Flavors of Northwest Arkansas

06/17/2026

In this week’s edition of the Flavors of Northwest Arkansas podcast, we’re in Rogers at the new chuo izakaya talking to some seasoned vets- Owner Darwin Beyer , Head Chef Colin Stewart and Beverage Director Shaun Traxler . But first?!?!

FOOD NEWS!!
• The James Beard Awards were held on Monday night. Onyx Coffee Lab was a finalist for Best Bar in the US, and Jason Paul of Heirloom at The 1907 was a finalist for Best Chef of the South. You’ll hear & see what happened.
• Handel’s Homemade Ice Cream - Rogers • Fayetteville opens in Fayetteville on Thursday, and they’re doing something special for it. We’ll hear from one of the owners!
• Chicken chain Huey Magoo's Chicken Tenders is coming to NWA. We’ll tell you where they’ll be opening in NWA.
• HomeGrownNorthwestArkansas is officially coming to Fayetteville. We’ll tell you where it’ll be.
• We’ll tell you about a food drive in Bentonville at Sun Painted Farm .
• Happy first birthday to Archie’s Sandwichery . That was QUICK!
• A Dickson Street mainstay is closing.
• A Tex-Mex chain closed nationwide over the weekend, and their Rogers location
• In this week’s Flavors Flashback, House 1830 ’s Binh Hoang talks about placing a premium on front of house hospitality.

Chuo Izakaya has been a long time coming for Co-Owner Darwin Beyer. In his pursuit of building a Japanese Tavern experience in Northwest Arkansas, he was able to surround himself with some exceptionally experienced folks, including Head Chef Colin Stewart and Beverage Director Shaun Traxler.

We’ll hear from all three about how they got to Chuo Izakaya. Also, we’re talking menu, including what’s new, and we’ll also hear about the sickly creative drinks coming from Shaun.

Lastly, they’re starting something new there, and you’ll hear about it here!

Please like and subscribe! (Links in bio)

06/17/2026

In this week’s edition of the Flavors of Northwest Arkansas podcast, we’re in Rogers at the new Chūō Izakaya, talking to some seasoned vets- Owner Darwin Beyer, Head Chef Colin Stewart and Beverage Director Shaun Traxler. But first?!?!

FOOD NEWS!!
• The James Beard Awards were held on Monday night. ONYX Coffee Lab was a finalist for Best Bar in the US, and Jason Paul of Heirloom at The 1907 was a finalist for Best Chef of the South. You’ll hear & see what happened.
• Handel's Homemade Ice Cream - NWA opens in Fayetteville on Thursday, and they’re doing something special for it. We’ll hear from one of the owners!
• Chicken chain Huey Magoo's is coming to NWA. We’ll tell you where they’ll be opening in NWA.
• HomeGrown Northwest Arkansas is officially coming to Fayetteville. We’ll tell you where it’ll be.
• We’ll tell you about a food drive in Bentonville at Sun Painted Farm.
• Happy first birthday to Archie’s Sandwichery . That was QUICK!
• A Dickson Street mainstay is closing.
• A Tex-Mex chain closed nationwide over the weekend, and their Rogers location
• In this week’s Flavors Flashback, House 1830's Binh Hoang talks about placing a premium on front of house hospitality.

Chuo Izakaya has been a long time coming for Co-Owner Darwin Beyer. In his pursuit of building a Japanese Tavern experience in Northwest Arkansas, he was able to surround himself with some exceptionally experienced folks, including Head Chef Colin Stewart and Beverage Director Shaun Traxler.

We’ll hear from all three about how they got to Chuo Izakaya. Also, we’re talking menu, including what’s new, and we’ll also hear about the sickly creative drinks coming from Shaun.

Lastly, they’re starting something new there, and you’ll hear about it here!

Please like and subscribe!

• YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IKhpV1T3MQE
• Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/flavors-of-northwest-arkansas/id1732865159?i=1000773094942
• Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/episode/7zYHnwxziXTpmJJAxJnU2r?si=c6l2n2gdTNuuxFy1AUQJ4A

06/17/2026

Handel’s Homemade Ice Cream - Rogers • Fayetteville opens on Thursday at 11 a.m. in Fayetteville. Chances are, you’ve either heard or been to the one in Rogers. You might want to get to the one in Fayetteville early. REAL early. Here’s why.

06/16/2026

Tex-Mex restaurant chain On The Border abruptly announced on Friday that they’d be closing all of their corporate restaurants nationwide after dinner service that day. There are reportedly five franchised restaurants that stayed open.

For fans of the restaurant in Rogers, you’ll be sad to see that it was a part of the closures.

After bankruptcy, the chain was down to 57 locations at the end of last year, according to Nation’s Restaurant News.

06/15/2026

For a long time, I've felt a tug on my heart that I couldn't quite put into words.

We live in a world that is more connected than ever, yet so many of us feel disconnected.

Disconnected from our food.
Disconnected from our bodies.
Disconnected from our families.
Disconnected from ourselves.

Life moves fast. We work long hours, shuttle kids from one activity to the next, juggle responsibilities, and often end the day asking the same question:

"What's for dinner?"

Too often, the answer becomes whatever is quickest, easiest, or most accessible.

And while there is no shame in that, I believe food is meant to be more than fuel.

A warm meal has always served a greater purpose. It brings us to the table. It gives us pause. It creates space for conversation, gratitude, connection, and presence.

It nourishes not only our bodies, but our souls.

That belief is the inspiration behind something I've been quietly creating:

✨ Table & Thyme ✨

Table & Thyme is a collection of thoughtfully prepared meals for one or more, made with real ingredients, love, and intention.

Meals designed to make nourishing yourself and the people you love simple, accessible, and meaningful.

This isn't about dieting.
It's not about perfection.
It's not about spending hours in the kitchen.

It's about making it easier to choose real food and create moments of connection in the midst of busy lives.

An invitation to slow down.
An invitation to gather.
An invitation to nourish.

Most of all, it's an invitation to the table.

And this week, we'll be extending that invitation for the very first time as we unveil our introductory menu and open the first seats at the table.

Welcome to Table & Thyme.

06/15/2026

Henry Francis from Evergreen Pasture & Provisions talks about his son suffering from iron deficiency, and how to remedy it. You don’t always have to eat liver! Here’s how they got creative with it.

06/15/2026

They teased it in our podcast last week, and now it's live!

HOME DELIVERY JUST GOT BIGGER.

We’re excited to officially expand our home delivery service across Northwest Arkansas.

From grass-fed beef and organic pasture-raised chicken to raw A2/A2 milk, pasture-raised eggs, fresh bread, and local favorites, getting real food from local farmers has never been easier.

Tuesday Delivery
Fayetteville • Farmington • Cave Springs • Elm Springs • Tontitown

Thursday Delivery
Bentonville • Rogers • Centerton • Pea Ridge • Lowell

Ordering Deadlines:

Tuesday Delivery → Order by Sunday at 8 PM

Thursday Delivery → Order by Tuesday at 8 PM

Shop our full selection and check if we deliver to your area through the link in our bio.

If you know someone looking to source more of their food locally, please share this post with them. Whether it’s grass-fed beef, pasture-raised meats, raw milk, eggs, bread, or pantry staples, we’re working to make local food more accessible throughout Northwest Arkansas.

Thank you for supporting local farmers and helping us build a stronger local food system right here at home.

06/12/2026

I was asked a few times yesterday how Mrs. Flavors of Northwest Arkansas and I were going to celebrate our tenth wedding anniversary. In lieu of getting out of town, we wanted a dinner experience that we’d remember for some time, which is exactly what we got.

We finally went to RYN . It’s reservation-only, so you need to plan for it. We didn’t know what was coming, but they knew about my dietary restrictions and curated the menu around that. So much of their planning goes around it!

Our AWESOME server Chase told us that it would be a 10-course tasting menu, and we were pumped. He lied though; it was more like 11.

And boy did they set the tone (and this wasn’t even a part of the tasting menu). It was a light, fluffy, gluten-free goodness of a buttermilk biscuit, and we knew it was go-time.

Now, there’s not enough space to go through all 10 dishes, but we’re picking out our favorite two. Here’s hers:

· BLT- Bansley Farms pork belly, lettuce, sun gold tomato, basil aioli on gluten-free baguette. “Everything was so fresh and went so well together.” She was right!
· Potato gnocchi, kimchi vodka sauce and parmesan. She couldn’t believe it was gluten-free and it was one of the best she’s had.

As for me? I LOVED both of her choices, but man (and I’m a slt for pork belly), I can’t not have the rack of lamb in here:

· Lamb rack, potato salad, mint chutney- what a flavorful dish. I hope nobody was watching, because that rack became a rib bone for me and I picked it up like one. I cleaned that sucker side-to-side (and my wife’s).

Of note, about halfway through, you go on a farm self-tour with your beverage. I saw several plants that were a part of dinner. Such a unique setup.

Dessert was two plates and perfection:

· Peach semifreddo, Chantilly, pistachio & oat crumble with lime veil (with anniversary candles).
· Miso chocolate cookie, blueberry pie & a vegan coconut lavender truffle.

I HATED doing this, because so many epic dishes were left out. But let me add this. The service and attention from Chase and every Ryn employee was exceptional. Their intention of making the night an experience went above and beyond.

06/10/2026

In today’s 140th episode of the Flavors of Northwest Arkansas podcast, we talk with Henry Francis of .thestore - what a story they have... but before we sit with Henry?!?!

FOOD NEWS!!!
• is open in downtown Springdale! We’ll hear from the owners.
• opened in Rogers to a HUGE line, and a guy taking he Reaper Challenge. Bless him!
• The gluten-free bakery opened Monday in Fayetteville. We’ll tell you about it!
• According to the is coming to the East side of Fayetteville. We’ll tell you where!
• Today’s your last chance to win some fine whiskey, while benefiting . Check out our page for more info!
• A new dumpling and ramen restaurant is coming to Rogers!
• Happy 14th, !!!
• in Springdale has closed their doors.
• In Today’s Flavors Flashback, we hear from Owner & Executive Chef of , Soerke Peters. In 1990, he was the executive chef for the World’s Fair in Russia and Siberia. The stories in that podcast are some of the best that we’ve ever had... one of the best ones was about his plane ride from Munich, Germany to Russia.

Henry & Kylee Francis own Evergreen Pasture & Provisions. They started by selling their beef at the Fayetteville Farmer’s Market and were overwhelmed by the response they were getting. Since then? They’ve opened a storefront in the gorgeous Berryville Square, where they sell regional goods including some from local producers. And now? Delivery to most of Northwest Arkansas, with all coming shortly.

We’ll hear how Henry and Kylee met, how they ended up in Berryville, and how you can get your product on their shelves.

That’s on this week’s edition of the Flavors of Northwest Arkansas.

Please follow, like, subscribe, and tell a friend!!