Tucson Sunset

For a luxurious get a way I highly suggest visiting the JW Mariot at Star Pass.  This resort will pamper patrons of all ages.  Located in West Tucson, in the Tucson Mountains, the JW boast beautiful mountain golf views, overlooking three pools and the Tucson valley.  The staff is friendly and courteous ready to provide assistance to your every need.

Mt. Lemon’s, Ski Valley, offer an excellent getaway during the hot summer days and an opportunity to ski the southern most ski resort in the US during the winter.  For a 360 degree view of Ski Valley follow this link – Ski Valley

New Restaurant Reviews:

Review of Vivace Pizzeria: Vivace Pizzeria is a fantastic eatery for both lunches and casual dinners. The restaurant is run by Daniel Scordato–the maistro behind Vivace–the top Italian restaurant in Tucson. The pizzas are very unique–and all include fresh ingredients from arugula to prosciutto. The pizza crust is a warm, crunchy, yet still soft bread. The crust is not too thin (like a cracker), but not too thick that it takes away from the other ingredients. It is the best pizza I have had, period. The fresh mozzarella salads, and the cannoli are not to be missed. The atmosphere is elegant, yet very cozy. Scordato hit it big with this new eatery, and it is not to be missed

Review of Blanco–Tacos and Tequila, Tucson: Blanco is a modern Mexican eatery in LaEncatada.  The food is quite delicious, and ranges from tacos (the carne asada tacos are fantastic) to burritos, and even “Mexican” burgers or pizza.  The restaurant has a lovely airy patio, beautiful city views, and a light, inviting interior.  I highly recommend the Chicken Quesadillas, the Carne Asada Tacos, and the lovely flan for dessert.  The manager, Josh, does a great job to please customers, and I have found the restaurant to be a great lunch location (you can find me there about 2-3 times per week).

Review of Acacia in St. Phillips: Acacia is a wonderful date restaurant.  It has a lovely lowly lighted interior, great service (but appropriately slow), and scrumptious menu options.  As an appetizer the spring rolls with duck are not to be missed.  They are crunchy, yet the duck is cooked to perfection.  It also comes with several wonderful dipping sauces.  You can’t go wrong with any of the entrees, the halibut, and the sea bass are phenomenal.  And the decorations and the presentation of everything is simply beautiful.  For dessert, taste the homemade ice creams–I loved the section of fresh fruit sorbets.  Overall, you can’t go wrong with anything at Acacia–letting us place it as Tripst3r’s selection for the best overall dining experience in Tucson!

Review of Montana Avenue: Montana Avenue is a great semi-casual dining experience.  The restaurant is loud and airy (much like North–in LaEncantada), however the service is very good, and the food is quite tasty.  The Macaroni and Cheese is fantastic!  It is the best appetizer on the menu, and is not to be missed.  Even if you don’t ordinarily order an appetizer the mac and cheese is unbelievable–order it!  For the entrees, stick with the Ahi Tuna–seared or for a casual dinner get the Tuna Melt.  The Tuna melt is huge and is almost as good as the melt at Acacia for lunch.  Of course, for desert get the Apple Cobbler.  It is amazing!  The cobbler comes out of the oven in a small pan, served with mouthwatering vanilla bean ice cream!  The homemade doughnut and the peanut butter cup is also very tasty, but our favorite is the cobbler.

Review of Ra: Ra is an excellent Sushi restaurant.  In the summer, if you get there before 7 P.M. you can get half off most of the sushi and the drinks.  The sushi is quite tasty, and we recommend the Las Vegas Rolls (yet they are fried).  Both the Nigri and the Maki rolls are also quite good.  Get eel, halibut, ahi, or salmon.

Review of NoRTH: North considers itself a “Modern Italian Restaurant.”  By this they mean Chicken Parmesan, a variety of pizzas and pastas, some variations of flank steak and other meats, and a variety of other entrees that I do not consider Italian–halibut, fresh ahi, etc.  The restaurant is excellent, it is just not true Italian dinning.  If you walk in expecting Chicken Marsala or Veal Piccata–you will walk out most certainly disappointed.  I do not want to rail on the restaurant.  I enjoy both the modern fare and the excellent service.  If you go give the Chicken Parmesan a shot–it will not disappoint.  You also can not go wrong with any of the pizzas.  I absolutely love the prosciutto pizza, and their white pizzas are also quite tasty.  We had the Tripst3r “after-launch” event at North and everything was wonderful.  In fact, we will probably launch our e-commerce event at North as well–possibly in Denver, but non the less-still North.  If you are looking for an excellent wine list, North will perk you up.  Their wine list is both comprehensive, yet not overwhelming.  So, if you are looking for a wonderful dining experience go to North–just don’t be disappointed if you walk out saying “this is Italian?”

Review of Vivace: Daniel Scordato, executive chef at Vivace is quite possibly one of the most talented chefs in the greater Southwest.  Actually, I take that back, Daniel Scordato is the most talented chef in the greater Southwest.  Vivace is located in the lovely St. Phillips Plaza at River and Campbell, and serves true Italian fare.  The menu includes everything from Osso Buco to Veal Piccata and everything in between.  To start try the Grilled Asparagus & Parma Prosciutto starter, and get a pear and walnut salad.  Everything on the menu is simply delicious and I highly recommend it.  If you want to try homemade pasta that melts in your mouth try one of the pasta dishes–you can’t go wrong with the four cheese dish.  The restaurant is intimate, and the service is also excellent.  If you are visiting Tucson for the first time, or even if you have lived in Tucson all your life–go to Vivace.