Events: Arizona - Phoenix - Scottsdale

 Big’s American Bar & Grill, the massive west valley restaurant located at 16550 N. 83^rd Ave. in the P83 shopping center, is celebrating its one-year anniversary this fall. In honor of this milestone, Big’s is inviting guests to celebrate in a big way on Saturday, Sept. 23.

“We’ve received such a warm welcome from the west valley community and we’re thrilled to be a part of it,” said Taylor Lowe, who co-owns the restaurant with Terry Schwichtenberg, the original founder of Big’s Fullerton in California, as well as Ben Wilson and Martin Valencia. “We look forward to celebrating this anniversary and many more in the future with our guests who have become part of our Big’s family.”

During the event, guests can enjoy entertainment from a video DJ and $1 draft pints from 4-6 p.m. All night long, guests will also receive a free souvenir glass with the purchase of a specialty drink.

Big’s American Bar & Grill is a spin-off of Big’s Fullerton, which was founded in 2001 by Schwichtenberg, with the help of his brother Brett and Brett’s wife Cristi. Terry and Brett grew up in the Sunnyslope area and when Terry moved to Southern California where he purchased a small bar, Brett and Cristi were instrumental in helping him revamp it to become Big’s Fullerton. Terry eventually moved Big’s Fullerton to the 7,000-square-foot location where it currently resides, just steps from Cal State University.

With his mother, Brett, Cristi and friends living in Phoenix, Schwichtenberg decided to bring the Big’s brand to the valley of the sun. He partnered with friends Lowe, Wilson and Valencia to undergo an extensive build out of Big’s Peoria during COVID, with Brett and Cristi largely involved in this endeavor as well.

A true friends-and-family operation, Big’s Peoria is managed by Cristi while Brett serves as the restaurant’s entertainment director. Terry believes the staff is in large part responsible for how well Big’s Peoria has been received since its opening in September 2022.

“We have a really great staff there and I’m impressed with how well it has been doing since we opened,” said Schwichtenberg. “It’s a mirror image of Big’s Fullerton and now that we’re out here, we’re looking to expand.”

The massive 5,500-square-foot establishment serves as a place for guests to enjoy scratch-made meals (made for big appetites) while watching their favorite sports game or simply unwinding with friends. Thanks to the restaurant’s Blizzard Beer System, the 24 draft beers on tap are always ice cold and the full bar offers a variety of creative cocktail concoctions, wine and bottles and cans of beers, seltzers and ciders.

True to its name, the size of the restaurant itself is matched only by its portion sizes. Everything is hand-made daily in the Big’s kitchen and the menu features a wide variety of choices to satisfy any and all cravings.

Sharable appetizers such as Jalapeno Poppers, Garlic Edamame, Chicken Tenders, Mac N Cheese Balls and the Sampler Platter (designed to feed up to six people) get the party started. Main entrees range from a variety of filling salads, handmade burgers and sandwiches to pastas, seafood and sushi, classic comfort dishes (don’t miss the Baseball Top Sirloin) and Mexican favorites. For those that still have room for more (or who prefer to start their dining experience with the sweet stuff first), desserts such as the Churro Sundae, New York Style Cheesecake and Brownie Sundae are sure to silence any sweet tooth.

Sports fans, big groups, couples, families and seniors have all found a home at Big’s in the past year as a place to watch all the games, get a great meal and enjoy amazing drinks with friends. Big’s offers happy hour from 3-6:30 p.m. Monday through Friday and late night reverse happy hour from 10 p.m. to close Sunday through Thursday featuring drink and food specials.

Restaurant hours are 10:45 a.m. to midnight Monday through Friday and 9 a.m. to midnight Saturday and Sunday. For more about Big’s American Bar & Grill, visit bigspeoria.com.