Where to Eat In Tucson, Arizona’s Desert Jewel

Ruiz Hot Dogs Los Chipilones

Tucson’s beloved Sonoran hot dog is wrapped in bacon and topped with diced tomato, raw onion, grilled onion, pinto beans, mayo, mustard, and green salsa on a slightly sweet bun. With so many toppings, execution varies dramatically. While El Güero Canelo was the place that earned the James Beard America’s Classics Award, Ruiz is my favorite thanks to its toasted (rather than steamed) bun and Goldilocks-perfect ratio of toppings. Bonus points for the blistered yellow pepper on the side. 

This self-described wine hotel features complimentary daily tastings on the mezzanine, a collab with Sand-Reckoner Vineyards, which is based in Willcox (the heart of Arizona’s blossoming wine scene, where more than 20 wineries take advantage of the area’s ideal elevation, climate, and soil to grow 74 percent of the state’s grapes). The historic building, which once housed Tucson’s first newspaper press, features only 10 rooms, all named after wine varietals that thrive in the high Sonoran Desert Region. And yes, there are wine caddies in every bathtub. 

La Indita

While Arizona has two of the largest Native American reservations in the country (the Navajo Nation and the Tohono O’odham Nation), only a handful of eateries offer Native American cuisine. At La Indita matriarch María García shares recipes from her and her husband’s Tarascan and Tohono O’odham heritages. The velvety chicken mole sings with both fruitiness and bitterness from Chiapas cacao beans. The Tarascan taco features an unusual blend of spinach and nuts yet feels nostalgic at first bite. Beans and red chile beef top crispy-chewy fry bread for the massive Indian taco. 

For years I stayed away from this restaurant because of the uninspired name—it’s a sushi restaurant on Oracle Road. Upon my first visit I realized how grave my mistake was. The lo-fi hip-hop, jazz covers of Ghibli soundtracks, and selection of Japanese craft beers immediately set it apart from anything I’d encountered. While master sushi chef Yoshinobu “Yoshi” Shiratori is the head honcho, I ended up a regular because of the friendly Navajo sushi chef, Tommy Begay III. I tend to go during off-hours so I’m less of a distraction when I ask Tommy questions about what ingredients he’s been experimenting with, like house-made yuzu kosho and smoked salmon. There’s no avant-garde fusion here, though, just superb sushi in a chill environment that embraces both the old school and the new. 

Nationally acclaimed Tucson legends Don Guerra and Carlotta Flores come together to pay homage to heirloom White Sonora wheat, one of the oldest varieties in America. Guerra’s fresh-baked bread (which draws lines around the block at his bakery) combines effortlessly with Flores’s Northern Mexican family recipes (her Tia Monica invented the chimichanga) in a powerhouse lineup of excellent sandwiches. If you don’t mind sending bread through an airport scanner, absolutely take a loaf home with you—they freeze quite well.