THE VOICE OF THE EAST VALLEY SINCE 1891 AND WINNER OF THE PULITZER PRIZE FOR LOCAL REPORTING
THE SUNDAY
Pokemon Go draws gamers to East Valley
Tribune
PAGE 3 Chandler/Tempe Edition
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The breakout stars of HS football PAGE 21
Sunday, July 31, 2016
Arizona’s top restaurant thrives in East Valley
NEWS | 12
Family, friends mourn teen killed by lightning strike
COMMUNITY | 13 Mayor Daniels promises to move Gilbert forward
BUSINESS | 19
Deli gives the public good food and autistic workers a job
(Will Powers/Tribune Staff Photographer)
OPINION.....................16 SPORTS........................21 FAITH...........................28 CLASSIFIED ...............30
Chef Ryan Swanson adds a drizzle to the melon soup, with Sous Chef Jack Hupp. Swanson holds court at Kai Restaurant at the Sheraton Grand at Wild Horse Pass Resort and Spa in Chandler.
COVER STORY THEATER | 26 Curtain rises on Gammage single-ticket sales WARPED TOUR | 24 Music, extreme sports festival visits Phoenix again
BY SHELLEY RIDENOUR TRIBUNE STAFF WRITER
A
n enormous pot simmers on an equally oversized professional gas range in the fastidious kitchen of the Kai restaurant in Chandler. The pot is overfilled with whole fryers, uncut onions, huge sprigs of spices, full cloves of garlic and assorted root vegetables visible on top. Underneath, secretly submerged veggies and herbs contribute another layer of flavors to the brew. The scent is the signature of Chef Ryan Swanson’s domain at Kai Restaurant, inside the
Sheraton Grand at Wild Horse Pass Resort and Spa in the East Valley. “It will be a clear, beautiful, dark stock,” Swanson said. He makes at least one gigantic pot of chicken broth each week to serve as the base for a wide variety of recipes—and to create the aroma he loves. “If I could figure out how to always make my house smell like that, I would,” he said. It’s that kind of attention to detail and ingredient creativity that helped Kai land top spots on multiple hospitality lists. Most notably, it’s the See
SWANSON on page 4
(Will Powers/Tribune Staff Photographer)
Chef Ryan Swanson is determined to keep Kai’s stars and diamonds
Cactus foam crowns the cedar-wrapped ocean trout served by Swanson.