America's Taco Shop (Tempe Location)

Almost every city has some restaurants known best for one specialty. Philadelphians debate the merits of Geno's versus Pat's for cheesesteaks. Residents of New Haven pledge allegiance to Pepe's "apizza." New Yorkers line up for Mamoun's falafel. What restaurants in Phoenix are known for concentrating on one particular food and pursuing it to perfection? America's Taco Shop (ATS), a small, local chain of restaurants, has built a reputation over the past two years as one of the region's go-to places for carne asada. With the opening of its latest outpost in Tempe, ATS has managed to reinforce its claim to excellent grilled beef without compromising the quality that has made its Central Phoenix restaurants so popular.

The new location is on the southwest corner of University and Rural, almost adjacent to the ASU Main Campus. It's clearly visible from the light rail station near that corner, although the path from the platform to the restaurant's door is not obvious. A straight line route might involve walking along the tracks, crossing a ditch full of water, or maybe both. Play it safe and walk east to Rural Road, turn left and walk north along Rural, and then turn left again on to the pedestrian path that ASU students use to commute to and from class. The path meets University Drive near America's front door. Don't worry if the route sounds convoluted; it takes only a minute or two and involves no crossings of busy streets.

While the original ATS in Phoenix's Coronado neighborhood occupies a restored bungalow, the Tempe site is much more ordinary. It's in a stucco building that previously housed a pizza place. The seating inside is tight because half the room is taken up by the open kitchen and the counter. There's more seating on the shaded, mist-cooled patio, which is comfortable even in the summer heat. Back inside, customers are greeted by aromas of grilled meat and the sight of beef cooking over an open flame and pork al pastor on a rotisserie. There's a little beach-style decor on the walls, and a fresh coat of paint on the outside brightens the place. Unfortunately, there are also some glaring apostrophe errors ("burrito's" and "taco's") on some of the window signs. Those are particularly frustrating right next to a college campus.

The carne asada, the restaurant's signature dish, and the pastor, a more recent addition, can be served in all sorts of ways: quesadillas, burritos, tortas, and, of course, tacos. The beef is chopped after grilling, allowing it to blend evenly with caramelized onions, lettuce, and cilantro when served. The tacos are street style -- served in soft corn tortillas, but another dish called the "Vampiro" places everything on a grilled tortilla to produce something closer to a tostada. The pork has a sight sweet fruitiness that comes from the pineapple used in the al pastor preparation. It comes in chunks that are nicely charred on the outside and tender in the interior. What's really nice is how the two meats are paired with appropriate salsas. All beef dishes come with a finely minced red version, and all the pork comes with a tomatillo-based salsa verde.

With all the talk of beef and pork, ATS does a surprisingly good job with alternatives to red meat. There's no chicken at all on the menu, but America's prepares an excellent bean burrito. Smooth refritos made without lard but with plenty of flavor are combined with a bit of jack cheese inside a flour tortilla. Like all ATS burritos, it's a simple, moderately-sized creation rather than a mission-style stuffed behemoth. Pair it with an order of the elote, or grilled corn, and you'll have a filling meatless meal. On Fridays and Saturdays, ATS also serves a shrimp ceviche with minced, marinated crustaceans tossed with chopped onions, tomato, cucumber, and cilantro. It comes with a basket of chips and some of the same slightly tart red sauce as the corn. There’s also really good guacamole here in a thick, almost oatmeal-like texture. It's dense enough to test the strength of most chips.

For dessert, there’s only one choice at America's. It's a flan about the size and shape of a hockey puck but with a considerably more appealing taste and texture. To drink, America's serves Mexican Coke, horchata, tamarindo, and jamaica. Those are all sugary choices, and currently the only alternatives are water or iced tea. Coming soon, however, ATS will add a liquor license at the Tempe location only, allowing it to sell bottled beer and margaritas. What could be better than drinking some of those while watching the trains go by from the patio? Service is quite helpful, but you may find yourself defending your unfinished food against overzealous efforts to clear the table. America's makes the ambitious claim to have the "greatest carne asada in the Valley?" It's a subjective claim that can't really be verified, but if ATS continues to grow without a loss of quality, it will definitely remain a destination for its signature dish.

735 E. University Dr., Tempe AZ 85281
Map
(480) 751-6250

Thai Basil (ASU Location)

Despite the economic downturn, there are at least three things that seem to be defying the odds by growing all over the Phoenix Metro Area. The first is retail banking. The financial crisis and the migration to online banking would suggest that banks don't have enough funds to build branches or enough walk-in customers to support them. Instead, we see new banks going up all over town. The second is chain drugstores. Maybe it's due to the aging population or the use of prescription medicine to fix everything from shyness to heartburn, but new Walgreens and CVS stores are opening on every corner. The third is Thai restaurants. Some have been around for years, but lately we can't seem to get enough new ones.

In Tempe, the related Thai Basil and Thai Elephant mini-chains have spread quickly through the city. Since 2006, the original Thai Basil has served its curries, stir-frys, and noodles from a strip mall at University and Farmer. A few years later, a branch of Thai Elephant, reportedly owned by another wing of the same family, opened just down the street at University and Hardy. In the latest move, Tempe now has a second branch of Thai Basil only a mile from the original restaurant. The latest Thai Basil, known as "Number 5" or "Thai Basil ASU," is located on Rural Road, just east of the ASU main campus and a few blocks south of the University / Rural light rail station.

The latest model of Thai Basil is clearly similar to its siblings throughout the metropolitan area, including both the other Tempe location and the Thai Basil at Park Central in Midtown Phoenix. Still, each site is a little different, and there are a few aspects of Thai Basil ASU that distinguish it from other locations. This restaurant doesn’t occupy a strip mall space, but a standalone building instead -- one that formerly housed a fast food restaurant. There's even an abandoned drive-thru remaining on the grounds. If things are a little scruffy on the outside, be thankful some money has been spent on the interior. Inside, the look suggests a sort of replica of the Jim Thompson House in Bangkok with dark furniture, thatched roofs, ceiling fans, and wooden blinds shielding customers from the drab view of the parking lot outside.

The food at Thai Basil ASU might well meet George Constanza's description of "right in the meaty part of the curve -- not showing off, not falling behind." In other words, there's not all that much here to motivate a journey from a distance, especially with Thai Basils in several locations; however, the restaurant is just fine for anyone looking for Thai food in proximity to ASU. Fresh rolls, similar to the cold “summer rolls” found many places, are good starters, as is the papaya salad garnished with shrimp, although Thai Basil’s version of the latter is a mild one without the expected chili heat. There's a heavy emphasis on lunch specials here with a variety of dishes available with the modular approach found so often at local Thai restaurants: choose a preparation style (e.g. green curry) and then pair it with a choice of protein: chicken, beef, tofu, shrimp. etc. Every lunch entree comes with a small egg roll and a cup of vegetable soup.

For the most part, these dishes meet expectations in terms of expected tastes and textures, although the level of heat will seem low to some Thai aficionados. The red curry has a decent burn when ordered at medium and sufficiently complex flavor. The vegetables within are appropriately crisp; however, a few pieces of flaccid pineapple seem out of place. The restaurant's namesake dish is always successful in its combination of plenty of fresh basil with the earthy, salty taste imparted by the ubiquitous fish sauce used in Thai cuisine. It's a good choice during the summer heat, when thick curries based on coconut milk might seem too heavy. Spicy noodles are stir fried with a colorful selection of al dente vegetables, although they’re not really all that spicy. Specials noted on a board near the door cover both interesting dishes like fragrant basil lamb and not-really-Thai crowd-pleasers like teriyaki chicken.

In a departure from some of the other Thai Basil locations, this restaurant has a liquor license, a bar, and a happy hour. That decision and the resulting beverage menu seem to reflect the location right between college dorms and the nearby "Sin City" apartment complexes. There are beer bargains such as Chang for $1.75 a bottle, Sapporo on tap, and the inevitable student-satisfying sake bombers. Good non-alcoholic choices include iced tea, lemonade, and limeade. Given the nearness of other Thai restaurants, including those under related ownership, it might seem like this latest Thai Basil is a stretch in a potentially saturated market. Instead, it seems to be drawing a steady clientele. Just as banks and pharmacies keep opening new branches, the Thai restaurants keep on coming. The first two are merely useful, but the last makes life just a little more interesting.

1111 S. Rural Rd., Tempe AZ 85281
Map
(480) 557-0101

Blue Nile Cafe

Everyone has heard the Mark Twain quotation that "denial ain't just a river in Egypt." True; it's also a river in Sudan and Ethiopia. The well-known portion of the Nile that runs through Cairo is formed from the confluence of the White and Blue Niles, and while the former is longer, the latter carries most of the water that keeps Egypt fertile and the silt that forms its dunes. The Blue Nile's origin is in Ethiopia. From Lake Tana in that land-locked country, water flows out of the mountains, through Sudan, and onward towards the Mediterranean. It's only natural then that one of Ethiopia's greatest assets should be the name of so many Ethiopian restaurants in the United States. There are dozens of Blue Niles, and the University Plaza strip mall, just a block east of the University / Rural light rail station in Tempe, is home to one of them.

Tempe's Blue Nile is mostly Ethiopian in its cuisine, but also features a parallel menu of popular Middle Eastern foods and a weekly special menu of raw foods, making it one of the few restaurants in the area to indulge that particular diet. Let's get to those items later; the best way to get to know Blue Nile is first by understanding a little about Ethiopian food. The food of Ethiopia has nowhere near the penetration in this country as Indian cuisine, but it does share a few traits with south Asian food. There's a heavy reliance on legumes, mostly lentils and split peas, served either warm in stews or cold in salads. Meats are usually cooked in stews as well, and that's important because most eating is done by hand with a little assistance from injera, a spongy bread made from teff, a small grain of Ethiopian origin.

While the methods of presentation and consumption bear some resemblance to Indian food, the spectrum of tastes in Ethiopian cooking is distinctive. There isn't a lot of intense heat in the food, but plenty of flavor. The best way to experience Blue Nile's authentic menu is by ordering a messob, basically an Ethiopian combo plate with servings of several "wats," or stews, served alongside a basket of injera. For lunch, the messobs are typically plated for one and involve two wats and a salad or sambusa, a fried, stuffed pastry not unlike an Indian samosa. At dinner, it's more common for customers to order mega-messobs that offer enough food for the entire table. These are more fun to eat at one of the traditional tables in the back of the restaurant. Everyone sits on cushions surrounding a small metal table holding the platter of food.

No matter where you sit, make sure to try some of the vegetable dishes like gomen, chopped collard greens that are neither leathery nor boiled into oblivion, or the shuro watt, a stew of pureed chickpeas flavored with berbere, a sauce that imparts both a reddish color and an assertive peppery flavor. Cold dishes include a potent beet salad that might convert even some beet avoiders and a chilled lentil salad with a bit of energy from a Dijon mustard dressing. While Blue Nile is popular among vegetarians and vegans, there are chicken, shrimp, and beef stews on the menu. The doro watt is a hands-on choice that incorporates both a chicken drumstick and a hard-boiled egg. The serviceable hummus, falafel, and grilled chicken dishes offer more familiar options in a Mediterranean vein.

If the Mediterranean dishes on the menu at Blue Nile might seem a concession to less adventurous taste buds, the raw foods menu is perhaps even more of an experience for most customers than Ethiopian cuisine. On Sundays and Mondays, Blue Nile serves a full menu of uncooked foods with a variety of international influences. Of course, "raw food" almost always means "raw vegan food" since this diet seldom includes sashimi or carpaccio. Regardless, Blue Nile's raw menu is surprisingly good. The pad thai, made with ribbons of vegetables rather than actual noodles, comes across more as a Thai coleslaw, but the contrast between the creamy coconut sauce and the crisp produce is remarkably effective. Combining cooked and raw dishes might be the best route for someone wanting to experiment.

Most lunch combinations come with a fountain beverage, but pay a little more for some fresh juice or the house-brewed ice tea, which is infused with flavor from cloves and other spices. A limited selection of beer and wine is also an option. For dessert, the most popular choice seems to be a vegan coffee cake. Like many vegan desserts, it's quite sweet -- maybe too much so. Surprisingly, one of the best desserts in from the raw menu. The small chocolate bars have impressive cocoa taste paired with flavors like mint, caramel, or peanut butter. Since they're served on plates, it's even possible to eat them with knife and fork like Mr. Pitt from "Seinfeld." Both Ethiopian cuisine and raw foods lie downstream from many diners' previous food experiences. With Twain's words in mind, Blue Nile Cafe is a good place to overcome culinary denial and try something new.

933 E University Dr., Tempe AZ 85281
Map
(480) 377-1113
http://www.bluenilecafe.net

Wholly Grill

There was a funny moment once on the medical drama "St. Elsewhere" in which a patient at the hospital wished to identify his ethnicity to the doctor treating him. The character stated "I am Filipino." The feckless response from Dr. Wayne Fiscus, played by Howie Mandel, was along the lines of "Hi, Phil. Nice to meet you." That conversational misfire seems to capture the status of Filipino cuisine in much of the United States, including Phoenix. While Americans have been eager to embrace Thai and Vietnamese food, the cooking of the nearby Philippines has yet to gain much traction beyond those who grew up with it. Maybe it's prevalence of sour, vinegary flavors in some dishes, but Filipino food remains largely undiscovered in relation to the other cuisines of east Asia.

Locally, Filipino restaurants have come and gone over the years with little staying power. The latest loss is the recently closed Karey's Kitchen on the east side of Phoenix. Fortunately, that closure is balanced by the recent opening of Wholly Grill at Mekong Plaza, just a few blocks from the Sycamore / Main light rail station in Mesa. Wholly Grill faces not only the dining public's lack of familiarity with its cuisine, but also the difficulties associated with being the lone tenant in Mekong Plaza's food court. Finally, that’s changing with several new tenants on the way to the attractive but deserted north end of the indoor shopping center. In fact, it's not uncommon to see construction workers and hear their equipment during a meal at Wholly Grill.

Until Mekong Plaza has a bustling food court to complement its full-service restaurants, Wholly Grill may seem an obscure destination, but it's a worthwhile one. Not only does it offer reasonably priced food with intriguing flavors, but the gracious proprietor Chona is eager to help novices discovering her food for the first time. The name "Wholly Grill" has no secret meaning in any of the languages of the Philippines. Instead, it's a play on words reflecting the restaurant's emphasis on grilled food. That focus is evident on the reader boards over the counter. Pork skewers, barbecued chicken, and garlic shrimp are typical of what's offered here. Each meat has been seasoned prior to grilling, often with flavors that meld sweet, salty, and sour tastes into bold combinations.

Beyond Wholly Grill's regular menu of grilled foods, including a vegetarian dish featuring peppers and mushrooms, there's another realm of daily specials, most of which offer a deeper taste of Filipino cuisine for the adventurous. Twice a week -- Wednesdays and Saturdays -- there is a roast pork special featuring tender meat with a crispy, charred, and highly flavorful exterior. Every day, there are steam table specials -- generally two or three stews or soups. Recent offerings have included tuna and jackfruit in a thick stew and a tart soup of pork and vegetables. Chona is always happy to offer samples of the steam table specials to anyone who wants a test drive before ordering. This is helpful because even a dish as seemingly familiar as chop suey has its own special touch at Wholly Grill, where the expected chicken, shrimp, and vegetables are augmented with squash.

All these items can be plated with sides dishes. The most familiar are a steamed vegetable assortment and a Hawaiian-style macaroni salad, but those basics are balanced with two bolder alternatives: an eggplant salad with a texture like baba ghanoush but a tangier taste and another salad based on shredded papaya. All entrees come with slightly sticky rice as well. Of course there are two other items that no Filipino restaurant should be without: lumpia and pancit. The former are tiny egg rolls with a crisp exterior wrapped around a ground pork filling. The latter is all about noodles. Dozens of types of pancit are found in Filipino kitchens, but Wholly Grill focuses on just one or two at any time. Here, pancit gisado combines round rice noodles with chicken and vegetables in a simple, filling dish. To add some zest, use the bottled sriracha, the barbecue sauce, or just the plain vinegar at the counter.

There's no alcohol here, but the fruit drinks are worth exploring. The house lemonade is a nice balance of tart and sweet flavors. While lemonade is familiar and comforting, calamansi juice is something new to try. The fruit is a citrus variety native to the Philippines and has a flavor simultaneously reminiscent of orange, lemon, and lime. For dessert, the banana turron maintains the fruit theme. A whole banana is deep fried to produce something like a sweet egg roll. It's filling and probably best if shared among two or three people. From familiar bananas to exotic jackfruit, there's no reason to be as confused about the Philippines, or at least its food, as Dr. Fiscus from St. Elsewhere. Instead, educate yourself at the Mekong Plaza food court and hope that Wholly Grill lasts longer than the other Filipino restaurants that have come before it.

66 S. Dobson Rd., Mesa AZ 85202
Map
(480) 567-4992