Restaurants

The Valley of the Sun boasts hundreds of excellent restaurants, with most of the best dining options concentrated in the Scottsdale Road, north Scottsdale, and Biltmore Corridor areas. If you want to splurge on only one expensive meal while you're here, consider a resort restaurant that offers a view of the city lights. Other meals not to be missed are the cowboy dinners served amid Wild West decor at the area's "cowboy" steakhouses.

Good places to go trolling for a place to eat include the trendy Biltmore Fashion Park shopping center, at Camelback Road and 24th Street (tel. 602/955-8400), and Old Town Scottsdale. At the former, you'll find nearly a dozen restaurants. In downtown Scottsdale, within an area of roughly 4 blocks, you'll also find about a dozen good restaurants. A few of my favorites in both places are listed here.

Phoenix is a sprawling city, and it can be a real pain to have to drive around in search of a good lunch spot. If you happen to be visiting the Phoenix Art Museum, the Heard Museum, or the Desert Botanical Garden anytime around lunch, stay put for your noon meal. All three of these attractions have cafes serving decent, if limited, menus.

Backyard Bounty

If you happen to be in Phoenix in the late winter or early spring, watch for roadside signs advertising fresh citrus fruit. Many homeowners throughout the city have orange and grapefruit trees in their yards and often sell (or even give away) the fruit from the trees. I always stock up on fresh citrus whenever I see one of these signs.

Forbidden City in the Desert

So you're driving along the Loop 202 freeway near Sky Harbor Airport and this strange mirage materializes. You think you're seeing a mall-size complex of classical Chinese buildings. Don't worry, it's not a heat-induced hallucination -- it's the COFCO Chinese Cultural Center, 668 N. 44th St. (tel. 602/273-7268; www.phxchinatown.com). This fascinating complex includes several Chinese restaurants, gift shops, and an Asian supermarket. There's also a Chinese garden with numerous traditional viewing pavilions.

Cowboy Steakhouses

Cowboy steakhouses are family restaurants that generally provide big portions of grilled steaks and barbecued ribs, outdoor and "saloon" dining, live country music, and various other sorts of entertainment.

Espresso Bars, Bakeries & Ice Cream Parlors

Perhaps it's the heat or the sunshine, but espresso is not the ubiquitous drink in Phoenix that it is in many other parts of the country. However, there are a handful of nonchain places to get a good latte or cappuccino. In Scottsdale, try the Village Coffee Roastery, 8120 N. Hayden Rd., Ste. E-104 (tel. 480/905-0881; www.villagecoffee.com), which roasts its own beans and makes what just might be the best lattes in Scottsdale. Alternatively, try the Coffee Bean & Tea Leaf, which has locations in the Shops at Gainey Village, 8877 N. Scottsdale Rd. (tel. 480/315-9335; www.coffeebean.com), and at 4513 N. Scottsdale Rd. (tel. 480/946-1500), which is at the corner of Scottsdale and Camelback roads.

Up on the north side of the Valley, I always get my latte at Cave Creek Coffee Company, 6033 E. Cave Creek Rd., Cave Creek (tel. 480/488-0603; www.cavecreekcoffee.com), which doubles as a wine bar and the Valley's best live-music venue.

Along the Camelback Corridor, there's Hava Java, 3166 E. Camelback Rd. (tel. 602/954-9080), in the Safeway Shopping Center. Not far from the Heard Museum, Lux, 4404 N. Central Ave. (tel. 602/696-9976; www.luxcoffee.com), serves the best espresso in Phoenix. It's also the hippest espresso bar in town. Right next door there's a great little bakery run by the owners of Pizzeria Bianco.

If ever there were a place where ice cream is a necessity, it is Arizona. In the desert heat, ice cream is a survival food, a means to cool off when the temperatures soar. When the heat gets to be too much for you, head to some of these great chill-out spots. Scottsdale's Sugar Bowl, 4005 N. Scottsdale Rd. (tel. 480/946-0051; www.sugarbowlscottsdale.com), in the heart of Old Town, is a longtime locals' favorite that has been immortalized in "Family Circus" cartoons. If you find yourself dying from the heat as you motor through central Phoenix on a toasty afternoon, there's no better antidote than Mary Coyle, 5521 N. Seventh Ave. (tel. 602/265-6266; www.marycoyle.net), which makes its own ice cream and has been in business for more than 50 years. If old-fashioned ice cream just doesn't do it for you, and you absolutely have to have gelato, check out the Gelato Spot, 3164 E. Camelback Rd. (tel. 602/957-8040; www.gelatospot.com), which is right next door to Hava Java in the Safeway shopping plaza. There are other Gelato Spots at 7366 E. Shea Blvd., #102, Scottsdale (tel. 480/367-9900), and 4166 N. Scottsdale Rd., #101, Scottsdale (tel. 480/425-8100).

When you're in the neighborhood of the Heard Museum and craving sweets, head down Central Avenue to Tammie Coe Cakes, 610 E. Roosevelt St., #145 (tel. 602/253-0829; www.tammiecoecakes.com), a tiny pastry shop in downtown Phoenix. The cases here are filled with irresistibly tempting goodies. There's a second Tammie Coe Cakes at 4410 N. 40th St. (tel. 602/840-3644). For equally tasty treats in an artistic setting, head south of downtown Phoenix to City Bakery at Bentley Projects, 215 E. Grant St. (tel. 602/253-7200; www.citybakeryaz.com), which is in the same building that houses the impressive Bentley Projects art gallery. The bakery is affiliated with Arcadia Farms (earlier in this chapter), a local restaurant chain with cafes at the Phoenix Art Museum and the Heard Museum. If you're struck with a craving for something sweet while driving Scottsdale Road, head to Cupcakes, 6137 N. Scottsdale Rd., Scottsdale (tel. 480/656-3816; www.gotcupcakes.com), which is in the Hilton Village shopping center and bakes the best cupcakes in town.

Breakfast, Brunch & Quick Bites

Most of Phoenix's best Sunday brunches are to be had at restaurants in major hotels and resorts. Among the finest are those served at LON's (at the Hermosa Inn), T. Cook's (at the Royal Palms Resort and Spa), the Terrace (at the Phoenician), and Top of the Rock (at the Buttes, A Marriott Resort). However, for a unique experience, make a brunch reservation at Geordie's at the Wrigley Mansion Club, 2501 E. Telawa Trail (tel. 602/955-4079; www.wrigleymansionclub.com). The meal is served in the historic mansion that chewing gum built. Brunch here is served Sunday from 10:30am to 2pm and costs $45 ($23 for children 6-12).

The Desert Botanical Garden, 1201 N. Galvin Pkwy., in Papago Park (tel. 480/941-1225; www.dbg.org), has picnic lunches available during its Music in the Garden concerts held on Sundays from September to March. Concert tickets are $20 for adults and $8 for children 3 to 12. Admission to the gardens is included, but meals cost extra.

For smoothies, muffins, and healthful things, try Wild Oats Marketplace, which has stores at 3933 E. Camelback Rd. at 40th Street (tel. 602/954-0584; www.wholefoodsmarket.com), and at 8688 E. Raintree Dr., Scottsdale (tel. 480/368-1279).