Maryvale - Phoenix, AZ

John F. Long planned and developed Maryvale in the 1950s, focusing on ranch-style tract homes with trees in the front yard and pools in the back. Houses were mass produced and affordably priced to keep up with the spillover from the city’s rapid growth. In the 1980s, Maryvale saw a spike in gang-related crime. Since those days, residents and lawmakers have worked together to pull the community out of decline.

Despite decades of social and economic adversity, Maryvale repeatedly draws large numbers of tourists. The wildly popular Arizona State Fair takes place just 10 miles outside of the neighborhood, and each year during Spring Training, baseball enthusiasts make the trek to Maryvale’s state-of-the-art diamonds to catch a glimpse of their favorite team.

At Kiss the Cook, you can eat and shop at the same time The Glendale Avenue location functions as a combination diner/antique store with shabby-chic vintage furniture and kitschy trinkets lining each wall. Drop by for a pancake breakfast or a grilled cheese lunch and keep your eyes peeled for paper price tags--you might spot something you can’t live without (like an antique tub). Arrive early if you plan on looking around. Kiss the Cook only stays open until 2:30 p.m. on weekdays and tables fill up fast.

In the mood for homestyle comfort food? Try My Mother’s Restaurant on 19th Avenue and Indian School, where the meat is slow roasted, and the bill comes with a complimentary breath mint. While it’s the hearty American classics like prime rib and chicken fried steak that get people in the door, nearly everyone who enters the restaurant tops off their meal with a massive slice of homemade pie. Don’t be fooled by the inauspicious strip mall locale and humble salad bar--the restaurant has been a West Phoenix staple for over 30 years. Dine-in, carry-out or call in your order for delivery.

Tamales Guadalajara does Mexican food right. The family-owned restaurant’s charming wood tables and hacienda-style archways are as well-loved as their huge $7 entrées. Pull up a chair for breakfast or lunch for authentic traditional cuisine (like cocido, a Mexican beef and vegetable stew) and new favorites (like mini taquitos), or take home a dozen tamales of your choosing for $15.

Wine bars have a reputation for being serious, stuffy and expensive. Switch Wine Bar shatters all those conventions with modern decor inside, whimsical, breezy patio seating outside, amazing deals on drinks and an extensive menu. Patrons flock to Switch for lunch and dinner on weekdays and brunch on weekends (when the restaurant opens at 10am). The $4 Drink Specials last all day, so there’s no need to rush from work to get to the bar in time for happy hour. Grab a spot on one of the couches on the cool blue patio. There’s no better way to unwind after a long week than a sitting down to a $4 margarita sunrise and a pub-style burger.

Camelback and Indian School Road, two of Maryvale’s busiest streets, run parallel to I-10 and feed directly into Route 60. The neighborhood is driver-friendly, so most residents get around by car or public transport. Valley Metro has both Local and Express buses. The city’s Metro Light Rail stops on 19th Avenue, a few streets away from Maryvale’s eastern boundary. Due to the scorching summer temperatures, walking and biking are often reserved to the miles of paved trails following the Grand Canal.

The closer you are to downtown Phoenix, the better your chances of hailing a cab off the street. Visitors can also take advantage of rental and car sharing services such as Zipcar, Uber and Lyft.

The skate plaza might be Dust Devil Park’s most impressive amenity, but you can;t scoff at the exercise stations, splash pad, and solar powered ramadas. Little ones love the toddler playground and the bigger, more complicated equipment keeps older kids entertained. El Oso, a 40 acre park near Estrella Elementary, boasts green fields, basketball courts, a winding 14-foot tube slide and a covered playground (a must-have in the desert).

Desert West Community Center provides a safe, climate-controlled space for Maryvale residents to interact and engage all year round. Conveniently located in Desert West Park between the Desert West Sports Complex and the Phoenix Police Department, the roomy indoor facility has something for everyone. Kids participate in dance instruction, music lessons, cheerleading and karate classes, teens kick-back with video games and foosball, and adults blow off steam in the pool and gym. Register and pay for classes on the City of Phoenix website. A yearly fitness membership (for adults ages 18 to 49) will only set you back $30.

Maryvale Baseball Park hosts the Milwaukee Brewers in springtime and state and community leagues during the regular season. The 51st Avenue stadium has a relaxed, fan-oriented vibe with cheap tickets, $5 parking and only one VIP skybox available above the 7,000 seats. Camelback Ranch, an upscale complex with 13 baseball fields and a man-made lake, hosts the LA Dodgers and Chicago White Sox. Bring the whole family and tour the novelty shops between innings.The stadium offers weekend, senior and military discounts and parking is free in the paved lot.

West Phoenix is known for its low cost of living. A one-bedroom apartment in Maryvale rents for $504 per month. Air conditioners are necessary in the dry desert climate, so utilities and water bills may be higher in this region of Arizona. Expect to pay $2.50 for a beer, $3 for a coffee, and $4 for an all-day Valley Metro Bus pass.

Like many American shopping centers, Desert Sky Mall is a weekend hotspot for young adults. It might be the discounts on designer brands at the outlet stores, the free WiFi in the food court, and the close proximity to Trevor G. Browne High School. Whatever the reason, Desert Sky Mall has been a West Phoenix landmark since 1981.

For routine produce and grocery runs, Maryvale residents can find what they need at Frys or El Super (a Mexican food store). When holiday celebrations and special occasions roll around, locals make a stop at The Meat Shop. After many successful years of raising pigs on their farm in Palo Verde, Beth and Tim transformed the old welding shop on Buckeye Road into a custom butcher house. The enterprise began with a single goal: to serve the community clean cuts of locally-sourced meat. The Meat Shop continues to honor that goal with their assortment of hormone and antibiotic free beef, chicken, lamb, pork and game.

Cuts of meat are sold individually by the pound. If you want to sample a few cuts from a few different animals, order a Combo Meat Box. Whatever you don’t immediately use can be stored in the freezer. You may need to call ahead to check the price and availability of seasonal, gourmet items like goose, buffalo or whole roasting pigs (from Beth and Tim’s farm).

Skulls and Butterflies carries new, vintage and “gently loved” women’s accessories. The boutique’s unique selection ranges from rocker-chic handbags to cutesy hair ribbons, with prices as low as 99 cents. Search their inventory online before you drop in. Some items are so rare there will only be one or two in stock.

Black tie event looming on the horizon? Molina Bridal has the formal wear you’re looking for at their 3500-square-foot showroom, packed with enough evening gowns, tuxedos, accessories and shoes to clothe an entire wedding party. If you can’t find exactly what you need hanging on the rack, Molina Bridal can order new from catalogs or make alterations to existing apparel.