A spokesman for The Abbey Eat + Drink says the restaurant will open to the public Tuesday, Nov. 2.

The restaurant is being opened by Brian and Sandy Metzger, the owners of the popular jaxKitchen at 7286 N. Oracle Road. If you haven't seen The Abbey's menu yet, you can check it out here. There's more information about the restaurant here and here.

Here’s a sampling of what executive chef Virginia Wooters and the owners of jaxKitchen are working up for the Abbey Eat + Drink, which is coming soon to the corner of Kolb Road and Sunrise Drive.

And here’s a picture of the sweet-potato waffle, duck confit scramble and bourbon maple syrup entrée listed on the menu. Gourmet breakfast-for-dinner and grilled cheese? This is getting exciting.

We just had an interesting conversation with Monica Garcia from the Tucson Community Food Bank about the new mini-farmers-market concept she debuted this week.

The new market opened this Wednesday at the El Rio Community Health Center at 1500 W. Commerce Court, and continues from noon to 2 p.m., the second and fourth Wednesday of each month. The market sells only local, organic produce and accepts food stamps and WIC and Arizona Farmers Market Nutrition Program vouchers.

Garcia said the new market is made possible through the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's Communities Putting Prevention to Work program, which is paid for through the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act.

The food bank's plan is to make healthy, locally grown produce available to low-income folks while supporting local farmers and the local economy as a whole.

“What they’re buying at the major supermarkets has been trucked in from all over the country,” said Garcia. “The stuff that they buy at the (farmers’) market is organic, and they’re really buying from their neighbors. It’s better quality, it supports the local economy and it tastes better.”

Food Bank officials are currently looking at other sites that could benefit from mini-markets. The CDC grant has also made it possible to open another new farmers’ market at El Pueblo Park at 101 W. Irvington Road. The grand opening from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m., Saturday, Oct. 23, will feature music, activities for the kids and appearances by several city and county officials.

Garcia said the food bank also sells vegetables on consignment, and has a program that helps low-income folks start home gardens. Qualifying participants get help with planning and installing the garden, and the produce is then sold at one of the four markets the food bank operates around town.

Call the Food Bank at 622-0525 for more information.

Boca holds another Exotic Taco Wednesday tonight (Oct. 13). This time, it’s bison tacos from 5 p.m. to close. Past events have featured fried-oyster, rattlesnake, alligator and ostrich tacos, and it’s anybody’s guess what weird meat will land on the eatery’s tortillas next week.

1702 hosts a tasting of beers from Firestone Walker Brewing Company, Ska Brewing Company, Left Hand Brewing Company and Breckenridge Brewery at 7 p.m., Thursday, Oct. 14. All four breweries are sending representatives to the event, and 1702 will be giving away tickets to the Great Tucson Beer Festival. The event is free.

While you’re there, check out 1702’s selection of homemade ice cream. The Dogfish Head Craft Brewery Punkin Ale ice cream is almost gone, but several other flavors are available.

A new eastside farmers’ market opens for the first time from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m., Friday, Oct. 15, at Jesse Owens Park (400 S. Sarnoff Drive). This should bring relief to eastside locavores still reeling from the closure of the farmers’ market at Udall Park several weeks back.

Friday is also the first day of RA Sushi’s One Glass, One Roll, One Hope campaign for the National Breast Cancer Foundation. $15 gets you a glass of chardonnay and a special pink sushi roll, and all proceeds are donated to the fight against breast cancer. The campaign continues daily through Monday, Nov. 15.

Also Friday: The new Red Velvet Cupcakery at La Encantada (2905 E. Skyline Drive) celebrates the opening of its second Tucson location with free cupcakes from 11 a.m. to 11 p.m.

At the Oro Valley Farmers’ market from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m., Saturday, Oct. 16, it’s all about heritage foods. Chef Colin King from Harvest Restaurant gives a cooking demonstration using heritage foods at 10 a.m., and vendors will be selling everything from mesquite flour to heirloom beans. Desert Harvesters will also be on hand doing a bit of mesquite-bean milling.

Chef Alan Zeman of Southwestern Originals gives a cooking demonstration using several items from his signature line of cooking products from 4 to 6 p.m., Saturday, Oct. 16, in front of Wild West Hot Sauce at 6541 E. Tanque Verde Road. Admission is free.

A chili cook off benefiting the Sportsman’s Fund takes place Saturday, Oct. 16, at Jonathan’s Tucson Cork. Admission is $10, and a number of Tucson Originals restaurants have signed up. Call Jonathan’s at 296-1631 for more information.

And last, but certainly not least, is the Great Tucson Beer Festival at Hi Corbett Field on Saturday, Oct. 16. Beer, beer, beer, and proceeds benefit Sun Sounds of Arizona, which provides services for the blind and visually impaired.

We spoke with Jeff Fuld today about Elle Wine Bistro, the new incarnation of Elle Wine Country Restaurant that he's opening at 2970 N. Campbell Ave., in the Campbell Plaza Shopping Center.

Fuld said the new Elle will be “lighter, brighter and a little more intimate.” The new menu hasn’t been finalized, but Fuld said new creations focusing on local ingredients and favorites from the original Elle will be on it.

He also mentioned a wine-preservation system that will allow him to offer more wines by the glass than ever before.

Fuld said the restaurant should have a Facebook page up before long. Until then, check in at Elle's website for more information.

By the way, the old Elle spot at 3048 E. Broadway Blvd. is going to be a new Sushi Garden location. Chun Kim, who owns two Sushi Garden locations with his mother, Chaesu Kim, says they’ll shut down the restaurant at 15 N. Alvernon Way when the new location opens in spring of 2011.

The big news is that Janos Wilder's new restaurant, DOWNTOWN Kitchen + Cocktails, is set to open Monday, Oct. 18. It will occupy the former Barrio Food and Drink space at 135 S. Sixth Ave., and by all accounts will serve some damn fine food and drinks.

The second biggest news is that Wilder wants to try out the restaurant’s menu on a few people before the official opening. It’s a sort of warm-up for the staff starting Monday, Oct. 11, and continuing for three or four days. E-mail [email protected] to be considered. More information here.

Lastly, Wilder is holding a preview/fundraiser at the restaurant at 5:30 p.m., Thursday, Oct. 14. Proceeds benefit the Humane Society of Southern Arizona, which means you’ll have bragging rights for helping out local animals AND being one of the first people to try the restaurant's food, which Wilder has described as "the flavors of the new American melting pot." A limited number of reservations are available, and admission is $75. Call 623-7700 for reservations or more information.

A new Vietnamese restaurant named i luv pho is coming to 2513 N. Campbell Ave. A banner on the building says the grand opening takes place today, Thursday, Oct. 7, although we're unable to confirm that.

I recently fell in love with Vietnamese food all over again, thanks to the incredible food at Thuan Kieu, the restaurant next to Lee Lee Oriental Supermarket that our awesome food reviewer Jacqueline Kuder also enjoyed. Try the shrimp porridge. It's easily 100 times tastier than it sounds.

They’ve been busy down at La Cocina, the restaurant inside Old Town Artisans at 201 N. Court Ave. The restaurant closed in August for renovations to the dining room and kitchen, and re-opens tomorrow with a new menu and longer hours. (They’ve actually been open since mid-September, but tomorrow is the "official" grand re-opening.)

La Cocina—once only open for lunch—now serves breakfast, lunch and dinner, says manager Allie Baron. They’ve also installed a coffee shop in the courtyard that opens daily at 8 a.m.

About that new menu: Baron says it focuses on light, regional fare, and is teeming with vegetarian, vegan and gluten-free options. She also listed off a few of the signature cocktails—the Sonoran-style cosmopolitan made with prickly-pear juice is a stroke of genius—which are available at a discount at happy hour from 5 to 8 p.m., Monday through Friday.

Baron said live, local music will be featured five nights a week, and that there won’t be a cover charge. Visit the eatery’s website for more information.

A new restaurant named Mama's Hawaiian Barbecue is setting up shop in the old Yokohama Rice Bowl building at 850 E. Speedway Blvd., just west of the intersection of Park Avenue and Speedway Boulevard.

The only information posted is a huge pink banner with the restaurant's name on it. We'll let you know when we learn more.

I like Boca. The last time I ate there the server brought six kinds of salsa to the table, and the tacos—especially the vegetarian one—were killer.

My only concern was the abysmally small indoor dining area, which seems less important now that the outdoor seating area has been improved.

If you can't make it tonight, save your appetite for $1 10-ounce beers and $1 carne asada tacos from 5 to 10 p.m. tomorrow, Thursday, Sept. 30.