Most funny for your money

Laff’s Comedy Caffe is the place for the that New Year’s date: fancy dinner, champagne and a show to help count down the old year, then home in time to cuddle up and watch the fireworks around the world. Or hit the late show for champagne and sweets with your sweetie. Or your Meetup Group or your homies or BFFs. Entertainer Ron Feingold couldn’t be a better choice for an evening everybody wants to leave happy.

A Feingold show is literally all things to all people. He has movie-star looks and swagger but can sing like Kermit the Frog with a vocal technique that makes it sound like a duet. All his impressions are spot on, and his observations craftily twisted.

He can mix things up with intelligent innuendo and a remarkably sophisticated dick joke, when the occasion permits. His website includes clips of his original songs, F-You Button and Prostate. And yet, his career cornerstone is as a comedian and emcee for squeaky clean conference formats. He also offers his own conference presentation, The Power of the Smile, which combines his music and comedy with an almost scholarly grasp of how smiling affects life and work.

Feingold has been acting since he was 10, mostly in musical comedies. By the time he was in college, he was leveraging his comedy theatre experience into a standup career. He became a licensed pilot and earned a psychology degree, graduating Phi Beta Kappa. His life since then has been a steady stream of comedy clubs, cruise ships and corporate events.

Showtimes are 7:30 for the dinner show and 9 p.m. for the dessert bar. Admission is $30 plus drinks, tax and gratuities. Visit laffstucson.com/newyears or call for information and reservations.

TIM’s Year-End Laugh Out

Wear your ugly holiday sweater one last time at Tucson Improv Movement on New Year’s Eve. It’s good for $1 off beer, wine and White Claw all night, and the theater has stocked champagne for the occasion.

TIM’s intimate, 45-seat theater can be cozy like a party with friends. Its New Year’s events have sold out in years past. Tickets are $10 for two shows, 7:30 and 9 p.m., or $7 each. Advance reservations are via squareup.com or tucsonimprov.com.

The evening’s entertainment, New Year, Who ‘Dis, features a 7:30 extravaganza of 16 ugly-sweater-clad, top TIM improvisers playing for audience interaction and laughs-per-minute. At 9 p.m., TIM’s premier team, The Soapbox, will riff on stories told by five of the most popular monologists who performed with them in 2019.

To help give the year a laugh-loaded send-off, the team welcomes back TIM member and producer of Keep Tucson Sketchy Rich Gary, Unscrewed Theatre member and standup comedian Allana Erickson-Lopez, fashion designer Carmen Melero, founder of the Tucson Fringe Festival Maryann Green and journalist, crime reporter and author, AJ Flick.

Last laughs for 2019 at Hotel McCoy

Hotel McCoy’s popular free monthly comedy showcase, Last Friday, Last Laughs, wraps up its first year with a great local lineup from 8 to 9:30 p.m., Friday, Dec. 27. Full houses have been the rule lately, so plan to arrive early for seating. Pinche’s food truck will be on hand for dinner.

The lineup includes Autumn Horvat, Kev Lee, Dom DiTolla, David Ross, Eli Turner, Paul Fox, Andrea Salazar and Monte Benjamin. Visiting former Tucsonan Noah Copfer rounds out the bill. Copfer now plies his comedy and acting skills in L.A., but apparently returns for holidays. He also stopped in for The Mint open mic over Thanksgiving weekend.

After the show at Hotel McCoy, you can head on over to SkyBar for …

What Really Happened?

Josiah Osego and Alex Kack return to SkyBar for another edition of What Really Happened from 9:30 to 11 p.m., Friday, December 27. The original show invites standup comedians to tell five short stories each, and then let the audience decide which one is not true. Winning audience members get prizes and discounts with their bragging rights.

This month’s comedians include Bisbee comic and open mic host Maggie O’Shea, newcomer Abigail Chesney and up and comers Jesus Otamendi, Tim Maggard and Nick Chant.

Even More Laughs

Friday, Dec. 27, Standup with Ron Feingold at 8 and 10:30 p.m. ($12.50 and $17.50), Laffs Comedy Caffe. Improv with The Riveters, Portmansplain and Choice Cut at 7:30 p.m., and The Soapbox at 9 p.m. ($5), Tucson Improv Movement (TIM). Family-friendly improv with Not Burnt Out Just Unscrewed (NBOJU) at 7:30 p.m. ($5 and $8) and Free Form Friday Fight Night, 9 p.m.(free), Unscrewed Theater.

Saturday, Dec. 28, Standup with Ron Feingold at 7 and 9:30 p.m. ($12.50 and $17.50), Laffs Comedy Caffe, and comedian-magician Rod Wayne at 8 p.m. ($10 via Eventbrite, $15 at the door), The O. Improv with Laugh Tracks and The Game Show Show at 7:30 p.m., and The Dating Scene and Pilot Season at 9 p.m. ($5) TIM. Family-friendly improv with Not Burnt Out Just Unscrewed (NBOJU) at 7:30 p.m. Uncensored improv with NBOJU at 9 p.m. ($5 and $8), Unscrewed Theater.

Free Open Mics

Sunday, Dec. 29, 6:30 p.m., The O, and 8 p.m., Chuckleheads in Bisbee.
Wednesday, Jan. 1, 7 p.m., The Screening Room.
Thursday, Jan. 2, 8 p.m., Laffs Comedy Caffe, and 8:30 p.m., Rockabilly Grill.

Get out your aprons and spatulas, Tucson. It’s time to find the best tailgate cook in the Old Pueblo.

At each University of Arizona home football game, starting this Saturday, Sept. 7 against Northern Arizona University, Casino Del Sol Executive Chef Ryan Clark will search for the best tailgate dishes. His goal? To crown one cook as the “Sol Bowl Tailgate Champion of the Week.”

“As a Tucson native, I’m a huge Wildcats fan so tailgating has always been something I look forward to,” said Clark in a release. “I thought it’d be a fun way to show our support for the home team and let local chefs and foodies boast their game day specialties.”

The weekly competition will take place at each of the six Saturday home games at Arizona Stadium: Sept. 7 vs. NAU, Sept. 14 vs. Texas Tech, Sept. 28 vs. UCLA, Oct. 12 vs. Washington, Nov. 2 vs. Oregon State and Nov. 23 vs. Utah.

Starting three hours before kick-off, Clark will be at the tailgate section of the UA Main Campus Mall looking for tailgaters with the best tailgate masterpieces. He will taste one dish from each contestant and select one winner.

Each week’s winner will join Clark on the field during the game, where they will be presented with an official Sol Bowl chef’s apron from Chef Works, and $500 in gift cards.

Tailgate cooks are encouraged to register online prior to each game at casinodelsol.com/solbowl. Entrants must be 21 or older, have tickets to the game and an official tailgating location at the tailgate section of the UA Main Campus Mall.

May the best chef win!

Farmers Investment Co.(FICO) announced today that the 2019 Sahuarita Pecan Festival is cancelled.

The annual event, originally scheduled for Nov. 9, has been a Sahuarita tradition for the last 10 years but according to their press release is no longer feasible under the current "global economic conditions."

FICO pointed to the imposition of trade tariffs upon the pecan industry as a major factor in the decision to cancel the event.

Last year, the industry took a major hit when China, the top purchaser of U.S. pecans, imposed a 47 percent tariff on them. The increase happened incrementally, with China imposing a seven percent increase in 2017, a 15 percent increase in April of last year and an additional 25 percent last July.

The impacts of the increased tariff have been felt by pecan farmers across the nation including Texas, New Mexico and Georgia.

FICO also cited the "significant expenditure of funds" involved in producing the festival and staff time as factors in the decision.

The pecan festival averaged about 20,000 guests annually since it began in 2009.

The Pecan Classic race on Nov. 9 will still occur as scheduled. 

As cooler nights set in during the summer, the Mercado San Agustin Annex invites you to their Summer Night Market. Every last Friday of the month through September, the annex is turned into an open-air market with local makers and vendors.

Come for the live music from DJ Herm, grab some Japanese food from Kukai and browse some rescued potted cactus from DIRT shop.  This family-friendly event features Now or Never boutique store, Why I Love Where I Live and MESA shop, among many others.

When: Friday, August 30

6 – 10:00 p.m.

Where: MSA Annex

267 S Avenida del Convento

Next Night Market:

Friday, September 27

6 p.m. – 10 p.m.

The Garden Kitchen in South Tucson is a "seed-to-table" community program that provides education on growing and cooking food for better health and wellness on any budget. They partner with the City of South Tucson, Pima County, and the University of Arizona to focus on food security.

The Garden Kitchen offers cooking classes, and this Saturday, June 29, they're teaching a class called "Healthy and Delicious: With a Latin Twist Hands-On Cooking Class."

Learn to cook gazpacho, crispy vegetable cakes with lemon cilantro crema, and cauliflower ceviche.

You'll understand how to make a cold soup, how to make a sauce, and how to create full-flavor vegetarian entrees.

Can't catch this class? The Garden Kitchen offers classes throughout the month. And they're not just cooking classes, but fitness ones too.

Saturday, June 29 from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. $55
Proceeds go towards The Garden Kitchen's free programming. 2205 S. 4th Ave.

The Gastronomic Union of Tucson, a collaboration between over three dozen local chefs and restaurateurs, recently announced their 2019 Summer Pop-Up Dinner series. The five-course dinners will take place on a monthly basis at The Carriage House through August. Each meal features a different theme and unique contributions by local chefs.

June 30 - El Tour de Kino
This first dinner highlights the travels of Father Eusebio Kino during the establishment of missions in Baja California. This cross-cultural dinner includes: Braised beef cheek, machaca flakes, Tohono O’odham squash purée, duck prosciutto, nopalitos, jicama, chiltepin masa and more.

July 28 - Time Warp
Paying homage to generations past, this evening's dinner includes modern chefs' interpretations of meals of bygone eras. Full meal details will be released in the not too distant future.

August 25 - Deception
The food at this meal is not as it seems! The chefs are going to use "culinary sleight of hand" for this dinner which promises both to delight and confound the senses.

Participating chefs include Nichole Correa of Batch, Eric Catalano of Hilton El Conquistador, Jose Almanza of El Taco Rustico, Anthony Rocco DiGrazia of Rocco’s Little Chicago, Brently Singletary of Zona 78, Janet Jones of Tanque Verde Ranch and more.

Tickets are available here.

Prepare your palate for Tucson’s newest restaurant concept, Postino WineCafe, set to open its doors early next year in midtown.

Located on the southeast corner of West Grant Road and North Tucson Boulevard, Postino will partner with longtime Tucsonans to introduce the first-ever Southern Arizona location.

"Postino has always been focused on serving our surrounding community and really becoming a part of the fabric of a neighborhood," said Postino CEO Lauren Bailey, in a statement. "So while we looked at dozens of potential sites over the years, it wasn't until we walked this site with (developer) Brian Frakes and explored the amazing neighborhood, including local favorite like Dante's Fire and Kingfisher, that we knew we'd found the perfect home for Postino in Tucson."

Postino, 2500 E. Grant Road, will be housed inside a 4,000-square-foot space that include a floor-to-ceiling windows and roll-up windows, and an outdoor patio tucked behind a living wall of plant vines. The establishment will open daily for lunch and dinner, with brunch offered every weekend.

The menu will feature bruschetta, soups, salads and Panini sandwiches, as well as an ever-changing selection of wines. Specials will include $5 mimosas every Saturday and Sunday, $5 before 5 p.m. deals and a $20 bottle of wine and bruschetta board deal every Monday and Tuesday evening.

Tucson's favorite ethnobotanist Gary Paul Nabhan will be mixing specialty cocktails at Downtown Kitchen for a happy hour benefiting the Tucson City of Gastronomy nonprofit on June 4. Serving as a "celebrity bartender," Nabhan will use his agricultural and ecological know-how to expertly make some drinks from pomegranate and prickly pear shrubs.

This is also an opportunity to meet board members from the Tucson City of Gastronomy and learn more about their upcoming programs.

Nabhan also recently wrote an article for Tucson Weekly examining the role agaves play in our local food and culture.

4 to 6 p.m. Tuesday, June 4. 135 S. 6th Ave. Open to the public and free to attend.

There was great wisdom in the prescription by Greek physician Hippocrates when he said, “Let food be thy medicine, and medicine be thy food.” Though he spoke these words thousands of years ago, their relevance remains at the newest restaurant to come from the Flores Concepts family, Charrovida.

I sat down with Ray Flores, the Chief of the Charrosphere himself, at a pre-open dinner last night. And just seconds into his story about this new concept, it was clear to me what he and his team were collectively embracing.

This is a place where love lives.

This love story weaves its way from the spirit of Salamanca, Spain, where family and cultural traditions were forged by Old Spain’s proud charros, to the soul of Sonora, Mexico, where inspiration was drawn from the blessings of the land. Food was life. Food was love. And food was the connection to health.

You might say that Charrovida’s thoughtful menu is a modern-day prelude to this love story. Its Food Por Vida (Food for Life) promise allows us the opportunity to love on ourselves, and our families and friends, just a little bit more. The chapters of this story highlight the benefits of plant-based eating, the ideal and sustainable proteins and their intentional preparations, the natural fats that our hearts crave, the most suitable of sweeteners, and other examples of foods that maximize the body’s inherent potential for self-healing.

The chapters of this love story are conveniently organized by category, including:

Viva Vegetales tapas (try the chile-charred cauliflower al pastor with grilled pineapple)

Comerjuntos for sharing (try the tableside avocado hummus with plantain tostones)

Bowls y Mas (try the frida salad with arugula, watermelon, and quesa frida)

Entrees (try the salmon de la costa with charred Brussels, hummus, pepitas, and chimichurri)

Dulces y Cafe (try the yes we did with vegan and gluten-free chocolate chip, peanut butter, and sugar cookies with ice cold almond milk)

Joining this loving lineup are a host of side dishes, organic and biodynamic wines, beers, cocktails, and a colorful array of alcohol-free refrescos.

You can take great comfort knowing that a group hug awaits you at the place where love lives.

Located in Casas Adobes Plaza on Ina and Oracle Roads, Charrovida opens its doors to the public today and will serve guests daily from 10:00 am – 9:00 pm.

Viva Vida!

Read more On the Menu Live articles here.

The weather is heating up and we can't think of a better way to cool down than with unlimited ice cream! It's time for a brain freeze!

This weekend, May 4 and 5, Rillito Park will be transformed into an ice cream lover's paradise, and pretty much every kid's dream world. Unlimited ice cream, face painting, obstacle courses, bouncy houses, foam parties, food trucks and brain freezes for everyone.

The Brain Freeze Ice Cream Festival will highlight 21 different flavors of Blue Bell Premium Ice Cream as well as tastings from The Screamery, root beer floats from BJ's Brewhouse and vegan options from Cashew Cow.

The festival is a fundraiser for the Southern Arizona Network for Down Syndrome, SANDS. Brain Freeze festivals work to raise money for local Down Syndrome networks and to raise awareness of organizations who provide jobs, health, financial and educational services to those with mental, physical and emotional disabilities. Read more about their commitment to Down Syndrome awareness and fundraising efforts here.

The event runs Saturday and Sunday from 12 p.m. to 5 p.m. each day. Ticket pricing is $12 for adults 13 and over, kids four through 12 are $10, and three and under are free. Find more information about the festival on their website and facebook page.