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PHOENIX — ‘Top Chef’ star Angelo Sosa is launching his first restaurant in Arizona, Tía Carmen, inside the JW Marriott Phoenix Desert Ridge Resort & Spa.
The Southwest restaurant goes beyond vibrant food and drink – it pays homage to the region with local Arizona partnerships integrated and featured throughout the space.
ABC15| NICOLE GUTIERREZ
The concept of Tía Carmen won over the executive chef, Angelo Sosa.
“At nine years old, my tía Carmen taught me about the beauty and power of food,” Sosa told ABC15.
DISHES TO DEVOUR
Although the dishes are inspired by the Southwest, Chef Sosa hopes diners will feel like “tía Carmen is in the background” and their taste buds will trigger a memory of the past and create a new one at the restaurant.
Tía Carmen| JPublicRelations
Some of their most popular items include Crudo Tuna, Tri-Tip Kabob, and Ember Roasted Purple Yam.
“LOCATION”
The restaurant pays homage to the South-West through the partnership of local businesses in the Valley; like meats from Schreiner’s in Phoenix, vegetables from their own garden at the resort, and custom plates made by Blue Door Ceramics.
ABC15| NICOLE GUTIERREZ
“The terrane, the tenure, with Christiane plates [from Blue Door Ceramics]…it’s almost like mother nature took her hand and literally grabbed the southwest and brought her to the table…and all we do is serve food on it,” said Sosa.
TÍA CARMEN
The celebrity chef grew up in a Dominican-Italian family in Connecticut.
It was at the young age of 9 that Sosa was inspired by his Dominican tía (aunt) Carmen in the kitchen.
Sosa reminds ABC15 that when his family visited his aunt and his siblings walked through the house to go out, he would instead pull up a bar stool and watch his aunt cook.
“When it was time to eat at this massive banquet, as everyone started eating, my tía wouldn’t even touch her plate until she heard the joy, the laughter and just the harmony in [the] room,” Sosa said in an interview with ABC15. “At that time, I knew if this is loveyou know kindness, joy, laughter through food and that’s the power of food…that’s what I want to do.
IF YOU ARE GOING TO
- 5350 East Marriott Drive in Phoenix
- Breakfast: 7am-11am daily
- Dinner: 5:00 p.m. to 9:00 p.m. Sunday through Thursday
- Dinner: 5 p.m.-10 p.m. Friday and Saturday
