Loni Nannini Special to the Arizona Daily Star It’s a unique blueprint combining art with the battle against food insecurity: Canstruction Tucson — Build for Hunger 2024 to benefit the Community Food Bank of Southern Arizona will begin a 11 a.m. on Saturday, June 22 at Park Place Mall, 5870 E. Broadway Blvd.“This is a fun summertime event that promotes awareness about fighting hunger,” said Norma Cable, Public Relations and Marketing Specialist for the Community Food Bank of Southern Arizona. “It is amazing to see the artistry involved. There are four teams competing this year who will use canned food…

Editor’s note: This story was originally published in 2022 and updated in 2024.Just 35 miles north of downtown Tucson sits Oracle, the namesake road lined with yuccas on your way to the small town.Oracle is where lavender blooms at a local farm in the heat of June. It’s where you can step into a rainforest, amid the heat and humidity, at the incredible Biosphere 2. It’s where you can enjoy a grilled cheese sandwich with guava jam alongside a glass of wine on the patio of the Oracle Patio Cafe. It’s a little cooler than Tucson in the summer —…

Editor’s note: This story was originally published in 2022 and updated in 2024.Bisbee has a mythical quality to me. When I was four, my parents took their anniversary trip to the Copper Queen, leaving me with my grandparents at their big plot of land in Hereford.Though I loved the Hereford house — it had a lofted ceiling and cable television; it was where my grandmother made her German rolls every morning and we’d walk the property spreading birdseed before it got too hot, and visit The Cove waterpark once it was — I was suffering from FOMO.Where was Bisbee and…

Variety H2O & Ice Cream A combination water purification and ice cream shop? It makes sense. When you’re here to refill your supply of filtered H2O, enjoy a scoop, cone, pint, milkshake, or smoothie made with one of 32 Thrifty ice cream flavors.  Better yet, take this opportunity to check out golas, the Indian street version of snow cones, featuring such flavors as saffron, rose, and rajbhog along with standards like chocolate and strawberry. The shaved ice is, naturally, made with purified water. This article was originally published by a tucsonfoodie.com . Read the Original article here. .

Jeffry Scott / Arizona Daily Star Dean and Millie Short opened Ye Olde Lantern, formerly the Green Lantern, on North Oracle Road in March of 1959. The Shorts promoted the spot as a high-end steak house, with mesquite broiled steak, prime rib, chicken and lobster on the menu. Eddie Dugan provided live entertainment on the piano. Ye Olde Lantern, with the oversized lantern hanging from its sign, closed in 2006. The site is now home to an Elks lodge.  This article was originally published by a tucson.com . Read the Original article here. .

To understand the Tucson dining scene, you have to go back 4,000 years.The surrounding Sonoran Desert is the most biodiverse region of North America, and the Santa Cruz River, which runs through Tucson, is the longest continuously cultivated area of North America. The Tohono O’odham tribe’s predecessors, the Hohokam, settled along the river and developed irrigation canals to water their “three sisters” crops of corn, squash and beans. “Generation after generation have gone to the banks of the Santa Cruz River to plant and harvest their food,” Janos Wilder, a James Beard Award-winning chef and president of Tucson City of…

On Tucson’s south side, on the corner Third Avenue and 25th Street, sits a little shack with a roof of solar panels. At the front, behind its chain link fence, a fading hand-painted picture of La Virgen de Guadalupe greets all who approach. It’s Saturday, and Casa Maria welcomes anyone in need of a meal. Outside, volunteers form themselves into a human assembly line: a church volunteer with graying hair, a University of Arizona student and locals from the barrio, some sporting baseball caps, others cowboy hats. They begin to unload box after box of donated food — tomatoes, a…

Mesquite wood, cactus paddles, beans, chiltepin, and Sonoran flour are a few of the building blocks of the dynamic and delicious Sonoran cuisine that focuses on chili-laden sauces, smoky grilled meats, and large flour tortillas. The Sonoran Desert is a sprawling geographical region that encompasses Southern Arizona up to the Mogollon Rim, the southeastern corner of California, the entire state of Sonora, Mexico, the Baja California peninsula of Mexico, and the Gulf of California and its islands. So it tracks that Tucson, Arizona, is one of the best places in the United States to sample Sonoran cuisine. In fact, in…

Maynard’s Market & Kitchen Maynard’s offers a welcoming blend of comfort and innovation, which is reflective in its menu. Whether you’re seeking a quick bite on the go or a relaxed atmosphere to unwind with friends, Maynard’s caters to all tastes. From breakfast delights like the Baconeggandchez and Greenchorizoeggandchez to a selection of freshly baked pastries, artisan coffee, salads, sandwiches, and charcuterie snack packs, each dish reflects a commitment to quality and flavor. The morning menu transitions into an array of beverage options, including premium whiskies, curated cocktails, and an impressive selection of beer and wine, proving that Maynard’s is…

Mama Louisa’s Italian Restaurant Mama Louisa’s has been a beloved Tucson landmark since 1956. They offer a traditional Italian dining experience with a Southwestern twist, serving classic Italian dishes passed down through generations. They are known for making homemade pasta with locally grown wheat, and source meats, produce, and herbs from Southern Arizona producers. Their operations also show a strong commitment to sustainability. They divert food and water waste to on-site foliage or recycle it into compost on-site or through a service. They also recycle all their cooking oil. To reduce the use of plastic and Styrofoam, the restaurant uses…