This past weekend we were invited to the leading daytime dining concept, First Watch. And it didn't disappoint. In fact, their attention to detail, safe kitchen practices for our food allergy and sensitivity concerns, customer service and taste quality were unmatched. 

With locations nationwide, First Watch mixes fresh, premium, better-for-you ingredients with a true farmhouse feel throughout their establishments and we can't wait to go back!

Below we reviewed the entire new seasonal Spring Menu as well as listed our favorite GF/DF selections. 

Available through May 29th, 2022 the Spring Menu is a drool-worthy selection of decadent brunch favorites. Additions include:
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• Chorizo Sunrise Sandwich
• Crab Cake Benedict
• Million Dollar Bacon
• Shrimp and Grits
• Pineapple Express 
• and more! 

We sampled the entire Spring Menu and nothing disappointed. We each had our own favorite! Our son Greyson (5) loved the Million Dollar Bacon and snagged some to accompany his pancakes. My husband now craves the Chorizo Sunrise Sandwich and I could drink a Pineapple Express every day. It tastes like a spring sunrise in a glass.  

Even our sweet babe Lexi (1) kept asking "more 'tatoes! more 'tatoes!"

As someone who is gluten-free and dairy-free I was pleasantly surprised not only by their selections, but my server and the kitchens knowledge of how to safely prepare and handle my food. 

I enjoyed a Traditional Breakfast with my cage-free eggs scrambled, breakfast potatoes, bacon (seriously, we couldn't get enough of their bacon!) and gluten-free  toast! 

It was the details for me. 

I ordered coffee to accompany my meal and they brought me, not only a dairy-free creamer, but one of the BEST coffee creamers available. So good, I had to snap a picture. 

At First Watch, it's about so much more than a meal. It's about atmosphere, detail, kindness, service and warmth. 

The food just also happens to be incredible. 

Have you enjoyed brunch at First Watch? What will you be sampling first off of their Spring menu? Let me know in the comments below! 

Last weekend we visited a REALLY fun spot in Arizona. We set out to take Grey because of his love of super heroes and Star Wars, but I was surprised with how impressed WE ALL would be. 

​'Comic X' Marks The Spot For Superhero Fun In The Valley! Their motto afterall is "Where superheroes grab a bite!"

The 8,000 sq. ft. venue displays life-size figurines of your favorite heroes and villains and the restaurant feels like a dine-in theme park. The creators of the Comic X space did it justice and didn't miss a detail which made it so fun! 

You can opt to dine downstairs in the eatery to be surrounded by the likes of Joker, Batman, Spider-Man and Slimer from Ghost Busters, just to name a few. Alternatively you can head upstairs to enter the planet of Tatooine and dine amongst your favorte Star Wars characters. Lastly, you can take a seat in the fully-stocked bar, where you will be transported to the Harry Potter train station and the gaming world of Halo. 

We ordered burgers and fries, but the menu is expansive! From pasta and steaks, to tacos and sandwhiches, there's something for every palette and the prices are reasonable. We expected to see higher prices for the experience factor, but were pleasantly surprised. They were GREAT with my allergy concerns and made me a burger with a gluten-free bun, no cheese, a safe salad and their fries are all GF-safe, made in their own fryer. 

They unfortunately got crummy reviews on Yelp which is why I really wanted to post our own experience. You may well have a different experience than I, however I really wanted to say we had a lovely time. It was clean, fun, magical for our 3 year old and the food was good. We will be going back! We may even host his birthday party there as you can reserve large tables in the upstairs Star Wars decorated section for parties of 10 or more. 

They are working to pare down their wait times by simplifying their menu, as it did take quite a while to get our food, but it was a happening place and there was enough to entertain us such as the decor and the super hero movies and cartoons playing on big screens throughout through the wait so we didn't mind! 

Have you been? What did you nosh on? What was your favorite part of your experience? If you haven't or don't live local, what is your favorite immersive dining experience for families?

Comix X is located in Desert Ridge Marketplace at 21001 N Tatum Blvd #95, Phoenix, AZ 85050. 

Hey fellow Disneyland goer, heeeeeeeeey! 

If you've landed here you either

A. Love Disneyland like we do and read blog posts about it like we do.

B. You are headed there and wanted to peruse a guide to dairy free treats in the park for ideas.

or 

C. You have food allergy kiddos, or have food allergies yourself, and you are seeking super safe ways to enjoy treats in the park.

While I wrote this post for all of the above, my heart writes these posts for the families who feel lost while traveling. Who don't know where to begin and need a friend - one who's gone there before and waded in the unknown waters of navigating menus and taking phone calls with park chefs and testing foods for safety. THAT'S where my passion for this comes from. My hope for you is that you will EMBRACE traveling yourself or with your kids. That you will find MANY options of food you can TRULY enjoy EVERY DAY. Not settling for the plainest one or two options on the menu like I did in the start of my journey.

Today, I'm writing a post on our FAVORITE dairy-free park treats and drinks! And because we are 100% gluten-free all of these items are that as well! A more comprehensive allergen-friendly park food guide is in the works, but we had SO much fun staying cool and sampling dairy free beverages, ice creams and treats in Disneyland and California Adventure that I had to share. 

All of the dairy-free delicacies are separated by park + land below to make it easy to navigate the parks with this guide.

This week Mr. Charming and I were sitting around the house after work, completing all the last minute details for Baby P's arrival and I got the urge to do something spontaneous and fun! With just 6 days out from my due date, I actually had energy on Thursday and wanted to sneak in one more date night while it was just us. 

Wanting to do something different and away from home, we headed to Paradise Valley, AZ - just 20 minutes or so from us - to check out some old high school stomping grounds, like my old neighborhood and our old mall and then we planned to search for some gluten-free eats for a romantic dinner. 

And we found the holy grail of Gluten-Free goodness. 

​Guys. I could literally order 90% of what was on the menu. INCLUDING drinks, appetizers AND dessert. This NEVER happens. 

See that bread? That warm, moist foccacia? TOTALLY gluten-free. Made with tapioca, rice and potato flours it tasted HEAVENLY in a little EVOO, salt and pepper. Though I JUST put a little yeast back in after 5 years, I limited myself to one piece, plus a small toasted piece with my pasta, but you couldn't even tell it was gluten free. 

Not only do they offer a fully gluten-free menu, everything is also non-GMO and they have SO many vegan options too! You can substitute Daiya cheese in any cheese dish or pizza and all of their meats are nitrate and nitrite free, as well as being free of antibiotics. An establishment where I can actually ORDER pepperoni or salami and not wonder if its sketch? SCORE. SCORE ONE BIG ONE FOR YOU PICAZZOS. 

I think I'm in love.

So, on with our order and dining experience...

There were SO many things I was looking at, but I was remembering back to my decadent Italian experience at Vitello's and I was craving fresh pasta drizzled with with fresh herbs and olive oil, so my order was the following:

Gluten Free Foccacia Bread (which I of course shared.)
Gluten Free Fusilli Pasta with EVOO, Avocado, Tomatoes, Garlic and Fresh Basil

Mr. Charming's order was tres magnifique, and looked a little something like this... 

And guys! You can GET THAT PIZZA, his decadent BBQ Chicken Pizza, gluten-free AND VEGAN. They have vegan chicken strips and Daiya cheese on a chewy-on-the-inside, crunchy-on-the-outside gluten-free crust. It's our new favorite out of all our favorites. 

The staff was also amazingly sweet and are all so knowledgeable in allergies and celiac. It was such a wonderful vibe and it was really busy for a Thursday. Which is a great sign!

We are looking forward to visiting again after the baby's arrival and I have a few ideas for what will be up next on my orders...

• The Pepperoni Gluten-Free, Dairy-Free Pizza 
• Pineapple and Dairy-Free Cheese Pizza
• A major salad with a Gluten-Free, Dairy-Free Baked Chocolate Chip Cookie with Coconut Milk Ice Cream for dessert

Really, there is just so much goodness. With multiple locations throughout Arizona, in Sedona, Flagstaff, Scottsdale and Phoenix, we are excited to have Picazzo's to look forward to as we travel throughout the state with Baby P. 

Have you been to Picazzo's? If so, what is YOUR favorite dish? Seriously, because I'll add it to my growing list of must-trys!