Top 20 Arizonan Foods

Superstition Meadery is a meadery from Prescott, Arizona, founded in 2012 by Jeff and Jen Herbert, and today recognized as one of the most innovative mead producers in the world. Their portfolio spans a wide range of styles - from traditional meads to melomels with berries, pyments with grapes, metheglins with spices, and experimental creations such as Peanut Butter Jelly Crime. A distinctive hallmark of their production is barrel aging in bourbon, port, and wine casks, which imparts rich and layered flavor profiles. The tasting room is a place where visitors can sample dozens of different meads and ciders. In their production, they use local Arizona honey, combining it with exotic ingredients, spices, and specialized fermentation techniques, creating unique beverages that push the boundaries of the craft.Expand

Stone Grindz Chocolate is located in Scottsdale, Arizona, and specializes in crafting bean-to-bar chocolate. The company focuses on using ethically sourced cacao beans and emphasizes small-batch production to enhance flavor quality. Stone Grindz Chocolate has received awards for some of its innovative chocolate creations.Expand

Wild Hare Distillery is a locally owned and operated small-batch distillery in Tempe, Arizona, specializing in premium spirits crafted with natural ingredients. Their award-winning DROVE line features 100% Blue Weber Agave spirits, while the WHD line offers unique whiskeys, vodkas, and gins. Co-owners Wendy Tilton and Jim Matz emphasize sourcing local products and services, ensuring authenticity and quality in every bottle.Expand

Six Byrd Cider is a family-owned craft cidery from Phoenix, Arizona, founded in 2019 with the idea of offering cider that is natural, refreshing, and not overly sweet. The founders, brothers Jared and Eric Thorn along with their cousin Jackson, wanted to create a drink that sits at the crossroads of wine and beer while preserving the authenticity of the apple. Their ciders are made from carefully selected apples, mostly sourced from the Pacific Northwest, a region renowned for its high-quality orchards. The production process includes fermentation, filtration, blending, and carbonation, with minimal intervention and no unnecessary additives. Special emphasis is placed on small batches and rotating flavors, ensuring variety and consistently fresh offerings. Most of their products have around 7% ABV, making them strong enough yet easy to drink. The taproom in Phoenix’s Arcadia neighborhood quickly became a popular gathering place for cider enthusiasts, and they later opened a second location in Tempe with greater capacity and a broader selection. Their philosophy highlights community, local connection, and a modern approach to cider culture. Six Byrd continues to grow, expanding its reach and promoting cider as a distinctive and valued beverage.Expand

Scale & Feather Meadery is a craft meadery based in Avondale, Arizona, known for its unique fusion of tradition and modern pop culture. Their philosophy is built on the idea that mead is more than a drink - it’s an experience, a story, and an art form that brings people together. They use only natural honey, carefully selected yeasts, and often incorporate fruits, spices, or herbal infusions to create rich, layered flavor profiles. Their portfolio spans a wide range of styles - from traditional dry and semi-sweet meads to experimental melomels and spiced variations. They are especially recognized for their imaginative names and labels inspired by mythology, video games, and fantasy, which contribute to a distinctive brand identity. The tasting room is designed in the style of a medieval tavern, making each visit an interactive and thematic experience. The alcohol content of their meads typically ranges from 6% to 14%, depending on the style. The flavor balance varies from light, refreshing notes to dense, dessert-like richness. The brand stands out for its high production standards and precise fermentation control, ensuring purity and stability in every batch. Scale & Feather Meadery represents a new generation of American mead makers who successfully blend craftsmanship, storytelling, and community culture, making it one of the most creative contributors to the modern mead revival movement in the United States.Expand

Jerome Cheese Co., located in Jerome, Idaho, is a subsidiary of the larger dairy company Davisco Foods International, Inc. The facility specializes in the production of cheese, particularly producing significant quantities of cheddar cheese. It operates with advanced technology to ensure high efficiency in cheese production and is one of the major employers in the Jerome area.Expand

Rising Sun Farms, located in Phoenix, Oregon, produces a variety of award-winning cheese products. They are particularly noted for their cheese tortas, pestos, and dips. Expand

Chimichanga is a wrapped, deep-fried flour tortilla filled with a variety of ingredients such as shredded chicken, beef, rice, beans, onions, and cheese. Although the dish is especially popular in the Mexican regions of Sinaloa and Sonora, most people believe that chimichanga was either invented in a Tucson restaurant or in a Phoenix restaurant in the early 1920s. Regardless of its origins, chimichanga is a widely known favorite throughout Mexico and the United States up to this day, with numerous regional variations. It is recommended to serve chimichangas with salsas, sour cream dips, or guacamole.Expand

Navajo tacos, Indian tacos, or frybread tacos is a traditional dish originating from the Midwest and Intermountain region states such as Arizona, South Dakota, and Oklahoma. These tacos are made with Indian fry bread that's topped with a combination of ingredients such as ground beef, beans, shredded lettuce, cheddar cheese, sour cream, and tomatoes. The dish was created in 1864 using flour, salt, and lard that was given to the Navajos of Arizona when they were forced to flee their homeland and march on foot to New Mexico, a journey known as the Long Walk. The frybread is nowadays topped with a wide array of ingredients mentioned above, sometimes with even more additional items (the more, the better) such as pico de gallo, salsa, black olives, sliced avocado, and green onions. Expand

Cheese crisp is an American dish originating from Arizona. It consists of a flour tortilla that is topped with shredded cheese in its most basic form. The tortilla is placed in a butter-brushed pan which is put under a broiler until it develops a crisp texture. Cheeses such as Cheddar, Oaxaca, or Monterey Jack are typically used in the preparation of the cheese crisp. There are numerous variations, so the dish can also be topped with a variety of ingredients such as onions, carne asada, cilantro, jalapeños, bell peppers, and shrimp. It is believed that the cheese crisp was popularized by El Charro Café in Tucson.Expand

Piki bread is a traditional unleavened bread originating from Arizona's Hopi tribe. The bread is made with blue corn and it has numerous papery thin layers. It's cooked on heated piki stones which have been seasoned with either cooked sheep's brains or bone marrow. These stones are so prized that they're handed down through generations. Piki bread is traditionally made from ground blue corn, water, and juniper ashes, and its flavor is best described as smoky, earthy, and slightly sweet. The preparation is time-consuming, so the bread is reserved for special occasions such as weddings, when the bride and groom eat piki together.Expand