Author: Justin Lee

Justin Lee

If there is one singular structure anywhere in this city that best personifies freelance writer, armchair architect and rabid chowhound Justin Lee, it need be Midtown’s Phoenix Financial Center. Affectionately referred to locally as the “punchcard building,” and iconified by local artists ad infinitum, this mid-century looker draws polarizing judgments on each end of the humanity spectrum. It encapsulates everything Lee adores and (constructively) loathes about the desert city in which he was proudly born and bred. Standing off-center but perfectly proud, easily not suburban, but never entirely urban, the PFC exists as a coda of what Lee believes to be Phoenix’s begrudging past mistakes, as well as its verging possibilities to come. Something unique to itself — something uncharacteristically Phoenix.


Eat My Words | First Impressions of Blue Hound Kitchen and Cocktails

June 12, 2012 | By

Carefully crafted menus make this hound a worthy companion.

The Hangover: Devoured 2012

March 16, 2012 | By

Justin Lee surveys and devours this culinary classic at Phoenix Art Museum.

Eat My Words | Luci’s Healthy Marketplace

December 7, 2011 | By

Part coffee shop, bakery, fast-casual dining, and grocery, Luci’s Healthy Marketplace is a neighborhood jewel in an approachable setting.

Eat My Words | Green New American Vegetarian

November 23, 2011 | By

The 7th Street eatery satisfies palates and opens minds with imaginative vegetarian cuisine.

Eat My Words: Rice Paper’s Banh Mi

November 16, 2011 | By

Justin Lee discovers the East meets West charms of Rice Paper, Coronado Neighborhood’s new Vietnamese restaurant.

Eat My Words | America’s Vampiro

June 16, 2011 | By

Justin Lee hits up neighborhood favorite America’s Taco Shop and leaves smitten with the Vampiro.

Eat My Words | Windsor and Churn Opens

May 27, 2011 | By

Windsor and Churn are delightful additions to the ever improving Central and Camelback intersection in greater Downtown Phoenix.

Eat My Words | Giant’s Cold Brewed Iced Coffee

May 18, 2011 | By

Summer brings Giant’s cold brewed ice coffee. We think it’s worth the heat.

Eat My Words | Calabria’s Italian Sausage

May 3, 2011 | By

Family-run Calabria Italian Kitchen’s new Coronado location offers the same top-tier sandwiches and, of course, Italian sausage.

Eat My Words | Province’s Smart Money

April 26, 2011 | By

Well-crafted and measured, Province’s Smart Money is a cocktail worth making time for.