Page 34 May 2 0 1 4 Getting to know your bartender, one question at a time By Amanda Savage Full name: Julie Hillebrand Position: Resident Mixologist, J&G Steakhouse Years at J&G: I have been here since pre-opening in November 2008, and so has a lot of our staff including Executive Chef Jacques Qualin, which is pretty rare in the restaurant industry. Where was your first job? A family-owned restaurant back in the Detroit area where I grew up called Old Mexico. They had such incredibly good food. I still miss it. When did you get your start in the bar business? At Old Mexico, as soon as I turned 18 they started training me at the bar. How do you spend your free time? The majority of my free time is devoted to my adorable 5-month-old daughter, Isabella. I take a lot of pictures and videos of her, read the occasional magazine article, and like to experiment with new cocktails or cooking recipes from time to time. Guilty pleasure? Brunch with Isabella and whomever else wants to join the party. Fun fact people might not know about you? I’m secretly in love with Edward Cullen (Robert Pattinson) from the Twilight movies. What is your favorite thing about being a bartender? Julie Hillebrand I have a few. One is figuring out how to most efficiently execute large cocktail orders so that everything is cold and not improperly diluted. I also really love creating new cocktails on the fly. If you could only pick three things that embody a great bartender, what would they be? Number one is hospitality. We’re in the business of making people happy. Efficiency and intelligence are my next picks. You have to be efficient in a busy bar. The intelligence helps bartenders pick out the right wine or cocktail, etc. for each guest and then have good conversations with them. What’s the oddest request you’ve ever gotten from a customer? I’ve had a few bar guests insist we had X on our menu awhile back, and asking whether they could get it again, even though we never had that item on our menu. I just apologize and try to suggest something from our menu that I hope will make them happy. It’s a given that as a bartender you get hit on, or see others get hit on, what is the worst pick-up line you’ve ever heard? Unfortunately, I don’t have a good answer. I’ve had a few people tell me I’m pretty. Nothing too weird. What’s your go-to drink when you’re out? I love a well-crafted French 75 cocktail, Nolet’s Gin with soda and a lemon peel, or a glass of Ruinart Champagne. Where are some of your favorite local spots to hang out at (besides J&G of course)? I don’t get out much, but I love Crudo and Micah Olson behind the bar there. Other places I enjoy are The Henry and Pita Jungle. I live in Arcadia and don’t venture too far from home. What’s your favorite cocktail or wine at J&G? I love the Hemingway Daiquiri because it’s fresh, citrusy and not too sweet. Some of my other favorites are a Dark & Stormy and The Sazerac. It’s your day off, you have nothing to do, money is not an object — what would you be doing? I’d hop on the next flight to Germany. You’d find me exploring Köln (Cologne) and watching the ships sail up and down the Rhein River. HEALTHY FOOD FOR A HAPPY WORLD. 5013 NORTH 44 TH STREET | PHOENIX, AZ 85018 | 602.429.6222 N E CO R N E R O F 4 4 T H & C A M E L B ACK I A M A F L O W E R C H I L D . C O M «NOW OPEN »

Page 35 May 2 0 1 4 Vegetarian barbeque all the rage at local eateries me By Amanda Savage It’s National Barbecue Month! While Barbecue traditionally encompasses meat, vegetarians like barbecue too! How, you ask? Barbecue sauce in itself can be cooked with just about anything. Bryan’s BBQ in Cave Creek takes it a step further and offers a pulled squash sandwich, as a substitute for the staple pulled-pork and Pomegranate Cafe in Chandler has been known to serve Tempeh “ribs” smothered in barbeque sauce as a special – so the idea isn’t too far-fetched. While the Phoenix Market for vegetarian barbeque is definitely in the minority, there are a few local spots that offer a vegetarian alternative to traditional barbeque. Secret BBQ Chicken Sandwich Green If you try anything on this list, try this sandwich. The vegans at Green make an amazing espresso barbecue sauce. The sauce is a harmonizing balance between tangy, sweet and roasted flavors – the sauce makes this sandwich. Topped with caramelized onions and peppers on mock chicken patties and vegan mayo, this sandwich will change the way you think about vegan food. I find a lot of mock meat sandwiched to be somewhat dry, but the barbecue sauce and the oil-based vegan mayo really bring juiciness to the sandwich. If I absolutely had to make one complaint, it would be that the bun is a little too soft for all the toppings. It absorbs the sauces fairly quickly and can get messy. But what would barbecue be without a little mess, right? I pair this with the tahini cole slaw, which is really light on sauce. The cilantro, scallions and crunch of the cabbage and peanuts really create a cool contrast to the sandwich. – Green New American Vegetarian 2022 N. 7th St., Phoenix. BBQ Tofu Salad Original Chop Shop The Chop Shop’s alternative to the BBQ Chicken salad is the calorie conscious option on this list. Simply ask for the BBQ chicken salad, sub tofu. The Chop Shop lightly fries basic firm tofu to give it a gentle crisp on the outside and a soft inside. The salad comes with a sweet barbeque sauce, and a chipotle-ranch dressing that blend into a creamy, sweet dressing with a gentle kick of chipotle. Cheddar, corn nuts, green onion and diced tomatoes add texture to the salad, most notably, the roasted flavor and crunch of the corn nuts brings a robust texture to the salad. The portion size will fill you up, and while the sauce is cream based it’s not so heavy that it will make you feel heavy. If you really want to get in the summer spirit, pair it with their homemade lemonade. It’s light, and fresh tasting, but a word of warning – this drink is an eye-opener! It’s super tart, sweet and flavorful. Original Chop Shop, 7158 E. 5th Ave., Scottsdale. Gardein BBQ Chicken Salad Yard House This is not your dieter’s salad. This salad has more toppings and ingredients on it than lettuce: it’s hearty, packed with flavor and served in very large portion sizes. Citrus barbecue sauce and a spicy chipotle ranch dressing are tossed with lettuce, fresh corn shaved off the cob, pinto beans, cilantro, pasilla, juicy diced tomatoes and cheddar cheese; then topped with avocado slices, crispy onion straws, crunchy tortilla strips, and grilled mock chicken. This salad is more on the spicy side when compared to the salad from the Chop Shop, and the barbeque sauce specifically has more tang and zest than the sweeter, milder barbeque sauce from the Chop Shop. You literally discover a new flavor in almost every bite. All the different flavors and textures make this a bright and colorful dish. The menu offers a Regular and Large portion size. The regular looks like a large, and the large is big enough for two people to share. Yard House Scottsdale, 7014 E. Camelback Rd., Scottsdale. O.H.S.O. BBQ Burger O.H.S.O. Eatery and Nano Brewery I order a vegetarian alternative to the regular barbeque burger. Just ask to Veggie Beat A Jean-Georges Vongerichten Creation Located at The Phoenician 6000 E. Camelback Road, Scottsdale, AZ 85251 (480) 214-8000 www.jgsteakhousescottsdale.com 2013 “Treat yourself to an amazing experience” – Zagat “The Best Steakhouse of 2012” – Phoenix New Times “Juicy, flavorful and entirely satisfying.” – Howard Seftel, Arizona Republic substitute the meat patty for their veggie patty, and to hold the bacon. The bean and grain based veggie patty is topped with American cheese, onion straws, lettuce, tomato, O.H.S.O.’s Tangy Q Sauce between two, square shaped sweet buns. O.H.S.O.’s barbecue sauce is sweet and tangy with no spice. This entree is great for people who love barbeque but aren’t necessarily fans of the spicy flavors it’s often paired with. The sweet bun is the perfect match for the barbeque burger. It’s lightly grilled on the inside and has a tougher outer skin that protects a soft, moist inside, really holding everything in there. O.H.S.O. does a great job of giving the veggie patty that off-the- grill roasted flavor that so many veggie burgers lack, while the onion straws bring balance and texture to the softer ingredients on the burger. Upgrade to the sweet potato fries for your side! – O.H.S.O. Eatery and Nano Brewery, 4900 E. Indian School Rd., Phoenix. O.H.S.O. BBQ Burger - O.H.S.O. Eatery and Nano Brewery BBQ Tofu Salad - Original Chop Shop Like us on