Waters from p 25 ancho chile-marinated fish taco, the food is just as bright and flavorful. Raul’s Cocina Uptown Farmers Market 5757 North Central Avenue 623-341-1521 Raul’s Cocina serves vegan standouts galore including hearts of palm ceviche, red jackfruit tamales, and jalapeño chickpea salad. These Mexican-inspired dishes also happen to be gluten-free. The aguas frescas are no exception. All are made and served with love by owner Anna “Salsa” Salazar. Strawberry Jamaica tames the tartness of hibiscus and pina is blended with real pineapple, then strained, leaving hints of the tropical fruit. Both are sweetened with agave. But it’s the horchata that’ll keep you coming back. This rice milk, coconut cream, and cinnamon sip is sweetened with condensed coconut milk. It’s both creamy and refreshing. Futuro 909 North First Street 602-730-3227 As you might expect from an art gallery and minimalist coffee shop housed inside Palabra, a modern hair studio in the Roosevelt arts district, the horchata at Futuro is anything but basic. Housemade with toasted wild rice, cinnamon, raw almonds, allspice, cane sugar, and oat milk, the dairy-free blend is so rich and thick that the cinnamon floats, suspended throughout. Pair it with a picture-perfect sculpture of a pastry made by Mark Coming Down BY TIRION MORRIS O n any trip to Flagstaff, a stop at Firecreek Coffee Co. is a must. In the winter, the coffee shop’s marshmallow-topped treats fortify sippers against the cold. For leaf-peepers in the Fall, pumpkin lattes made with homemade syrups complete the autumn vibe. In the summer, fruit-flavored iced teas refresh customers after a hike. But soon, Phoenix weekend warriors won’t have to wait to get their Firecreek fix. The team behind the specialty coffee shop and roastery is opening a large location at 1618 East McDowell Road. Firecreek’s founder, Mike Funk, is no stranger to the area. After starting his coffee career in Seattle, he moved to Phoenix and opened Cafe Tech at Fifth Street and McDowell Road in the Chacón, like his lovely layered Horchata Bavarian Tres Leches cake, for a duo that tastes even more elevated when enjoyed within the white-walled space. The Horchata Company 1900 East Fifth Street, Tempe 480-479-9468 Stephen May and his wife Maria Janet offi- cially started The Horchata Company in February of 2022 out of Tempe Food Court, but they started making and honing the Mexican drink long before. Janet hails from Acapulco, and the couple lived in Puerto Vallarta for 10 years. There, they served up frothy, fruity creations and combos to friends and family. “We wanted everyone to be able to experience the taste of authentic horchata from Mexico without traveling all way there to try it,” May says. As well as their original horchata, the duo offer mango, peach, strawberry, pina colada, chocolate, iced coffee, and blue curacao horchata. Provecho 901 North First Street The horchata at The Churchill’s Provecho takes time to create. It starts with unblanched rice that’s soaked for 24 hours and then blended for eight minutes with whole cinnamon sticks, sugar cane, and Mexican vanilla. Then in goes whole milk and a little evaporated milk to give it body, creating a silky-smooth sip that’s right on the edge of sweet. This shipping container restaurant also serves an agua of the day, like Jamaica Fresa or Limon Con Chia, which pair perfectly with the Guadalajara- inspired tacos. the Mountain Flagstaff’s Firecreek Coffee Co. plans to bring specialty coffee to Phoenix this summer. mid-1990s. By 2008, he relocated to Flagstaff and opened the flagship location of Firecreek. The coffee shop supplies AJ’s Fine Foods and Whole Foods with specialty beans and grounds. Over the years it also opened locations in Cottonwood, Sedona, and in 2021, inside an office space near Arcadia. But with the upcoming McDowell Road spot, Firecreek is moving into Phoenix in a big way. The new coffee shop will include an arts venue, roastery, cafe, bar, kitchen, and training facility that hosts classes for baristas. “We are so fortunate to have a great crew in Flagstaff that supplies local coffee houses and groceries in Northern Arizona,” Funk said in a press release, explaining that he intends to build that concept out in Phoenix as well. “We are growing by becoming even more local. Keeping our coffee as close to the source as possible is crucial for us to produce and serve the freshest, best tasting small batch hand-roasted coffee for our patrons and clients,” Funk said. The new coffee shop is scheduled to open late this summer, just in time to get a little taste of Flagstaff without the weekend traffic. 27 phoenixnewtimes.com | CONTENTS | FEEDBACK | OPINION | NEWS | FEATURE | NIGHT+DAY | CULTURE | FILM | CAFE | MUSIC | PHOENIX NEW TIMES MAY 26TH– JUNE 1ST, 2022
