Matt’s Big Breakfast

It’s interesting how even the most adventurous eaters tend to be conservative about breakfast. People who gladly consume foods from outside their own family traditions in the afternoon and evening often revert to familiar dishes like eggs, bacon, pancakes, and waffles in the morning. Matt’s Big Breakfast, having recently expanded yet again with a new flagship location next to its old one, continues to embrace the familiar but does so with a high standard that emphasizes high-quality, locally-sourced ingredients and a hand-crafted approach to their preparation.

waffle and bacon

Matt’s current flagship is just two blocks from Roosevelt/Central station on the B Line and is the third version of the restaurant to exist on the same block of First Street during the restaurant’s two decades of operation.. Bike racks are found at the corner of Garfield and First with many more found among the surrounding blocks. Although this location is the biggest Matt’s yet and the first location with extensive shaded patio seating, there can still be a wait for a table during peak weekend hours. Solo diners or pairs can often be seated at the counter immediately.

griddle cakes with blueberries

The menu offers both classic breakfast fare and lunch items offered after 11 AM.. Daily specials are on a separate sheet labeled “Matt’s Traditions.” Expect generous use of butter, whole milk, eggs, white flour, and pork products in many dishes. At Matt’s, “big breakfast” seems to refer not only to generous portions, but also an ongoing trend towards re-embracing some formerly taboo foods. The results are hearty dishes like the Chop & Chick, which combines a pork chop and two eggs or the Five-Spot, a breakfast sandwich with eggs, bacon, cheese, and onions on a roll.

French toast with sausage

The other eggs dishes all come with toast, served with fresh local fruit preserves, and a choice of potatoes. The home fries are big chunks of Yukon Gold with rosemary and onion cooked in olive oil and sprinkled with ground black pepper. The hash browns are simpler — a rectangular cake of julienned tubers griddled in butter until crisp on top while still tender beneath. For anyone seeking a Southwestern touch, Matt’s offers a hearty Big Papa Burrito stuffed full of three eggs, Schreiner’s chorizo, roasted potatoes, pinto beans, jalapeños, and cheddar cheese.

hickory burger with chips

The breakfast menu, which is served all the way until the 2:00 PM closing time, also has a few choices that focus more on carbs than protein. The griddle cakes are light, fluffy, and slightly sweet. There is a generous dollop of butter on top, and real maple syrup on the side. The waffle is supple and generously sized. It comes with two slices of thick-cut bacon while the griddle cakes, like everything else on the menu at Matt’s, can be supplemented with a side of bacon, sliced ham, or sausage, available as pork “country” links or patties or as chicken apple links.

Matt’s Reuben with macaroni salad

Although Matt’s core appeal is found in hearty diner-style food, the restaurant has made a few concessions to lighter eating and contemporary trends. A big bowl of steel-cut oats has long been on the menu with simple toppings of brown sugar and raisins. A newer addition is the seemingly ubiquitous coffee house favorite avocado toast. In this case, the emphasis on fresh, local ingredients is expressed via a colorful assortment of cherry tomatoes, sliced radishes, and microgreens placed over a smooth layer of mashed avocado on a thick slice of multigrain bread.

avocado toast

While most customers seem to come for breakfast, the lunch menu is available beginning at 11 AM. A longstanding signature item is the Big Butter Burger topped with American cheese, and the Hickory Burger, accessorized with Canadian bacon, cheddar, and onion is a recent menu addition. The chicken sandwich contains grilled breast marinated in pesto and paired with provolone and romaine. The chili is described as “Midwestern style,” meaning, in this case, ground beef with a  mild spice level, shredded cheddar, diced onions, and oyster crackers.

Biltmore club with coleslaw

Matt’s Reuben features thinly sliced corned beef placed between two slices of marble rye, griddled with just a little butter, and dressed with Swiss cheese, thousand island dressing, and plenty of sauerkraut. The Biltmore Club is built with roasted turkey with bacon, havarti, tomato, and romaine on toasted sourdough bread. All of the lunch sandwiches are served with potato chips by default, with the option to upgrade for a few dollars to either a creamy coleslaw or a macaroni salad with a nice sprinkling of black pepper to enliven this normally plain side.

chili bowl

The beverage selection is limited, but the fresh-squeezed orange juice, always sweet and slightly pulpy, is a dependable choice. Honey lemonade strikes the right balance between tart and sweet notes and can be enhanced with muddled strawberries or blueberries. Cola and other sodas on the menu, some from small batch producer Boylan Bottling. Coffee is available with unlimited refills, but don’t expect any espresso or matcha drinks. It’s just good straightforward coffee, roasted in Cave Creek and yet another ingredient of local provenance.

strawberry honey lemonade

With several suburban locations scattered throughout the Phoenix Metropolitan Area, as well as an outlet at Sky Harbor Airport, Matt’s Big Breakfast has grown well beyond the confines of its original building in Downtown Phoenix. There has even been some talk of potentially franchising the concept outside of Arizona. That’s quite a departure from the modest and minimalist origins of the restaurant, but a testament to its success as well. For many, breakfast may often be the most cautious meal of the day, but at Matt’s, there is no reason why it can’t be the best one.

817 N 1st St., Phoenix AZ 85004
http://www.mattsbigbreakfast.com

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Huarichis

Ever since the summer 2023 release of the movie Barbie, there seems to have been a renewed interest in the color pink, particularly Pantone 219 C, the vivid version associated with the doll and her world. Pinks of all sorts have become a more prominent design element in everything from water bottles to restaurant decor. Long before Barbie made it to the big screen, there was the notorious Pink Taco chain, which briefly operated an outpost in Scottsdale. A newer and far better pink Mexican restaurant of local origin, Huarichis, is now found in downtown Phoenix.

frijoles dip

With a full name of “The Original Huarichis Taqueria,” the restaurant opened at the end of 2023, so it’s only natural to wonder if the color choice is coincidental or not. Regardless, Huarichis has not jumped mindlessly onto a pop culture bandwagon. Instead, it offers a casual but upgraded approach to Sonoran food in a slightly more accessible format than its renowned sibling, Bacanora. With reservations highly coveted over on Grand Avenue, Huarichis began as walk-in only. It has recently started accepting reservations while still remaining accessible without them.

elote

Huarichis is found at the north end of Downtown on Central Avenue just a block south of the Roosevelt/Central light rail station. Bike racks are situated nearby outside places like Central Records and Snooze. The restaurant, which is open only for dinner during the week with midday service solely on weekends, has a vivid neon sign, bold color, and bright lighting, all of which make the place hard to overlook after sunset. A facade full of windows showcases the busy dining room, which usually fills quickly in the evening, and the open kitchen that lies behind it.

quesadilla

Customers sit at tables scattered throughout the room, at the bar in front of the kitchen, or at counters facing outwards towards Central Avenue. Although the restaurant is full service, paper napkins and metal cups are an indication of the casual feel that dominates here. The walls are covered with posters, paintings, and potted plants that add a bit of green to the pink and pastel aesthetics. The placemat-style menu with food on one side and cocktails on the other arrives soon after a party is seated, and service generally moves at a quick but unhurried pace after.

jicama salad

Defying the stereotype of Arizona-Sonoran restaurants, there is no complimentary basket of chips, but a trio of salsas is delivered to each table: a spicy chili de arbol, a roasted medium one, and a mild green salsa. Starters include a smooth frijoles dip served not with small chips, but instead big tostadas with a texture reminiscent of the papadum lentil wafers served in many Indian restaurants. Another parallel with Indian food is found in the quesadilla. With its rolled format, it could be called a quesadosa, but with stretchy cheese instead of potato masala inside.

papas and carne asada tacos

Elote adheres fairly closely to a classic presentation with segments of corn on the cob slathered in a rich aioli and dusted with cheese and spice. The same spicy mayonnaise is part of what powers the shrimp ceviche. A light vegetable dish is the jicama salad. Despite being named for the Mexican root vegetable, there is as much emphasis on cucumbers and tomatoes as the jicama, resulting in something that comes across as a crisp and refreshing Mexican version of a Greek salad. The simplest starter is simply tortillas and butter, a good complement to the salsas.

fried hongos and pescado tacos

Although Huarichis identifies as a taqueria, tacos are an important part of the menu but not necessarily the primary one. For a table of diners who can agree on a choice of meat, the platters are one way to enjoy a shared experience. Similar to the parrilladas found at many other Mexican restaurants, these are presented raised on a stand with steak ranchero, pollo asado, or carnitas at the center and beans, potatoes, tortillas, elote, and an entire roasted onion around the perimeter. Interestingly, the chicken and carnitas are available only in this format.

carne asada huarache

For those who do want tacos, the steak reappears in a smoky, charred, and chopped version as carne asada. There are also fillings of tripe, tongue, chicharron, and battered fish available, each with appropriate toppings to accessorize it. Vegetarian tacos include fried mushrooms and mashed potatoes in a hard shell. Most of these fillings are also offered in tortas, Mexican sandwiches, and on huaraches, oblong masa patties. Huaraches are named for a Mexican type of sandal due to their shape, and the restaurant’s name is also a play on the same word.

ice cream sandwich

The kitchen offers two desserts, both of which take classic items and add inventive touches to them. The arroz con leche, normally a simple rice pudding, is unexpectedly complex with sweet, salty, and spicy pockets due to the presence of cookie crumble, olive oil, and honey. An ice cream sandwich combines the best of two local purveyors. A scoop of strawberry cheesecake ice cream from Novel is inserted into a split multi-colored concha pastry from La Purisma Bakery. With a bit of strawberry compote drizzled on top, it’s a colorful treat to end the meal.

Migas cocktail

Strawberry also figures prominently in the beverage menu with a strawberry mezcal margarita being one of the most popular cocktails. Unlike most strawberry margaritas that incorporate a sweet syrup, this drink relies on mezcal that has been infused with strawberries, resulting in an assertive, slightly spicy taste. The Magia has a Caribbean twist due to  rum topped with a blue foam from Curaçao. Unlike the strawberry drink, it’s not pink per se, but it adds to the pastel palette and the spectrum of flavors that any sophisticated Barbie or Ken should appreciate.

814 N. Central Ave., Phoenix AZ 85004
https://www.huarachis.com

#arrozConLeche #carneAsada #carnitas #cocktails #DowntownPhoenix #huaraches #Mexican #RooseveltRow #tacos #tortas

The historic Gold Spot building was one of the first shopping centers established in Phoenix when it was built in 1925, but it was far from the last. Now, strip malls are found on nearly every major corner in the vast metropolitan area that has grown around the city over the past century. Still, there is value in being among the first, and the building, which was nearly demolished decades ago, has now become one of the last standing of its generation. One restaurant in the Gold Spot, First & Last, has a name that evokes the contrast between the old and the new.

Dungeness crab arancini

First & Last is found on Third Avenue, around the corner from fellow Gold Spot tenants Lola Coffee and Pita Jungle, and just three blocks west of the Roosevelt/Central light rail station. The protected two-way cycle track right outside the restaurant provides easy access via bike as long as the rider is careful to dodge occasional delivery and rideshare drivers who still haven’t figured out the intended purpose of bollards. Two bike racks are found along Third Avenue right outside the Gold Spot, and a larger one is found in the back of the building near the coffee house patio.

Sicilian cauliflower

The restaurant is subtle, relying more on reputation than a strong visual appeal. Wording etched on the glass is the only overt indication of First & Last’s presence on Third Avenue, but when the weather cooperates, it’s common to see diners outside on the patio. The host station is found at the rear of the space, where staff can direct traffic not only within the restaurant itself, but also to the speakeasy-ish cocktail bar Little Debbie’s, which is located in the restaurant’s basement. First & Last has its own more prominent bar near the front of the dining room.

burrata

Above that bar is a mezzanine, which both expands the restaurant’s seating and helps to create an open, airy feel that may be surprising in light of the limited street presence of First & Last. Exposed ducts, high ceilings, potted plants, and hanging lanterns create an atmosphere that seems rooted in both a balmy Mediterranean coast and a major city urban center. An open kitchen buzzes with activity as they pass by on the way to and from tables. The staff create a sensation as they do the same while carrying some of the restaurant’s more dramatic output.

Maine diver scallops

The visual appeal is particularly striking with Robb’s clams, an appetizer of bivalve mollusks served in a skillet with a sauce of fennel, white wine, herbs, butter, and chilies. Ample slices of toasted bread allow absorption of the flavors of the liquid in the pan. The clams are a consistent presence on the changing menu, as is the beet salad with walnut and spinach. Sicilian cauliflower has a satisfying char and a creamy polenta base. Back to seafood, a Dungeness crab arancini excels with flecks of crab interspersed with arborio rice and molten cheese.

manicottia

If the theme seems Mediterranean, it is – to an extent. There’s certainly a large influence of Italian and Provencal cuisines, but there is also plenty of room for distinctly regional touches and American ingredients. The burrata, for example, starts with the familiar creamy cheese but replaces the more customary accompaniments of tomato and basil with the kitchen’s own creative flourishes of onion jam on top and pureed kabocha squash beneath. Abundant squares of focaccia soak up the flavors and allow this dish to be scooped and enjoyed as a hand food.

Magret duck breast

The Italian aspect of the menu is expressed with a selection of evolving pasta dishes that constitute about half the entrees at any given time. Bucatini all’amatriciana combines strands of hollow noodles with bits of guincale, red onion, pecorino, and a slightly spicy tomato sauce. A recent meatless manicotti dish turned out far lighter and brighter than one might typically expect due to the presence of copious amounts of Swiss chard within the rolled sheets of pasta. Classics like Bolognese and cacio e pepe are given their own unique interpretations here.

bucatini all’amatriciana

The other half of the entree menu focuses on meat and seafood selections. There is, not surprisingly, a steak that is consistently available, but the real excitement lies in a changing selection of fish and fowl. Plump Maine diver scallops are plated above an artichoke puree with shavings of fennel on top. Seared breast of Magret duck is served sliced and rare with a potato pancake and chestnuts seasoned with pancetta and a condiment called “good good sauce,” more like a chimichurri or chutney than the Jack in the Box item for which it is cheekily named.

panna cotta

A panna cotta dessert features seasonal fruit with two recent options being an intense blood orange and a more mellow poached pear. Both have been equally successful matches for the base’s supple custard texture. The restaurant’s other dessert choice is a tiramisu richly flavored with espresso, dark rum, lady fingers, cocoa, mascarpone, and orange. Playful cocktails include the Urban Sombrero, a smoky mezcal creation named for the hat featured in a classic Seinfeld episode, and the Flip Phone, rum with elements of apple, cinnamon, bergamot, and lemon.

Flip Phone

There is also a thoughtful wine list with emphasis on French, Italian, and domestic labels, as well as a selection of draft beer featuring local craft brews. Since the restoration of the Gold Spot building, there have been several restaurants in this space, including a promising but short-lived wine bar and a pizzeria that closed before even holding its grand opening. With this history, First & Last isn’t the first place to exist here, and it may not be the last. Nevertheless, it is the best to date and the one most likely to stay around at least a while in an enduring building.

1001 N. 3rd Ave., Phoenix AZ 85003
https://www.firstandlastphx.com

https://phxrailfood.com/2024/02/16/first-last/

#arancini #burrata #clams #cocktails #crab #DowntownPhoenix #duck #pannaCotta #pasta #RooseveltRow #tiramisu