From Marine to Strip Mall Maestro: Chef Dom’s Oxtail Italian Beef

“I’m here in Scottsdale Arizona in a strip mall right across the street from the Scottsdale airport,” Guy announces, already anticipating the skepticism. But before anyone can dismiss this unassuming location, he sets the record straight: twenty years ago, this was all desert. And inside? A Marine-turned-chef who’s redefining New American cuisine.

Chef Dom Roiro traded military service for counter service after a pivotal moment. Working in an office building that housed Le Cordon Bleu, he’d watch culinary students through his window. “See all these guys with tattoos playing with knives and fire,” Dom recalls. “I was like, sign me up.” He enlisted right after 9/11, used his GI Bill for culinary school, then returned to Arizona to open his own place. When Guy asks what kind of food he serves, Dom’s answer is refreshingly honest: “We call it new American, which basically lets me do whatever I want.”

The Oxtail Italian Beef: A Six-to-Eight Hour Labor of Love

This isn’t your Chicago street corner Italian beef. Dom starts by braising oxtails in chicken stock made from roasted chicken bones, mirepoix, diamond parsley, whole garlic, dry bay leaves, whole black peppercorns, and filtered water for about two hours. The tails are left in large chunks so they yield long, impressive strands of meat when pulled — “kind of seems like showing off,” Guy observes.

The oxtails get browned in oil, then the mirepoix and garlic cook down until soft. Tomato paste goes in, followed by a red wine deglaze. Fresh thyme, rosemary, and oregano join the party before the oxtails return to the pot, covered in chicken stock. Into the oven at 325 degrees for six to eight hours.

But the real secret weapon is the giardiniera. Dom learned about it working at a place called T Chicago during high school. His version combines Castelvetrano and Manzanilla olives, garlic, chili flake, lemon and orange peels, fresh thyme, rosemary, oregano, olive oil, and vinegar — roasted for two hours. Carrots, celery, and cauliflower get brined in saltwater for 24 hours, then combined with the chopped house-cured olives, Fresno chilies, sport peppers, Italian seasoning, red chili flake, red wine vinegar, and extra virgin olive oil.

The final assembly: brioche gets buttered on both sides and toasted, topped with pulled oxtail meat and smoked provolone, finished in a salamander. Whole butter is mounted into the oxtail jus. Guy’s reaction? “My mouth right now is like the sirens going off at the Hoover Dam — they’re releasing water.”

Duck Confit Fried Rice: The New Favorite

Guy declares this his new favorite item on the menu. Duck legs are salt-cured with kosher salt, pink salt, Chinese five spice, black peppercorn, chopped garlic, dried bay leaf, and fresh thyme for 24 hours. After rinsing, they confit in duck fat at 300 degrees for about two hours, then rest in the fat before being pulled from the bone.

The sauce combines tamari, oyster sauce, and brown sugar. A Japanese chili oil called rayu steeps with sesame oil, fresh garlic, scallion whites, ginger, and chili flake. The fried rice hits a screaming hot cast iron with duck fat, butter, garlic, onion, carrots, day-old rice, and peas — finished with a sunny-side-up duck egg and garnished with rayu, green onions, and toasted sesame seeds.

Guy notices every detail: “Peas weren’t put in too early, didn’t turn mushy. Carrot got enough cook. Garlic was saved by the onion to not burn. Little sear was built on the rice to get a little crunch to it.” High praise from someone who’s seen kitchens across Flavortown, much like the precision found in German Comfort Food in Arizona 🇩🇪.

Tips From Chef Dom’s Kitchen

For oxtails: Keep them in large chunks to get impressive long strands when pulling. Braise low and slow — six to eight hours at 325 degrees.

For fried rice: Use day-old rice. Add peas late so they don’t turn mushy. Let the rice develop a slight crust on the hot cast iron. And as Guy puts it about that duck egg on top: “That’s the way to screw up any meal” — in the best possible way.

This strip mall gem proves that Flavortown treasures hide in unexpected places. Find more Arizona spots and Triple D restaurants nationwide in our restaurant directory.