📍Added in February 2024: “I love drinking tea and matcha, and these guys make probably the best matcha in town. I love these guys. This place shows how much Phoenix has evolved—it’s a completely different city from what it used to be.”

📍Added in February 2024: “This is probably one of the best burgers in the city. It’s a smash burger—crispy edges, supersoft bun. This is a restaurant that’s feeding the soul.”

📍Added in February 2024: “One of my good friends opened this tea shop; he really geeks out about tea. This is a beautiful place, made out of concrete—that’s where the name comes from. It just feels good to come in here, drink tea, and have a great time.”

📍Added in February 2024: “This is another family restaurant: My friend Devan Cunningham, who came out from California, is the chef here with his mom. They have beautiful soul food: You’re gonna eat jambalaya, and you’re gonna have some of the crispiest wings—meaty and delicious.”

📍Added in February 2024: “This is my new restaurant. It’s a Sonora-style taqueria; everything’s on flour tortillas. The food has a lot of soul—it’s not just another taco. The platters are super special for me—that’s where it’s at.”

📍Added in February 2024: “Fish? In the desert? Are you kidding me? Well, my boy Nellie [Chris Nelson], who owns this place, has some of the best fish! He buys high-quality product from all over the world to please his customers. The quality and service he gives you is amazing. I recommend everyone go there on lobster day and get a lobster roll from them. People go crazy for it!”

📍Added in February 2024: “This is my favorite restaurant in the whole world! It’s the kind of place you only find out about through word of mouth, so I have to tell everybody about it. One family has been running it for 32 years, starting with their mom, who passed it on to their kids, who now run the whole operation. It’s far on the west side, but when you walk in, you get this beautiful, crystal-clear pho that feeds the soul. It’s magical.”

📍Added in February 2024: “This is one of my favorite stores in the city. They’re the ones keeping me up to date with my style. I go around cooking in expensive shoes and expensive shirts—just to look good. It’s a culture thing. I don’t have to tell them anything here; they just say, ‘Hey, yo, try this, get this style, get this shoe.’”

📍Added in February 2024: “This is probably a 40- or 50-square-foot little place—it’s one of those shipping containers—that they built into a beautiful store. You’ll find local wines, mezcals, natural chocolates, chips, salsas—everything you need. It’s right down the street from my restaurant, so I go there every day. I like to get a can of this lemongrass sparkling water called Dram; it makes me feel good!”

📍Added in February 2024: “When I met the family behind this bakery, it brought me back to my childhood. Growing up in Mexico, my dad and I would go to the panaderia, and I remember my dad telling me: ‘The heart of the baker is the biggest heart you’re going to find, because they want to see everybody happy.’ You have to go and try this place—they have the best conchas in Phoenix!”