When I was a little kid, I was confused by the word “hamburger.” Hamburgers obviously weren’t made with ham. Why weren’t they called beef burgers? Of course, I eventually learned the term referred to the German city of Hamburg, where the sandwich purportedly originated.

I was reminded about this last week when I visited Stax Burger Bistro, a two-month-old restaurant on the southwest corner of Scottsdale and Camelback roads.

To say Stax specializes in burgers is an understatement. Except for two salads, the only entrees on the menu are burgers.

But that doesn’t mean your choices are limited. In fact, the eatery’s extensive roster of meats and condiments provides a nearly infinite number of combinations.

Besides beef, burger “grinds” can be made with turkey, buffalo, ostrich, lamb, salmon or veggies. The burgers are small — just 3 ounces — so if you’re hungry, order two.

Once you decide on your meat, you can select your own toppings or go with a “Stax Style” determined by the restaurant’s chef.

For example, a Stax Style turkey burger ($4) is infused with spinach, feta cheese, shaved red onion and green, red and yellow peppers. It’s then topped with provolone cheese, grilled pineapple, fresh guacamole and pico de gallo.

If you prefer to build your own, the turkey patty will cost $3. Seven types of cheese (including Cheez Whiz!) are a quarter apiece, as are toppings including Roma tomatoes and caramelized onions.

For those who want to really get fancy, Stax offers four signature aiolis, or sauces: jalapeño, pesto, garlic or spicy. Or, also for a quarter, you can opt for a special chutney or hummus.

After a couple visits, I must admit I found Stax’s basic beef burger to be somewhat mundane. Even with cheese and onions, it’s average at best.

The Stax Styles, however, are another story.

My favorite is the savory buffalo burger ($5), topped with Monterey Jack, an onion ring, peach barbecue sauce and pickled shallots.

The aforementioned turkey burger is another winner, as is the semisweet lamb burger ($5) with provolone, butter lettuce, peach-mint-mango chutney, pickled shallots and chives.

Heck, this carnivore even likes Stax’s veggie burger ($4).

Sides range from $3 for a small basket of tater tots or sweet potato fries to $5 for bowl of Mac ’n’ Jack, which comes with a baked crust of Parmesan bread crumbs.

With its industrial-chic decor, prime location (formerly Ibiza Café) and full bar (including nearly 100 wines by the glass or half-bottle and speciality drinks like $9 cantaloupe or Gummy Bear martinis), Stax already has become a destination for the hip and trendy crowd.

Now, if Stax could just come up with a burger made from ham.

Stax Burger Bistro
Where: 4400 N. Scottsdale Road, Scottsdale (southwest corner of Scottsdale
and Camelback roads)
Hours: 11 a.m. to midnight daily
Prices: Burgers $3-$5, sides $3-$5, salads $6
Info: (480) 946-4222

There aren’t many restaurants in the East Valley where you can get a great meal and a glass of wine at 1:30 a.m., especially on weeknights. But that small list has grown by one, thanks to Centro Paninoteca.

Opened in May by chef-owner Chris Cottingham, the former general manager of trendy Phoenix burger bar Delux, Centro doesn’t look like much at first glance.

Tucked next to Scottsdale country bar Handlebar J, Cottingham’s eatery takes up less than 900 square feet — barely big enough for eight tiny tables, a five-stool bar and a small counter by the door.

What it lacks in size, though, it more than makes up for with atmosphere.

The dark wood furniture, dark brown floors and dark ceiling make Centro look … well, dark — even during the day. At night, though, small candles at each table are reflected off a row of mirrors on the wall, basking the entire space in a warm glow.

An eclectic mix of house music creates a nice vibe, playing loud enough not to be lost in the background but not so loud as to make conversation difficult.

And the staff? Attentive, friendly and knowledgeable. Cottingham himself is likely to wander over and strike up a conversation.

Of course, all of this atmosphere means little without the food to match. Centro has no worries there: It offers a wonderful array of appetizers and panini sandwiches until 2 a.m. every day except Sunday.

The half-dozen starters include a delectable salmon carpaccio ($10), a hefty plate of smoked salmon, baby arugula, capers and red onion, and a scrumptious ceviche ($9.50) with shrimp, tomato, cilantro, onion, sweet peas and lime.

Aside from three salads, the rest of the menu consists of paninis (10 so far) and a daily market sandwich. You can’t go wrong with any of them.

My favorite is the Italian press ($8.50), long, thick slices of spicy pepperoni and salami topped with a zesty tomato sauce, mozzarella, Parmesan and rosemary.

Or maybe the chicken panini ($9.50), a marinated chicken breast with roasted red pepper and tomato, mozzarella, baby arugula and pesto mayo.

Or perhaps the grilled Gorgonzola and fig on sourdough ($7).

In other words, I’m looking forward to trying them all.

All the sandwiches come with cayenne- and cumin-laced Terra sweet-potato chips.

As for wine, Centro offers 18 reds and whites, most from Italy, by the glass for $7 to $12. Daily specials are as little as $5 per glass.

It’s easy to see why hip and affordable Centro is fast becoming a favorite hangout of the culinary crowd.

Just be sure to save me a bar stool.

Centro Paninoteca
Where: 7120 E. Becker Lane, Scottsdale (northwest of Scottsdale Road
and Shea Boulevard)
Hours: 5 p.m. to 2 a.m. Monday through Saturday
Prices: Appetizers $3-$10; salads $5.50-$8; paninis $7-$9.50
Info: (480) 443-7162 or centropaninoteca.com

The guys behind el Pedregal’s year-old Spotted Donkey Cantina have opened an upscale restaurant next door in the north Scottsdale shopping center. Owners Cliff Skoglund and Robert Hall have a similar setup in their hometown of Santa Fe, where they have a hip Western eatery called Senor Lucky’s next to an upscale, four-star fusion restaurant called Geronimo. Their new restaurant, Luc’s (pronounced Lucks), takes over the former Shugrue’s Bar & Grill location and has a menu that it describes as “French-Asian fusion.” The dinner menu includes such chef specialties as sweet garlic lamb chops with Asian ratatouille and eggplant raviolis ($34) and free-range rock hen with boursin “mac and cheese” ($24). Steaks range from filet mignon with a roasted tomato gorgonzola cap ($41) to the New York strip with French onion sherry wine tart ($49). Lobster entrees ranges from a sauteed Maine lobster with baby bok choy, shiitake and oyster mushroom orzo and Arborio risotto ($42) to roasted lobster cremini mushrooms, rolled together in a buttery pastry with Ricard spinach and topped with a Thai-spiced pesto sauce ($30). The tapas menu has salads ($9-$17), pizzas ($10-$14) and other offerings, such as prime beef tartare with green onion sesame pancakes and black truffle mustard ($15). Luc’s, 34505 N. Scottsdale Road, Scottsdale, is open at 4:30 p.m. (tapas bar) and 5:30 p.m. (dining room) daily. (480) 488-3811.

Jason Frandsen, former sous chef at Olive & Ivy, has been named executive chef at fellow Fox Concept restaurant Bloom, whose changing menu offers American dishes with Asian and European inlfuences. Frandsen has revamped the north Scottsdale boutique-style eatery’s menu, adding such items as poached shrimp, edamame potstickers and sherry-braised short ribs. New desserts include pineapple bread pudding and peanut butter and banana torte. Bloom also will start a series of “Meet the Winemaker” events on Oct. 30. Bloom, 8877 N. Scottsdale Road, Scottsdale, is open 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. Monday through Saturday for lunch and 5 p.m. to 9:30 p.m. Monday through Thursday, 5 p.m. to 10 p.m. Friday and Saturday and 5 p.m. to 9 p.m. Sunday for dinner. Info: (480) 922-5666.

Meet some of the East Valley’s top chefs and sample their creations at “Dine Out with the Chefs: A Celebration of the Culinary Arts” 4 p.m. to 7 p.m. Oct. 7 at Scottsdale Center for the Performing Arts. Participating chefs include Justin Beckett (Canal), Bernie Kantak (Cowboy Caio), Beau MacMillan (Elements), Matt Carter (Zinc Bistro), Lee Hillson (T. Cook’s), Claudio Urciuoli (Taggia), Nobuo Fukuda (Seasaw), Michael Rusconi (Lon’s), Tracy Dempsey (Confection), Eric Howson (Hyatt Regency at Gainey Ranch), Razz Kamnitzer (Razz’s), Roberto Sanchez (Windows on the Green), Frank Belosic (Mary Elaine’s) and Jon-Paul Hutchins (Scottsdale Culinary Institute). Tickets are $55 in advance and $65 at the door. Info: (480) 994-2787.