Michele Laudig is a writer, artist and editor eating up New York City’s deliciously diverse food scene. Currently senior editor at Zagat in Manhattan, she was the staff restaurant critic and food blogger at Phoenix New Times since 2006, where she wrote cover stories, a weekly column and daily blog posts. Michele co-authored 100 Years, 100 Chefs, 100 Recipes, an Arizona Centennial Legacy Project published in February 2012, and has also written for Phoenix Magazine, Edible Phoenix, The Arizona Republic, Sommelier Journal and Hemispheres.
In previous lives, she served as New Times’ music editor, styled fashion shoots, toured with a rock ‘n roll band and lived in Tokyo. She has a B.A. in East Asian Studies from Columbia.
I finally, finally made it to Elote Cafe. Ever since chef Jeff Smedstad left the Valley to open his upscale Mexican eatery in Sedona, I'd been hearing about the place as a total foodnik destination. It's been given lots of media love (most recently by Travel + Leisure, where former Noca chef Chris Curtiss name-dropped it as a fave), and I've discovered that you can't mention a jaunt to Sedona ...