Mr. Flavortown himself made another visit to the Valley this week to record segments for Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives.
Guy Fieri and his crew visited Taco Chiwas in Phoenix, Grubstak in downtown Gilbert and Republica Empanada in Mesa this week, according to some of the restaurant's owners and posts on social media.
"Thank you so much to the crew of (hashtag) diners, drive ins and dives (sic) for being so awesome!!," a post on Taco Chiwas' Instagram account read. "What an amazing experience!!"
"Quite the week with Flavor Town paying us a visit! wrote Grubstak on its Instagram account. "Amazing experience and honor to be featured on Diners, Drive-ins and Dives! We are excited to share our story and grub."
Colton Grubb, the owner of Grubstak, described the experience as "incredible." He said Fieri was "great" and "quick-witted." How'd the opportunity arise? A representative from the show called the restaurant's main number and that started the process, said Grubb.
The visit marks one of many Fieri has made to the Grand Canyon state. By our count, he has featured more than 20 restaurants in Arizona on "Triple D," a majority of them in the Phoenix-metro.
Diners Drive-ins and Dives: The 23 restaurants Guy Fieri has featured
A spokesperson for Food Network was unable to officially confirm Guy's schedule to avoid any security concerns or disruptions to the show's schedule. It was not immediately known when the segments would air.
At the same time, non-disclosure agreements prevent a lot of the restaurants from sharing a lot of specific details. (Guess, we will all just have to wait to watch and see).
Republica Empanada is a family-owned pan-American restaurant that features Latin cuisine from multiple regions. The 1,600-square-foot restaurant opened in June 2013.
Armando Hernandez and Nadia Holguin opened Tacos Chiwas, a Mexican restaurant at McDowell Road, between 19th and 20th Streets, in 2016.
The owner-chef duo also partnered with Phoenix chef Chris Bianco to open Roland's in the old Roland's Market building near Van Buren and 15th Street.
Grubstak is a make-your-own-fries kind of restaurant within Gilbert's Heritage District. Guests choose a base (waffle fries, waffle potato fries, root vegetables) and various toppings and sauces, called "Staks."
