Hiro Sushi - Scottsdale, AZ : The Usual Veggie Items

Although this post is about a place in Scottsdale, AZ, I am not there right now. One of my many posts that will be from pics taken eons ago. When I was out in the Phoenix area, I would frequent Hiro Sushi as my go to sushi place. No offense, but there really isn't a whole lot of good sushi out in AZ...according to The Meat-eater. Maybe because it's not next to the ocean and is a freakin' desert. I just eat the same things, egg, inari, veggie roll....so long as the rice is good and ingredients fresh, I am ok! Some sushi places we visited didn't have Japanese chefs. We like the authentic Japanese chefs here. =) Their sashimi is pretty good according to The Meat-eater...which is what he looks for in a good sushi place. There was only one time we went where the rice was dried out. That was kind of a freak of nature. We went back a while later and all was good again. Wonder what happened that night?

Tamago (Egg) in front

At sushi places, I get my usual vegetarian items. Up front is the egg or tamago. Quite good.

Inari Sushi

In the middle of the plate is Inari Sushi...basically sushi rice in a seasoned tofu pocket.

Vegetable Roll

And last but not least is the veggie roll. This is usually available at all sushi places now. I know they have cucumber rolls and avocado rolls, but I like the vegetable roll because I can eat all kinds of veggies instead of just the one kind. Besides carrots, lettuce, cucumbers, and avocado...there's oshinko. Oshinko is pickled daikon, which is the yellow part in the roll.

Green Tea Ice-Cream

For dessert, I love green tea ice-cream! They also have red bean. Your choice. All very good to me. Yum yum.

Hiro Sushi
http://www.hirosushiaz.com/
9393 N 90th St.. Ranch Center #116
Scottsdale, AZ 85258
(480) 314-4215

Sweet Republic Artisan Ice Cream - Scottsdale, AZ

One of my favorite foods to eat is ice cream. Whether it be in the hot summer months or freezing cold 30 degree winters, I would still have some ice cream. So when I saw this article about the Top 10 Ice Cream Shops around the US, I had to try one of these places. Sweet Republic was the most easily accessible to me located in Scottsdale, Arizona.

Salted Butter Caramel

The article said the must try flavor was Salted Butter Caramel. That sounds weird right? But it's soo good. It's the perfect blend of salty and sweet. It's overall still sweet with a bit of saltiness...and the caramel is just so caramel-y. The ice cream is soft and is the perfect consistency (to me). It definitely is a must try...especially if you like caramel! This is one of their regular flavors so it will always be there.

Purple Yam and Real Mint Chip

The purple scoop is Purple Yam ice-cream and the green scoop beneath is Real Mint Chip. The purple yam is sweet...but doesn't taste like a regular yam or potato or taro or any other type of root vegetable. It has it's own flavor and they made it very delicious. You can sample the flavor before you buy it...but this flavor is not normally there. The Real Mint Chip is naturally green from the mint leaves they use. No artificial coloring here! They also shave the chocolate so all the flavors melt in your mouth. This is also one of their regular flavors and it's delicious too. Everything I've had here is delicious.

Sweet Republic makes their ice-creams in small batches and every single thing is handmade. They use local and the freshest ingredients possible. The waffle bowls were delicious too. Yes that's made from scratch too. They have regular flavors and other ones that are available when the ingredients are in season...so you can always try something a little different. I think the ingredients they use and the small batches made every day make a big difference in the quality of their ice cream. They do sell some of their most popular flavors at the local Whole Foods. I've bought some at Whole Foods instead of going to the store and the flavors are still delicious. The only thing is that the ice cream is a bit harder in your freezer...not sure what temperature they keep their ice cream at but that temperature makes everything perfect. So if you're in Scottsdale and love a good ice cream I highly recommend Sweet Republic.

Sweet Republic Ice Cream

http://www.sweetrepublic.com/home.html

9160 East Shea Boulevard

Scottsdale, AZ 85260

480-248-6979

Pomegranate Cafe - Ahwatukee, AZ : Super Green Kale Salad & Arizona Roll

Although it's new to me, Pomegranate Cafe has been open since 2009. I wish I had discovered this place sooner! It is super healthy and their food tastes great.

Interior

Cozy little cafe. A place where they might know your name if you go often enough. (Or at least your regular order.)

Wall Art

Pomegranate Green Tea (I think)

Sorry, I was here a few months ago and forgot what drink this was exactly. But it came in a neat little glass jar.

Raw! Super Green Kale Salad

From their website this salad is made of: "lemon-olive oil-garlic rubbed kale with seasonal chopped veggies, avocado, beet, sprouts, sunflower seeds, almonds, living caesar dressing and golden flax crackers."

The golden flax crackers were good. The kale tasted awesome...never had it rubbed in garlic. It did neutralize the bitterness. The ingredients were fresh and after eating this meal...you feel good!

View of salad from the other side

The Arizona Roll

From their website these rolls are: "Nori seaweed spread with almond cheese, avocado & a rainbow of raw veggies - rolled into sushi. Served with ginger-tamari sauce, wasabi & a sweet miso cabbage slaw." The Meat-eater picked this dish and really enjoyed it!

Closer look at the roll

The ginger-tamari sauce was delicious. After dipping the sushi into the sauce, the flavors all came together. I could not believe how good this was. And everything is raw too!

I liked the ginger-tamari sauce so much that I added it to the salad. I am obviously no chef. Those flavors didn't go together as well as the intended meal. This made me realize that the chef knows exactly what they're doing with the seasoning. The Arizona Roll tasted the best with the ginger-tamari sauce and the Raw Kale Salad tasted best with the living caesar dressing.

Exterior

The Pomegranate Cafe is in the same shopping center as Trader Joe's and Safeway. If you want something super healthy and great tasting, I highly recommend coming here.

Pomegranate Cafe

http://www.pomegranatecafe.com/

4025 E. Chandler Blvd., Suite 28

Phoenix, AZ 85048

(480)706-7472

Tues - Sun 8:00am - 4:30pm

Closed Mondays

Pane Bianco - Phoenix, AZ : Mozzarella, Tomato & Basil

Highly recommended. Vegetarians and non-vegetarians can enjoy this sandwich.

Housemade Mozzarella, Local Tomato & Basil:

Paper wrapped

Handmade bread

Fresh ingredients

This sandwich is delicious. I am not a bread person but this bread is awesome! Chewy but not doughy. All the ingredients are fresh.  Plus it comes with handmade candy (in middle of first photo). I'm not into candy either but their stuff is so good. The Meat-eater also likes this sandwich the best.

The website says Pizzeria Bianco.  It's their pizza place which has a different location and hours.  They make one of the best pizzas. Sorry...don't have pictures from there. There's always a line for the pizza place so get there early if you're interested.

Pane Bianco

4404 N Central Ave.

Phoenix, AZ 85012

http://www.pizzeriabianco.com/pane/index.html