[Source: Megan Finnerty, Arizona Republic] — Old Town Scottsdale prides itself on being filled with wine bars, restaurants, and clubs that are unique. Rarely is a chain the best option for dinner or a drink. And restaurants are increasingly adding produce to menus, highlighting for diners that they’ve come from neighboring farms such as Singh or McClendon’s Select. At some resorts, bartenders are routinely ducking out to their own gardens to snip mint, thyme or basil, so garnishes are grown within feet of the bars where the drinks are served.
Recently, downtown Phoenix has given foodie bloggers and tastemakers reasons to talk, as a number of restaurants and bars specializing in locally sourced menu items expanded in the past year. But the most significant development in Arizona-grown goodness might not be at an independently owned business after all. And it’s not in Old Town either.
If you’re looking for truly local dining and drinking, you’ll want to head to the Sheraton hotel and swing by the District Kitchen and Bar in downtown Phoenix. The all-local all-the-time focus is a new strategy for the hotel chain, but general manager Heinrich Stasiuk, who lives in Arcadia, is the man making it work. Downtown Phoenix is a proud place when it comes to home-grown talent, and he has managed to get neighbors and business people to eat, drink and be merry in his bar. [Note: Read the full article at Downtown Phoenix restaurant, District, focuses on Arizona-grown menu.]
Downtown Voices Coalition 