Author: Jess Harter

Urban Margarita, a Mexican restaurant on the southeast corner of Beardsley and 67th Avenue in Glendale, has been sold to Sky Restaurant Concepts, which has renamed it Urban Agave. Sky Restaurants also owns Squid Ink Sushi Bar and Highball Cocktail Bar.

Portillo’s, the Chicago-based fast-casual chain, has opened its fifth Valley location near the southeast corner of Williams Field and Santan Village Parkway in Gilbert. The grand opening officially is Friday, but the doors quietly opened Wednesday. The new 7,800-square-foot building

 Bagel Daddies, an independent bagel shop that shares a storefront with Spce Coffee, has opened on the northwest corner of McDowell and 18th Street in Phoenix. Bagel Daddies has been a popular vendor at Valley farmers markets. Open 6 a.m.-noon

 Panera Bread, the St. Louis-based chain of fast-casual bakery-cafes, has opened its 15th Valley location on the southeast corner of Power and the Loop 202 in southeast Mesa. It includes a drive-through lane – but only for orders placed through

 Island Grill AZ, a Caribbean restaurant and cocktail bar, has opened on the northwest corner of Indian School and Ninth Street in Phoenix. Entrees include Jamaica’s national dish, ackee and saltfish, as well as curry goat (pictured), brown stew chicken,

 Lowdown Vegan, a late-night 100% vegan drive-through, has opened on the southwest corner of McDowell and 15th Street in Phoenix. The menu offers a half-dozen chicken sandwiches – pesto (pictured), Italian, buffalo, barbecue, Jamaican, and classic – made with Tindle

 Mochidot, a locally owned shop specializing in mochi doughnuts made with Japanese rice flour, has opened on the northeast corner of Camelback and Ninth Street in Phoenix. The concept is not associated with similarly themed Mochinut, which has locations in

 Brunch Kitchen & Cocktails has opened next to its sibling concept, Cowboy Pizza, in the former Binkley’s buildings on the northeast corner of Cave Creek and Vermeersch in Cave Creek. Menu highlights include bacon pancakes with maple bourbon ricotta, crab Benedict, pork

 Sauvage, a natural wine shop that opened in a shipping container at The Churchill in 2018, has moved to the historic Helen Anderson House on the southeast corner of McDowell and Third Avenue in downtown Phoenix. A bar offers wines

 Phoenix Hibachi House, a fast-casual Japanese grill offering burritos in roasted red pepper tortillas as well as hibachi entrees and combo plates, has launched on the northeast corner of Van Buren and 19th Avenue in Phoenix. Grilled meats include chicken,

 Humble Torta & Taco, a new sibling of Humble Pie and Humble Bistro, has made its debut in Phoenix Sky Harbor Airport’s Terminal 3. Besides the namesake items, the Mexican street food menu offers four kinds of tortillas pies, bowls, salads, and more.

 Titino’s Grill, an small counter-service eatery offering Mexican and American food, has opened inside the Northeast Market liquor store near the southeast corner of 32nd Street and Thomas in Phoenix. The Mexican side of the menu is represented by tacos,

 Bird Talk Kitchen, a California-born fast-casual concept featuring various forms of chicken, has made its Arizona debut on the northeast corner of University and Hardy in west Tempe. Menu items include whole chickens, chicken tenders, chicken wings, fried chicken, grilled

San Francisco-based Ike’s Love & Sandwiches has opened its 10th Valley location on the northwest corner of Tatum and the Loop 101 in northeast Phoenix. The menu has more than 800 sandwiches, many named for Bay Area celebrities, made with

 Freshly Laid, a fast-casual breakfast ‘‘eggsperience’’ that debuted in north Scottsdale last year, has opened a second location on the southeast corner of Indian School and 36th Street in east Phoenix. The menu offers cleverly named breakfast sandwiches, burritos, or

 Hummus Republic, a California-based chain of modern Mediterranean eateries, has opened its first Arizona location at the Promenade Scottsdale on the southeast corner of Scottsdale and Bell in north Scottsdale. Build your own pita, wrap, or bowl by choosing a

 Fiesta Mexicana, a Colorado-based chain of sit-down Mexican restaurants, has opened its second Valley location in the long-closed Fox & Hound building near the southwest corner of Baseline and Stapley in Gilbert. The family-owned concept made its Valley debut in

 Don Fito’s Taqueria, which has operated out of a pair of food trucks since 2020, has opened a bricks-and-mortar restaurant on the northeast corner of Power and Baseline in east Mesa. Besides tacos, burritos, tortas, and vampiros, the menu offers

 Cafe Rio Mexican Grill, a Utah-based chain of fast-casual Mexican restaurants, has opened another of its ‘‘digital cafe’’ concepts – offering digital ordering options – near the southwest corner of Greenway and the Loop 303 in Surprise. It’s the 38th

Scottsdale-based Cold Beers & Cheeseburgers opens its 14th location at 11 a.m. today at Sonoran Creek Marketplace near the southwest corner of John Wayne Parkway and Edison in Maricopa. The restaurant features a 2,000-square-foot patio, a 50-foot bar (the longest of

 Big Chicken, the Las Vegas-based fast-casual chain co-founded by former NBA star Shaquille O’Neal, opens its second Valley location at 11 a.m. today in the former Pomo Pizzeria space near the northwest corner of Gilbert and Vaughn in downtown Gilbert.

 Salad and Go, the Gilbert-born drive-through concept that’s grown to more than 50 locations throughout Arizona in 10 years, opens its second in Surprise today on the southwest corner of Bell and the Loop 303. The menu offers chef-designed salads,

 Just Love Coffee Cafe, a Tennessee-based chain of all-day restaurants, has made its Arizona debut near the southeast corner of Power and Elliot in southeast Mesa. The breakfast menu features a variety of waffles and ‘‘womelettes,’’ while lunch/dinner options include

 Charcoal Grill, a Mediterranean counter-service restaurant, has opened in a former uniform shop on the northeast corner of Thunderbird and 59th Avenue, next to Banner Thunderbird Medical Center, in Glendale. The menu offers beef and chicken shawarma, beef kabobs, chicken

 CC’s on Central, a mother-and-son-operated Cajun restaurant, has opened near the southwest corner of Central and Thomas in midtown Phoenix. Menu highlights include traditional fare such as po’boys, jambalaya, red beans and rice, and shrimp and grits. Open for breakfast

 Trevor’s, a liquor store extraordinaire that opened in south Scottsdale in 2020, has added a second location on the northwest corner of Scottsdale and Mayo in northeast Phoenix. The store features a tasting booth, a pizza kitchen, two golf simulators,

Flagstaff-based FireCreek Coffee Company has launched its second Valley location in a former shipping container at City Square near the southwest corner of Indian School and Central in midtown Phoenix. Open 7:30 a.m.-2 p.m. weekdays. FireCreek plans to open a Phoenix roastery

The Parlay Kitchen & Cocktails, a modern American gastropub that opened in Chandler in 2019, opens a second location at 11 a.m. today on the northwest corner of the Loop 101 and Via de Ventura in central Scottsdale. Laurshan Construction did

 Swan, an Asian restaurant specializing in sushi and seafood, has opened on the southwest corner of Alma School and Dynamite, not far from Troon North Golf Club, in north Scottsdale. It’s moved into the former Gatsby’s second-floor space above the Pony

 bb.q Chicken, a South Korea-based chain of Korean fried chicken restaurants that has 3,500 locations in 57 countries, has made its Arizona debut at the 99 Ranch Market plaza on the northeast corner of Chandler and Dobson in Chandler. The

Colorado-based Red Robin Gourmet Burgers & Brews opens its 19th Arizona restaurant at 11 a.m. today on the northwest corner of Glendale and 91st Avenue in Glendale. The first 50 people in line will receive a free T-shirt and $20 gift

 Night Owl, a neighborhood hangout featuring pizza, smash burgers, and craft cocktails, opens at 11 a.m. today on the northeast corner of Hayden and McDowell in south Scottsdale. A patio has pool tables, classic arcade and pinball games, and a

 Pour Decisions Patio & Kitchen, a new concept from Jackson Armstrong, owner of Ginger Monkey and BLD in Chandler, has opened in the former Loyalty Lounge space – better known as the former Old Town Gringos space – in Old Town Scottsdale. The menu

 Xolo Tacos, a sister concept to Maskadores Taco Shop, has made its debut in the former Tacos & Tequila space on the southwest corner of Thunderbird and Seventh Street in north Phoenix. Compared to its sibling, Xolo has more elevated tacos, enchiladas,

Julie and Fabian Ocampo, owners of the award-winning Que Sazon food truck, have opened a bricks-and-mortar restaurant for their South American cuisine in the historic Teeter House at Heritage Square in downtown Phoenix. The menu features tacos, empanadas, arepas, and Colombian

 Sr. Ozzy’s Tacos Y Mariscos, which debuted in south Phoenix in 2017 and recently began franchising, has opened its third location on the southeast corner of Kyrene and Ray in west Chandler. The expansive menu even includes sushi. Open for

Japanese discount store chain Daiso, which has nearly 6,000 locations worldwide, makes its Arizona debut at 10 a.m. Saturday next to 99 Ranch Market on the northeast corner of Chandler and Dobson in Chandler. The store sells everything from