Check, Please! Arizona
“Check, Please! Arizona” puts locally owned Arizona restaurants in the spotlight. In every episode, three guests review restaurants they recommend to each other.
LATEST Check, Please! Arizona
Little Miss BBQ: Central Texas barbecue
April 17
Little Miss BBQ serves up the rich and smoky flavors of Central Texas at its two Valley locations with an emphasis on great flavors.
Check, Please! Arizona
From 2011 to 2018, “Check, Please! Arizona” featured close to 300 restaurants across Arizona and has earned five regional Emmy® Awards.
After a four-year hiatus, the show returned in 2022 and is now gearing up for its 12th season!
“Check, Please! Arizona” features Chef Mark Tarbell and three guests, members of our community. In every episode, guests volunteer to share their favorite locally-owned, independent Arizona restaurants. They dine at and then review the restaurants they recommend to each other. Tarbell moderates these lively roundtable discussions, adding his own expertise as a restaurateur.
Think your favorite Arizona eatery deserves a shout out? Sign up to be a guest on “Check, Please! Arizona,” or view more details below.
Airing Thursdays at 7 p.m. during the season, embark on a culinary journey through a cozy public house with comfort food at its heart, an evolved Italian kitchen serving family recipes, and a globally inspired brasserie with a menu that’s a testament to culinary travels and experiences.
Join Chef Mark Tarbell and three engaging guests as they dine, review, and recommend these local gems in lively roundtable discussions. If you enjoy a savory dining experience or want to support local restaurants, watch on Thursdays, catch episodes of “Check, Please! Arizona” online or stream on the PBS app.
New interactive map for restaurants featured on ‘Check, Please! Arizona’
Our show “Check, Please! Arizona” has featured restaurants across the state, and we wanted to give you the opportunity to see firsthand where these local eateries are located!
View the Google Earth map here, and get an idea of where your next outing can be, from Sedona to Buckeye. The map is free to view either on your web browser or through the Google Earth app on mobile.
Using our interactive map, you can view the addresses and information of each restaurant, and browse through options in your area. The map is color-coded by area, and it’s easy to view information about a restaurant by clicking on its marker.
Make sure to bookmark the map so you can come back to it whenever you’re in need of a new local restaurant, and if you view it on the mobile app it will stay saved for easy access!
Local restaurants nominated for James Beard Awards®
The Best Chef Southwest semifinalists and finalists for the James Beard Awards® were announced, and we’re excited to see restaurants featured on “Check, Please! Arizona” on the list!
The semifinalists included Stephen Jones of The Larder and The Delta, Donald Hawk of Valentine, and Bernie Kantak who we featured at Citizen Public House though his nomination is for his other restaurant Beginner’s Luck.
The finalists included Valentine’s pastry Chef, Crystal Kass, and Yotaka Martin of Lom Wong who will be featured later this season.
The winners will be announced in June. To view the full list of semifinalists and finalists, visit the James Beard Foundation’s website. Congratulations to all the nominees!
Restaurant lists
One of the great things about “Check, Please! Arizona” is we have covered a variety of different cuisines and restaurants with unique characteristics, which has prompted us to create lists.
The lists we’ve created are your best one-stop place to find your next restaurant outing. Craving some fresh seafood or authentic Mexican? We’ve got a list for you!
View our most recent list here where we looked at restaurants we’ve featured that are owned by women in celebration of Women’s History Month. And keep an eye on our Cooking page for more lists coming soon!
Want to join the fun?
If you would like to talk about your favorite Arizona eatery (restaurant, supper club, diner, lunch cafe, dive, hole-in-the-wall, food truck, etc.!) on “Check, Please! Arizona,” please complete the form below.
In order to appear on the show, guests must be at least 21 years old and be willing to travel to and participate in a taping at Arizona PBS’ studios in downtown Phoenix. The taping may take place on a weekday or a weekend and will last a few hours. Guests on “Check, Please! Arizona” must be able to visit our studios and travel to restaurant locations within Arizona–transportation will not be provided. The show includes restaurants outside the Valley, so please feel free to submit your favorite restaurants anywhere in the state! For more guidelines, review our Frequently Asked Questions.
The more you express yourself and provide specific details about your restaurant recommendation on the form below, the more likely you are to be considered as a possible guest. Don’t be shy! We love hearing about restaurants that are off the beaten path–the more interesting the locale or cuisine, the better.
Thank you and bon appétit!
Mark Tarbell
Chef Mark Tarbell studied in Paris at the Ecole du Cuisine La Varenne, where he earned a Grande Diplôme d’Etude Culinaire. He also studied at Steven Spurrier’s l’Academie du Vin.
At 23, Tarbell moved to Arizona and joined The Boulders Resort in Carefree, becoming the youngest Food & Beverage Director of any Five Diamond property in the world. In 1994, he opened Tarbell’s Restaurant, followed by Barmouche in 1999 and The Oven (in Colorado) in 2004. Tarbell opened The Wine Store in 2013 and The Tavern in 2014.
The James Beard Foundation nominated Tarbell for “Best Chef – Southwest.” He is also a two-time inductee to The Arizona Hall of Culinary Fame, and his restaurants have earned more than 50 “Best Of” city and industry awards, including a “Best Restaurant” from Food and Wine magazine.
Tarbell’s frequent television and radio appearances include winning “Iron Chef America” on The Food Network as well as multiple appearances on The Cooking Channel. He has been the weekly wine columnist for the Arizona Republic since 2004 as well as a judge at the Los Angeles International Wine & Spirits competition (the largest and oldest in the country) for 25 years.
On Arizona PBS, Tarbell has hosted two seasons of “Check, Please! Arizona,” two seasons of “Plate & Pour” and “Plate & Pour: Takeout” on Instagram.
Tarbell also serves on many different advisory councils and boards, from the Arizona Department of Education to the Phoenix Art Museum and Phoenix Theatre. Tarbell has lent his services as a chef and wine connoisseur to raise millions of dollars at events such as the International Taste of Tennis, Culinary Evening with the California Winemasters for the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation, CASA, Phoenix Children’s Hospital, Hospice of the Valley, C-CAP, Humane USA for the Humane Society, and dozens more.
Special thanks: Dining set and chairs provided by Copenhagen Furniture.