A weekend in Tucson

[ziggylu]

Quick review of some places we made it to this weekend:

J-Bar

Since the Westin was comping our stay this time around we felt it was right that we spend some money at the resort. Friday was a pleasant evening in Tucson so we decided to go ahead and enjoy a spot on the J-Bar patio. They really do have a nice patio. We'd eaten here last month and really liked the turkey mole enchiladas so husband had that and I went with the andouille stuffed trout. The trout was quite good...panfried and not at all dried out. The andouille was mild, would have liked a bit more kick. We also had some guacamole...we loved this last time but some chunks this time around seemed to not be quite ripe. Would have been great again otherwise. With one margarita(very good, made with fresh lime) and one iced tea the bill was $46.

Tooley's
Last time we were in Tucson we were shopping in the Lost Barrio and wandered into Tooley's Cafe to get a cold drink. The menu looked interesting and the place has a very quirky feel to it that made us think the food should be tried...so we went down for breakfast yesterday. They had turkey mole enchiladas(is this turkey mole thing unique to Tucson? I don't recall seeing it as often in Phx as we do down there but maybe we're not looking in the right places?) on the lunch menu and I really wanted to try this but wanted eggs...so asked for a bit of the turkey mole alongside some huevos rancheros. Husband went with the mint and poblano corn cakes breakfast special. The coffee was an Americano and was very good. When our food arrived...i have to admit at this point I was a bit turned off...this is in an old bldg(beware during monsoon as it's swamp cooled not a/c). For whatever reason they had a real fly issue this morning(Dont' remember this last time we were in there) and by the time the food arrived I was a bit grossed out wondering how many were flying around the small kitchen. I did taste the turkey mole and it was very good - tender, moist and well flavored. But unfortunately on top of the flies my eggs were completely overcooked and my beans lukewarm. I've been a victim of poorly held restaurant beans once before so I gave up and didn't eat. Husband had one of his pancakes...it was actually really good(I did taste these)...great flavor combination with jalepeno syrup...and hot so not to be feared. Unfortunately his beans were also at a not inviting lukewarm temp so he passed on them as well(he'd eaten the same poorly held bean in the past I'd had).

Mentioned the cold food when paying and got an apology. We were disappointed as this is the kind of place you want to love. Maybe it is great and we hit it on a bad day. The turkey mole and the corn cakes gave hints of the type of meal we expected. total bill $16.50.

El Charro

Not having eaten much for breakfast we were in the mood for lunch and stopped at the El Charro on Speedway. I had some albondigas and a carne seca taco. Husband ordered two carne seca tacos. The soup had good flavor and the meatballs were good...didn't like the rice in the soup(maybe leftover rice from the day before) but the rice was easily ignored and this was otherwise a decent bowl of soup. We'd never had carne seca before...we liked it but it's not something I could eat a lot of. Having never had it before have nothing to compare it to either but it seemed very good...savory with a bit of salty from the drying and a bit of sweetness from the sauce it was cooked in. Total bill with two iced teas $23.

Mama Louisa's

I'm not sure how we ended up here for dinner. We weren't terribly hungry, didn't want to spend much money and knew they had a $5 marinara on the dinner menu...so I guess that's why. We'd been here before years ago...place has been there for years and years and has that kitschy old red check tablecloth feel. They do make their own pasta here and it's not bad. The red sauce is decent and hearty. For $5, what's not to like( they must cater to a student crowd at times?). Husband had a meatballs with mushrooms added to his...the mushrooms were sauteed and tasty, the mushroom just ok. Mushy texture. I had a cup of Italian Wedding soup which had smaller versions of the same meatballs. The broth was slightly thickened with corn starch...a technique I'm not particularly fond of. The house salad my husband ordered was large and generous with lots of mushrooms, croutons, cherry tomatoes. This place is probably popular with families - you can feed a lot of people cheap here. The food isn't terrible but not worth going out of your way for. There's definitely better Italian in town, don't know about cheaper though. Total bill with two iced teas $27.

Raging Sage Coffee

Stopped in here for some coffee after dinner. No room for dessert but their pastries looked really good(the olive oil cake was really really tempting). They pull a wonderful shot of espresso here! (next time want to try their cubano!) Husband had an iced coffee and liked it so much he bought a pound of beans to bring home. Nice little spot.

St Philip's Farmer's Market

This is Sunday morning at the corner of River and Campbell. We checked this out this morning. Nice farmer's market, especially for the middle of the desert. We had a couple fantastic peaches from Wilcox to start. Mmmm...good! A decent cup of coffee from the Adventure Coffee Roasting folks. Had a peach and blueberry empanada from the lady with the empanadas that was also great - flaky pastry and lots of filling made from those wonderful Wilcox peaches.

Chatted with the Double Check Ranch guys about their beef CSA(grass fed, antibiotic and hormone free). They said they're not looking at doing the Phx market but do have some customers up here and can deliver. They were sampling their beef. We liked it a lot, lots of flavor but not overly gamey. Also chatted with the Fiore di Capri cheese folks...they had some GREAT goat cheeses(the bay and juniper one is unique and absolutely delicious!)...they also won't be coming ot Phx market. Too bad...and unfortunately didn't have a cooler with us to get some home tonight. Also loved the ceviche from the lady with the fresh salsas...her fruit salsa was also delicious(don't have her name, sorry!). Again, no way to keep it cold to get it home.

The vegetable vendors had some beautiful veggies - especially the tomatoes. Fresh roasted chiles(must find some of those up here this week...the smell was so tempting!). Next time we'll definitely plan to be able to shop the market and bring stuff home...this really is a nice market and I'm betting it's even nicer during the non-summer months.

So we still haven't made it to Poca Cosa! Maybe next time!

[PHX Becky]

I was in Tucson Sep. 7-8th for a mini getaway with my fiance and went to El Charro for the first time. I also tried the albondigas and carne seca. The carne seca reminded me of beef jerky. Very interesting. I thought there'd be more lime flavor and didn't expect it to be so dry, but I was glad I tried it. I really liked their salsa. It's quite different and the oregano makes it very distinctive. In fact, we liked it so much, we bought a jar to go (also good to know they sell it online, since we're almost out already!). We really liked Blanco (in the La Encantada shopping center). Their chips are great. The best I've had since being in Cancun a few years back. And their salsa has a nice smoky flavor. The food is good too. My only complaint was the carne asada (in the tacos) was a bit fatty and tough. Other than that, very good.

[ziggylu]

You're right about the salsa at El Charro! While the chips were nothing special we both did like the salsa a lot.

[Claudette]

Everyone raves about the carne seca, which we found a bit tough and salty. However, if eaten within the context of "The Tasting Plate," it's fabulous: a platter of barbacoa, chili con carne, carne verde, pollo con mole, and the carne seca. http://www.elcharrocafe.com/downloads...