let's meet in the middle: mill avenue.

{mill avenue in tempe}

mill avenue is the main hub for ASU students. 

each time i'm on mill i remember how much i like it. maybe it reminds me of university blvd. in tucson? or it could just be the brick retail shops & restaurants lining a high-energy street. i dig. 

on friday night, we had plans to meet nick & angela for a night out, and ting suggested tempe since the city it middle ground for the four of us. ASU starts next week, so mill avenue was bustling. lots of college co-eds with fresh summer tans and new back-to-schools outfits were out and about.

we started with a drink at the handlebar

not a college student. 

inside the handlebar.

husbands. 

angela working on our instagram upload. obvi.

no love for the patio this time of year. 

how obsessed are you with angela's new haircut? i loooove it. 

let's goooo.... i'm hungry.

hey, arizona summer. back so soon?

the heat's been hovering in the 90's, 

but this weekend we got a heat wave punch to the face when it hit 109. 

and just like that... bam! summer is here. 

here's how we survived the first summer weekend of '13.

1: late afternoon lunch of imitations at postino arcadia with alicia & scott

2: summertime means lots of strawberries. love this cutting board handmade by my little bro.

3: new favorite summertime wheat beer, Mr. Pineapple by Arizona's local SanTan Brewery

4: "friends & family" dinner event at the new Pomo Pizzeria in Downtown Phoenix 

5: saturday's lunch lead to drinks at kelly's and then ultimately old town's new Hi-Fi Bar

6: sunday morning required an early trip to coffee & rainbow donuts on mcdowell road 

7: maple bar, chocolate sprinkles & old fashioned + milk for me. glaze twist for him. 

8: this weekend hit 109F, so we stayed inside and finally watched Zero Dark Thirty

9: alejandro joined us in old town 

10: staying cool with frozen treats from the neighborhood fro-yo shop

 11: sunday night's season premier of keeping up with the kardashians + season's 3rd batch of peonies

12: we made gigantic baked chicken burritos for sunday dinner. delish.

phoenix public market & cafe.

about this time last year, the downtown phoenix market and wine bar closed. they continued to host the outdoor farmer's market & food trucks on wednesday night and saturday mornings (seen here), but adios wine bar. well, the phoenix public market cafe is back and better than ever! on wednesday, may 8th, we rode down to the grand opening event to check things out (aka eat and drink). i guarantee we'll be regulars.

the space was revitalized by the owners of St. Francis (seen here & here), so we knew it was going to be good. for you locals, it feels like a mix between Arcadia's beloved trio LGO Grocery + NoRTH + Postino. it's called a "cafe," but it's a restaurant that serves breakfast, lunch & dinner daily + the market sells Arizona products and produce. 

Phoenix Public Market Cafe 

14 East Pierce Street in Downtown Phoenix

phxpublicmarket.com 

farmer's market flowers. $5 for anything.

outside the "cafe" patio.

food trucks against the downtown backdrop.

you'll know where to find us this summer.

this town loves a good patio.

and sangria made with all local, arizona wine and fruit.

this is a margarita. i also had the Lee Trevino - so so so good. If you can handle spicy.

caesar salad, burger & fries. the all-american dinner.

the phoenix mayor came by to light up the sign for the first time. danny was surprised he had security.

pastries were por gratis for opening night. ting got the "smores" cookie for dessert and had no complaints.

the two i was deciding between. i went with the snicker doodle so i could share with ting (mr. anti-PB)

all of a sudden we realized we were doing some unexpected cocktail sampling. great bartenders.

moved from the bar to a bench. ya know, just to mix things up. 

city skyline from the patio.

my everyday-including-wednesday date dude.

los tings a la cinco de mayo fiesta.

my margarita making skills were really en fuego that day.

dos equix & corona. the guy to my left had tecate. no joke. super unexpected.

nacho libre ryder (no perros were injured doing the photographing of this fiesta)

justin bieber pinata. obviously. and yes, justin bieber was blasted during the destruction.

the pinata crowd.

los tings y el coffey

amigo time in the pool. not so many amigas.

rockin' the same cinco top since 2006. best $.25 i've ever spent at the Goodwill. 

scenes from rachel's birthday bike ride bar crawl.

the vig arcadia // o.h.s.o. nano brewery // JT's // the little woody // taco bell

birthday girl with a crown & a clapper.

ting, mikis & the boys playing an exhilarating round of trivial pursuit  

birthday girl lookin' fly.

andrew, say cheeeese! 

a glitter star clapper used to demand the attention a birthday girl deserves.

saaaay spritzers!

wee wee and mee.

welcome to 29, my friend.

bikes, bikes & more bikes. 

"because <festive les> don't care! she loves it!"

and yeah, rachel and i got pretty much the same outfit memo.

will prepping for some festive secrets. 

o.h.s.o. canal patio.

happy birthday, rachel! 

oh how we love your annual bars on bikes celebration. 

.....