(bright tone) - I am Chef Mark Tarbell.

Welcome to "Check Please!

Arizona," the show where Arizona residents recommend their favorite restaurants.

Coming up, we have guests who are passionate about their picks.

They've dined it all three and are ready to share their reviews with each other and with you right here on "Check Please!

Arizona."

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Arizona" is supported by... - [Announcer] Copenhagen, featuring contemporary furniture from around the world.

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- [Announcer] Also supported by... (upbeat jazz music) - I'm Chef Mark Tarbell.

Welcome to "Check Please!

Arizona."

In this episode, we're feasting at an Italian deli, a European style bistro, and a restaurant serving modern cuisine alongside Old World cocktails.

Let's meet our diners.

Maria Dong is an award-winning reading teacher.

She's a mom of two and loves to spend her free time reading biographies and playing "Scrabble."

Yasmin Abdelatif works for a university in curriculum development.

In her spare time, she loves to travel and write.

She's recently finished her first romance novel.

But up first is Steven Hudson, a logistics manager who works for an airplane manufacturer.

He and his wife have their hands full with two little ones under two, but when they do have a moment, they enjoy a hidden gem known for its food as much as the unusual craft cocktails.

This is Rough Rider.

(lively string music) - I would describe Rough Rider as a contemporary take on the 1800s era of when Teddy Roosevelt was alive.

My business partner picked it.

He was always a huge fan of Teddy Roosevelt, and he wanted to do something associated with being on Roosevelt, and he wanted to go with something kind of in the Victorian era, and that's where the drink and food menu were inspired by.

So we have chicken, we have steak, we have a pork chop, but instead of making regular side dishes, we really wanted to elevate it.

So we have like the celery root puree, and we have an apple coleslaw with caramelized apples and things like that.

Well, we offer fresh oysters, fresh shrimp, and we serve those beautiful seafood towers.

For the beverage menu, it' divided into punches, cobblers, cocktails, curiosities.

We are really proud of our mocktails because we put just as much love and energy into our mocktail programs as we do with our regular cocktails.

But when we took over, it was an abandoned mail room, and it hadn't been used for over 10 years.

The lockers that you see right when the elevators open were actually the old mailboxes.

Almost everything in this place was custom made.

The woodwork, it was done by one man and his amazing group of carpenters.

I think the best way to describe the ambiance is like a pleasant surprise.

We get a lot that it's hard to find, but we always just say it's part of the charm and it's part of the adventure.

And you have to go in through the lobby, and then you go to the elevators, and then the doors open and you feel like you're being transported into a different time and place, right?

So it's very much like an immersive experience.

For me to walk into work every day, I will say, and this is gonna sound super cheesy, but it really doesn't get old.

It still feels magical.

(lively string music concludes) - So, Steven, explain how you found Rough Rider.

- Well, we had some friends coming into town wanting to get together for dinner and they made a suggestion.

I had never heard of the place, but I said, "Sure, why not?"

Was pleasantly surprised at what they found for us, and we've been going back ever since.

- That is great.

Doesn't it take...

The food scene's so good in Arizona right now, it takes a friend from out of town to like find one for us.

So Rough Rider is your pick.

What is your go-to appetizer?

- We started with a fried cauliflower.

It was so delicious.

We've had cauliflower before, but not quite like this.

- It had a little Bay, right?

- Yeah, it's Old Bay seasoning I think it was, and it had great sauce and onions that everything just went so well together.

We ate every bit of that.

- Pickled onion sauce.

How can that be bad, right?

Did you have that, Yasmin?

- I didn't.

I actually ended up doing the chilled shrimp with the hot sauce, and it was really good.

It's different.

It felt like I don't know if...

I'm not really sure what was in the cocktail hot sauce, but there were like little chunks of maybe it was horseradish or something.

- [Mark] Usually, yeah.

That's what gives it...

It's like sneaky spice.

It's like spice.

If you're not in the southwest, you can use horseradish.

- [Yasmin] Yeah, and so it was like just a little pop of flavor when you were chewing on it.

It was excellent.

- Kinda makes me tear up, clears my sinuses.

It's really good.

I like horseradish.

- Did have another appetizer.

It was the baked crab dip.

It was excellent.

It almost reminded me of a tuna melt because it came out with this buttered bread.

So you kind of put it together yourself, and it was really good.

- Nice, what else did you have?

Oh, the potatoes or something?

- [Steven] Yeah, I think it was roasted potatoes and artichokes.

That's not my go-to thing, but it was delicious in general.

It was just so good.

- You had it too.

- I had it as well.

It was really excellent.

It had these little dollops of mascarpone on it.

- Oh yeah, so good.

- Creamy mascarpone.

- [Yasmin] And then it also had a chimichurri sauce.

It was kind of lemony, yeah.

It all just went so well.

- That's my son's favorite sauce, by the way, chimichurri.

Love it, so packed with flavor.

Now you didn't have an appetizer, but you had a salad, right?

- Yes, it was delicious.

My husband and I shared it, and, you know, it was, salad, but so crisp, but just reminded us from the salad in France actually 'cause I was like, where are they even getting these greens from?

I was wondering who their producer was because I'd never tasted them so crisp.

And then they had like a real pop and I asked the bartender, "What is this?"

And it's fried capers that they put in it - Oh, wow.

- And goat cheese.

So, my husband, we just ate it up.

It was just delicious.

- That's great.

So, Steven, entrees, what's your go-to entree at Rough Rider?

- I had the bone-in pork chop.

They suggested that we have it medium.

First time having a pork chop not well done, but it was delicious, so good.

It came with a apple coleslaw.

Oh my gosh, so good.

So tasty.

- Oh, you had it too, Maria?

- Yeah.

- Oh, wow.

- My husband ordered it as well.

So it's obviously a favorite.

- Well, the bartender recommended that.

(all laugh) 'Cause I said what's here, and, yeah, told us pork chop.

- Absolutely.

- So, and the apple slaw, what was that like?

You know, what stood out with you on that?

- [Steven] Just that it was delicious.

I'm not a big coleslaw guy, so like I was a little nervous to try it, but, man, it was so good.

I had every little bit of that, and it pairs so well with the pork chop.

I didn't expect it how well it went together.

- So it's sort of interesting.

Coleslaw, you know, picnics with pork and coleslaw, and then you add apples 'cause apple, apple sauce and pork, really clever, really.

- Actually, the bone was the succulent part.

- Really?

- Yeah.

Even though it wasn't the kind of establishment where you just pick it up and gnaw on it, (laughs) but I was tempted.

- I would've.

I would've, I'm sorry.

- Yeah.

(both laugh) And then my husband had the roasted chicken, and that was amazing 'cause he made it like duck.

Like the skin was crispy, and the inside was juicy.

And then what we had imagined to be like mashed potatoes was actually a celery root.

- Ooh.

- Yeah, with a butter and wine reduction.

We were talking about it earlier.

It was like Thanksgiving.

- It was excellent, yeah, like a Thanksgiving dinner.

The skin was nice and crispy.

The chicken was extremely juicy.

The celery root puree was nice and smooth.

And then the compound butter was almost like a gravy.

So as we mentioned, it- - [Mark] Compound butter, what was in it?

- Yeah, it was rosemary compound butter.

And it was subtle, but you could definitely taste it, which I didn't know if I was gonna like or not, but I actually really enjoyed it.

- So desserts?

- We had the s'mores cake.

- Oh yeah.

- It was excellent, but it was less like a cake and more like a brownie.

It was extremely dense and rich.

So we got about halfway through before we decided to take the rest home.

- I can tell by your smile you didn't like that brownie pull at all.

- Oh, it was so good.

It was very decadent.

- Maria, what'd you have?

- The pavlova.

And so it had that like a white meringue, and then it tasted like a lemon curd, but it's actually a grapefruit curd 'cause it had that bitter- - Ooh, nice pull.

- [Maria] Yeah, and then it had pistachios.

And me and my husband were like fighting over it.

Like our forks were like... And we just ate that up.

- Well, you know, cocktails are huge.

Mixology's huge, and they are one of the leaders in town for their program here.

It's very unusual, kind of old school, call it Old World, I would say.

Anyone have some cocktails they wanna talk about?

- I was actually very pleased they had non-alcoholic like mocktails there.

So I did try two.

(laughs) And the first one was In the Orchard I believe, and it was excellent.

It was kind of...

It wasn't too sweet.

It was very refreshing and light.

And then the second one I had was I think called the Participation Trophy, and it was a little bit more bitter for my liking, but it still complimented the meal I would say.

- At least you participated.

- [Yasmin] Yeah, exactly.

(laughs) - We need to talk about decor, Steven, 'cause this one, this is your restaurant, and this place is pretty cool.

- [Steven] You walk into the building, then you go down to the basement, and it feels like you're transported to the early 1900s.

And it's a Teddy Roosevelt themed restaurant right on Roosevelt Street.

So it's just very fun and exciting, kinda like a speakeasy.

- Yeah, that's exactly what I thought.

- It does have that vibe.

And that elevator thing.

- Prohibition time.

- Sometimes entry is so important, and sometimes it's dramatic and beautiful.

In this case it's like, am I in the right place?

You know, really.

Then you go down and you're transported.

Steven, your place, pro tip or takeaway?

- Pro tip would be if you feel like you took a wrong turn 'cause you're in the office building, you're in the right place.

Be sure to park in the nearby parking garage.

They do validate.

- I would say make a reservation.

It can be quite popular on the weekends.

So I know for us, it was tough to get in, and the only spot left they had was at the oyster bar, which was kind of in the corner.

So I would say maybe take a spot in the dining room if you can.

(laughs) - And if you want to try Rough Rider, it's located in Downtown Phoenix on Central and Roosevelt in the 1001 building.

Average meal costs $40, and they do take reservations.

(upbeat Jazz music) Up next is Yasmin.

Her pick is a European cafe in downtown Tempe.

Whether it's lunch with friends or brunch with her husband, you'll find her here.

This is Foch Cafe & Bistro.

(upbeat music) - I'm Tim Richardson.

I'm the chef owner of Foch Cafe & Bistro.

Would describe our menu as more French technique and French inspired, everything from crepes, omelets, hamburgers.

And then for dinner, we do have a steak, salmon, seafood, chicken.

I have a few dishes that really stick out on the menu that I really enjoy.

Duck confit burger, it's a hamburger topped with in-house confit duck, a house made tomato jam, and goat cheese on a locally baked English muffin.

What makes this a little bit different is it's kind of a tucked away, a little bit in a cul-de-sac, quieter area, Downtown Tempe.

During the day, we want it to be light and airy and that way, you can start off your morning bright and cheery.

And then at dinner, kind of mood change, a little bit more of a casual romantic setting.

We do have a dog-friendly patio and enjoy the wonderful weather that we have here in the winter.

My business partner had pitched the idea of Foch just being the name.

His grandparents lived on Foch Avenue in Paris, and he would spend the summer there, and he pitched that idea to me.

And that kind of is what evolved the whole concept.

Ultimately, I want guests to leave just enjoying the food.

That's what I love making.

I love creating food, and so I do want them to come in and be relaxed and and have a great meal and just say, "That was really good."

(upbeat music concludes) - So, Yasmin, how did you find Foch Cafe & Bistro?

- (laughs) We were actually just walking down.

My husband and I were just walking downtown.

We came upon it.

We saw it was dog-friendly, so we went and we sat on the patio.

And we tried it for the first time and we loved it.

We've been going ever since.

- I love dog-friendly.

That is so cool.

I have dogs here.

Naughty guess, all good.

Everyone loves dogs I think.

So what did you have for... What's your go-to there?

This is your place.

- So normally we go there for brunch, but this time we checked it out for lunch.

I had the fork and knife Caesar, which was really easy to share, the way that they cut it, it was like a whole romaine lettuce and they cut it into portions while it was still kind of formed together.

And then it had a Parmesan crisp, almost like a chip that came with it.

That was excellent.

I literally just picked it up and started munching on it that way.

(laughs) - I did the same thing.

They're like spears of Romaine, and then they grill 'em a little bit if I remember right.

And then they, of course, pour the dressing on it.

The Parmesan crisp cracker, whatever you want, I'm like, "Can I get a bucket of that to go, please?"

That was really good.

- (laughs) They were so good.

Yeah, I ended up getting the Gruyere burger.

- Ooh.

- It was so good.

It almost reminded me of a French onion soup burger 'cause it had these caramelized onions that just kind of melted in your mouth perfect with the cheese, and then it had like the arugula on top of it.

So it was like the perfect peppery compliment.

And when you cut it open, you just see all the juices leak out.

It was so good.

And at first I was like, hmm, it looks a little small, but then as I was eating it, it was way more filling than I was anticipating.

- Yeah, it's stacked full of flavor too.

I had the same thing.

And what did you have for apps?

- We had some fried pickles, which you can't go wrong with anywhere you go.

And then we had the spinach artichoke dip.

Delicious, very tasty, all the creaminess you could ever want from a spinach artichoke dip.

- [Mark] Yummy, that's my one of my go-tos.

Everywhere I go, I have to have that.

It's a thing.

It's like, ooh, I want gooey yumminess, thank you.

- For my main meal and main course, I had a rib eye.

It was very tasty.

It came with broccoli, and they had these smashed potatoes.

It was they were fried and- - They smash 'em and fry em.

- They boil and fry 'em.

- What you do is you blanch 'em, get 'em a little tender, and then you smash 'em and fry 'em.

So it's like double goodness.

I had those too.

Those were delicious.

- Very tasty.

- Yeah, Maria, what did you have?

- Well, I actually wanna expand on what my husband had.

(laughs) - [Mark] Okay.

- He had the fried chicken crepe that was just awesome 'cause I was looking at the menu and I'm like, everybody's talking about this fried chicken crepe.

So it had just this sausage gravy on it and jalapeno jam with like the sweet and savory, and he was just eating it all up.

And I'm like, "Please, let have some more" 'cause it was just awesome.

But I ended up having the French toast.

It was a cranberry walnut French toast that was very rich and creamy, and it's almost more like a pudding.

Yeah, and so that was delicious and it was a good complement.

And they serve you large portions, so that it's easy to share.

- I mean, good portions, right?

- Absolutely.

Yes, and my husband, he actually ended up getting a grilled cheese, and it was unlike any other grilled cheese that I've seen before.

It was not only cheesy on the inside, but the outside 'cause they crusted it in Parmesan, and so- - That is like so cool when you do that.

You kind of griddle crisp in it.

And so it's creamy on the inside, you're right, and it just pulls those flavors together, especially with the kind of the tangy saltiness of Parmesan.

That was a good one.

I had that.

- Yeah, this portion size was so good.

We did take half of our food home with us and got to enjoy it later.

- Desserts.

- So normally we actually do the strawberry cheesecake crepe as a dessert, but we felt like trying something new.

The chef had a chef's special that day for the dessert.

It was a lavender chocolate creme brulee.

And anytime I hear lavender anything, I'm sold.

So I immediately got that, and it was just so excellent.

Just a subtle touch of lavender to it, but it was really creamy on the inside.

And of course, you have the hard crust top for the creme brulee, but... - Yummy.

- I had the creme brulee as well.

Very tasty, unique with the chocolate, the lavender.

Very tasty, very delicious.

Definitely would recommend it.

- Are you a creme brulee person?

- I would think myself as a creme brulee connoisseur, but that was a new one for me so I really enjoyed it.

It was very tasty.

- So, Steven, your wife had something that sounded really delicious too for dessert.

- Yes, she had the apple skillet.

It was very much like apple pie on top.

And then we got down into the the bottom crust part.

It just kind of made it a little crunch, little sweetness, extra sweetness.

Very tasty.

- Very nice.

- So it's your restaurant.

A takeaway or a pro tip?

- A pro tip would be definitely follow their Instagram.

They will post weekly specials for brunch.

So every week, the chef will change out the specials, so it'll be something new and fresh.

- I would say try the smashed potatoes.

Unique and fun.

- Fried chicken crepe.

- Fried chicken crepe.

(all laugh) I think that's three words, and we'll just take that.

(all laugh) If you wanna try that fried chicken crepe, try Foch Cafe & Bistro.

It's located at 21 East 6th Street in Downtown Tempe.

An average meal will cost you $30, and they do take reservations.

(upbeat jazz music) Our last restaurant is Maria's recommendation.

When she's craving Italian style deli fare, sandwiches, spaghetti and meatballs, she heads here.

This is Guido's Chicago Meat & Deli.

(upbeat folk music) - Guido's Chicago Meat & Deli is a place that you could come and be assured that you're gonna feel welcome, and you're gonna have some great food.

Everything is made in house.

We got a large menu.

People ask me, "I don't know what I should have."

I says, "Close your eyes, and let your finger drop there.

"And you won't be sorry."

We take a lot of pride in our food.

We make sure everything's served the way we would want it.

Lately, I've been trying to have a lot of salads, you know, but my favorite stuff, nice sausage sandwich or Italian sub once in a while, chicken Parmesan sandwich, veal Parmesan, eggplant.

The recipes are my mother's and my wife's.

I got married to my wife 20 years ago.

She makes all the fresh Italian cookies.

She makes her homemade cheesecake, and she makes some tres leches cake that's just off the chain.

We handle an array of different Italian items grocery wise.

We get all our stuff from Italy.

Our meats, we have some of the best prosciutto in town.

We have some of the best Genoa Salami, Mortadella.

We roast our own beefs.

We make our own Italian sausage.

We make our own mozzarella cheese, our fresh mozzarella cheese.

I've been here for 42 years.

What accounts for our longevity?

Making people happy.

Making people feel like they were treated right.

We want everybody leaving with a smile.

We want everybody feeling like they were at home in their kitchen.

(upbeat folk music concludes) - So, Maria, why did you pick Guido's?

- My grandson, AJ, had just graduated from preschool, and it was a really hot day and we were hungry.

And so we just ducked into this place, and my husband said, "I take clients here."

And so it was just so weird because you know how hot it is in Arizona, you duck in here and it's like, I feel like I'm transported into New York, like a side street.

So I'm in here and it's just like hopping.

And the waitress is just phenomenal.

She's just really good.

She's joking with us.

She's trying to get my husband to buy me more food because he's like, "She wants the salad."

And I'm like, "Yeah, I want the salad."

So then I had this like delicious salad, just their house salad and house-made dressing.

And then we had the pizza.

- What was it like?

- [Maria] It was just real fresh, and then the dressing, house-made, and I'm like, I can't make this at home.

I don't understand why it's so good here, honestly.

- [Mark] So like a vinegarette, not creamy, right?

- Yes, yes.

- Oh, cool, excellent.

- Yes, and then we had a pizza and spaghetti and meatballs.

Meatballs are nice.

You could tell that they have like authentic cheese.

You know, like you could tell the difference.

- That's really cool.

- Yeah.

Same with their pizzas like authentic cheese, basil, real basil, fresh basil, and that tastes like a pesto but not cloying, you know, like just fresh.

- Steven, you're nodding your head.

What did you have when you went there?

- We had some fried calamari and some fried chicken wings.

Both were delicious.

Fried chicken wings were probably the best I've had in a while, so we're very- - Whoa, now that is a big...

Wait, wait, I'm gonna stop there.

So best you've had in a while.

That's big.

What made 'em different?

- [Steven] They were just crispy.

Good, little spice.

- [Mark] Now this is an Italian place 'cause I did not have the wings.

Did they put any different sauce with it?

- [Steven] They were just buffalo wings, but they were just very tasty.

- Oh good, so buffalo style, cool.

Yeah, well I like those.

Those are a pop of flavor.

What else did you have?

- I got the chicken Parmesan.

- I had that too.

- Oh, you did?

- Oh yeah.

- Awesome.

- Yeah.

I have very standard Italian takes.

I enjoyed the fried Parmesan.

My friend got the lasagna, which tasted even better.

So they're both delicious.

- That's what my husband got too.

(laughs) - He did?

- My husband got that too.

It's good cheese, isn't it?

- I had that too.

- You can tell.

- Oh my gosh.

- The cheese is creamy.

- But it's so tender.

It was so delightful, like you kinda- - You can really taste the fennel in the lasagna.

- Oh my gosh, it was like...

It was real.

It was an experience.

It was good.

So obviously you had the lasagna.

- Yeah, we started with some mozzarella sticks, which were great.

They were crispy on the outside, really gooey on the inside.

And then we got fries as an appetizer, which normally we would never do.

But the way they made their fries was different than any other fries.

- It's sort of real weird...

It's like the fry or broil.

- Broasted.

- Yes, broasted.

Yeah, that's it.

- Yes, broasted.

- Did you have 'em, or, no, you saw it on the menu.

- But they do that.

Yeah, that term.

Like broasted chicken, broasted- - [Yasmin] They were seasoned really nice.

They were extremely crispy on the outside.

And then they were soft on the inside.

Must have been because they were broasted.

- They were broasted.

- Yeah.

So we really enjoyed that, but I do have to say the chicken Parmesan, I got that, and the portion was so big, it should have came with a warning label.

(all laugh) It was huge.

So we- - [Mark] It's the cover the plate style, right?

- Yes.

- They pound it out.

- It was really very tasty.

The chicken Parmesan was crispy.

The spaghetti was very enjoyable, traditional marinara sauce on it, and had more for leftovers the next day.

So, it was a win.

- Did you have room for dessert?

- Okay, so we did.

(laughs) We did have dessert despite being at capacity.

And originally, we wanted to get the tiramisu, but actually, they were out, and I'm actually thankful they were out because it forced us to pivot and go with the tres leches, and it was amazing.

Normally, I'm not very fond of tres leches mainly 'cause like sometimes it gets kind of wet, but this one, the cake was really a lot more dense, and so it wasn't too wet.

It was just so good.

It had these like shaved dark chocolate bits at the top.

And again, we brought half of it home.

So basically, great portions.

- Nice, so portions good.

Delish, delish.

- Yes.

- You had some dessert, right?

- Yes, I had the homemade cheesecake, very delicious.

You could very much tell that it was homemade.

I was very impressed.

It was so good with some strawberry.

- I imagine Chicago style.

The Guidos, they're from Chicago.

A little bit more about the decor 'cause this place is really unique.

So I'll start with you, Yasmin.

What do you think?

- It was awesome to see the grocery store kind of side to it.

It was very packed, like extremely popular, and we're talking on like a Thursday night.

So the one half of it's almost like sports memorabilia, and then the other half is the grocery store.

So it was extremely unique.

- Just very comforting.

And then it's kind of like exciting.

It has a good vibe, and they're very friendly.

- Oh yeah, outgoing.

Steven, you're nodding.

- Great customer service.

Feels like family.

I can see a lot of the other patrons kind of talking about their person lives, their home, their family.

So it seems like there's a lot of regulars there.

Time for pro tips.

It's your place.

- Something I really enjoyed about was their crust.

I think they really nail it, the crust on a pizza.

- So crust on pizza, pro tip.

(Maria laughs) Steven.

- Tip your waitress and tip your waiters.

Great service.

- Very good, I like that.

I'm gonna take that one.

- I would say it'd be great for takeout because of the large portion sizes and the tight space on the inside.

Yeah, I'm definitely gonna be going back there, but I'll probably be doing takeout.

- If you want to try Guido's Chicago Meat & Deli, it's located in Scottsdale on Scottsdale Road in Shea.

An average meal costs $45, and they do take reservations.

I want to thank Maria, Steven, and Yasmin for joining me at the table.

And thank you for joining us on "Check Please!

Arizona."

If you'd like to share your favorite restaurant, head to our website, azpbs.org/checkplease and nominate your must eat at spot.

Who knows, you could be joining me at this table.

And be a part of the foodie conversation in Arizona on social media using #CheckPleaseAZ.

Join us next time when three new guests make their recommendations right here on "Check Please!

Arizona."

I'm Chef Mark Tarbell.

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Arizona" is supported by...

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