A lot of new eateries and bars have opened in the Old Pueblo in 2018.
Here's a list of some of the notable local spots to add to your must-try list.
Reporting by Andi Berlin, Cathalena E. Burch and Gerald Gay.
A new Korean barbecue restaurant, 7 Ounce Korean Steakhouse, opened July 5 in the former home of Sir Veza’s Taco Garage on East Speedway. You cook your meat on a tableside grill.
7 Ounce Korean Steakhouse opened on July 5 at the former Sir Veza's location.
The menu for 7 Ounce, where you cook your meat on a tableside grill, includes everything from ribeyes to short ribs, pork belly to chicken bulgogi, baby octopus to fresh shrimp and lobster, and surf and turf combo platters that serve two.
A familiar face has taken over the kitchen in the Hilton East's gourmet Italian venture Alloro D.O.C. Chef Virgina "Ginny" Wooters of The Abbey is now at the helm, and is putting her signature panache into the modern Italian classics like high-quality steaks and fresh pasta. At the grand opening, chefs mixed up some Fettuccine Alfredo inside a giant wheel of Parmigiano Reggiano, so let's hope for similar theatrics in the future.
American Eat Co., which opened April 3, is already expanding the culinary horizons of South Fourth Avenue, a stretch of South Tucson ruled by its popular Mexican food offerings.
The new concept, which opened in what had long been the American Meat Company, sports six restaurants with cuisine ranging from ribs to poke and sliders.
There's a beer and wine bar with the latest craft selections, a coffee shop and even a butcher. Sit at a communal table or cozy up in one of the booths available in the dining area.
The piña loca, $10.25, is best shared. There's enough fruit stuffed in there for three people.
The new concept where the UA's beloved Irish bar once stood is called Americano Mexicano, and it's quite an ambitious project. Food truck owner/local insurance agent David Pena wanted to take all delicious beach foods you eat in place like Rocky Point, and put them under one roof.
The menu has nachos and burros, but it also has mariscos and molcajete stone bowls like they do at Guadalajara Grill. And on the sweet side, they've got all the familiar raspados joint staples like aguas frescas and chile-laced fruits. And of course there's the bar. Ohhh, there's the bar.
Jeanne and Pete Snell at Arizona Wine Collective, where the Pour Decisions fun run/walk will start and finish. Check out the cool logo on Pet's shirt!
In early February, St. Philip's Plaza added a new wine bar that focuses on wines from across this great state. Arizona Wine Collective is owned by Jeanne and Pete Snell, who cut his teeth working at the tasting room at Sonoita's Callaghan Vineyards.
The cozy spot in the former Scordato's Pizzeria has eight wine taps, six beer taps and bottles from 11 different local wineries.
The carne frita combo plate, $9.50, at Asian Sofrito with fried rice upgraded with "amarillo" sweet fried plantains for an extra $2.50, with an order of yuca on the side.
At Asian Sofrito, you can order a plate of General Tso's Chicken with a side of syrupy sweet plantains. The Caribbean Chinese fusion restaurant opened in the former home of Wild Garlic Grill on First Avenue, and has been serving the the local clientele who crave Puerto Rican dishes like mofongo and fried chicken masita. Two thirds of the menu is Chinese takeout, and they make a mean plate of barbecue pork lo mein.
The B9 at Beaut Burger is 100 percent vegan with roasted eggplant, housemade mozzarella cheese and a pumpkin seed pesto.
Beaut Burger is breaking a whole lotta boundaries from its little kitchen inside a repurposed shipping container. This new westside concept specializes in vegan burgers, making everything in-house, from the patty to the slow-fermented English muffin bun. (Gluten free options available!)
The plant-based restaurant is the culinary anchor at the Mercado San Agustin's new hyper-local upscale shopping center, the MSA Annex. The spacious lot west of the freeway has a minimalist vibe to it, embracing rustic browns and desert aesthetics you wouldn't think of when you hear the words "shipping container.
On the left there's the Summit Bowl with chocolate, peanut butter and more. The bowl on the right is called Maui Wowie, and has pineapple, cashews and honey.
Is it breakfast? Lunch? Or something in between ... Acaí bowls are everything you want them to be, and now you can grab them downtown thanks to this new family-run shop that opened in mid-January downtown.
In addition to the colorful acaí smoothie bowls you've probably seen all over Instagram, Berry Divine also makes its own soft-serve sorbet out of the frozen berries it imports from Brazil.
Kade Mislinksi is at it again with what he says is his final restaurant, Besties Fish and Burger. The midtown joint pays homage to the titans of fast food in what he calls "Long John Silver's meets White Castle." The specialty here is steamed burgers like they have back east in Connecticut, where Kade spent summers as a kid. Pair that with some French fries, hush puppies and battered fish and you've got the restaurant's signature combo, the BFF.
The Bombo Combo, $8.35 at Bombolé with rice, Honduran cabbage salad and curried lentils.
You can smell the Indian food as you're walking down Stone Avenue. The rich scent of toasted spices only gets stronger as you step through the doors of the Pioneer building, into a small room with rows of baked goods on display.
At first glance Bombolé seems like it might be an Indian bakery of some sort, but those aren't samosas on the counter. They're empanadas, though not the sweet kind you might see at a Mexican panaderia. This new lunch spot fills its moon-shaped turnovers with Indian curries like butter chicken and the spiced potato aloo matar.
Deli sandwiches, not unlike this corned beef sandwich, will be served at Cans Deli.
The owner of TallBoys on North Fourth Avenue has cooked up a new restaurant concept in the old home of U.S. Fries down the street.
In early May, Ben Schneider along with his friends and business partners, Parker Arriaga, Frank Bair, Gabe Rozzell and Simone Stopford, plan to launched the downtown concept.
The restaurant serves meaty sandwiches (pastrami, corned beef, turkey), salads, latkes, some Middle Eastern fare and soups, including Cans’ own take on traditional matzo ball soup.
Also, since Schneider is a long-time musician, expect there to be lots of live music.
Caps & Corks may be the only place in town where you can get a Planet Persica sour farmhouse IPA, $6, from Arizona Wilderness up in Gilbert.
The craft beer scene is going strong up in Marana with the opening of Caps & Corks in the Sprouts shopping center of Orange Grove near the I-10 freeway. The vibe here is similar to a Tap & Bottle with a little homey charm mixed in. (The owners are originally from Bisbee.) On a recent visit, the 25-strong taplist included a healthy selection of Arizona Wilderness beers out of Gilbert, which are hard to find down in the Old Pueblo.
Syrian pastries, clockwise from top: baklava, the cheese pastry kunafa with light cream, mammoul cookie, namoura semolina cake and a burma pistachio log in the middle.
The midtown shop formerly occupied by Za'atar has been taken over by the neighboring Caravan Market, who developed a Mediterranean lunch menu with various falafel plates, gyros and chicken shawarma.
Caravan Grill still has its beautiful stone oven, which produces Iraqi Samoun breads as well as delicate Syrian pastries.
Thirty-five beers will be on tap at the new pub in Marana’s Continental Ranch neighborhood.
Owner Kyle Schwab was instrumental three years ago in launching the Casa Film Bar.
Marana’s newest homage to craft beer started pouring in June.
Casa Marana Craft Beer + Wine, 8225 N. Courtney Page Way off Interstate 10 and North Cortaro Road, has 35 brews on tap alongside a trio of wines.
The cooler is filled with 480 varieties of canned and bottled craft beers and 50 wines for package sales.
The Chocolate Iguana moved into the original location of Lindy's on Fourth last Wednesday.
After losing its home of 28 years, The Chocolate Iguana has reopened on Fourth Avenue, less than a block from its original spot. With its crisp new paint job and colorful candy jars, it's hard to believe the space used to serve three-pound hamburgers.
A partnership with Lindy's on Fourth owner Shannon Cronin saved the Fourth Avenue candy shop about a week before they were forced out by their landlord, said chocolate Iguana co-owner Alexya Simpson. After vacating March 31, the candy shop reopened inside the original Lindy's location at 431 N. Fourth Ave. in late May.
The Cobra Arcade Bar in Phoenix.
Phoenix-based Cobra Arcade Bar officially opened Friday, June 29.
The bar, which pairs classic and hard-to-find arcade games with alcoholic beverages, inhabits the 5,000 square feet of space at 63 E. Congress that was once home to JunXion Bar at the Congress and North Scott Avenue intersection.
More than 50 arcade games and pinball machines are spread across two levels, Cobra’s regional manager Topher Bray said in an interview in April, including titles such as Street Fighter II, Mortal Kombat, NBA Jam, Galaga and Frogger.
Travis Miller sets up chairs at Craft, A Modern Drinkery. With no restaurant element at the taproom, food trucks will be invited to park in front of the building.
The guys from Serial Grillers are on a roll, opening their latest concept Craft, A Modern Drinkery this October. The taproom is located in the former Terry and Zeke's on Speedway and Swan. Unlike its sister restaurants, Craft is solely a bar with 45 beers on tap, plus 200 in bottles or cans. The redesigned space has consoles with classic video games for customers to play while they drink.
Bye bye steak and spaghetti ... Hello Miller High Life?!
The District Tavern is back! But this new Stone Avenue iteration has a pretty different vibe than the beloved downtown bar. It's in the former home of Classic Steakhouse, for one, which gives it more of a Western feel. They also have food now, but it's a small menu of sandwiches, quiches, whiskey ginger cookies and breakfast egg plates all day. In the evenings the space becomes an 18+ hangout with a full bar, including your favorite "special" of Miller High Life and Old Crow whiskey.
Dutch Bros. Coffee is hosting a grand opening Tuesday, Oct. 9, for its shop at South Wilmot Road and East Broadway.
In September, all the buzz was over Dutch Bros. The Oregon-based coffee joint opened its first Tucson location this month in a Broadway lot that used to house a Mimi's Cafe.
Noble Hops is open at the center of Tucson International Airport’s ticketing level, before passengers go through security.
A second outpost of Beyond Bread opened in mid-March at Tucson International Airport, one of four new restaurants added to the culinary lineup of the airport’s $28 million “A Brighter TUS” project.
The second Beyond Bread is along Concourse B, which also welcomed Bruegger’s Bagels and Built Custom Burgers — two of three national chains coming to the airport; Dunkin’ Donuts is in the wings — and El Charro Cafe, making its return to the airport after a 20-year absence.
The Tostada El Patron, $23.99, is a tower of abalone, octopus, crab, shrimp and more paired with a snail and an oyster shot.
There's a new bar and grill next door to Rollie's Mexican Patio on South Twelfth Avenue. The space used to be a Mr. Baja Fish, but now it's El Patron Bar and Grill which serves a wide range of Jalisco-style meat and mariscos dishes, with an emphasis on the bar and live mariachi. The restaurant is part of the Taco Giro name, but these guys do delivery within a square mile of the restaurant.
The house ramen from Fat Noodle food truck with house-made noodles, 10-hour broth, shiitake mushrooms, smoked pork, "fat" slaw, "fat" sauce, dashi and green onions.
After four years serving Tucson as a truck, this ramen operation is going brick and mortar. Fat Noodle's new space on First and Wetmore was designed by restaurant consultant John Foster, and features an industrial look with lush wooden counters and tables. In addition to the ramen selections, Fat Noodle goes hard on the fusion with ramen burgers, sashimi sandwiches and even poke bowls.
The iced mocha at Halfwheel had a nice chocolaty touch, but wasn't overly sweet.
This new coffee counter, which opened in March, is actually part of a bike shop called Re-Cycle, which recently took up residence in a former Bernie Sanders campaign office.
Halfwheel serves Exo Roast coffee and La Estrella Bakery pastries in a bright but homey space on Sixth and Campbell.
Peak around the corner and you'll see a full-service bike shop flanking the back of the store.
A brewery years in the making, Harbottle launched in early February and is the last new brewery on the books slated to open in 2018 (not counting the Borderlands/Sentinel Peak collaborative effort known as Voltron Brewing).
The brewery can be found in a strip mall on the southwest corner of East Ajo Way and South Palo Verde, next to Chopstix Chinese restaurant. It is a short drive from the cluster of breweries that reside on and around East 44th Street, including Copper Mine Brewing, Green Feet Brewing, Nimbus and, for a little while longer, 1055 Brewing.
Michael Figueira, Andy Shlicker, two figures of note on the local craft beer scene, are the brains behind the operation and run a tight ship with a casual atmosphere.
Play a round of shuffleboard between pints, or watch the bustle of traffic roll by on Ajo with friends.
Sixteen ounce cold brew at Hermosa Coffee, $4. Note to self, drink coffee next time before attempting to take pictures of coffee.
This local coffee roaster now has a storefront at the shipping container shopping center MSA Annex, where it sells its beans as well as an interesting selection of espresso drinks. I got down on some cold brew — you may recognize the flavor from one of Hermosa's wholesale clients The Cup Cafe — but next time I'm going back for a Shakerato with espresso and simple syrup that's shaken like a cocktail. Hermosa is more of a stand than a place to hang out, but you can grab some joe before you head over to the Why I Love Where I Live store.
Poke bowl with salmon, yellowtail and every topping for $9.75 at Hoki Poki.
This shop from Bin An that opened in the end of April lets you choose your own poke destiny.
Hoki Poki's bowls are more substantial than An's downtown venue MiAn Sushi, because you can pile on ingredients like spicy tuna, seaweed salad, mandarin oranges and more.
Indian Twist, in the space that formerly housed Twisted Tandoor, offers a $10.95 lunch buffet.
Open since early January, Indian Twist replaced the short-lived Twisted Tandoor on East Camp Lowell Drive.
The restaurant, affiliated with JAM Culinary Concepts, is run by Jimmy Aujla, who got his start in Indian cuisine in the mid-1990s, working for his family's eatery in Washington state.
Indian Twist has a daily lunch buffet and a bar that includes beers from India.
Insomnia Cookies is entering the Tucson market and will offer delivery of warm cookies and optional milk until 3 a.m.
College students with the midnight munchies have another place to score sweet treats, thanks to the opening of Insomnia Cookies on East Congress Street.
The cookie-delivery spot is located next to Hi Fi Kitchen & Cocktails and is open until 3 a.m., if you are up that late studying (and we are sure that's exactly what you are doing.)
The chain started at the University of Pennsylvania in 2003 and now has more than 100 shops throughout the country.
The Tucson Cookie Co. on East Sixth Street also delivers.
A coconut citrus popsicle made with orange, lemon and coconut ($3) at Isabella’s Ice Cream.
Isabella’s Ice Cream was set to open its third location on Wednesday at the MSA Annex downtown, the shipping container sidebar to the popular Mercado San Agustin on West Congress Street.
The shop is one of the final tenants of the Annex, a hyperlocal upscale retail center that opened in May next door to the Mercado.
One of the first businesses to open in the Annex was Kerry Lane’s Beaut Burger, a vegan burger joint that she and her husband, Ari Shapiro, have been working on for several years.
Customers at Izumi Japanese restaurant, 3655 E. Speedway, are limited to one serving of oysters and crab legs.
Izumi, which opened in March in an old Denny's on East Speedway, kicks the Asian buffet concept up a notch with crab legs and oysters on the menu, in addition to the usual mix of chicken, pork, beef and veggie dishes.
The fancier offerings up the price of admission to $25 per person, which will also get you all-you-can-eat access to sushi rolls, nigiri and yummy ramen.
Izumi fills a void in midtown, says owner William Cheung, who owns Hana Tokyo on South Calle Santa Cruz and Wok and Roll Asian Buffet on Wes Ina Road.
“It’s just a good location on Speedway. I think they’re lacking,” Cheung said.
The Beet It has fresh beet juice, cucumber, carrots, ginger and more at Juice Envy, 1980 W. Orange Grove Road.
Next time you're making a noodle run, check out the spot next door for some healthy juices and smoothies. Juice Envy opened in July inside the Orange Grove shopping center anchored by Lee Lee International Supermarket.
Formerly a Subway, the space is now owned by Tucsonan K.C. Roff and managed by his daughter Kandice Roff, who developed the menu herself.
"I know a lot of people doing yogurts and added sugar concentrate," she said. "I wanted to be so different — completely fresh — where the customers can see us make everything right in front of them."
Waitress Christy Watson chats with Jeff Chilson, right, as he waits for his order at the newly opened Just Breakfast, 8579 N. Silverbell Road. The owners of the adjacent Home Plate restaurant and sports bar run Just Breakfast.
The popular Home Plate restaurant and sports bar in Marana opened a breakfast spot in mid-February.
The idea is that it serves, as its name implies, just breakfast — omelettes, eggs, pancakes, waffles and breakfast sandwiches with nothing priced over $10 — and leave the lunch and dinner to Home Plate.
Kiss of Smoke BBQ is tucked back on Plumer next to the coolest dive bar ever The Silver Room.
Tucked back into a residential neighborhood south of Broadway, Kiss of Smoke serves wood-fired barbecue dishes like pulled pork and mesquite-smoked chicken.
Brandi Romero and her family originally started out as a competition barbecue team, but transitioned into a popular food truck and now a brick and mortar restaurant.
Kogi Korean BBQ opened in June is in the space that was once Seoul Kitchen at 4951 N. Grant Road.
Seoul Kitchen, meanwhile, moved to 6255 E. Golf Links Road, where it's becoming popular for its daily lunch buffet.
Torito taco at La Botana featuring a bacon-wrapped chile stuffed with cheese and shrimp.
You may have bonded with La Botana's giant micheladas and fun toritos chile tacos. Well now you can hit them up on Grant and Craycroft as well. The Mexican bar and restaurant recently opened a second location in that Ross shopping center. (You know the one with like nothing in it.) Expect the same fun atmosphere as the First and Fort Lowell location.
The new location for Le Cave’s Bakery is a former Jack in the Box at 3950 E. 22nd St.
After more than 80 years in business, Le Cave's Bakery is leaving Tucson's south side and will move into a building known for serving up burgers and fries.
The new owners of the longtime Tucson institution are remodeling the former Jack in the Box building at 3950 E. 22nd St., near South Alvernon Way, and hope to open by early fall.
“We are really excited to continue on the legacy and keep that going in the community," said Naomi Pershing, who with her husband Chris bought Le Cave's several months ago from owner Rudy Molina Jr.
Lindy's Off Fourth is roomy for its industrial vibe, with that characteristic local art all over the walls.
East-side residents can now get their Blue Suede Cows without having to travel to Fourth Avenue.
Lindy's opened a second location on Tanque Verde in April in the former home of Great American Steakburger.
The "offbeat" burger menu remains the same, but the space is substantially bigger and roomier, and sports a full bar area with eight beers on tap.
Mediterranean cooking inspires the maftoul salad, $9, and the radish toast, $7, with za'atar and labneh yogurt.
Monsoon chocolate, located on East 22nd Street, opened in May in the spot of the former La Buena Mexican Food.
They have an array of chocolate beauties that are locally made in Tucson, including some made with local chiltepin and Whiskey del Bac. But don't let the name fool you: it's not just a fancy chocolate cafe.
The menu has a hodgepodge of trendy California cafe foods and nouveau Mediterranean, like from the vibrant pages of an Ottolenghi cookbook. There's smoked avocado toast that's littered with lots of funky pickled fennel (as if it's a challenge). And then you see Mediterranean yogurt all over the place, like in the radish toast that's studded with beautiful purple cornflowers.
La Encantada's newest food spot Nekter serves Brazilian acaí bowls like the mango bowl (left) and the peanut butter bowl.
A juice bar just opened this week next to the Apple Store at La Encantada mall. Nekter is a California chain that serves cold-pressed juices, healthy smoothies, acai bowls and gourmet soft serves with mostly vegan ingredients. My menu favorite was the Green Apple Detox juice with cucumbers, lemon, kale, fennel and ginger. It wasn't too sweet; mostly tart and spicy with a fresh taste from the cucumber.
Halo Halo, $4.50, at Nick's Sari-Sari Store .. Wow that's a mouthful. This shaved ice has fruit jellies and purple yam ice cream.
As of April, this Filipino market now has a separate cafe with buffet-style dishes at the front counter.
Nick's Sari Sari Store is doing all the specialties like lumpia egg rolls, pork adobo and crunchy sisig, and maybe most importantly, Halo Halo, which is shaved ice with fruit jellies and purple yam ice cream.
Butterfly Pea Tea, $3.95, at Nomico Healthy Dessert, made from the Butterfly Pea flower.
At Nomico you'll find some Instagrammable street food, like "bubble waffles" and raindrop cakes.
But at the healthy dessert spot that opened in January, you'll also find some very unique offerings like butterfly tea and, wait for it ... cheese tea?!
It's a franchise store that originated in Hong Kong, and the only location in the United States is this one in the Old Pueblo.
The Taiwan beef soup has fatty chunks of roast in a lighter beef broth with housemade wheat noodles, $11.
Noodleholics opened in midtown Tucson toward the end of April.
The restaurant is bringing homemade noodles and regional Chinese flavors to Tucson, and it's doing it in a contemporary but casual atmosphere on Grant Road.
Despite its humble Grant Road location, Noodleholics feels like some place you'd see in suburban Los Angeles, food writer Andi Berlin writes.
The trendy clipboard menu is made up almost completely of noodles, mostly from Guilin and surrounding region of southern China.
Persian Room is expected to open a Marana outpost of the longtime Scottsdale restaurant in early June. The restaurant specializes in kebabs and other Middle Eastern and Persian dishes like this beef koofteh kebabs.
The northwest side is about to get its first Persian restaurant that will insert itself into a culinary landscape dominated by fast-causal chain restaurants, mom-and-pop Mexican and pizza joints and one of Tucson’s oldest steakhouses.
Persian Room, a sprawling 5,600-square-foot restaurant that will seat as many as 175, is expected to open in early June at 9290 N. Thornydale Road, about a quarter mile from Cortaro Farms Road. It’s the second outpost for the upscale Scottsdale-based Persian eatery, whose menu includes various kabab entrees in beef, lamb and chicken ranging from $13 to $15.
Tucson has no shortage of pizza places, even on the east side where culinary options — while not completely absent — fall way behind the vibrant food districts that surround downtown.
Pizza Luna, one of east Tucson's newest pizza spots, replaces Cup it Up's original location in the Trader Joe's shopping center, at 1101 N. Wilmot Road.
They serve what's called "neo-Neapolitan" pizza, according to This is Tucson's Andi Berlin.
"The dough here is cold fermented for 72 hours, which is a pivotal step in creating that perfect pizza crust with a slightly sour flavor," Berlin said in her story about Luna. "If this restaurant has any funk, you're gonna see it in the pizza itself as well as the interesting toppings; not necessarily in the atmosphere."
A bowl of pasta bolognese at Proof Artisanal Pizza & Pasta.
Grant Krueger, owner of Union Public House and Reforma Modern Mexican opened Proof in November.
“I personally always had a soft spot for pizza and pasta,” he says.
But before Reforma was Reforma, the building was home to Italian restaurant Vivace, which has since moved three miles north to Campbell Avenue and Sunrise Drive.
Since then, Krueger said Italian fare has been missing in the area.
“We think Proof fills a void at River and Campbell,” he says.
Among the menu items are pizza, pasta, bruschetta, salad and soup. Nearly everything is made from scratch, Krueger says. There are also gluten-free and vegan cheese options.
Tucson's first official Eritrean restaurant launched in February on Grant Road near North Craycroft, across town from the Ethiopian restaurants with which it shares many of its traditional dishes (Eritrea and Ethiopia share a border on the horn of Africa.)
Expect the types of plates that you might find at places such as Zemam's and Café Desta, with "Eritrean style" twists.
Miso ramen, $11, came with a healthy serving of plump corn, as well as seaweed and chashu pork.
There's a universe of ramen to explore at Tucson's first ramen house — that's if you can get a table.
Even though this specialty ramen spot opened in January, oftentimes there are still lines around dinner time to get a seat at this restaurant.
With nine varieties of ramen on the menu including white miso and black roasted garlic tonkotsu, it's easy to see why Raijin has become a hit.
Breakfast burritos downtown! Raptor Canyon Cafe's Southwest breakfast burrito, $7, comes with green chile, chorizo and avocado.
The vacant Veg in a Box restaurant on Pennington is now a homey breakfast and lunch cafe. Raptor Canyon Cafe did a brisk lunch business on my recent visit, and seems to be popular with the downtown business crowd. Order at the counter and they'll take the food out to your booth: There's a decent selection of breakfast sandwiches with housemade biscuits, but I got a breakfast burrito. They also do sandwiches and salads, plus diner entrees like mini meatloaf, angel hair pasta and fish tacos. Check out the front counter for some baked goods, like the peanut buttery Raptor Tracks.
Avocado toast with cream cheese and a poached egg, and a cold brew coffee from Ren Coffeehouse.
Another coffee shop has opened its doors at St. Philip's plaza.
Ren Coffeehouse also has a lunch menu of paninis, simple salads and a gorgeous avocado toast with perfectly poached egg on Barrio Bread.
While we have yet to see how the outdoor dining experience known as Rollies will fare in the intense summer heat, the brand new restaurant on South 12th Avenue has been downright pleasant in its first few months in business.
Rollies sports a casual patio atmosphere and a menu that includes rolled tacos, vegetarian tortas, flat enchiladas and ice cream sandwiches using conchas (Mexican sweet bread). And OK it technically opened days before 2018, but we're including it in our list.
Its unique approach to popular Mexican dishes separates it from the sea of Mexican restaurants on Tucson's south side.
Serial Grillers, home of over-the-top yummy burgers and sandwiches, will open its third location on Sept. 21.
Rita Ranch was abuzz in September with the opening of Serial Grillers' third location on Houghton Road. On one evening, the former Chuy's Mesquite Broiler was packed with locals ordering serial-killer themed pizzas like the Bone Collector with boneless wings, ranch and buffalo sauce. The sprawling space is three times the size of the Speedway location, and has a taplist of more than 50 craft beers.
Series 19 is primarily a cocktail bar, with not a beer in sight.
Downtown Tucson's newest cocktail bar Series 19 pours local spirits from across Arizona. It's an offshoot of Three Wells Distilling Company, which produces prickly pear spirits and more from a warehouse on Tucson's south side. The cocktail menu showcases the Three Wells line, which now includes two gins, agave spirits, vodka and even bourbon. We enjoyed the Sonoran Margarita on a recent visit.
Pulled pork is a specialty at Smokey Mo, a new Kansas City-style barbecue restaurant at 2650 N. First Ave.
A Kansas City-style barbecue restaurant is breathing life into the former Shari’s Drive-In on North First Avenue.
Smokey Mo, a smoked meats and barbecue concept that also serves burgers, opened in mid-July in the old building that had been boarded up since Shari’s closed in July 2008.
“It’s all about smoked meats,” said owner Telahoun Molla.
Tamarind just opened in the former home of The Lodge Sasquatch Kitchen at the Foothills Mall.
An Indian food restaurant has recently opened up its doors at the Foothills Mall.
Tamarind has a large menu of dishes from all over India, including the burrito-like kati rolls and a whole category of "Mystic Masalas." Oh, and most importantly, they have a lunch buffet.
You may remember Taqueria El Semental as the bull-themed taco truck that set up in front of The Hut on weekends. One of Fourth Avenue's most popular late night options finally has a permanent home just down the street, on the northwest corner of Fourth and the underpass. It's still a taco truck, but now there's a fancy hay bale setup where you can chill out and eat your footlong Sonoran dog. (Judging by this picture of course.)
Los Chipilones is part restaurant/part outdoor taco stand.
Los Chipilones is a southside taco stand that was built on the former site of a Viking Car Wash. (Check out the car-themed street art behind the building.) It's owned by the same people as the Chipilones Sonoran hot dog stand next door, but this joint specializes in beef birria, which you can get in a taco, stuffed into a cheesy caramelo or as a soup. The menu here is rather simple, but they do make their own horchata, and the corn tortillas don't seem to come from a machine either.
From left: the sweet Italian sausage with peppers and onions, $8, and the bison sausage with white barbecue sauce, $12.
John Paul “JP” Vyborny and his partner in all things brew Chris Squires are calling their new downtown digs a beer hall.
Seating at Ten 55 Brewing and Sausage House, 110 E. Congress St., will be communal at big tables spread throughout and the kitchen, helmed by Ivor Cryderman, serves up a menu of locally crafted sausages and Belgian fries.
The Chain Buffalo Spot opened on N. Tyndall Ave. near the University of Arizona.
A California-based chicken-and-ribs chain has opened its first spot in Tucson, launching in the former home of Cup It Up near the University of Arizona.
The Buffalo Spot, at 760 N. Tyndall Ave., started in Long Beach, California, in 2013 and has locations throughout Southern California, with one in Georgia and one in Phoenix, that opened last summer.
Buffalo Spot’s menu includes Kansas City-style ribs, traditional and boneless wings, and the chain’s signature Buffalo fries, which appears to be a pile of fries topped with a pile of chicken, covered in a wing sauce of your choosing.
RJ's Replays on Speedway was one of two local businesses featured on a TV show called "Bar Rescue," where a "nightlift expert" goes full-Gordon Ramsay on a failing bar.
The episode hasn't come out yet, but the joint is already sporting a new name, The Frozen Cactus Ice Bar and Flame Grill.
The sign for The Hidden Grill is still in progress. But the food is ready!
The Hidden Grill prepares grab-and-go meals that are geared toward paleo diets, heavy on the meat and vegetables. The menu changes every week, but a recent selection included dishes like grilled chicken in a coconut buffalo sauce, blackened whitefish with honey-cured bacon, boneless pork chop with vegetables and more. You can also sign up for meal plans where they give you two meals a day for three or five days in a row, lowering the cost to about $10 per meal.
Owner/chef John Martinez, left, and general manager Tatiana Devere quietly opened the Tito & Pep restaurant on Tuesday night. The opening gave his staff a chance “to get their legs underneath them,” Martinez said.
John Martinez spent a decade cooking for one of the world's most famous chefs, but now he's returned to Tucson to open his own restaurant. The gourmet chef quietly opened the doors of Tito and Pep this week in the classic Speedway space that housed Zayna Mediterranean and Feast.
The midtown bistro feels extremely well-put together for somebody's first restaurant, but that's because Martinez has experience opening high-profile concepts around the western hemisphere. After getting his start as a dishwasher in downtown Tucson at the age of 19, Martinez moved to New York to work for renowned chef Jean-Georges Vongerichten.
Westbound has four cocktails on tap, like the rum-based Punch Drunk Love (left for $7) and the gin-based Orange Cucumber Rhumba ($8).
Westbound is the first food and drink concept to open at the MSA Annex, a shipping container shopping center just east of the Mercado San Agustin. (The other food concepts are still a few weeks out.) The folks at Tap + Bottle have brought in a taplist of 20 different beers, eight wines and four batch-made cocktails. (Try the gin-based Orange Cucumber Rhumba with spicy dehydrated cucumbers.) The mostly outdoor concept does have air conditioning and plenty of shade, plus a small bottle room at the front.
Toothpick lamb at Years Asian Bistro, $12.99, features deep-fried lamb bits that are also stir-fried with dried chiles and spices.
Years Asian Bistro isn't necessarily a Chinese restaurant; The menu has Japanese yakitori skewers, Korean fried chicken and all manner of Asian specialties. But the Chinese dishes here really shine ... quite literally in fact, if you order the grilled fish hot pot which comes on a sprawling silver chafer platter. The house special contains an entire fish surrounded by lotus roots, mushrooms and other veggies in a spicy red sauce. We opted for a bowl of Shanghai Granny's Noodles and some spicy toothpick lamb, where every meaty bite is skewered on individual toothpicks. Don't eat the chiles, they're dried!
We added potatoes and vermicelli noodles at $1.99 each to our boiling platter of grilled medaka fish, $29.99. It also came with lots of bean sprouts and celery.
Yu Zi Wei is the latest fun place to open during a spectacular year for regional Chinese food. With minimal online presence and a unique menu of spicy Chongqing dishes, the restaurant is a little less approachable and a little more awesome. Everyone here is coming for the sizzling fish platter, but you can make a wonderful meal out of appetizers and entrees like mapo tofu and pork ribs in griddle pot. Definitely check out our guide before you go. It'll help a lot.
For Fat Noodle, opening a brick-and-mortar has been nearly two years in the making.
The move makes it easier for folks attending downtown performances.
Ten55 Brewing is taking its beer to the next level with the grand opening of its brand new taproom and sausage house downtown this Saturday.
The north side Hawaiian restaurant will serve popular Samurai soft serve Hawaiian ice cream.
The menu at Sir Veza's Kitchen & Kantina is largely the same, but the attitude has shifted to fast-casual.
Offering free drinks during grand opening Oct. 9.
Café Marcel creperie at 2281 N. Oracle Road is under new management, with an expanded menu that includes, among other things, liquor-infused c…
Restaurant next door to Charro Steak is family's foray into seafood.
The food that is often associated with broke college students has escaped the cellophane package and become sophisticated fare at more Tucson restaurants.
He's made big waves from his flagship Tucson restaurant to our nation's capital and back home again.
Just in case you don't have a winning lottery ticket tonight and won't become a billionaire by tomorrow, at least you can get a free slice of pizza.
Restaurant features mesquite wood-fired meat, vegetables and seafood.
Changes are being made to the plaza's courtyard as a new Italian restaurant opens.
Trail Dust Town location has a more efficient kitchen setup which will reduce wait times, owner has said.
Pizzeria near UA borrows template of Trident Grill to create sports bar atmosphere.
Fifteen eating establishments failed April inspections by the Pima County Health Department. Eleven passed follow-up inspections and four are …
Last-ditch effort to bring in investors fell through.
Prep & Pastry, Boca Tacos and 47 Scott were dubbed as the must-try spots in the Old Pueblo
Casa Marana Craft Beer + Wine joins a handful of beer-centric ventures on northwest side.
Tucson’s demographics appealed to the company, which is marking its first venture into Arizona.
Live night of storytelling at the Mercado San Agustin will explore Tucson's diverse and vibrant food culture
The popular reality TV show is filming at a longtime bar on the city's southwest side, just days after working on the now-renamed RJ's Replays in midtown.
Born of a food truck, the serial killer-inspired sandwiches and pizza restaurant has a wide following.
Tucson Mall restaurant has been opened just over 13 months.
Michael Grandner will study how social, behavioral and environmental factors affect sleep along the U.S.-Mexico border, and how poor sleep affects health among the community.
It's still too early to tell what kind of effect the movement will have on 2018 races in Arizona.
Trump made the comment at a White House meeting Wednesday with local leaders from California who oppose the state's immigration policies and who applauded his administration's hard-line efforts.
Tucson police hosted a "press conference" to try to put the Yanny vs. Laurel debate to rest
The owners of Arte de la Vida and Galería Senita are seeking artists to help create a Tucson-themed deck of Lotería cards, the colorful game o…
Sen. John McCain ends a documentary about his life to send the message that Washington is not giving the American people the government they deserve.
The body of 65-year-old Sachiko McClurg has not been found.
A California-based chicken-and-ribs chain has opened its first spot in Tucson, launching in the former home of Cup It Up near the University o…
I know, I know. Why would you want to sit on a patio in 110-degree weather?
We brag about it in the winter. We send photos of Tucson's spectacular sunsets to our relatives in other states. But Tucson has a few irritati…
If your spooky side is longing for something Halloween-esque in the midst of summer, Colossal Cave has you covered.
List is a blend of old and new spots.
Persian Room joins Indian restaurants on the northwest side.
Six people have been arrested in connection with a violent home invasion at a Tucson apartment Thursday night, Tucson police say.
Leavengood's guide has lured people to Tucson-area trails since its first publication in 1991.
Col. Scott Campbell will pass D-M leadership to Col. Mike Drowley on June 29.
In praise of religion and science and Jefferson's big beautiful wall
A family is asking for the public’s help in locating a loved one whose fate remains unknown after she was kidnapped along with another family …
Star isn't reflecting Tucson's white diversity, he says.
Survey shows that many say they want to find cooler climes to escape the punishing summer months in Tucson.
The Flying Tigers were legendary for their bravery and their daring during World War II. In his book “The Flying Tigers,” Tucson native Samuel…
Several dozen volunteers from the VFW, American Legion, DAV, Elks, Boys and Girls Scouts and Citi place 6,000 US flags on veteran stones at Ev…
May our departed fighting kinsmen find everlasting, peace, concord and armistice as they rest.
A judge and attorneys for prisoners have complained that officials were dragging their feet in making the improvements they promised more than three years ago when settling a lawsuit that alleged inmates were getting shoddy health care.
Program will be in place when temperature goes over 102.
“It is really up to Kim Jong Un,” McSally said. "It is a matter whether he is going to keep playing games while his people suffer."
Rescue experts warn hikers of heat illness and offer protective advice.
Ducey's comments come as Diane Douglas, the state superintendent of public instruction, is proposing to eliminate multiple reference to evolution entirely from existing high school science standards
Dennis Miller is making the move from Los Angeles to Tucson.
MESA — The principal of the only junior high school in Arizona's largest district with a “D” grade from the state wonders why she is "given th…
The well-known doughnut shop went through months of health inspection troubles in 2017, even briefly shutting down last summer after a court order
ABC has cancelled its hit reboot of "Roseanne" following her racist tweet about former Obama adviser Valerie Jarrett.
More than 5,000 Tucsonans were without power on the southwest side Tuesday afternoon, according to the Tucson Electric Power website.
ORLANDO, Fla. — An Arizona man has been sentenced to three days in jail after deputies say he falsely told guests at a Walt Disney World resor…
The Bureau of Reclamation commissioner delivered a wake-up call that should move Tucson Water and its customers to act.
It all comes just in time for the midterm elections as Republicans and Democrats try to rally core voters by pointing fingers at one another.
Pima and Santa Cruz counties also have confirmed several rabies cases this year.
The state argued earlier this year the judge should disqualify himself because he was biased against prison officials.
Police believe the injury was "possibly self-inflicted and accidental."
Tucson police say they learned Daniel Atzman died May 22.
PRESCOTT — Authorities in Prescott, Arizona, say a single-engine plane reportedly running low on fuel crashed while making an emergency landin…
Neither speed nor impairment appear to be a factor in the crash.
Banner - University Medical Center Tucson needs the public's help in identifying an adult male patient.
A Texas school district has placed advertisements on Phoenix billboards in an attempt to recruit Arizona teachers to a city with higher pay.
We're not quite ready for the links, but maybe someday ...
The Yuma Republican said he filed more than 900 signatures to run in the state Senate primary in Legislative District 13.
WILLIAMS — Two orphaned bear cubs have been placed in the care of a wildlife rescue park near the Grand Canyon after their mother was euthanized.
DHS Secretary Kirstjen Nielsen will join U.S. Rep. Martha McSally in Nogales on Thursday to see one of the area's ports of entry.
Neither speed nor impairment appear to be a factor in the crash.
The UA jumped 23 spots in the latest rankings by the Center for World University Rankings to No. 52.
The suspects were arrested in a stolen vehicle.
The franchise operator said the Tucson store was not making enough money to justify being open.
Police are asking for the public's help in locating an armed man they say carjacked and robbed a US Bank in east Tucson.
What's better than free doughnuts? We say not much.
The community is invited to fete "Father Bob" Fuller at St. Frances Cabrini Catholic Church.
Southwest to add nonstop service six days a week to San Jose.
Some $50,000 in counterfeit currency was passed to at least 16 people during the federal probe.
The family's early detection of the fire saved them from injuries, authorities said.
"Newly hatched ducklings can't survive for more than 72 hours in a moderate to heavy chlorinated pool," Hammond said.
The work of local artist Chiara Bautista will play a role on the next leg of Metallica's ongoing WorldWired arena tour.
Tickets to Baez long gone; lineup includes Paul McCartney tribute show, return of legendary artists John Prine and Herb Alpert and the 25th anniversary tour of Melissa Etheridge's Grammy-winning, multiplatinum record "Yes I Am."
It could be late fall before the Mexican restaurant reopens; insurance still isn't settled.
You know the basics - raise your thermostat temp, use fans... here are seven things you might not know about saving energy in the summer.
The Tucson Border Patrol's emergency beacons have saved the lives of many people stranded in the Arizona desert.
The event will offer workshops on budgeting, credit repair and down payment assistance, and provide resources for current homeowners and new buyers.
Two of the three were pregnant. Three other recently born calves also died while awaiting release.
Emergency personnel from three agencies assisted in the rescue of the hiker.
They're surpassing expectations at school and in their communities while taking care of their dad — and each other.
The administration is falsely arguing that separating migrant children from their parents is a side-effect of enforcement, when it's actually a policy goal.
After a clash of interests stops Arizona water bills for this year, top legislators will try again in 2019.
'Bad Blood' by Wall Street Journal reporter John Carreyrou was released May 21.
Lasting solutions to the Central American migration dilemma will not come from building a higher wall or more prisons.
City Council should work with developer on Monastery project.
It's an important historic structure in Tucson.
The former secretary of state doubled-down on his earlier vow not to appoint Cindy McCain to fill any vacancy.
Several sites on Mount Lemmon are named for Carl E. Sollers, a forest ranger, search-and-rescue crew member and fire control officer.
Tucson’s rainy season officially starts June 15, which will be a welcome change for some residents
Charitable donations by Southern Arizona businesses and organizations.
Six people were killed in recent days by the man, authorities said on Monday.
A high of 110 degrees is possible by the end of the week.
A 37-year-old man was arrested six hours after damaging three businesses and being in a standoff with Tucson police officers Monday morning.
Georgia Tech University says that a law firm found no evidence of sexual misconduct.
No tickets left for fourth annual Pizza Throwdown that pits pizza maker against pizza maker to crown King of the Pie.
Long-term Navy contracts could be worth up to $850 million for Raytheon and Norwegian partner Kongsberg.
FLORENCE — An Arizona National Guard assault helicopter had a hard landing while conducting training in Florence, but authorities say no signi…
Online claims go viral on social media, feeding conspiracy theories across the country.
Water district seeking bids on power to pump Colorado River water.
The lot will be located on the northeast corner of Ajo Way and Country Club Road.
Had Bobby Kennedy lived, it is not hard to imagine the world as a much different, much better place.
The large-scale operation, assisted by aerial surveillance, is part of the Trump administration's increasing focus on employers that hire people in the country illegally.
During 15-year tenure, Balazs transformed the mostly volunteer ensemble into a respected regional orchestra.
Summer means a few things. It means hanging by the pool, the smell of sunscreen, and blazing 100+-degree weather every day. But it also means …
WASHINGTON — A West Wing aide who was dismissive of gravely ill Sen. John McCain during a closed-door meeting last month has left the White Ho…
Agent has been indicted on charges of striking the man, lying about incident.
The U.S. is bound by law to allow immigrants to pursue asylum claims without punishment or deportation. Yet we are subjecting them to both.
The haze obscured Tucson's mountain views, but brought something else into sight — pre-monsoon moisture buildup.
WASHINGTON — A West Wing aide who was dismissive of gravely ill Sen. John McCain during a closed-door meeting last month has left the White House.
PHOENIX — Hundreds of miners and their relatives will join leaders from the Navajo Nation, the Hopi Tribe and the United Mine Workers to rally…
Sen. Robert F. Kennedy made a stop in Tucson in March, 1968, during his campaign for president. He spoke to crowds at Tucson International Air…
MESA — Four Mesa police officers are on administrative leave following an incident last month in which a suspect was punched several times and…
Cloudy skies in Tucson today, but no chance of rain.
COLLEVILLE-SUR-MER, France — Families of fallen soldiers and dwindling numbers of veterans of the D-Day invasion gathered on the Normandy shor…
PHOENIX — The home of two homicide victims who police believe were killed by a man suspected in four other fatal shootings over the past week …
None of the employees at the Quik Mart were injured during the incident.
The community is without power and air conditioning as temperatures are currently over 100 degrees.
Santiago Diaz Jr.,54, was struck before 10 p.m. Monday
Defense attorney calls separations a "humanitarian crisis."
The government's key witness said she was asked to hire commission chairman's wife for $3,500 monthly pay.
Republican candidate for utility commission believes he lost race in 2014 because of anonymous funding to opponents.
Court proceedings are cancelled for the day, but limited walk-in services are available.
Monsoon activity isn't headed into Pima County just yet.
Police are looking for a 37-year-old man who left the scene before officers arrived.
The Phoenix anti-discrimination ordinance prohibits businesses from discriminating based on sexual orientation and gender identity.
Man is being held in jail without bond.
