Save the Date

👨‍🍳 A celebration of life for well-known Valley chef Romeo Taus will be held at 2 p.m. Sunday, Feb. 18, on the patio/terrace levels outside Romeo’s Euro Cafe in downtown Gilbert.

Taus died Jan. 8 after a brief battle of brain cancer (see story). He was 68.

Those planning to attend are asked to RSVP to taralanphear@gmail.com. In lieu of flowers, a donation can be made to Dignity Health Foundation East Valley.

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• Copper State Beer Festival: Jan. 13 at Riverview Park in Mesa.

• A Taste of AZ Festival: Jan. 27 at Salt River Fields in Scottsdale.

• Southwest Cajun Festival: Feb. 3 at Dr. AJ Chandler Park in Chandler.

• Phoenix Chinese Week Festival:  Feb. 3-4 at Steele Indian School Park in Phoenix.

• Arizona Strong Beer Festival: Feb. 17 at Salt River Fields in Scottsdale.

• Devour Culinary Classic: Feb. 24-25 at Desert Botanical Garden in Phoenix.

• Phoenix Magazine Dish Fest: March 17 at The Clayton House in Scottsdale.

• Foodieland: March 22 at Phoenix Raceway in Avondale.

• Original Barbeque & Beer Festival: March 30 at The Park @ Wild Horse Pass in Chandler.

• Original Taste: April 13 at Scottsdale Civic Center.

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📅 A Taste of AZ, a quarterly magazine that’s been covering our state’s restaurant scene since 2021, will host its first A Taste of AZ Food & Drink Festival from 2:30-6 p.m. Saturday, Jan. 27, at Salt River Fields in Scottsdale.

Early-bird tickets are $79 for general admission and $109 for VIP until Jan 1. After that, tickets will be $89 and $129.

Tickets include unlimited food samples and 15 drink samples. VIP tickets also include early entry at 1 p.m. and two tickets to a spring training game at Salt River Fields.

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🍹 Arizona Cocktail Weekend, the longest-running cocktail event in the Southwest, returns to the Valley for its 12th year from Feb. 16-20, 2024.

The five-day schedule features brand-driven happy hours, tastings, seminars, and three signature events:

• The Cocktail Carnival: Enjoy unique cocktails, art shows and circus performances Saturday, Feb. 17, at the Walter Where?House in downtown Phoenix.
• Top Bars: Pop-ups (pictured) from more than 40 of the world’s best bars Sunday, February 18, at Warehouse 215 in downtown Phoenix.
• Last Slinger Standing: Arizona’s top mixologists compete Monday, Feb. 19, at the Republic National Distributing Company in east Phoenix.

Tickets for Arizona Cocktail Weekend start at $50, depending on the event and date of purchase.

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🎟 Tickets for the 15th annual Devour Culinary Classic, which will be held Feb. 24-25 at the Desert Botanical Garden in Phoenix, go on sale to the general public today.

The Valley’s most prestigious food festival features samples from more than 70 restaurants and food businesses.

General admission is $150 per day; early-entry (VIP) tickets are $225 per day. Last year, tickets sold out in three weeks.

(Photo credit: Darby Vance/Full Swing Media)

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🍕 The eighth annual Phoenix Pizza Festival will take place Saturday, Nov. 11, and Sunday, Nov. 12, at Margaret T. Hance Park in downtown Phoenix.

Approximately 7,000 people are expected to attend the event, which will feature 15 to 20 pizza makers, dessert food trucks, and related food vendors. There also will be lawn games, live bands, and a kids craft zone.

Tickets are $16 and only available online. Kids 5 and under get in free.

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🥃 Urge Taphouse Kitchen in Scottsdale will host a ‘‘Meet the Maker’’ bourbon whiskey dinner with Charlie Garrison from Garrison Brothers on Thursday, Oct. 26.

The Hye, Texas, distillery – the oldest legal bourbon distillery in Texas – was granted the first stiller’s permit for bourbon outside of Kentucky and Tennessee in 2006.

The four-course meal paired with four bourbons is $95 per person. You can buy tickets here.

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🌶 Jalapeno Inferno Takeout Kitchen & Cantina in north Scottsdale will host a four-course ‘‘Howl at the Moon’’ Tequila Herradura pairing dinner at 7 p.m. Saturday, Oct. 28.

Check out the food courses and Herradura pairings here.

Cost is $75 per person plus tax and tip. Reservations: 480-478-6999.

Halloween costumes are optional, and the person with the best costume will win a free dinner.

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