Bella Vista Italian Kitchen’s neighborhood is not trendy. The restaurant sits next to an auto parts store and a florist with a carnicería right across the street. The homes nearby probably won’t be inhabited by hip young professionals anytime soon. Inside, the Greco-Italian decor is a melange of enormous potted plants, gurgling fountains and walls […]
Doug Hill
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Before you GoGo
In summertime, the sidewalk outside GoGo Sushi is a miniature jungle. It’s covered by a profusion of exotic tropical potted plants. Inside is a spacious dining room and long bar with stools. The theme is Asian modern, with black lacquer tables and chairs, red vinyl booths and little ceramic fish on the wall. Nestled in […]
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Bellissimo
Credit: Mark Hancock What do Tori Amos and Gov. Mary Fallin have in common? According to Bellini’s website, both have dined at the upscale Italian bistro. Name-dropping doesn’t end with these ladies: Mick Jagger and Sir Paul McCartney also have visited the restaurant. It’s a ritzy joint in a classy neighborhood. Located in the Waterford […]
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Rising from the ashes
Credit: Mark Hancock On Jan. 11, a blaze fed by 60 mph winds raced across the roof of Golden Phoenix. Oklahoma City firefighters brought the fire under control, but not before enough damage was done to halt the restaurant’s operation, along with the adjoining Asian grocery. Personally supervising the reconstruction contracting, owner Larry Lee reopened […]
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Mambo Italiano
Sergio’s Italian Bistro owner/operator Sergio Garcia has an obvious passion for Italian cuisine, but he’s not a native of Roma. He’s from Mexico City. “Most of my daily specials are Italian,” Garcia said. “But I’m from Mexico, so I mix it up a little bit. I often make a poblano cream that’s similar to Alfredo […]
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Bringing home the bacon
She’s the owner of newly opened Local restaurant, 2262 W. Main, Norman. Enlisting sisters Heather Steele and Abby Clark to operate the place, they have their uncle’s Walnut Creek Farms in Waynoka lined up as a supplier. “Our concept is sourcing food direct from the farmers and straight to our tables,” Scaramucci said. A dozen […]
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Light my fire
With no less than three self-portraits of Frida Kahlo on its dining room walls, the controversial painter could be Juan del Fuego Mexi Diner’s patron saint. Kahlo’s impassive gaze times three, colorful Mexican folk art and wrought-iron candelabras decorate the diminutive space that seats around 55. On weekends those seats usually are filled from 7 […]
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Fontana Italian Restaurant
Fontana’s Italian Restaurant is not a ritzy joint. In a workaday neighborhood strip mall, its dining room is sparsely decorated with clichéd 19th century landscape prints and plastic grape vines. Dean Martin croons over the PA system. Fontana’s is the kind of unpretentious Italian-American eatery you’ll find coast to coast. There are no white tablecloths […]
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Pepe Delgados Mexican Restaurante
Nestled in the center of Norman’s Campus Corner, Pepe Delgados tastes like you could be dining 1,500 miles away in owner Emilio Salinas’ home village of Punta Maldonado, Mexico. “There’s an African-Mexican influence in our recipes, because my mother is African,” he said. “There was a shipwreck and her ancestors stayed right there in the […]
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Bagging the bean
“I drank diet cola like a fiend for years,” Steve Howard said. Before he eventually stopped, the Norman resident was drinking a pair of 2-liter bottles every day. That’s the approximate caffeine content equivalent of 10 cups of coffee. “I just made up my mind to quit and did it,” Howard said. “Not easy, but […]