As previously reported in Noshing Around, Prep & Pastry is officially open as of yesterday.

The restaurant, at 3073 N. Campbell Ave., was formerly known as Amelia Grey's Café. Good news for you high-falutin' fancy-britches out there: They are still offering their Amelia's Afternoon Tea. Prep & Pastry is open from 7 a.m. to 4 p.m. daily.

See the menu after the jump.

I noticed that no one was taking advantage of the patio seating in the courtyard in front of the restaurant. Why wouldn't anyone want to enjoy breakfast on a hot winter day? After entering the new establishment I realized why everyone was eating inside. My attention was automatically drawn to the large stainless steel open bar. The dining area is nicely spread out and accommodating for multiple sized parties. The eatery separates itself seamlessly from empty shelves that will soon carry grocery items.

The menu is currently limited to breakfast and brunch items. Entrées titles aren't very creative, but straight to the point. The only meat item on the menus is the Smoked Salmon Benedict, but the rest is all vegetarian friendly. There's an a la carte section where you can purchase a side meat or veggie dish.

• Photo courtesy of The Settlement Facebook page

Earlier today Annie McGinnis announced that The Settlement Smokehouse was officially closed on the restaurant's Facebook page and website.

From Facebook:

To our dear friends,

It is with great regret that we inform you that The Settlement has closed as of December 26th. We were unable to resolve a dispute regarding our purchase agreement with the property owner.

We are saddened to have to let go of our dream, but are grateful for all of the friendships we have made with this venture. Thank you all for your support, and for spreading the word about our wonderful food and service. We’ve learned something from each and every one of you. You may contact us at this email address whenever you wish.

Kindest Regards,
Annie McGinnis

Fortunately, this is completely inaccurate and the restaurant is open. Gary Sneva, owner of the Settlement Smokehouse, says that McGinnis is in a relationship with former restaurant manager Peter Picurro. Picurro handled the social media accounts and was let go earlier this week, according to Sneva.

The 60 year-old restaurant owner said that he is considering legal action against the couple.

• The Chile en Nogada from Penca.
• Photo by Briana Sanchez

Food & Wine named local Penca, downtown Mexican restaurant and pub, one of the best bars in America.

Inspired by owner Patricia Schwabe's Mexico City roots, Penca offers authentic dishes like poblano chile rellenos and agave-based cocktails from bar manager Luke Anable. pencarestaurante.com

The historic Armory Park neighborhood is getting a new breakfast, music venue and farmers market in the New Year.

The 5 Point Market is opening up next door to Café Desta on 758 South Stone Ave.

“We love the neighborhood,” co-owner Beth Jones said in a late phone interview today. “We asked ourselves, 'What would we want next door (to Café Desta)? What would be good for the neighborhood?' ”

The building and restaurant is family owned. The primary owners are Jones’ brother-in-law Telahoun Molla and her twin sister Brooke Molla. The trio opened the city’s second Ethiopian eatery three years ago . “We were able to take this very unemployable refugee community, especially the women, and give them jobs. The most amazing thing was watching them grow, and a lot of these gals unfolded amazingly,” Jones said. Some of the original female employees are still working there.

As previously reported in Noshing Around, Mama's Hawaiian BBQ had a third location in the works, but the Hawaiian resturant wasn't scheduled to open until sometime around mid-January. They finished ahead of schedule and opened their doors today. Check out the new location on 8300 N. Thornydale Road.

Mahalo, Mai `ai!

Agustin Kitchen is reopening after renovations, with Bad-Ass Iron Chef Ryan Clark at the helm in the new open kitchen. It will be fun to see the rock star chef at work on a new menu and in a fresh environment, considering he has accomplished just about every possible culinary feat in town.

Vero Amore, known for its Neapolitan Pizza and comfy, homemade, Italian dishes, has officially opened its doors in its new, larger, Plaza Palamino on 2920 N. Swan Road #114.

GIO TACO, the unsuspecting face of the Weekly's "Keep Tucson Shitty" debate from a while back, has finally announced its opening date. It will be open to the public 11 a.m. on Saturday, Dec. 21.

“When we were first inspired by the idea of doing tacos in Tucson a little differently, we knew they had to be done in a totally unexpected fashion,” stated Brian Metzger of Metzger Family Restaurants

Boy, did he live up to the hype in conception of the menu:

• Gio, with a home-made corn tortilla shell, house-smoked and coffee and chipotle-rubbed pork belly, seared butternut squash and pumpkin seed salsa;

• Fishy Pig, with a home-made corn tortilla shell, bacon-wrapped albacore tuna, street vendor corn, fresh avocado and pickled onions;

• Chipper Fish, with a home-made corn tortilla shell, beer-battered and fried Atlantic cod, malted cabbage, lemon and herbs, crispy pickles and plantain chips;

• M’s Veggie, with a raw shaved beet shell, chayoti squash “steak,” heirloom baby kale slaw and street vendor corn;

• Grilled Steak, with a home-made corn tortilla shell, pickled chayoti squash, street vendor corn salsa and Rogue smokey blue cheese;

• Citrus Chicken, with a home-made corn tortilla shell, citrus-marinated and grilled chicken breast, house-smoked Fresno chili, fresh epazote herbs and Sonoma Dry jack cheese;

• Duck Mole, with a home-made corn tortilla shell, cherry and chocolate mole, fresh cilantro, lime crema and fresh orange segments

I'm all for Tucson nostalgia. Hell, I would take two, standard carne asada tacos, out of a cart, right now! But with fresh, innovative and promising dishes like the ones above, how can you be mad?

I feel like food trucks are following me everywhere I go. I was walking to the Gangplank/Tucson Weekly HQ and there was a giant orange truck parked in on the south side of the Pioneer building. The truck reads "Cheesy Rider" in cursive. I was intrigued by the smell of toasty bread and downtown pollution. It was lunchtime and I was hungry.

The food truck theme is based off the Peter Fonda American road movie Easy Rider. There's  a  giant cartoon motorcycle rider pasted on both sides of the truck. "Motorcycle riders love it. They park their bikes next to it and take  pictures," says 26 year-old Cheesy Rider co-owner and executive chef Robert Bruce. Bruce is a tall, dark and young culinary student at the Art institute. "We have only been around four months," Bruce said. Sean Scott, Chessy Rider co-owner, is a semi-retired financial adviser that had aspirations to go to culinary school, but that was until he tasted Robert's cooking. "I met Robert at a business event and I really liked his food. Both of us were looking for a change of pace so we went in to business together," Scott said.