PHX Stories: Cobra Arcade Bar
Ariel Bracamonte’s passion project is a game changer for downtown Phoenix’s bar scene. By Sally J. Clasen As a boy growing up in the Phoenix suburb of Glendale in the 1980s, Ariel Bracamonte would…
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PHX Stories: Spur Cross Wildflowers
400 species of desert grow in this tiny county park, and ranger Kevin Smith knows (almost) all of them. I fell in love with flowers in Phoenix. Before I moved here, I liked the plastic-wrapped, cut…
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PHX Stories: The Catalina Pool
The Catalina Pool, circa the 1930s This Arizona Biltmore pool is where Marilyn Monroe preferred to sunbathe, and Irving Berlin first dreamed of a ‘White Christmas’. By Suzanne Wright Pools have…
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PHX Stories: The Tamale Store
In her quest to create the perfect tamale, Martha Castillo built a family business with a cultish following. From left to right: Pauline Pimienta, Martha Castillo, Maria Stanzak and Caroline…
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PHX Stories: Crop to Cup at Peixoto Coffee
A daughter carries on a legacy by roasting beans from the family farm in Brazil at a coffee shop in Chandler. by Teresa Bitler Julia Peixoto Peters’ father didn’t want her to go into the family…
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PHX Stories: Maker of Relics
Jewelry designer Alex Ozers forges brass and copper into wearable art that feels aged by desert forces By Sally J. Clasen Jewelry designer Alex Ozers used to make large-format paintings with a…
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PHX Stories: Analog Phoenix
In search of tangible things in a digital age, a local writer finds where to ditch screens and go old school in central Phoenix. I have trudged, grudgingly, into the digital world. I’ve uploaded…
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PHX Stories: Japanese Friendship Garden
Less Din, More Zen: A Secret Garden Above I-10 Creates a Cocoon of Placidity in Downtown Phoenix. By Suzanne Wright When you think of Phoenix, a Japanese garden isn’t the first (or fifth) thing that…
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PHX Stories: 'Microhoods' of CenPho
In Midtown and Uptown, eat/drink/shop gathering places thrive where strip malls once stood. Back in the day, I used to go to Phoenix Ad Club meetings in the banquet room at Beef Eaters, a tony prime…
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PHX Stories: Bootmaker David Espinoza
Local bootmaker stitches colorful, custom leatherwork in his Central Phoenix storefront. By Jackie Dishner Truth is, I’ve never owned a pair of cowboy boots, but a guy in our party of 20 at the…
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