Environmental Programs

Phoenix: Let's Eat Local - Maryvale

Maryvale is a 37 square-mile area in Southwest Phoenix that sprouted out of agricultural fields in 1955 as one of the first master planned communities in the country. Maryvale has since become the most populated of the city's 13 villages.

While the demographics have shifted over the years, Maryvale still remains a tight-knit community with a strong Hispanic influence and a culture that is represented prominently in its food scene.

A Local Food Scene Created for its Residents

Built on agricultural land in the area, Maryvale was created as a large community that included tract homes, schools, shopping malls, and cultural and community centers. This master plan provided a home base to the farm workers and military personnel that worked nearby.

The transition from farmland to a new community of young families and homeowners evolved in the mid 1970s and 80s following an expansion of Sky Harbor Airport that led to the displacement of the Golden Gate Barrio neighborhood. Golden Gate Barrio residents, primarily of Hispanic and Latin descent, were in need of a new place to put down roots.

Phoenix Lets Eat Local Maryvale (Feb 2023) - 5.JPG These new roots took shape and transformed Maryvale into a bustling neighborhood with an under-the-radar local food community that was created by its residents. Mexican food in the area is vast and represents regions from across the country. There are plenty of food gems that are as diverse as the palates and cravings of its community. In Maryvale, you will find plenty of family owned, mom and pop restaurants that are dishing up handed down family recipes, bustling tacos and tortas spots, carnicerias, food trucks and stands, Chinese take out, and Vietnamese noodle shops. There’s quite a bit of miles to cover to experience the depth of Maryvale’s food scene, and a wealth of local joints to try along the way.

Find Local Food in Maryvale

Eat local and support local food businesses in Maryvale! Use the interactive map below to find locally made goods and eats in the neighborhood.

(If you’re a local food producer or artisan, farm, or restaurant in the Maryvale and would like to get listed, please complete the form here to get added to the directory.)

Want to become a Phoenix: Let's Eat Local certified restaurant?

Please contact Kailey Mullis at kailey.mullis@phoenix.gov or 602-534-2488.

Supporting a Resilient Local Food System

The City of Phoenix’s Resilient Food Systems Initiative offers a variety of programs and resources to help develop a stronger, connected local food system with more accessible and sustainable food options for Phoenix residents. Some of these programs include:

Providing pathways to build sustainable business models: The Sustainable Cooperative Food Business Training program focuses on developing cooperative food business skills and provides participants with training on all business areas needed to implement a business plan.
Training the next generation of growers: The Phoenix Urban Agriculture Fellowship program provides hands-on experience and training for those interested in growing within the City of Phoenix. A local host farm trains participating fellows on various growing methods and exposes them to all relevant aspects of the farm.
Encouraging residents to adopt sustainable practices in everyday life: The Food Waste and Composting Education Project will be a free, one-year program that provides food waste and composting education, training, and access to a compost service for up to 500 residents living in food insecure areas.
Empowering residents to grow their own food: The Backyard Garden Program offers funding for up to 178 residents located in food-insecure neighborhoods to create backyard gardens and community gardens using aquaponics, raised beds, and other water-conservation growing methods.