Chez Cook

I enjoyed a home cooked meal at the home of Karen Cook. Her husband, Dan, is the chef who made this fancy meal: Crab cake with a scallop in the center with raspberry chipolte, asperagus and pilaf. I met Karen in my French class. She had invited Coco also, and Coco brought her mother who was visiting from Paris. I sat next to the "French mom" at dinner so that I could practice my French and it turned out to be quite funny. She spoke very slowly and loudly to me so that I could understand. I finally caught on that she was teasing me about learning a new language. I'll teach her to do that! I will go to Paris and room with her for a few weeks. She will need to listen to my ever evolving French.

Chelsea's Kitchen

Kalen and I celebrated my birthday with a wonderful dinner at Chelsea's Kitchen. We chatted the whole time and I forgot to take photos of our food. All is well. He is a great son and a joy to be with.

Croque Madam @ La Grande Orange

It is a little rainy in Phoenix this morning. Perfect time for a cozy and warm breakfast. This is toasted bread with ham, cheese and tomato, topped by an over easy egg. Served with pickles I(great for breakfast!!) and fruit. And of course one must have a latte.

This remains one of my favorite places to eat. It's picking up popularity, so it is always crowded.

Fenix Eatery & Bar

Great French food!

Fenix opened a few years ago, but as it typical of these hidden wonders, it is tucked in a corner strip mall. Janie and Jim recommended trying it and I was finally able to visit. It was very good. And, to my surprise, I saw Janie and Jim eating there also!

We started with a glass of wine (about $9) and decided on the Coq au vin. A dinner salad is included. The rich wine sauce has mushrooms and pearl onions. Also included were haricots vertes (green beans) and mashed potatoes. We were too full for desert, and really enjoyed the meal and the cozy atmosphere. They have an outside small patio which will be perfect for the summer. The entire front wall is actually a garage door, so the restaurant will be open air.

Zpizza

ZPizza - what a surprise. Just when I thought that I was very jaded towards pizza. We shared these two pizzas at a meeting, and it was enough to make you want to stop talking and just eat.

The first one that I tried was "Casablanca" with homemade roasted garlic sauce, mozzarella, ricotta, mushrooms, artichoke hearts, parmesan. This was very good and I was torn between sharing it with the group, or trying to have it all to myself.

The second pizza was an American with organic tomato sauce, mozzarella, pepperoni, sausage, tomatoes, mushrooms, bell peppers, red onions. Very good also.

zpizza a franchise, so if you are interested in a new business check them out at http://zpizza.com/. AND if you are interested in just eating good pizza, their menu offers a wide variety of tastes.

My apologies to the loyal fans. I've been sending photos to the blog, but not sending much information. I'll try to get better! Thanks for tuning in.