Good morning, Scottsdale. It is deep into the locals' season now, the snowbirds long gone and Old Town quiet enough to get a table without the wait.
- 🍽️ Richard Blais on where Scottsdale dining goes next. The TV-famous chef behind Zozzona gets a long, candid interview.
- 🖼️ A new gallery opens in Old Town. Little Edge, a miniature to-scale gallery, is now on view on East Main Street.
- 🍷 Wine, paint, and live music in Old Town all weekend. A paint-and-sip tonight, a Saturday acoustic set, a Friday scent pop-up.
- 🏠 The typical Scottsdale home is worth about $858K. Up 2% over the past year.
- 🎭 Four Valley picks worth the drive. The Moth, Shrek the Musical, D-backs baseball, and a downtown dance show.
A celebrity chef on where Scottsdale dining goes next
Richard Blais, the TV-famous chef behind Zozzona, sat down with the Scottsdale Progress this week for a wide-ranging talk on life, fame, and reimagining Scottsdale dining.
Blais trained at the Culinary Institute of America and made his name on bold, theatrical plates. The full interview runs through his career and his read on where the city's restaurant scene heads next. A good slow-Saturday read.
Read it: Scottsdale Progress.
The weekend
- 🧰 Back to Workshop at Civic Center Library. Resume help and using AI in a job search, run by the city's career services. Today. Details.
- 🎨 Library art for kids. Picture Book Art for ages 6 to 11 at Arabian Library, today. Details.
- 🎮 Teen VR gaming at Civic Center. Drop-in virtual reality for ages 12 to 18, today. Details.
- 🧠 Trivia in two rooms. Arena Sports Grill on Bell Road and Old Town's House Rules both host trivia this weekend. Arena. House Rules.
🌃 Old Town & Nightlife
Bars, music, galleries, and what's on around Old Town this week.
🖼️ Little Edge Gallery opens at On the Edge. A miniature, to-scale version of the gallery, now on view at 7045 E Main Street in the Arts District. Old Town's galleries run their ArtWalk on Thursdays. Details.
🎨 Paint and sip at Mini Social. A guided painting class with drinks, and you take the canvas home. 7116 E 5th Avenue, tonight. Details.
🍷 Live music with Gretchen at Aridus. Arizona wine and an acoustic set at the Old Town tasting room, Saturday from 2 to 5 PM. The patio is the move in spring. Details.
🧴 Alchemy body oil pop-up at The Merchantile. Blend a custom scent, Friday from 2 to 6 PM at 3925 N Brown Avenue. Details.
Around Scottsdale
🏠 The market, in one number. The typical Scottsdale home is now worth about $858,306, up 2% over the past year.
📚 A young-adult author visits the women writers society. A talk for local writers, with the full listing in the Progress. Details.
🗞️ How Scottsdale became a city. This week's Remember When column revisits the old headlines from the town's long road to incorporation. A nice bit of local history. Read it.
Around the Valley
A few picks worth leaving Scottsdale for this weekend. All downtown Phoenix, so make a night of it.
🎤 The Moth: American Dream. The Crescent Ballroom, tonight at 8 PM. Real people telling true stories live, no scripts. Tickets.
⚾ Diamondbacks vs. Twins. Chase Field, Friday at 6:40 PM. The Twins are in town for a weekend interleague series. Tickets.
🧅 Shrek the Musical. Valley Youth Theatre at the Herberger, Friday at 7 PM. An easy family night downtown. Tickets.
🎶 3BallMTY. The Van Buren, tonight at 8 PM. Monterrey's tribal-guarachero trio for a late dance set. Tickets.