Talk about a complete metamorphosis of Tucson's downtown. Driving around down there the other day I couldn't believe how many buildings have gone up and how few empty storefronts there are. It almost looks like, shudder, a real city down there.

We all have our own opinions about these things, but one thing is for sure: The progress appears to know no limit. I've been writing about food for the Tucson Weekly for close to four years now and it seems like every other week there's some new bar or restaurant making a go if it downtown.

The newest tidbit I've picked up is what looks like the preliminary work for a new restaurant in spaces at 312 and 300 E. Congress Street, where those science exhibits have been for the past year or more. A liquor license has been applied for under the name Proper, and it's a Series 12 license, which is for restaurants.

We'll let you know more when we know more.

The question is, are you? The five-day event put on next week by the Community Food Bank of Southern Arizona is probably the only time my finely honed cheapskate skills will ever be openly celebrated, so I'm all over it like a spice packet over Ramen noodles.

And, not to be rude, but if you're one of the people who still believes people on food stamps - now called SNAP benefits - are living it up, here's your chance to prove yourself wrong. $20 bucks a week. Just you and your stomach. Are you ready to rumble?

I'm registered. You can do the same over here. My initial meal plan leans heavily on rice noodles, cheap boxes of macaroni, potatoes and, yes, I will be making sushi mid-week (nori is cheap as hell and nutritious - hallelujah!). I might even toss in a 22-ounce can of cheap beer to cap off the week. It's been a while since I had a Steel Reserve anyway.

Do beer and chocolate go together? If it's a delicious pint of Borderlands Brewing Company's Noche Dulce Porter, with its sweet perfume of vanilla, and the chocolate of local company Monkey Flower Chocolates, you bet your sweet ass they do. From the Borderlands Brewery Facebook page:

Two words: Chocolate & Beer. That's right, we're getting hedonistic with our bad selves tomorrow night. The wonderful and amazing Marji from Monkey Flower Chocolates will be at the brewery debuting the perfect chocolate pairings for our Noche Dulce Vanilla Porter and Santa Rita Amber. So, we cordially invite you to come down and get a taste of some Tucson collaboration.

I have no idea what a Monkey Flower is, but I do not care. This event sounds awesome, and it takes place from 4 to 7 p.m., today, Wednesday, Sept. 19. The brewery is located at 119 E. Toole Ave. Get some.

And when I say "drag" I'm not talking about race cars people.

The Food, Art and Drag Show at Dinnerware Artspace from 5 to 9 p.m., Thursday, Sept. 20, combines food by some of Tucson's favorite food trucks; art by Nikki Welch, Smith Barney and Neil Collins; and a live drag show hosted by Rosada Delano and Vivika D'Angelo. Canned goods for the Southern Arizona AIDS Foundation will also be collected at the event.

Dinnerware Artspace is located at 425 W. Sixth St. Don't forget to bring some singles (or fivers) to tip the performers.

There's more on the event over here.

I've been corresponding with a Canadian writer and producer who tells me that a show called Taco Wars is coming to Tucson to film an episode. The show will pit three taco shops against each other to pick what the judges think is the best taco in Tucson. Sounds like it could be a pretty cool show. From an e-mail received this week:

... the show is called (not surprisingly) Taco Wars and this episode will focus on Tucson. The premise is that three taco joints will battle it out for the title of best taco on Tucson. I'm not sure when the show will air, We're currently in early pre-production, but I suspect that it will be late 2012 early 2013.

I've already given my suggestions as to who could be possible contendors - not an easy task given the enormity of possibilities. But I was wondering which taco joints Tucson Weekly readers think should be included. Feel free to leave any suggestions in the comments section below.

North Fattoria Italiana, the new incarnation of NoRTH at La Encantada at 2995 E. Skyline Road, opens tomorrow, Wednesday, Sept. 19. And while it will be located in the same building and have almost the same name, officials with Fox Restaurant Concepts, who own and operate the place, say the new eatery is a "complete departure" from what was previously happening there.

The interior design is said to be modeled around the idea of a rustic farmhouse and the food will sort of follow suit. All in all, it sounds like the restaurant is shooting for something a little more casual while keeping the quality of the food very high. Antipasti, pizzas, a meat-slicing station and lots of other rather impressive sounding eats are on deck.

For more on the restaurant, head over here.

It appears food truck MaFooCo, which closed down many months ago after a glorious run as one of Tucson's most adored mobile food operations, is back in action. From the truck's Facebook page:

We couldn't wait any longer Tucson, so here it is: MaFooCo is coming back very soon!

We will post the details in the next few days.

The truck specializes in a unique blend of Mexican and Asian fare - the name is short for Mexican-Asian Food Company - and if you haven't had its kimchi quesadillas or fried-rice burritos, you truly must.

In other fusion-food news, Umi Star opened over the weekend. Think slick design, inventive Asian fusion food and mind-blowing cocktails. It's located in the old Cartel Coffee Lab location at 2502 N. Campbell Ave. My prediction is that this place could be the most talked-about restaurant in the coming months, but only time will tell.

Here's a picture of the bathroom mirror in the men's room at Umi Star. Sort of random, I know, but it gives a glimpse at the place's casual and humorous vibe:

There's a banner hanging outside of the new U-Like Buffet at 5101 N. Oracle Road that says the place is open. Not much else to report on this one, but I wanted to squeeze in this little food tidbit before everybody packed it in for the weekend.

U-Like Buffet has another location on Wilmot Road. More on that over here.

Every time I hear somebody busting on food stamp recipients I have to bite my lip. My family spent a good amount of time relying on aid like food stamps and other programs to survive when I was younger, and that was despite plenty of hard work by my parents.

The worst of the criticism comes in the form of "those welfare and food stamp people are living it up while we working middle or upper-middle people slave away at dependable and relatively lucrative jobs." People say the same sort of things about the homeless - that they choose to live on the street, that they make more panhandling than one can imagine - and I've done a bit of time living on the streets and, much later, working to help feed the homeless, and can say with full conviction that such lines of thinking are complete and utter nonsense.

All I have to say is: Give it a whirl. Live off food stamps. Be poor for a bit. It can be rather eye-opening.

And, as luck would have it, such an opportunity is coming up later this month in the form of the Community Food Bank of Southern Arizona's SNAP Challenge. It offers a chance to see what it's like to live off what a food-stamp recipient gets each month.

There's more on the week-long event over here.

The short-lived Three and a Half Brothers Cafe at 2530 N. First Ave. has closed, but it looks like another restaurant is already readying to set up shop in the building.

A liquor license application was filed last week for that location under the name Wild Garlic Grill. We've dug around for more information, including try to locate Maria De Jesus Martin-Gourdin, whose name is on the application. My efforts however, have been fruitless thus far.

So, hey, if you read this Ms. Martin-Gourdin, drop me a line. I'm dying to know what you're planning for the place.