Nostra Style House
I’m always excited to find a new local boutique to shop at, and near my office at that! Last weekend, while running some errands I noticed that a new boutique had opened up next door to Butter Toast Boutique in downtown Phoenix, so I stopped in to check it out.
Nostra Style House carries a mix of contemporary new designer clothing, locally designed jewelry and carefully curated vintage from Annie Boomer Vintage. Stop in and check them out!
Isn't this vintage evening gown fabulous?
Nostra Style House is located at 906 North 6th Street, Phoenix
Timo Wine Bar
Our marketing intern extraordinaire, Michelle, seems to have caught the blogging bug. Here's her second contribution to The Hot Sheet.
Adding to the list of great restaurants along Central Avenue is the latest addition, Timo. This wood fire oven restaurant and wine bar opened by the talent behind Brick Urban Kitchen, features a full menu with tapas, pizzas, bruschetta and sandwiches during weekday lunch and dinner, and a brunch menu on the weekends.
I dropped in during their Sunday brunch, and found the patio already packed - I could see why. Their patio, much larger than other wine bars, was very inviting with a center placed fire pit surrounded by leather couches and tables.
Being too hungry to wait, I chose to be seated inside where I had a great spot right in front of the custom built wood fire oven.
After a recommendation by the waiter, I tried their bruschetta. With choices of smoked salmon, apple and brie, and my favorite the roasted eggplant and goat cheese, I was not disappointed! The flavors were well paired and had a great smoky flavor brought out by the wood oven. I paired this with the mimosa flight, which is three glasses of champagne with fresh squeezed grapefruit, cranberry and orange juices.
When I was looking over the menu I had noticed they had foie gras with fig jam, and feeling a little adventurous, I decided to give it a try. For those not familiar with foie gras, it’s a pate like substance made from duck liver. I tried it and as instructed, treated the items as if they were butter and jam by spreading it on the provided crostini. Well, I can say this may not be my new favorite meal, but it was interesting to say the least, with a very rich, bitter like taste.
If you miss their weekend brunch, you can stop in on Mondays they offer flatbread and a bottle of wine for only $19 from 5:30-9:30pm.
Timo is located at 8801 N. Central Ave.
Frances Studio
A few weekends ago I had a little "CenPho" day. I hit all my favorite places and finally made it to a new favorite, Frances Studio. A spin off of frances vintage, frances studio is your one stop shop for super cute shoes, bags and jewelry. On my visit I spotted Frye boots (perfect for winter), a great selection of Toms flats and wedges and some druzy jewely that has me dreaming of druzy.
Here are a few photos from my visit:
I dream of druzy.
Frances Studio has all the latest Toms shoes.
There's nothing like being greeted by a wall of handbags and shoes!
Frances Studio is located at 10 W. Camelback Road in Phoenix.
The Mint
The Mint was formerly a bank, remodeled into a restaurant/lounge/club. Photo credit: Dean Studios
Formerly a bank, The Mint (Get it? Bank, money, mint…) is part restaurant, part lounge. We were recently invited to visit The Mint to try some of the menu items and to check out the newly remodeled location.
If you’ve driven down Camelback just east of Scottsdale Road, you’ve probably noticed The Mint’s huge patio. What you can’t see from the road is how cool The Mint looks inside. Colorful lights, lounge seating and an eclectic mix of house music help The Mint straddle the divide between restaurant and lounge. One of the first things that I noticed when we were seated was that the music was at the perfect level to be enjoyed, and I could still carry a conversation with my fiancé during dinner.
Colorful lighting in The Mint. Photo credit: Dean Studios
Since we were invited guests, I let the waitress make recommendations for what we should drink and eat. I started with the Life Savings martini made with Ultimat Vodka, St. Germain, basil, fresh strawberries, lemon and ginger soda. Perfectly sweet, and I could tell that fresh strawberries were used by how fragrant the drink was.
The Life Savings martini. Photo credit: Dean Studios
While waiting for our food to come out, we were mesmerized by a fiber optics light show going on over the main bar. 3D images of fish swimming, people dancing and a globe spinning to the music was pretty entertaining. I also noticed a huge table in the middle of the restaurant that would be perfect for a group celebration.
We were mesmerized by the fiber optic display above the bar. Photo credit: Dean Studios
The menu at The Mint is crafted by Executive Chef Johnny Chu and consists of pan-Asian cuisine, presented on small plates as tapas. The menu items that we tried were the Soup Gyoza, House Dynamite Chicken, Sugar Cane Pork and Hong Kong Flat Rice. Soup Gyoza has always been one of my favorites so I was excited to try it at The Mint. The pork dumplings were just as delicious as I expected them to be with a hint of ginger. The House Dynamite Chicken made with bell peppers, pineapple, carrot and mushrooms in a sweet spicy sauce was large enough to be a meal. It was a little spicy for my fiancé, but perfect for me (I love spicy food). The Hong Kong Flat Rice is one of the vegetarian items on The Mint’s menu and was very fragrant with flat rice noodles in a brown garlic sauce with vegetables. I had never seen flat rice noodles before. They were like little quarters of pasta, on purpose perhaps (quarters, money, The Mint…)? The last item was probably our favorite. The Sugar Cane Pork is made with ground, seasoned pork, formed around a sugar cane stick then rolled in panko crumbs, baked, then flash fried. These sticks of porky goodness are served with a pineapple ginger sauce. Yum.
Hong Kong Flat Rice. Photo credit: Dean Studios
The Mint is the perfect place to go for a celebration dinner with friends, a pre-evening out dinner or if you’re in the mood for a dinner with someone special. We’ll be going back soon for that Sugar Cane Pork!
See you soon, Sugar Cane Pork! Photo credit: Dean Studios
The Mint is located at 7373 East Camelback Road in Scottsdale. See more photos from our dinner at The Mint on Flickr.
Sweet Salvage
I finally made it to Sweet Salvage this weekend. Sweet Salvage is a monthly, four day flea market that starts on the third Thursday of the month and ends the following Sunday. Each market has a theme, and I absolutely loved this month’s French Market feel. It was the perfect way to pretend that I had been whisked away to Paris for the weekend.
Each month Sweet Salvage has a new theme. This month's was a French Market theme.
This refurbished chair is magnifique!
Oui, s'il vous plaît!
I can’t wait to see what theme and treasures the Sweet Salvage ladies come up with for next month!
Sweet Salvage is located at 4809 N. 7th Avenue in Phoenix. See more photos from our visit to Sweet Salvage on Flickr.
AMC Esplanade 14 Dine-In Theatre
AMC Espanade 14 is now a dine-in theatre.
Now you can do dinner at the movies with AMC’s newest concept opening next week in Central Phoenix. The AMC Espanade 14 has been remodeled and is now a dine-in theatre featuring a full menu and bar. We were invited for a sneak peek and tasting earlier this week. Here’s a first look.
Meet me at MacGuffins
There is no longer a box office at the front of this theatre. You now must buy your tickets in advance online or at the ticket kiosk outside the theatre. When you walk into the lobby, it feels like a lounge with tables and comfy chairs where you can enjoy food and drink before or after your movie. The bar is called MacGuffins, after a term coined by Alfred Hitchcock meaning "a plot element that catches the viewers' attention or drives the plot of a work of fiction."
No more ticket office.
There are two meal-and-a-move options: the Fork & Screen or Cinema Suites. The Fork & Screen experience has in-theater dining, seat-side service, a variety of alcoholic and non-alcoholic specialty drinks, including beer and wine. The Fork & Screen experience also welcomes families and children accompanied by a parent or guardian.
The Fork & Screen theatre.
Cinema Suites is AMC’s “premium, upscale in-theatre dining experience.” You can reserve your seats in the theatre’s comfortable, reclining lounge chairs, enjoy an expanded menu and drink options served in-theatre. For the Cinema Suites experience you must be at least 21 years old.
My co-worker found the Cinema Suites' lounge chairs so comfortable, she decided to take a nap.
Ticket prices range from $6-15, depending on the day of the week and show time. All food and drink is a la carte, separate from the ticket price. Most meals were around $10-12.
The blackened salmon was delish, as was the baked macaroni and cheese dish. Yum!
This weekend you can get your own sneak peek of AMC’s Dine-In Theatre for FREE! The theatre opens to the public on Wednesday, September 7th.
AMC Esplanade 14 Dine-In Theatre is located at 2515 East Camelback Road in Phoenix. More photos from our sneak peek can be found on Flickr.
