Author: Justin Lee

Justin Lee

If there is one singular structure anywhere in this city that best personifies freelance writer, armchair architect and rabid chowhound Justin Lee, it need be Midtown’s Phoenix Financial Center. Affectionately referred to locally as the “punchcard building,” and iconified by local artists ad infinitum, this mid-century looker draws polarizing judgments on each end of the humanity spectrum. It encapsulates everything Lee adores and (constructively) loathes about the desert city in which he was proudly born and bred. Standing off-center but perfectly proud, easily not suburban, but never entirely urban, the PFC exists as a coda of what Lee believes to be Phoenix’s begrudging past mistakes, as well as its verging possibilities to come. Something unique to itself — something uncharacteristically Phoenix.


Eat My Words | Shish Taook at Baiz Market

April 19, 2011 | By

Baiz Market’s word-of mouth praise for Shish Taook is shared by our own Justin Lee.

Eat My Words | Forks & Corks 2011

April 12, 2011 | By

Tasty bites aside, Forks & Cork’s new-found urban environs were the real success story of last week’s festival.

Tonight and Tomorrow: Cocktails, Cheesesteaks at Cycle

April 8, 2011 | By

Touted mixologist Micah Olson and Phoenix Cheesesteak Company highlight weekend two at Cycle.

Forks & Corks Migrates to CityScape

April 7, 2011 | By

The eighth annual food and drink festival, previously held at the Esplanade, comes to CityScape tonight.

Eat My Words | Arrogant Butcher’s Last Word

April 5, 2011 | By

Cocktailing reigns supreme at The Arrogant Butcher, where one beverage, the Last Word, is enjoying a long-overdue renaissance.

Cycle: Now Open

April 1, 2011 | By

Cycle officially opens with first-weekend selections by Hey Joe Filipino Street Food and Tracy Dempsey.

Eat My Words | Carolina’s Oaxaca Special

March 29, 2011 | By

Melding the famous Carolina’s tortillas with smoky chorizo, potatoes and gooey cheese makes quite a mouthwatering combination.

Eat My Words | Tuna Sandwich at Pane Bianco

March 22, 2011 | By

What’s so special about a tuna sandwich? Pane Bianco crafts one that redefines the genre.

Eat My Words | Mystery Solved: ‘Cycle’ Debuts April 1

March 15, 2011 | By

The pop-up restaurant will bring ambitious dining to the Lexington Hotel through mid-summer.

Recapping Devoured 2011

March 15, 2011 | By

Now that we’ve had a moment to let everything digest, we can safely say Devoured Culinary Classic did not disappoint.