For those looking to break out of a dining rut, metro Phoenix has a handful of new restaurants to try right now.
This month, Arizona Republic dining critic Dominic Armato recommends a new restaurant serving subtly smoked-infused brisket and classic barbecue sides, as well as a downtown Phoenix bar that's not only a destination for creative cocktails, but also for experimental buns stuffed with Thai and Korean fried chicken.
Rounding out this month's list of must-try new restaurants is a spot from a familiar husband-and-wife team who formerly ran a Venezuelan food truck. It all started when he tried her arepas; they changed his life and Phoenix diners can try them for themselves at this new Mesa restaurant.
From barbecue to inventive Asian-inspired cuisine, here are three new metro Phoenix restaurants to try this month:
WoodBarn BBQ
As the original and longtime executive chef at Bobby Q, Mark Hittle and restaurateur Bob Sikora launched and developed the biggest and arguably most popular local barbecue restaurant group in town. But a year and a half ago, Hittle decided that he wanted to do something small for a change.
Hittle teamed up with his son, Skylar, and after running a food truck for about a year, the duo jumped on a vacated restaurant space and launched WoodBarn BBQ in May, a small and modest carryout-focused spot that’s slinging some nice smoked meat in Queen Creek.
Though the Hittles are experimenting with a water smoker and plan to add chicken and a few more esoteric items in the future, their workhorse is a J&R Oyler, which turns out the usual suspects — brisket, ribs, pulled pork, turkey and sausage — smoked over almond and mesquite.
Indeed, they’re shooting for supple and mellow, which is exactly how the brisket comes across. This isn’t the brash punch of a Little Miss with an aggressive bark and a thick layer of oak. It has a yielding texture, a restrained smoky whiff and it goes down easy.
Details: 23670 S. Power Road, Queen Creek. 480-988-6451, woodbarnbbq.com.
NEW 'CUE: He left one of Phoenix's top barbecue spot to set up shop in Queen Creek
Deez Buns at Killer Whale Sex Club
Colorful on the outside and jet black on the inside, Killer Whale Sex Club is the latest project from Sam Olguin and Brenon Stuart. And while Olguin and Stuart await the right time to reopen the room, the duo they’ve partnered with to run the kitchen is slinging some tasty takeout.
Justin Jin Park of Drunken Tiger and Kevin Rosales of itinerant pop-up Good Fortune Kitchen teamed up last year to launch contemporary Korean-Filipino crossover joint Deez Buns. To complement Olguin and Stuart’s cocktails, Park and Rosales brought along a few of their buns, adding some starters, substantial mains and some vegan options to round out a satellite Deez Buns menu that’s taken up residence in Killer Whale’s kitchen.
There are traditional lumpia Shanghai — crisp, meaty little pork-filled spring rolls the size of your middle finger. But a larger version, the size of a Churchill cigar, goes the way of Korean drinking food, stuffed with corn cheese — a gooey mix of sweet corn and mozzarella — and drizzled with a gochujang-laced fire sauce.
Details: 922 N. Sixth St., Phoenix. Instagram.com/killerwhalesexclub.
CRAVING CREATIVE BAO? This popular Tempe spot expanded to downtown Phoenix
Que Chevere
Maria Fernanda and Orvid Cutler spent four years making a name for themselves with Que Chevere, a popular Venezuelan food truck, before launching a brick-and-mortar space in downtown Mesa this June.
Regulars will instantly recognize the arepas, which remain Fernanda’s signature item. She serves the thick, sturdy griddled corn cakes split and filled with items such as a hearty (and hefty) load of shredded beef, juicy and tender, laced with tomato and spice.
The stewed beef and chicken also come in empanada form, half moons folded and sealed and deep fried until they take on a deep golden color and a crackling crisp. And on the soft and pliant end of the spectrum, Fernanda’s cachapa is a steamy, gooey concoction — a tender griddled pancake of sweet corn studded with juicy whole kernels, folded over a thick slab of melted cheese with a little extra meat, if you please.
Details: 142 W. Main St., Mesa. 480-406-1852, quechevereaz.com.
LIFE-CHANGING AREPAS: This husband-and-wife team has a new Mesa restaurant
Reach the reporter at lauren.saria@azcentral.com. Follow her on Instagram at laurensaria, on Twitter at lhsaria and on Facebook at facebook.com/lsaria.
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3 new Phoenix-area restaurants to try in August for barbecue and Korean fried chicken buns - AZCentral
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