Best of Flagstaff – Gail G. Collins

Best of Flagstaff 2023

Flying high on gratitude: Brandy’s Restaurant and Bakery picks up Best Waitstaff alongside Bakery, Breakfast and Brunch

Written by Gail G. Collins

Brunch is the best of all worlds. It’s breakfast, it’s lunch, it’s sweet, it’s savory—brunch is whatever you desire. There is no wrong time to eat, and no recipe is out of bounds. There are appealing options for vegetarians, vegans and others with dietary aims. Even the drinks vary from coffee to mimosas and more. There is no dress code, but as a general guideline, do get dressed.

In fact, the only difficult choice is where to go, but Brandy’s is always a delicious decision. From eggs in every form to classic pastries, locals voted Brandy’s Restaurant & Bakery for Best Bakery, Breakfast, Brunch and Waitstaff. It has been a consistent winner.

“Every year, it’s nerve-wracking, but it feels good,” said owner Kelsey Drayton, and wife Jamie added, “It confirms we’re on the right track, because we sweat every change. They’re hard decisions.”

That said, when things are going well, people don’t rock the boat. Since its inception, Brandy’s quickly rose as Flagstaff’s morning mecca, and after 30 years, it’s an icon. Kelsey worked for original owners Ed and Brandy Wojciak before taking the helm with Jamie nearly 10 years ago. In 2018, they also bought La Bellavia and rebranded it as Brandy’s second location in downtown. Recently, a patio was added and the menu pared, but otherwise, it’s steady on at Brandy’s.

“We take it one day at a time whether it’s going well or we need to adapt,” Kelsey said. “We can make a right turn when we need to and try new things.”

A new thing was the addition of the Captain Jack sandwich to the menu. They owners needed a quick pick-up breakfast. Scrambled eggs, chilies, pepper jack cheese, bacon and tomato piled on a brioche bun with a slather of gunslinger mayo, sourcing Arizona hot sauce. It builds a tasty, satisfying handful. Brandy’s runs a scratch kitchen with baked goods made in house, including their delectable breads and buns.

“The sandwich sells well at both locations and travels well,” Kelsey said.

Other best sellers are eggs Benedict, pancakes and omelets. There are eight exceptional and extra exceptional Benedict options, choice fruit and chocolate chip fillings for pancakes and omelets with myriad meats, cheeses and veg to create the perfect plate. Cinnamon rolls are the top pick from the pastry counter.

Brandy’s boasts an espresso bar with specialty drinks, like a Baja mocha blending espresso with Mexican chocolate and spices with steamed milk, topped with whipped cream and dusted with sweet cinnamon and nutmeg. Then, there are the day drinking offerings, like a chai tea latte laced with Irish whiskey or a tropical mimosa, mixing champagne, pineapple juice, orange juice and grenadine.

Breakfast is served all day, and lunch runs from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m.

Like its diners, Brandy’s staff is also long standing. “We focus on culture,” said Jamie. “We are team-oriented with low drama and no gossip.” Guests are greeted by name and the atmosphere is welcoming. Some customers have been coming in for decades, and their table is always waiting.

Looking ahead, Brandy’s will expand the vegan items on the menu to include pancakes. The downtown location is continuing to grow despite the limitations of the building. A line winds down the block, but it is not competition with Macy’s, but driving the trend and camaraderie around morning alternatives. Down the road, the plan is get out of town to add another Brandy’s location.

Brandy’s is building on their strengths. “That is the goal—to offer a consistently friendly environment and quality food,” Jamie said. They are humbled with their wins, and as their 30^th anniversary arrives, she added, “We’re flying high on gratitude.” BofFLG

Best of Flagstaff 2023

Family is the framework that makes the Flagstaff Roofing team the best in town

Written by Gail G. Collins

Family is legacy, and a legacy business undergirds and promotes its core principles—its values, its shared and meaningful goals as well as its character within the community. Such family mentorship designs the framework that allows an economic venture to pass from one generation to another.

This is the story of Flagstaff Roofing, which logs three generations since 1967. Jon and Calli Salcido celebrate this uniting of family and financial aims as patrons voted Flagstaff Roofing as our Best Roofer. It’s also a vote endorsing consistency and integrity for Calli’s father and grandfather.

When the Salcidos took over the reins 10 years ago, they rebranded the original business from Havasu Roofing to reflect its Flagstaff base. The couple worked diligently to respond rapidly to customers.

“People are complimentary about how prompt we are,” Calli said. “If they call today, we will be at their home within five days to survey the roof and have an estimate to them by the next day.” The quick reaction, quality service and word of mouth recommendations keep the business coming to Flagstaff Roofing.

Honesty is the watch word in an industry that harbors its share of storm chasers. After a gale or blizzard, roof sellers often come knocking on doors, offering free inspections and creating anxiety for homeowners. They offer free roofs through insurance claims, drumming up business. So how does a customer get a straight answer on whether someone actually needs a new roof?

“I don’t see a roof,” Jon explained, “I’m not a corporation going door-to-door looking for hail damage. I give an honest opinion about whether a roof needs replacement. And if it does, we give the customer a good price—as low as we possibly can.”

Jon advises people to go local and hire a company with a stake in the area. He advises against feeling bullied to sign a contract on the first contact. And there are genuine concerns around hiring contractors from Phoenix. “They don’t know the codes required and so on for installing a roof in Northern Arizona,” Jon said.

According to Jon, a customer once received a quote for $16,000 to replace a roof from an out-of-town entity, but uneasy about the price, the man called Flagstaff Roofing for a second opinion. “We charged $7,000 to do the job. The storm chasers try to scare customers,” he warned.

Flagstaff Roofing has a family reputation in town and has earned community support. It is the first time they have invested energy in trying to earn the Best of Flagstaff title and are thankful for the win. “People have done a lot to help us to get here. We’re blessed to have what we’ve built together,” Jon said.

He credits Junior and his crew, which he claims is the best. “Together, we make it a good company.”

But family is the glue in a legacy business, like Flagstaff Roofing, where Jon praises Calli’s commitment. “She has been Employee of the Month for 10 years in a row.”

Legacy businesses stand the test of time and act as cultural anchors, sources of town traditions and history. As Jon reminded, go local. BofFLG

Best of Flagstaff 2023

Brown Bag Burger smokes competition, winning Best Burger and Best New Restaurant

Written by Gail G. Collins

Americans eat 50 billion hamburgers a year. It is incredible to comprehend. We obviously love a good burger, but some added discernment might be in order considering that number. So, what is it that takes a good burger to great?

Obviously, it’s about the meat, quality protein with enough fat for flavor. Chefs advise going light on the seasoning, handling the patty as little as possible and grilling over pan frying. Toast your buns and you are well on your way to happiness.

Brown Bag Burger knows this and much more and proving it to win awards for Best Burger and Best New Restaurant. The Prescott-based original location was a longstanding standard under changing ownership, but when, Ian Burns bought the shop in 2020, he defied the advice and the odds.

“The previous owners told me not to change a thing,” he said. “Keep the burgers big, but sub-par (as he saw the quality), but my goal was to change everything.”

He hired a French-trained chef to create new sauces and secured an upscale meat vendor. “The beef is Angus, custom-blended by a Scottsdale butcher for us, so it super fresh,” Burns said. “The seven-ounce patties contain no preservatives and are cryo-frozen. We don’t cut corners.”

Change is hard, and previous customers complained about the new creations, like the best-selling Hangover, which won accolades at Taste of Flagstaff. The burger is layered with hash-brown style fries, a fried egg, pepper jack cheese, pickles and chipotle mayo. Another winner, the Hawaiian, piles on grilled pineapple, lettuce, tomato, Swiss cheese and a secret sauce to satisfy island dreams. Third in line goes Cajun with a blackened patty, cheddar cheese, coleslaw and remoulade. These top three burgers are smeared with house onion jam.

Some customers noted their frustration with the novel upgrades at Brown Bag every time they ate there. As Burns pointed out, “But I’d already won the battle—the customers kept coming back.”

Burns has a broad background in in the food industry from front of the house to bartending to sales and event planning and general management. The pandemic might have sidelined him temporarily, but it was the catalyst for bigger ideas.

Traffic, sales and praise grew, encouraging expansion. With the highest burger ratings in Prescott, Brown Bag Burger was invited to join a successful footprint in a commercial development project in Flagstaff. The location opened in 2023, and the 3,000-square-foot space seats 60-plus guests.

The Prescott shop outgrew its location and moved to a brewery on the historic main street with Master Brewer John Allen in charge. His prowess won Brewer of the Year in 2022 with his bitter, Irish red, Saison and festbier.

Chefs at Brown Bag are highly trained to grill perfect products. Each burger is finished with smoked butter and served with a choice of fries or side salad or make the upgrade to onion rings, sweet potato fries or fried pickles.

Vegan patties are made in-house with brown rice, Chinese black forbidden rice, oats and black beans along with a classified blend of spices. The buns are made on the premises with no additives to take each burger to the next level.

A handful of regulars come in almost daily endorsing the Best of Flag wins. “We put a lot of effort into the feedback and loyalty that got us to where we are,” Burns said. “The love we’ve received, good employees and customers create a family we enjoy.”

According to Burns, a great burger tops fresh buns with local meat and scratch sauces to build mouth-watering burgers people can’t stop talking about. Brown Bag Burger strives to be the place where burger lovers unite. “We did something well and people noticed.” BofFLG

Best of Flagstaff 2023

Rooted in resilience: Warner’s Nursery & Landscape perseveres in Best of Flag and in business

Written by Gail G. Collins

Digging in the dirt. The benefits and joys of putting plants into the ground are multi-fold. We exercise, we commune with nature, we nurture, we provide food for ourselves, birds or insects, we de-stress, and we grow personally. Overall, gardening is a rejuvenating act.

Warner’s Nursery has been supplying quality plants to satisfy gardening dreams since 1970. “We’ve always been mostly a retail garden center,” said Misti Warner-Andersen. “In the beginning, my dad helped my grandma take over the nursery after he returned from Vietnam.”

The original nursery location in Page, run by Dorothy and Bill Warner, then moved to a spot on Highway 89A. When Butler Avenue was commercialized, Warner’s relocated to its current setting. Brothers Dugan and Fred Warner made a great team during the transitions, according to Misti, and still do, though they concentrate on residential and commercial landscape construction now.

When it came to building the Butler Avenue nursery, the brothers rejected the idea of a standard greenhouse. Instead, they focused on creating a unique backdrop, reminiscent of garden centers in England. Working with Nexus, they spearheaded production of the first airy, custom-built garden center in the U.S., a concept which was replicated many times over on the East Coast.

Of course, it is what you fill your garden center with that keeps customers coming. “I am tenacious about finding a good selection of hardy, quality plants especially for harsher environments, like Northern Arizona,” Misti said. And since the Crash of 2008, that has been difficult as many growers went out of business. Despite this, she stressed, “We sell with integrity and good info. The most important thing is the right plant for the right homeowner—what will grow. We’re open about that—our reputation is important to us.”

Since the pandemic, the desire for plant types has shifted. Customers are more eager for perennials, vegetables, trees and shrubs, some of which are trickier to source. As a private garden center, Warner’s would be pushed to compete on price points with corporate box stores, yet they can impress homeowners with explicit knowledge of area growing conditions and can pass on their plant wisdom.

Warner’s staff are passionate plant people, brought under the wing by senior members, teaching one another what works best where. This makes growing a garden in a challenging environment more effective and enjoyable.

Resources are available as well. Misti, a third-generation operator, mom, businesswoman and outdoor enthusiast, writes a blog, called Planting it Forward, to help gardeners make the most of their efforts. Classes are also an option. The Houseplant Club offers classes, some with small fees to cover materials, but spotting guests a 20-percent plant discount. On Warner’s website, Gardening Week by Week suggests jobs to do around the yard, while gardening seminars and guides, such as Best Plants for Bees, round out topics of interest.

Warner’s is big on community. They contribute to local causes, like Climb for Cancer, Camp Colton and local schools, and they offer gratis hosting to non-profits for fundraising events, such as Big Brothers and Sisters. Outreach can be fun, too, especially when Warner’s sponsors a free Easter egg hunt or Fall Festival.

Family works well together at Warner’s and always has. A bit of trivia, Dot’s café is named for Misti’s grandmother, who launched the nursery.

For all of these reasons, Warner customers voted them Best Nursery and Garden Center. Misti said, “We’re really excited about winning Best Nursery. I’m so pleased with the team I have—their hard work day in and day out—and thankful to the community.” Regardless of a crash or COVID, business acumen and public support build success that never wavers, Misti offered gratefully. BofFLG