Despite its rank as the fifth-largest city in the United States, Phoenix suffers a dearth of locally focused food and drink websites, especially ones that publish daily or at least several times per week.
One of the most common questions I get is, ‘‘Why don’t you start a Scottsdale version of Mouth by Southwest?’’ Or, ‘‘Why don’t you do a West Valley version?’’ Or a CenPho version, etc.
There’s definitely a hunger, pardon the pun, for more local food and drink information.
So it’s welcome news to hear Tucson Foodie (pictured above), an excellent food and drink website covering our neighbor to the south, is launching a sister site, Table Riot, in the Valley in November.
Table Riot, according to its media release, will feature ‘‘in-depth stories, videos, restaurant reviews and spotlights of the Valley’s food, drink and dining culture.’’
That’s basically what Tucson Foodie has been doing for nine years. It publishes several stories every weekday and sometimes some on weekends. It is supported by display ads and sponsored content.
Tucson Foodie founder Adam Lehrman has teamed up with Valley marketing maven Ty Largo, who will be Table Riot’s editorial director.
The pair’s ‘‘day jobs’’ almost certainly will create concerns among restaurants and readers over apparent conflicts of interest that may challenge what Table Riot promises will be an ‘‘honest take on the culinary community-at-large.’’
Largo’s Awe Collective handles marketing for many of the Valley’s high-profile restaurants. At least one of Lehrman’s Soapbox Social Media restaurant clients has a presence in the Valley.
