Thursday, January 22, 2015
Each year, when my last trip to Philadelphia was just a little too long ago, I start craving things from the city. Rita's Water Ice, easy access to a good Italian hoagie and soft pretzels. Always soft pretzels.
I can only image how much stronger that craving is for someone who is used to constant access to good soft pretzels, like Jody and Dawn Rush who started Old Pueblo Pretzels.
"You gotta find your food. If you cant find it, you gotta make it," Jody Rush said. He tested out recipes for a year and a half until, on Aug. 9 of this year—yes, he remembers the exact date—his wife came home and announced that he had done it. By Labor Day weekend, they were setting up shop at the farmer's market at St. Phillips Plaza every Sunday from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m.
"You don’t want to go to the mall, that’s not a pretzel," Rush said. These pretzels are made out of water, flour, barley, yeast and salt—that's it—making them vegan and totally natural.
Now, they're trying to break into the food truck game. Rush wants to bake the pretzels on site, instead of at home before they're sold. This would allow him bake more than the 200 pretzels per day he can currently produce, which sell out every Sunday.
The duo have decided to go the crowdfunding route to pay for the truck, complete with delicious perks.
From their Indiegogo:
We know our pretzels!They've set their Indiegogo goal high, at $32k with only $103 raised as of this posting. Rush realizes that's going to be a tough target to reach, and says whatever they end up with will be useful in getting started.
Old Pueblo Pretzels can't express enough our passion for soft pretzels along with a healthy lifestyle. Bread is and always will be a staple in most everyones diet. We just happen to have a different recipe to offer those who have grown tired of the norm here in the desert. On the East Coast we eat pretzels like others eat bagels and donuts for breakfast, so much so that we love to eat them anytime of the day or night. We love our pretzels and we know you will come to love them as much as we do! There's nothing like a fresh baked hot soft pretzel.
Our loyal growing customer base can attest to the authenticity of our Philly pretzels. And now you can help spread the word here in Tucson as we offer people a delicious choice when it comes time to healthy snacks.
Their "Hot Knots," knots baked with Hatch chili peppers and chopped garlic, sound like something I'm going to need in my life immediately. As for Rush, he prefers to eat his pretzels bare, as soon as they're ready. Some people put mustard on straight away, but Rush thinks they should take a bite first. "You've got to taste it," he says.
Tags: Philly soft pretzels , Old Pueblo Pretzels , I'll eat anything with Hatch chili , Video
Wednesday, January 21, 2015
Mexico in Season has carved out a place in the hearts of Tucsonans looking for vegan Mexican cuisine in a fast, casual, and friendly atmosphere. However, now the family-owned restaurant, which is known for options like nopalitos and seitan fajitas, might be forced to shutter. Owner Priscilla Teran says community support wasn't the issue for her one-year-old restaurant located at on the southwest corner of Ajo Way and Palo Verde Road.
"The business is doing good and our clientele keeps growing, but we lost our partner and now we are faced with the decision of closing our doors," Teran says.
Although Kickstarter campaigns can sometimes carry a stigma, Teran explains that they decided to go with crowdfunding due to demand from their regulars.
"Our customers don't want us closing our doors and asked us to start a Kickstarter campaign to see if we could raise funds to keep our doors open," she says.
With 29 days left, the restaurant has raised just over $500 of a $25,000 goal, and, unlike other sites such as Indiegogo, Kickstarter is an all or nothing fundraiser—either Mexico in Season gets $25,000 or nothing by the end of it. If Teran doesn't find an investor or partner for Mexico in Season, she says she still plans to offer her fare to her loyal customers by using the Kickstarter funds to purchase a food truck.
You can help keep Mexico in Season pumping out those unique vegan Mexican eats by visiting their Kickstarter campaign page. Rewards for donors include free lunch for a $10 donation, a meal for two for $20, and a meal for eight that can be gifted to others for a $50 contribution.
Tags: mexico in season , vegan , mexican , tucson , restaurant , priscilla teran , kickstarter , crowfunding
Tuesday, January 20, 2015
TUSD's Catalina High School and the district's Food Services Department want you to come try some internationally-inspired food as the high school preps for the Healthier U.S. School Challenge: Smarter Lunches.
About the challenge:
It is a voluntary certification initiative recognizing those schools enrolled in Team Nutrition that have created healthier school environments through promotion of nutrition and physical activity.At the tasting event, which will include dishes inspired by the youngsters' native countries, your role would be to stuff your face and then score the food. The winner would move forward to student tasting and would get a change to be on the school menu next year. Oh something else, the winning dish will be served on the menu at Lodge on the Desert.
In 2010, First Lady Michelle Obama introduced Let’s Move!, incorporating HUSSC: SL into her campaign to raise a healthier generation of kids. At that time, monetary incentive awards became available for each HUSSC:SL award level: Bronze, Silver, Gold, and Gold Award of Distinction.
To date, HUSSC: SL awards have been given to schools in 49 states and the District of Columbia. As of December 22, 2014, there are 6,797 schools certified (4,638 Bronze, 1,229 Silver, 573 Gold, and 357 Gold Awards of Distinction).
Student dancers representing Nepal and Somalia will perform at the beginning of the evening, and each entrée will come with information about the country of origin.
The event takes places Thursday, Jan. 22 from 4 p.m. to 6 p.m. For more info, call Food Services at 225-4700.
Tags: TUSD , Catalina High School , food , Lodge on the Desert , Tucson , Healthier US High School Challenge , Smarter Lunches , health
Monday, January 19, 2015
This week you can keep Tucson kind and have some great eats all at once when Downtown Kitchen + Cocktails joins forces with Ben's Bells for a special happy hour event. On Thursday, Jan. 22 from 4 until 6 p.m. you can enjoy food and drink specials including $2.50 craft brews, $5 glasses of wine, and $4.50 cocktails.
Downtown's happy hour offerings also include $2.50 braised beef cheek or fish tacos; $9 crostini with foie gras mousse and Prosciutto di Parma; and the $8 Downtown burger with mushrooms, manchego, bacon, foie gras, and a side of fries—just to name a few. You can view the full list of happy hour offerings on the Downtown Kitchen website.
The event will feature two guest bartenders—Olympic gold medal swimmer Matt Grevers and Ben's Bells founder Jeannette Maré. All tips from the event will go to benefit Ben's Bells in their mission to promote intentional kindness throughout Tucson.
Tags: downtown kitchen , ben's bells , happy hour , tucson
Monday, January 12, 2015
When you first walk into the brand new Street Taco and Beer Co. off of Congress Street north of Church, you can't ignore the similarity between the new locally-owned joint and the national chain Chipotle. After all, the light reclaimed wood and metal look is ever-present in both restaurants. While the big guys pretty much invented the term fast casual, initial tastes of the new downtown taco joint hint that the local guys can actually do it better.
If you've ordered at a Chipotle, you'll feel at home at Street Taco, which opened to the public today. A long line formed around lunchtime, nearly going out the door. However, the team behind the counter efficiently busted through orders meaning diners didn't wait longer than about five minutes in line.
The menu offers single street tacos with flour or corn tortillas for $2 to $3 and burritos for about $7 with al pastor, carne asada, pollo asado, carnitas, and veggie options. The restaurant also serves nachos, quesadillas, hot dogs, and $1 to $2 sides like beans, rice, elote, and calabacitas.
While the menu and restaurant are set up unmistakably similar to Chipotle, seeing meat and corn roasting on a spit in the back was the first sign that owners Dago Martinez and Amjaad Jhan were doing it better than their predecessor.
The next way Street Taco impressed was by offering free chips and a salsa bar—something that's additional if you opt for Chipotle instead. The salsa bar includes three red salsas, two green salsas, pico de gallo, pickled onion, fresh sliced radish, lime slices, and roasted jalapeños.
Once you take a bite, you'll notice well-marinated, flavorful, and tender proteins, grilled tortillas, and handmade sides. While the al pastor used spices to accentuate the meat, the carne asada showed simplicity and technique that let the meat sing on its own. Even the calabacitas were full of flavor in that salty, comforting way that they should be.
Despite being made on an assembly line, the food still has the soul and spice that Mexican cooking should have— especially after adding a few healthy dollops of the aptly labeled hot salsa.
To cool off, the restaurant offers aguas frescas like horchata, jamaica, and piña with chunks of fresh pineapple. Street Taco also has a bar with local beer, draft beer, wine, and an array of tequila.
Overall, if you're looking for heat and authenticity, Street Taco has a lot to offer at comparable pricing to the competitors. Plus, the option to get single tacos, rather than a full meal, gives diners the choice to have a light lunch or to mix and match and create a taco plate.
You can follow the new restaurant via their Facebook page for updates and more information.
Tags: street taco and beer co. , tucson , new , restaurant , open , downtown , mexican , fast casual , dago martinez , amjaad jhan , Image
Thursday, January 8, 2015
Treat yourself to a fancy pants dinner over at Agustin Kitchen when the culinary creative minds behind Agustin and The Coronet join forces for one special wine-paired dinner. The four-course meal will take place on Wednesday, Jan. 14 at 6 p.m. You can reserve your spot for $65 plus tax and gratuity by calling 398-5382.
Here's what you can expect:
Tags: agustin kitchen , coronet , dinner with the chefs , ryan clark , tucson
Monday, January 5, 2015
The list-making mecca Thrillist released a list of the most iconic restaurants and each state and Arizona's title went to El Charro.
Though the article says that the list makers searched for more that just which restaurant was oldest, factoring in "tons of research, awkward cold calls, and several cross country trips," you kind of have to wonder if the research went much further than that one New York Magazine article that listed El Charro as the state's top food destination a couple years back. Certainly, there are many other favorites for nostalgic Mexican eats around town and in the state.
While it's cool in any case that Tucson got a shout out on Thrillist, which local joint do you think deserves the badge most iconic? Is it El Charro?
Keep in mind, your choices, according to Thrillist, have to have opened at least since 1985 and "still be a crowd favorite" (Read: Have a high rating on Yelp?).
Tags: el charro , arizona , most iconic restaurant , thrillist
In 2013, Arizona Game and Fish began its on-going program to reintroduce bighorn sheep to the Santa Catalina Mountains. At the time, 31 of them were relocated to the area from Yuma.
More than half of that herd were killed by mountain lions a few months later - causing the department to eliminate three of them for preying on the sheep. They've been largely criticized for that move, and for the reintroduction as a whole by groups like Friends of Wild Animals.
Another 30 bighorns were reintroduced this past November and Game and Fish plans to release another 30 at the end of this year, too.
The department is now saying that the reintroduction is helping both bighorns and mountain lions.
Reportedly, the number of mountain lions killed by hunters in the Catalinas declined by 40 percent last year.
Hunting without dogs is allowed within the 22,500-acre protected area, according to a press release by the Center for Biological Diversity, but that technique is harder and thus less common - so that could have caused the decline.
To be clear, hunting with dogs in the area is banned.
The release gives some background, saying lion killings in the Catalinas were up to a couple of dozen by 2012, then when the bighorns were introduced, this leveled off, and last year the deaths dropped to 12 by hunters, 1 by bighorn program and 1 by a rancher as of December 2014.
From a press release sent by the Center for Biological Diversity:
The dramatic decline followed the establishment of a 22,500-acre bighornFrom Kierán Suckling, executive director of the center:
sheep protected area in the Pusch Ridge Wilderness in July, 2013. Hound
hunting of lions is prohibited within the protected area.
Those seeking to prevent the return of bighorn sheep to the Pusch Ridge
Wilderness assert that depredation kills conducted by the program are
devastating the lion population. The decline in hunter kills, however,
greatly outnumbered the single lion killed by the program in 2014 and the
two killed in 2013. With these included, 2014 and 2013-2014 remain the
largest single and two-year declines in lion killings since 1982.
Restoring sheep to the Pusch Ridge Wilderness is good for the sheep, good for lions, and good for the mountain.The cautious, innovative ecosystem approach taken here should serve as a model for bighorn restoration everywhere.I checked out the Friends of Wild Animals Facebook to see what they had to say:
Hunting lions with dogs is prohibited, but hunting lions is allowed. Also, the bighorn sheep advisory committee and the AZG&F Department sanction a houndsman hunting any lions that may have killed a sheep. The hunting of lions with hounds is bad for both lions and sheep because the lion dies for doing what lions do - eating sheep - and the hounds used by the houndsman are very bad for the ewes and their newly born lambs.
Tags: bighorn sheep , mountain lions , Santa Catalina Mountains , Tucson , Arizona Game & Fish , environment , nature , Friends of Wild Animals
Clear your lunch schedule tomorrow and prepare pencil this in. The food trucks are headed downtown on Jan. 6 to broaden your lunch options for the day. Whether you're craving German fare, pizza, hot dogs, or even Caribbean eats, there definitely something better cooking at the Tucson Food Truck Rally outside the main library than whatever you planned to scoop into a Tupperware and microwave for lunch that day.
Participating food trucks for the Tuesday afternoon event include Haus of Brats, BurgerRito, Chill Shack, DC Jumbie Latin Caribbean, Dawg Daze, and Capishe Wood Fired Pizza.
You can head to the Joel D. Valdez Main Library at 101 N. Stone Ave. from 10:30 a.m. until 2:30 p.m. to grab a bite from one of the trucks.
Tags: food trucks , tucson , downtown , lunch , Haus of Brats , BurgerRito , Chill Shack , DC Jumbie Latin Caribbean Food , Dawg Daze , Capishe Wood Fired Pizza
Friday, December 19, 2014
The 3000 Club is bringing back Market on the Move now that temperatures have reached produce-friendly levels. On Saturday, Dec. 20 you can head to MOM headquarters and grab up to 60 pounds of produce for just a $10 (cash only) donation.
This week’s event, which is rain or shine, will feature fresh Roma tomatoes, grape tomatoes, cucumbers (regular, English, and Persian), yellow squash, Serrano chiles, honeydew melons, and green and yellow bell peppers.
The group is also looking for volunteers to assist in the event. If you’re interested in lending a hand, you can see Ray Jennings at the event beginning at 5:30 a.m. for setup. According to the 3000 Club, the organization and its volunteers are responsible for rescuing approximately 30 million pounds of produce that would otherwise go in landfills, which goes to helping over 460,000 families in need and 300 different food banks.
However, if you’re just looking to get some affordable, healthy food for your household, you can stop by Market on the Move at 250 S. Toole Avenue from 8 until 11 a.m. on Saturday. Be warned that produce goes fast, so they earlier you arrive, the better.
While there is no set schedule for future Market on the Move events at this time, you can keep up to date by checking out the 3000 Club website or connect with the group on Facebook.
Tags: market on the move , tucson , 3000 club , produce , fresh , non-profit , fruits , vegetables
