If you had to pick ONE restaurant in Tucson

Jefe · Post by **Jefe** » Mon Apr 20, 2020 11:57 am

Had an incredible meal from Jonathans Cork last week. Their green chili beef was the closest I've had to Gordo's green chili that I can remember and its better. Came with a massive flour tortilla too. Crab cakes and filet's were excellent as well. They even delivered to the house but I can't wait to eat in person when this is all over.

Also been having some amazing meals from Commoner & Co. Shepherds Pie, crispy brussel sprouts and goat cheese tarts are delicious. Thursdays they do a Fiamme Pizza pop up and they bring over their wood oven fire trailer. Also selling bottles of wine/liquor if you walk in. You can buy to go cocktails too.

Finally had Raijin Ramen last night. Excellent as well! All employees were wearing masks/gloves, wiping down tables before setting anything down and double wrapped the dishes

Longhorned · Post by **Longhorned** » Sun May 24, 2020 7:57 pm

Take out from Chef Wang.

Dinner was so good, I teared up a little.

Not to mention they have a great online ordering system:

https://chefwangaz.com/" target="_blank

As if that weren't enough, when you go to pick it up, you park your car in their lot and then walk up to a window to pick up your order. You don't walk in, and you don't deal with that disorienting confusion of the curb-side pickup.

I'd say it's the best Chinese food I've ever had.

scumdevils86 · Post by **scumdevils86** » Sun May 24, 2020 9:07 pm

Commoner and Co for our 4th anniversary dinner tonight. Everything tasted good and the service was great but I was reminded why I never ever order a steak from a non steakhouse. It was medium well but still sorta moist and the potatoes were salt licks. $35 and I could sous vide and sear a prime ribeye from Costco for half the price. Lesson learned yet again.

Jefe · Post by **Jefe** » Wed Jul 01, 2020 2:05 pm

Been getting a lot of takeout from Nate's Metro Deli at Tanque Verde/Pima. Its in the old City Grill/The Event building. He has 3 concepts on GrubHub/DoorDash and everything Ive tried has been delicious. Nate's Metro Deli is the Italian food, Nate's Steaks is sandwiches and then Nate's Burgers. One of the messiest and best cheesesteaks I've ever had here. Chicken Parm and Pomodoro were great as well. If you order takeout its on the west corner of the building. Looks really sketchy but its legit and the portions are huge!

CatsbyAZ · Post by **CatsbyAZ** » Wed Jul 01, 2020 6:26 pm

Speaking of take out, are Tucson restaurants starting to close the indoors and go back to takeout? I'm visiting this weekend and was hoping to take my siblings to Sushi Garden.

scumdevils86 · Post by **scumdevils86** » Wed Jul 01, 2020 6:31 pm

Why would you want to eat at a restaurant right now regardless?

Jefe · Post by **Jefe** » Thu Jul 02, 2020 3:17 pm

CatsbyAZ wrote:Speaking of take out, are Tucson restaurants starting to close the indoors and go back to takeout? I'm visiting this weekend and was hoping to take my siblings to Sushi Garden.

If you call 10 restaurants, 7 or 8 of them are doing takeout/delivery only. A lot of the ones I frequented before never did reopen for dine in. Google is usually accurate with their red and green check marks. Says they are open for dine in

ASUHATER! · Post by **ASUHATER!** » Thu Jul 02, 2020 3:19 pm

Jefe wrote:
CatsbyAZ wrote:Speaking of take out, are Tucson restaurants starting to close the indoors and go back to takeout? I'm visiting this weekend and was hoping to take my siblings to Sushi Garden.
If you call 10 restaurants, 7 or 8 of them are doing takeout/delivery only. A lot of the ones I frequented before never did reopen for dine in.

Thankfully most didn't. The responsible ones anyway

KingG · Post by **KingG** » Sat Jul 04, 2020 9:36 am

There are some great newish restaurants in Tucson I’d like to recommend. And it’s a great time to go out and dine right now; restaurants are relatively empty so you get really attentive service, cleanliness is at an all time high, and rest assured they can really use the business.

Istanbul on Speedway near Country Club has absolutely fantastic Mediterranean food. The portions are very generous and the prices are beyond reasonable. Fresh salads, tasty hummus, perfectly grilled kebabs. The baklava and Turkish coffee are also very authentic. Try it!

Churrasco de Brasil at the Tucson Mall is my new favorite restaurant in Tucson. If you’ve never been to a Brazilian Barbecue you will be in for an absolute treat. It’s basically all you can eat delicious cuts of grilled meat directly to your table. It’s a truly fantastic experience and it even pleasantly surprised a buddy from Brazil I dined there with who deemed it authentic. The desserts are fabulous as well. It’s a must try!

ASUHATER! · Post by **ASUHATER!** » Sat Jul 04, 2020 9:36 am

It's an absolutely God awful time to dine in

KingG · Post by **KingG** » Sat Jul 04, 2020 9:47 am

ASUHATER! wrote:
Jefe wrote:
CatsbyAZ wrote:Speaking of take out, are Tucson restaurants starting to close the indoors and go back to takeout? I'm visiting this weekend and was hoping to take my siblings to Sushi Garden.
If you call 10 restaurants, 7 or 8 of them are doing takeout/delivery only. A lot of the ones I frequented before never did reopen for dine in.
Thankfully most didn't. The responsible ones anyway

And a lot of them will never reopen unfortunately. I really don’t blame people for being hesitant to patronize restaurants. But at the same time, these establishments deserve the opportunity to make people feel comfortable and earn business back. The moral superiority you and your twin feel from social shaming others is beyond lame. I laugh at most of your posts.

KingG · Post by **KingG** » Sat Jul 04, 2020 9:53 am

ASUHATER! wrote:It's an absolutely God awful time to dine in

You really don’t have a life. I recommend getting one, you’ll be happier in the end the less you worry about other people.

Merkin · Post by **Merkin** » Sat Jul 04, 2020 9:56 am

ASUHATER! wrote:It's an absolutely God awful time to dine in

All closed for dine in where I live in Santa Barbara county. Still open for dine in in SLO county just up north, but who knows for how long.

My son in law is in the Navy, and he is not allowed to dine in at any restaurant, which are open in NC where he is stationed. Can't go to malls or do casual shopping. Just essential shopping like grocery stores and such.

scumdevils86 · Post by **scumdevils86** » Sat Jul 04, 2020 11:30 am

KingG wrote:
ASUHATER! wrote:
Jefe wrote:
CatsbyAZ wrote:Speaking of take out, are Tucson restaurants starting to close the indoors and go back to takeout? I'm visiting this weekend and was hoping to take my siblings to Sushi Garden.
If you call 10 restaurants, 7 or 8 of them are doing takeout/delivery only. A lot of the ones I frequented before never did reopen for dine in.
Thankfully most didn't. The responsible ones anyway
And a lot of them will never reopen unfortunately. I really don’t blame people for being hesitant to patronize restaurants. But at the same time, these establishments deserve the opportunity to make people feel comfortable and earn business back. The moral superiority you and your twin feel from social shaming others is beyond lame. I laugh at most of your posts.

Of course local restaurants and businesses deserve to stay open and make money. I support them more than almost anyone I know. I still won't dine in though and anyone that does is irresponsible. I don't know whatever bullshit you're making up about moral superiority is supposed to mean. A pandemic isn't about morals. It's about being a responsible human being that isn't part of the problem. People who don't understand that like yourself have some fucked up priorities. But sure, if me caring more about the survival of people in my community makes me superior, then I guess I will say I'm superior. Run along now.

ASUHATER! · Post by **ASUHATER!** » Sat Jul 04, 2020 11:52 am

KingG wrote:
ASUHATER! wrote:
Jefe wrote:
CatsbyAZ wrote:Speaking of take out, are Tucson restaurants starting to close the indoors and go back to takeout? I'm visiting this weekend and was hoping to take my siblings to Sushi Garden.
If you call 10 restaurants, 7 or 8 of them are doing takeout/delivery only. A lot of the ones I frequented before never did reopen for dine in.
Thankfully most didn't. The responsible ones anyway
And a lot of them will never reopen unfortunately. I really don’t blame people for being hesitant to patronize restaurants. But at the same time, these establishments deserve the opportunity to make people feel comfortable and earn business back. The moral superiority you and your twin feel from social shaming others is beyond lame. I laugh at most of your posts.

Great. I guess not wanting people to die from a pandemic is moral superiority now?

FreeSpiritCat · Post by **FreeSpiritCat** » Wed Sep 16, 2020 2:49 pm

I wanted to put this here because this restaurant should be arriving in Tucson in the next few years. The name is Salad & Go. It started in Feb 2013 in Gilbert. By the end of this year it will double in size in the Phoenix area in one year. When the coronavirus hit they gave free meals to first responders and hospital employees and are always involved in charity. They pay their employees $15/hour to start.

As for the food they are mostly salads, with burritos, smoothies, and coffee. They are almost exclusively organic, and the price of a (fairly big) salad is $5.74. They are almost exclusively drive-thru with a kiosk for walk-up service. And the lines are long now, but usually move quickly. They don't give you silverware either unless you ask. They are environmentally conscious. Their idea is exactly what fast food needs and it is exciting to watch them grow. If their stock goes public I will snatch it up.

Healthy fast food. Imagine that!

https://saladandgo.com/" target="_blank

prh · Post by **prh** » Fri Sep 25, 2020 9:54 am

Catintheheat wrote:I wanted to put this here because this restaurant should be arriving in Tucson in the next few years. The name is Salad & Go. It started in Feb 2013 in Gilbert. By the end of this year it will double in size in the Phoenix area in one year. When the coronavirus hit they gave free meals to first responders and hospital employees and are always involved in charity. They pay their employees $15/hour to start.

As for the food they are mostly salads, with burritos, smoothies, and coffee. They are almost exclusively organic, and the price of a (fairly big) salad is $5.74. They are almost exclusively drive-thru with a kiosk for walk-up service. And the lines are long now, but usually move quickly. They don't give you silverware either unless you ask. They are environmentally conscious. Their idea is exactly what fast food needs and it is exciting to watch them grow. If their stock goes public I will snatch it up.

Healthy fast food. Imagine that!

https://saladandgo.com/" target="_blank

I just found them recently and love it. Huge salads, even with adding in stuff like bacon, chicken, etc, still only about $7 and it's almost 2 meals.

scumdevils86 · Post by **scumdevils86** » Fri Oct 16, 2020 5:38 pm

Cafe Poca Cosa is closing for good after being in business since 1984. Another casualty of Covid.

dovecanyoncat · Post by **dovecanyoncat** » Fri Oct 16, 2020 6:33 pm

That's a goddamned shame.

scumdevils86 · Post by **scumdevils86** » Thu Oct 29, 2020 4:11 pm

Downtown Kitchen and Cocktails closes permanently. Another casualty. One of my favorite happy hours. I make a copy cat cocktail from there that is my wife's favorite and we loved their calamari.

Jefe · Post by **Jefe** » Thu Oct 29, 2020 4:17 pm

Elvira's too. Thats 3 great restaurants in 2 weeks.

ASUHATER! · Post by **ASUHATER!** » Thu Oct 29, 2020 4:54 pm

And unless we get a real covid response and stimulus passed from a real national and state government, over the winter expect the majority of good restaurants in Tucson to close.

SCCats · Post by **SCCats** » Thu Oct 29, 2020 5:12 pm

Yeah...it’s going to be a long, dark winter in multiple ways.

Merkin · Post by **Merkin** » Thu Oct 29, 2020 5:14 pm

Obviously not Tucson, but just a sad state of affairs for the restaurant business.

Jefe · Post by **Jefe** » Fri Oct 30, 2020 3:22 pm

The new tower next to the Marriott on campus is the Graduate Tucson hotel. The 15th floor rooftop has bar/restaurant called Moonstone as well as a pool. Highest bar in Tucson. Have not been yet but eager to check it out

Jefe · Post by **Jefe** » Mon Feb 01, 2021 4:02 pm

Incredible view of everything from Moonstone. More of a bar than restaurant though. Extremely windy up there too

Finally had Fiamme and it was well worth the wait. I counted 27 pizzas in the 30 minutes we waited so they must make 100-150 a night.

Last night I noticed a new restaurant in the Old Pueblo Grill location at Broadway/Alvernon. Its now Locale Italian which is owned by Contigo at La Paloma. Indoor and outdoor dining with a bocce ball court. Delicious food and cocktails. I can see this place lasting a long time.

Spaceman Spiff · Post by **Spaceman Spiff** » Tue Feb 02, 2021 9:47 am

Jefe wrote: ↑Mon Feb 01, 2021 4:02 pm Finally had Fiamme and it was well worth the wait. I counted 27 pizzas in the 30 minutes we waited so they must make 100-150 a night.

Fiamme is very good. Fiamme and Scordatos are my two first choices for pizza, but I think Fiamme's edged ahead. They're always super busy.

scumdevils86 · Post by **scumdevils86** » Sat Feb 20, 2021 3:57 pm

Ensenada Street Food on Park south of 22nd for lunch today. Tiny little hole in the wall with 3 tables of outdoor seating and about 5 parking spots. Had a combo plate with 4 tacos: fried fish, al pastor, asada, and rojitos (crispy birria taco with cheese). Had the cup of birria broth to go with it. Absolutely incredible and the nicest and friendliest people. Only the 2nd time since June I've sat down for a meal somewhere other than my house and it was absolutely incredible with the perfect 75 degree weather.

Spaceman Spiff · Post by **Spaceman Spiff** » Wed Mar 17, 2021 7:46 pm

Jefe wrote: ↑Tue Jun 25, 2019 3:32 pm Went to La Botana at Grant/Craycroft for the first time and was pretty impressed for what I thought would be a glorified La Salsa. 9 meat options and you can order them with corn/flour tortillas, gringas style which is a flour quesadilla with onions/cheese or tostada style with beans, queso and pico. The chicharrones was delicious. Carnitas and barbacoa were alright. Gonna try fish, shrimp and carne next time. Grilled burritos, salads, apps and desserts as well as a full page michelada menu

They have lunch specials, happy hour, brunch and they have 2 for 1 Grande Margaritas all day every day. Looked like a 24oz Marg if not larger.

The 1st and Ft Lowell location has the best chicken tinga I've had in a restaurant.

Jefe · Post by **Jefe** » Wed May 12, 2021 3:08 pm

Eegees is now selling merch and a cocktail mixing menu. New stuff posted monthly. If you go directly to the Ajo HQ prices are much cheaper

https://www.eegees-swag.com/

wyo-cat · Post by **wyo-cat** » Wed May 12, 2021 4:45 pm

Hahaha. The first U of A basketball game I went to, me and my buddy snuck in vodka to mix in strawberry Eegees. I wonder if that ones in there.

azgreg · Post by **azgreg** » Fri May 21, 2021 9:45 am

Merkin · Post by **Merkin** » Fri May 21, 2021 10:00 am

Supposedly the home of the first chimichanga when a burrito was accidentally dropped into the frying pan.

Spaceman Spiff · Post by **Spaceman Spiff** » Fri May 21, 2021 10:12 am

azgreg wrote: ↑Fri May 21, 2021 9:45 am

Look, that list exists for one reason, and it's to talk trash about Alabama.

Alieberman · Post by **Alieberman** » Fri May 21, 2021 10:24 am

Make fun of Alabama for this... but would you ever go get Mexican food in an SEC town?

Taco Bell is probably your safest bet.

gronk4heisman · Post by **gronk4heisman** » Fri May 21, 2021 11:05 am

I would venture to say that you could replace the top 50 Tucson mexican restaurants with 50 of those on the list.

Spaceman Spiff · Post by **Spaceman Spiff** » Fri May 21, 2021 11:16 am

Alieberman wrote: ↑Fri May 21, 2021 10:24 am Make fun of Alabama for this... but would you ever go get Mexican food in an SEC town?

Taco Bell is probably your safest bet.

To be honest, I'd trust the South more with Mexican food than some other places. Southern cooking generally has some spice and seasoning to it. Bland Mexican food is the worst.

I don't have firsthand knowledge, but I feel like you'd have a better chance of spice and flavor in Mexican food in Alabama than you would in Iowa.

gronk4heisman · Post by **gronk4heisman** » Fri May 21, 2021 11:27 am

Spaceman Spiff wrote: ↑Fri May 21, 2021 11:16 am
Alieberman wrote: ↑Fri May 21, 2021 10:24 am Make fun of Alabama for this... but would you ever go get Mexican food in an SEC town?

Taco Bell is probably your safest bet.
To be honest, I'd trust the South more with Mexican food than some other places. Southern cooking generally has some spice and seasoning to it. Bland Mexican food is the worst.

I don't have firsthand knowledge, but I feel like you'd have a better chance of spice and flavor in Mexican food in Alabama than you would in Iowa.

They may have spices, but they probably have an embargo on items like tortillas that aren't American enough.

scumdevils86 · Post by **scumdevils86** » Fri May 21, 2021 11:31 am

Yea I might trust Mexican food more in Tuscaloosa than Eau Claire, Wisconsin.

Spaceman Spiff · Post by **Spaceman Spiff** » Fri May 21, 2021 11:41 am

gronk4heisman wrote: ↑Fri May 21, 2021 11:27 am
Spaceman Spiff wrote: ↑Fri May 21, 2021 11:16 am
Alieberman wrote: ↑Fri May 21, 2021 10:24 am Make fun of Alabama for this... but would you ever go get Mexican food in an SEC town?

Taco Bell is probably your safest bet.
To be honest, I'd trust the South more with Mexican food than some other places. Southern cooking generally has some spice and seasoning to it. Bland Mexican food is the worst.

I don't have firsthand knowledge, but I feel like you'd have a better chance of spice and flavor in Mexican food in Alabama than you would in Iowa.
They may have spices, but they probably have an embargo on items like tortillas that aren't American enough.

I mean, I'd rather have the wrong spices than just bland food.

I tried a Mexican food restaurant in Cannon Beach, OR in 2014 and it was the most confusing thing. It looked like Mexican food, but had zero spice or flavor. I'd rather have some odd version that has some (potentially good) taste even if it's not close to authentic than a burrito that tastes like it's filled with unflavored oatmeal.

Merkin · Post by **Merkin** » Fri May 21, 2021 12:17 pm

Spaceman Spiff wrote: ↑Fri May 21, 2021 10:12 am Look, that list exists for one reason, and it's to talk trash about Alabama.

I grew up in an all white town in south central Michigan. Taco Bell came in around 1970 we all went "HECK YEAH!!! WE FINALLY HAVE MEXICAN FOOD!".

When my daughter was living in Honolulu a few years back, the nearby taco truck was run by a white couple. She lives in eastern NC now in hicksville, and still cannot find good Mexican food after growing up here in the Central Coast.

But I can't eat that processed Taco Bell crap now. For fast "Mexican" food, I go to El Pollo Loco, since they use actually whole chicken meat. But that's pretty rare since I live in an area with a very large Hispanic population.

I stopped going to Taco Bell when I learned that they use additives in their meats.

Taco Bell has had enough of the haters: President Greg Creed has released a statement that contains a percentage breakdown of the contents of their beef taco filling, and it looks like they're in the clear with a whopping 88% "USDA-inspected quality beef." Which is significantly more than the mere 36% a class action lawsuit accused the filling of containing.

Also? Only 3-5% is made up of "oats, starch, sugar, yeast, citric acid, and other ingredients that contribute to the quality of our product."

84Cat · Post by **84Cat** » Fri May 21, 2021 12:24 pm

Taco Bell sucks. Whenever I go there, it causes me digestive distress. I think I went last in Utah when nothing else was open. I regretted it as soon as I took 2 bites. Growing up in Tucson, El Taco was the place to go for fast Mexican. I remember the 1st time I ate a burrito there, I thought I died and went to heaven

ASUHATER! · Post by **ASUHATER!** » Fri May 21, 2021 12:52 pm

As someone who lives in Tucson and loves good real authentic Mexican food...I still love Taco Bell too. It has its place.

UAEebs86 · Post by **UAEebs86** » Fri May 21, 2021 12:54 pm

For those of you that frequent Nico's, have you noticed a big difference between locations?

The one that was out in Vail was really good but the one near us now off Cortaro sucks balls.

azgreg · Post by **azgreg** » Fri May 21, 2021 12:57 pm

scumdevils86 wrote: ↑Fri May 21, 2021 11:31 am Yea I might trust Mexican food more in Tuscaloosa than Eau Claire, Wisconsin.

Way to set the bar low.

azgreg · Post by **azgreg** » Fri May 21, 2021 12:58 pm

ASUHATER! wrote: ↑Fri May 21, 2021 12:52 pm As someone who lives in Tucson and loves good real authentic Mexican food...I still love Taco Bell too. It has its place.

Post drinking party box of crunchy tacos goes down pretty well.

wyo-cat · Post by **wyo-cat** » Fri May 21, 2021 1:12 pm

When I lived in TN, we had a local Mexican family with a couple of good restos in town. I had visited PHX a few times and been to RP a few times at that point, so I wasn’t the typical TN gringo.

Still doesn’t hold a candle to my neighborhood taco truck, El Cheke at First and River.

wyo-cat · Post by **wyo-cat** » Fri May 21, 2021 1:21 pm

UAEebs86 wrote: ↑Fri May 21, 2021 12:54 pm For those of you that frequent Nico's, have you noticed a big difference between locations?

The one that was out in Vail was really good but the one near us now off Cortaro sucks balls.

I don’t do storefront Mexican.

If they don’t have a Mesquite grill, forget about it.

dovecanyoncat · Post by **dovecanyoncat** » Fri May 21, 2021 2:03 pm

Spaceman Spiff wrote: ↑Fri May 21, 2021 11:41 am I tried a Mexican food restaurant in Cannon Beach, OR in 2014 and it was the most confusing thing.

My personal success rate with Mexican seafood is iffy at best. I don't enjoy the Veracruz style, it's much too acidic and gloppy. Ceviche generally succeeds even down to the barest minimal amount of curing.

ASUHATER! wrote: ↑Fri May 21, 2021 12:52 pm As someone who lives in Tucson and loves good real authentic Mexican food...I still love Taco Bell too. It has its place.

To each his own. I can even conceive of that place. To me the place for Taco Bowel is the toilet bowl.

84Cat wrote: ↑Fri May 21, 2021 12:24 pm Taco Bell sucks. Whenever I go there, it causes me digestive distress. I think I went last in Utah when nothing else was open. I regretted it as soon as I took 2 bites. Growing up in Tucson, El Taco was the place to go for fast Mexican. I remember the 1st time I ate a burrito there, I thought I died and went to heaven

Recently had Chula Vista beef tongue tacos that gave me a mouthgasm.

Spaceman Spiff · Post by **Spaceman Spiff** » Fri May 21, 2021 2:20 pm

dovecanyoncat wrote: ↑Fri May 21, 2021 2:03 pm
Spaceman Spiff wrote: ↑Fri May 21, 2021 11:41 am I tried a Mexican food restaurant in Cannon Beach, OR in 2014 and it was the most confusing thing.
My personal success rate with Mexican seafood is iffy at best. I don't enjoy the Veracruz style, it's much too acidic and gloppy. Ceviche generally succeeds even down to the barest minimal amount of curing.

It wasn't even seafood. It was pretty standard tacos, enchiladas, burritos with some fish but mostly meat.

It really staggered me. How do you make basic red chile enchilada sauce flavorless? The salsa was almost like ketchup with onions.

Like I could sort of wrap my mind around how someone might mess up the subtler flavors of meats, but the things that you'd think would be impossible to avoid flavor in were bland. I had a burrito enchilada style and the red chile sauce was nothing. Simple canned El Pato would have had 3x the flavor.

We're going again in a few weeks and there's a new Mexican place. I don't know whether to try it or not.

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