Little Miss BBQ to Progress, 5 new restaurant projects every Phoenix foodie should know about

Some of the Valley's top chefs and restaurateurs are expanding their empires. Most are coming to downtown Phoenix. A favorite barbecue restaurant owner will open his third location on Roosevelt Street, as are the owners of a popular French restaurant. A historic downtown home was saved and is now slated to start a new life as an eatery. A food truck owner is revamping his 24th Street space for a new concept. And the owners of a restaurant that gained a cult following for its chopped salad are opening a reimagined diner in Old Town Scottsdale.

Here are five major new restaurant projects every Valley foodie should know about.

Owners of Nonna Urban Eatery are opening Mixela

Chef Gian Franco Brugaletta, owner of Nonna Urban Eatery and Nomada, is opening a restaurant in the Nomada's former space at the corner of 24th Street and Osborn Road. According to Mixela's Instagram account, the restaurant will serve crudo and tapas with wine and beer. "Cooking is my way of communicating stories, emotions, and memories, dish by dish," Brugaletta wrote.

Details: 3410 N. 24th St., Phoenix. @mixelaphx on Instagram.

Owners of Little Miss BBQ opening Full Speed Chicken and Ribs

Scott and his wife Bekke Holmes are opening a new restaurant on Roosevelt in the former Trapp Haus BBQ space. The couple had planned to open another Little Miss location on Central Avenue, but had to nix their plan when it became cost prohibitive. In an Instagram post dated Jan. 9, Scott posted a photo of a fried chicken with the caption "fried chicken thigh using brisket tallow." Besides fried chicken and ribs, the restaurant will offer pulled pork and barbecue chicken at a 1700-square-foot restaurant with both indoor and patio seating. Holmes told Phoenix New Times he expects to open in mid-March.

Details: 513 E Roosevelt St, Phoenix. @eatfullspeed on Instagram.

Owners of Restaurant Progress and Sottise opening The Sidewinder

TJ Culp and Esther Noh, the team behind Restaurant Progress and Sottise, have taken over the space that formerly housed Little Chef Diner (the original Welcome Diner space). Little Chef closed in August, 2023 so the owners could carry on with their food truck, Culinary Theory. Culp confirmed that their new concept is in the works, but was not ready to share details.

Details: 924 E. Roosevelt St., Phoenix.

Owners of the Gladly opening Beginner's Luck

Beginner's Luck, a restaurant described as a "diner reimagined," is taking over the former Piccolo Virtu space. It will be open for breakfast, lunch and dinner, serving "ingredient-driven" food with a robust coffee program and experimental cocktails. Chef Bernie Kantak designed the menu of comfort foods inspired by his Hungarian and Swedish grandmothers. He expects to open in late February.

Details: 7240 E. Main St., Scottsdale. beginnersluckaz.com.

Live Forward Development is opening a 'Bianco-style' restaurant downtown

Seargent-Oldaker home, a historic Phoenix 1909 craftsman bungalow was granted a new lease on life when it was relocated from 649 N. Third Ave. to the northwest corner of the lot. The home belonged to Elizabeth Oldaker who dedicated 40 years of her life to preserving Phoenix history and was inducted into the Arizona Women's Hall of Fame for it.

Moving the building will allow Live Forward Development to create sufficient room to build a low-scale apartment complex in the space while also rehabilitating the historic home to become a restaurant inspired by Pizzeria Bianco, Cibo and The Vig. They expect to open the concept in 2025.

Details: Northwest corner of Third Avenue and McKinley Street.

At Pyro, a design-first new restaurant: Japanese-inspired dishes are absolute fire

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This article originally appeared on Arizona Republic: Five top Phoenix restaurants and chefs with new concepts coming soon