo of Pedal Haus seemed to call to me. The brewpub’s vibe was felt immediately. It’s arranged like a bunch of little parties. Folding chairs private rooms, tables under the silo. Well-placed TVs. Plus there’s beer. I went with the Kolsch, which Pedal Haus says, correctly, is a “very refreshing beer” that “uses both lager and ale fermentation traditions to keep true to this style originating in Cologne, Germany.” It was perfect for someone weary from walking, thirsting for a light brew.
To go with it, I ordered a Bavarian Pretzel. I don’t typically reach for bready products but temptation won (and it was the one thing I knew my daughter would share with me). The hot pretzel with the Kolsch beer cheese, stone ground mustard and barley malt maple butter options was the perfect mid-afternoon snack. I will venture back soon to this Mill St. communal gem. – Mike Saucier
GINO’S EASTArcadia
Volumes have been written about deep dish vs. thin crust. You can almost see them being debated like in the old Miller Lite “Great taste! Less filling!” ads from the 1970s and ’80s. So three thin-crust fans walked into the impressive new Gino’s East on Indian School Road near 36th Street to see what was behind all the deep-dish adoration of this Chicago-based pizzeria. The 4,400-square-foot restaurant opened April 24 and is the company’s 18th outlet.
We started with Jumbo Chicken Wings. That was a mistake. Not because they were bad (just the opposite, they were very tasty). Stomachs only have so much room and the robust wings took up some valuable real estate. Had beers been owing (we stuck to water) this would have been a real issue with deep dish on the way. When it came (it takes 45 minutes to bake), we were still reasonably hungry. During the wait, the surroundings and vibe are pleasant – Gino’s gives off a fun, vibrant energy. Our half Chicago Fire, half Eat Your Veggies deep dish arrived. The pizza, we all agreed, was very good. The problem is as we were eating it we were thinking about why we enjoyed thin crust so much more – it’s easier to eat (no utensils needed), it’s lighter (you can drink beer or wine with it) and overall comes together better for the palate (ours anyway).
We started with Jumbo Chicken Wings. That was a mistake. Not because they were bad (just the opposite, they were very tasty). Stomachs only have so much room and the robust wings took up some valuable real estate. Had beers been owing (we stuck to water) this would have been a real issue with deep dish on the way. When it came (it takes 45 minutes to bake), we were still reasonably hungry. During the wait, the surroundings and vibe are pleasant – Gino’s gives off a fun, vibrant energy. Our half Chicago Fire, half Eat Your Veggies deep dish arrived. The pizza, we all agreed, was very good. The problem is as we were eating it we were thinking about why we enjoyed thin crust so much more – it’s easier to eat (no utensils needed), it’s lighter (you can drink beer or wine with it) and overall comes together better for the palate (ours anyway).
That’s a long way of saying, it’s not you, Gino’s, it’s us. It’s a great spot. Next time we’ll try its thin crust.
– Cheyenne Brumlow, Jamie Killin & Mike Saucier
– Cheyenne Brumlow, Jamie Killin & Mike Saucier
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