Favorite Places

It's almost time again for Fat Thursday - Tlusty Czwartek - a big day in the Polish community, and stuffing yourself silly with those Polish pastires called Paczki. So where can you find these: check out the listings at the bottom.  They are worh the extra few calories.

The Polish community in Phoenix which seems to be growing exponentially as people flee the cold of New Jersey, Connecticut and Chicago, to new plush homes, plenty of parking and of course the warm weather, has brought with it the paczki and every year we have several thousand people find this site because of this post. The Paczek is the king/queen of Fat Thursday. This fried dough filled with jam symbolizes this day and there are more places to get them now then ever before in

…

One of the most beautiful places in Phoenix is the Japanese Friendship Garden in downtown Phoenix. It is a large 3 plus acre garden that is now a few years old with beautiful mature trees. Since it is also fall, many of the trees are full of color while others remain lush and green. It is peaceful, beautiful and invigorating, a renewing force to sooth and liven up: as nature does.

Please watch the video below, as a teaser, to what is better in real life.

 

Japanese Friendship Garden of Phoenix, named Ro Ho En is an authentic 3 1/2 acre Japanese Stroll Garden with tea garden and tea house. This tranquil and beautiful setting features more than 1,500 tons of hand picked rock, stone footbridges, lanterns and more than 50 varieties of plants. As…

Coffee shops are one of the newer staples in the urban Phoenix scene: newer as in the last few years there's been a boom of locally owned coffee shops with character and most are in Central Phoenix.

The photos above is a small section of a new huge and massive steel and concrete table outside of Lola Coffee in Midtown Phoenix. I remember seeing the table for sale on the Modern Phoenix classifieds. It was a great purchase and I'm glad it's somewhere more people can enjoy. In fact, one of the reasons I like this location so much is because it has several different seating options. I know that may sound banal, but it's an importnat element of any place.

You can sit outside on a bench, a table with 3-4 seats, two classroom chair-table combos or at

…

A collection of old buildings sit besides the newly opened tracks of the light rail.

Photo: Artur Ciesielski

Just across the street from the Downtown Civic Space Park and past the tracks, light rail tracks that is, sit two buildings huddled together in safety from the growing city.  Alone and vacant they are a relic of the disappearing Phoenix.  On the white building a sign reads, "facsimile service" something very few people and businesses need now.

There's a certain beauty and allure of these simple boxy buildings: in other parts of the city they are used by businesses with a local flavor: a designer clothing shop, a modern furniture store or maybe organic tacos.

It's a beautiful scene despite the emptiness, or maybe because of it.

Take a ride on the light rail and step off at the Heard Museum: bring a book or a notebook...The Heard Museum in midtown Phoenix is a beautiful complex.  It's more then the contents that are attractive.  I can appreciate them even though I'm not attracted to Native American art.   I do however enjoy the museum grounds with the art the well kept structures with attractive arcades and architectural details.On one of the corners is a small area, a garden: clean, manicured and simply beautiful, with one bench in the corner.  It's a wonderful space to take a few breaths, relax, contemplate in silence and enjoy the simple silence of the space.

Lux CoffeebarThere are a lot of good places to find coffee and that write about coffee shops and the subject itself much better then I could or should, like Arizona Coffee.  I do real estate.Still, Phoenix Market Trends is not only about real estate it's about "local", the complete local scene; the businesses, the people, the streets, coffee shops and real estate, because that is what makes up the community, so I'll put in a shot about a coffee shop.Today, I decided to do some work away from the office.  I seem to work better with a lot of activity around me.  That is why I took a short trip to Midtown Phoenix to Lux Coffeebar on Central Ave. I like this place because it's crowded and I dislike this place because it's crowded, i.e. sometimes lacks…

A North Central Phoenix chocolate shoppe for the lowers of milk and dark chocolate, truffles and bars.This last week we finally got a chance, or made the effort, to visit Chatham's Fine Chocolates a place I drive by often and each time want to stop by but for lack of initiative or time just pass along with so many other places that are in Central Phoenix with really good food.I didn't know what to expect walking into the store and I was surprised at the stark white walls and large open space: for the amount of chocolate the space is very large as if an art gallery.After scoping out the layout we dove into exploring the store.  In the back was a wall of hundreds of truffles.The selection is immense and includes flavors such as rose petal, Turkish…

North Central Phoenix historic gravel and tree lined path.
Murphy's Bridle Path on the usual morning or weekend is full of joggers, bike riders and the occasional stroller. The attraction to this dirt path is obvious. Homes all along the path are beautiful with huge lots and often mesmerizing architecture. All this is lined with large mature ash trees on both sides. Its gravel but its manicured gravel and it will stay this way.

#murphy-bridle-path-video#

The Bridle Path begins at Bethany Home and Central Ave. Its a gravel trail on the east side of Central Ave extends just north of Northern Ave. just under 3 miles.

"The Path was named after Murphy Bridle, Murphy was a man who made his vast fortune through his invention of the sixty-four ounce

…

Europa Pastry Cafe for great pastries.Paczki, bread, baked sweets, Polish deli cuts, sausages, cheeses, chocolate, are all on the menu and shelves along with groceries from Poland, many of which I could not live without, like Polish pickles which are simply divine on fresh crusty bread with good butter.Though they don't make this simple wonder they do make other sandwiches using the bread they baked, Polish cheeses and deli cuts.The pastries are very good indeed with a less sweet more European flavor.  There is some seating inside to enjoy the food and the company.The number of Polish delis, bakeries an stores is growing along with the Polish community which has found the freedom of the Western USA too alluring after decades of marination…

Paradise Valley park dedicated to Barry Goldwater On the North East side of Tatum Blvd. and Lincoln Dr. is a small but beautifully designed desert landscaped park dedicated to Barry Goldwater a long time resident of Paradise Valley.

For a long time this parcel stood empty, just covered with dust and rocks.  A few years ago it was transformed into a lush desert landscape with elements of the local Native American culture and plants which live in this environment.

The Barry M. Goldwater memorial created by the Town of Paradise Valley as a thank you and remembrance of, a United States Senator, Presidential Candidate, avid photographer a friend of the Native American Community and a Paradise Valley resident. The memorial is the centerpiece of the

…