This time of year, the University of Arizona is a ghost town - with really, really green grass.
And a Pinkberry.
It's actually kind of eerie to meander along the Mall with nary a cyclist whizzing past. All those lime-green rectangular boxes painted on the sidewalks with the word "look" (the o's are little eyeballs!) seem overly cautious, given the nonexistent traffic. You can even hear your own footsteps echoing down the dead Student Union Memorial Center hallways.
Won't be that way in another week or so. Students will be moving back; school starts Aug. 20 - and there goes all the parking.
Now's the time to visit the UA area.
Summer, as any Main Gate Square merchant'll tell ya, is slow, slow, slow. This year it's a triple whammy, what with the regular seasonal doldrums, the recession and the modern streetcar work that has University Boulevard chewed up, says Mort Edberg of Landmark Clothing, who's weathered 52 summers in the strip on University between Park and Euclid avenues.
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Half-off merchandise lining the patio is one reason to stop and shop. Another - "I keep it at 78," Edberg says of the inside temperature, which is absolutely blissful when you come in from outside.
Here are some highlights, from old favorites to new businesses, that have popped up around the hood. Check 'em out, but don't come too early - many businesses aren't open until 10 or 11 a.m.
Main Gate Square
• Landmark Clothing, 876 E. University Blvd., 622-3706, www.landmarkclothingandshoes.com online. The longtime store carries all the essentials in its charming, wood-floored, converted-house confines - clothes for guys and gals, backpacks, shades and pretty much any style of flip-flop you could ever want.
• Ooo!, 905 E University Blvd., 624-2241, ooooutsideofordinary.com online. All those o's stand for Outside of Ordinary, and we'd guess many students have been late for class after stopping in for just a quick look-see only to find an hour had passed. There's a lot to ooo - and aah - over in the eclectic store jampacked with housewares, clothes and tchotchkes.
• Posner's Art Store, 944 E. University Blvd., 622-3636, www.posnersartstore.com online. The 99-year-old store spent three days last week moving all its artistic wares into the new location, and was open for business, digging through boxes for people, as they set up shop, said Jenny Marshall, whose family owns the store. Posner's had been at 1025 N. Park Ave. since the 1970s, but had to move because a student-housing tower is going to be built at that spot.
• Scented Leaf Tea House + Lounge, 943 E. University Blvd., 624-2930, www.thescentedleaf.com online. This newcomer opened in July. Owner Shane Barela shuttered University Perfumes - toward the western end near Euclid Avenue - to open this cozy, high-ceilinged spot. Scented Leaf specializes in loose-leaf tea, served hot or cold. You can even order tea service - a teapot and cups on a tray - and have a grown-up tea party. The menu is full of comfort food and desserts like cookies and slices of pie. We'd argue, however, that slabs is the more appropriate term for the huge, honkin' pieces. Try the sinful Kahlua mousse pie ($6), which packs insane chocolate flavor and the airiest texture on top of a crumbled chocolate-wafer crust. Surely anything that fluffy doesn't have calories.
• The Fix, 943 E. University Blvd., fixmeaz.com online. The former Sultan Palace is transforming into a mecca for everyone's favorite American food - mac and cheese. The menu taped to the door offers a peek at drool-worthy variations, including one full of bacon. The Fix will be open for breakfast, lunch and dinner, and is expected to open Aug. 14.
Campus
• Flandrau Science Center, 621-7827, www.flandrau.org and the UA Mineral Museum, 621-4227, www.uamineralmuseum.org online. You've only got until Sunday to see the Biters, Hiders, Stinkers & Stingers exhibit. No, it's not about toddlers but rather different critters' survival strategies. If you like shiny things, head down to Flandrau's lower level for the Mineral Museum.
• Flagship UA BookStore, Student Union Memorial Center, 621-2426, uabookstore.arizona.edu online. Once upon a time, the UA store was so small that lines of students routinely spilled out onto the mall, waiting for their turn to shop. Not anymore. The sprawling space rivals a department store, with all the UA-themed gear a superfan needs.
• Pinkberry, in the Student Union, www.pinkberry.com online. Before the union became huge and fancy, it had eateries like Louie's Lower Level, a clog-your-arteries kinda place where even the napkins were fried. Today, the Student Union Memorial Center boasts Arizona's first outpost of the famed fro-yo store. Pinkberry, which first opened in West Hollywood in 2005, is known for its tangy, authentically yogurt-y taste. Popular flavors include pomegranate, chocolate, mango and green tea.
The outskirts
• Arizona History Museum, 949 E. Second St., 628-5774, www.arizonahistoricalsociety.org online. If you've done nothing yet to celebrate Arizona's centennial, now's your chance. Quilt makers from across the state created fabric art for the Arizona Centennial exhibit that will be on display through the end of December.
• 1702, 1702 E. Speedway, 325-1702, www.1702az.com online. Men's Health Magazine's website recently named the spot one of the nation's 20 best college beer bars. It covers a college student's three most basic food needs: brewskis, pizza and ice cream. Co-owner Eric Lepie - who ran 1702's previous incarnation, Eric' s Fine Food & Ice Cream - is known for his custard-based, off-the-wall flavors like lemon hops and double chocolate stout jalapeño brownie.
• Miss Saigon, 1072 N. Campbell Ave., 320-9511, misssaigon-tucson.com online. It can be tough to snag a table here during the school year. Without the throngs of students, it's pretty easy to grab a seat and enjoy a bowl of pho at the Vietnamese restaurant that routinely earns raves. It was also singled out in Jim Harrison's most recent book "The Great Leader" that was partly set in Southern Arizona.
• Allegro, 446 N. Campbell Ave., in Sam Hughes' Place, 207-1991, www.gelatoallegro.com. Here's all you need to know: salted caramel. Allegro's creamy, intensely flavored gelato is not to be missed, in any flavor.
What's up with...
• A-Store, the bottom floor of the Marshall Building at North Park Avenue and East Second Street, uabookstore.arizona.edu online. A satellite location of the UA BookStores, the A-Store is set to open Monday. The approximately 5,200-square-foot store will sell textbooks and, of course, plenty of insignia merchandise. Expect to find different items not available at the other shops, said Debby Shively, director of the UA BookStores.
A unique feature of this particular A-Store - there are A-Stores in Park Place, Tucson Mall and downtown - is a partnership with the Eller College of Management that calls for student staffers. Students receive academic credit for working at the store, Shively said.
"It's definitely a learning experience," she said.
• Aloft Tucson University hotel, 1900 E. Speedway. Starwood Hotels & Resorts Worldwide plans to open the redone hotel on Feb. 1, according to its website. The former Sheraton Four Points shut down earlier this year.
Bear Down Fridays
The seventh annual free community pep rally kicks off Aug. 31 at Main Gate Square with UA basketball coach Sean Miller as guest host. Things start at 4 p.m. with ESPN's "Happy Hour" with Jody Oehler live from University Boulevard. At 5 p.m., live music and entertainment along with plenty of family-friendly events begin. Pep rallies start at 6 p.m. and feature appearances by the Pride of Arizona Marching Band, Wilbur and Wilma, along with the spirit squads and various UA coaches.
• When: Aug. 31, Sept. 7, Sept. 14, Sept. 28, Oct. 19, Oct. 26 and Nov. 9.
Friday Night Live! Jazz Concert Series
This free series at Main Gate Square has three more dates this month - Friday, Aug. 17 and Aug. 24. Pop and R&B singer Crystal Stark is set to perform 7-8:30 p.m. Friday in the Geronimo Plaza Courtyard. Get details at www.-maingatesquare.com under "News & Events."
Parking
Main Gate merchants validate parking in the Tyndall Avenue Garage, 880 E. Fourth St., from 5 p.m.-midnight weekdays. Parking is already free on the weekends, unless there's a special event.
