While Matt Russell was out of town, Chef Albert Hall of Acacia Real Food & Cocktails stepped up to the mic for the most delicious hour on radio!

Chef Albert Hall

He was joined by fellow foodie John Farlow, who had all the information on this year’s Arizona Bacon Fest. Albert’s featured guests were Sally Kane and the team from the Coronet, Tucson’s new brasserie-style restaurant located at the corner of 9th Street and 4th Avenue. Some of the dishes that were sampled on the broadcast include a veggie platter, anchored by a gold and red beet terrine with goat cheese and minted chevre, as well as an off-the-hook country pate platter with pickled grapes. Wow.

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 50:05 — 14.3MB)

We just love when new restaurants open in Southern Arizona, and the destination for this week’s broadcast was the one that people are really buzzing about these days, Nox Kitchen & Cocktails!

Michael Fenlason, Brandon Katz, Matt Russell, Jim Seder & James Diedrich

Our celebrity co-host this week was Jim Seder, founder and publisher of the Wine Inquirer, who got us current with some cool new features of his multimedia playground for the wine and food enthusiast. And speaking of wine and food, Michael Fenlason of the Tucson Museum of Art sat down with us to share all the information on the upcoming CRUSH Wine, Food and Art Festival. Nox bar manager James Diedrich then got us appropriately libated as he discussed both sides of his thoughtful cocktail menu: “Shaken & Refreshing” and “Stirred & Boozy!” Our featured guest was Nox managing partner Brandon Katz who offered his perspectives on New American Cuisine, why his weekend brunch bloody marys are “amazing,” and what he has up his sleeve for all-day happy hour on Sundays! We also discovered what is possibly our new favorite fish dish in town: Miso Chilean Sea Bass with Forbidden Rice, Bok Choy and Soy Butter. Try it. Now.

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 48:58 — 14.0MB)

The event was billed as the largest cigar event that Southern Arizona had ever seen, so, of course, we had to be there…Cigar Madness at Jerry’s Cigars!

Mike Watman, Chef Mike Lopez, Grace Sotolongo, Matt Russell, Scot Litteer & Jerry Yang

This week’s celebrity co-host was Scot Litteer of Litteer Films, who lead a craft beer tasting, matching up some killer suds with some sensational smokes. We were then joined by Mike Watman of Ashton Cigars, who discussed some of the newer sticks in his award-winning line-up.  Chef Mike Lopez stopped by as well to talk about the fine art of carving whole roasted pigs (there were two of these beauties on-site that were lovingly served up to Jerry’s hungry customers). Our featured guest was the lovely Grace Sotolongo of Miami-based Sotolongo Cigars, who spoke with great passion about the company that bears her name, and the cigar that uniquely represents it…the Hechicera. This is a spectacular cigar – we loved it so much, we bought two boxes!

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 49:02 — 14.0MB)

Today was International Women’s Day, and we celebrated the occasion with a live remote broadcast from the Body & Sol Women’s Expo at the Tucson Convention Center!

Arlene Siegel, Matt Russell & Susan Fulton

Event co-chair Barbara Peters got things started with a full review of the weekend and its associated sessions, activities and culinary demonstrations. We then caught up with Arlene Siegel of R’s Raw Kitchen, who spoke authoritatively and passionately about raw living vegan (the kale chips and macaroons were delicious!). Sharon Cooksey of Govinda’s Natural Foods Buffet joined the conversation as well, discussing how vegetarian cuisine can truly be a gourmet experience. Our featured guest was Susan Fulton of Gourmet Girls Gluten-Free Bakery & Bistro who reminded us how you don’t have to sacrifice flavor when living a gluten-free lifestyle. Sampling some of her menu items proved this very point!

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 48:50 — 14.0MB)

In preparation for Fat Tuesday, we decided to broadcast live from Kingfisher, one of Tucson’s delicious Mardi Gras destinations!

Eric Smith, Teddy Hall, Maryanne Baines, Matt Russell, Barbara Peters, Holly Baker & J.P. Vyborny

Our celebrity co-host was J.P. Vyborny, head brewer and co-owner of Ten 55 Brewing. The brewery just celebrated its first anniversary, and J.P. talked about some of the suds behind his early success. We then welcomed Barbara Peters and Holly Baker to the conversation, in our countdown to the 2014 Body & Sol Women’s Expo. Kingfisher mixologist Eric Smith then got us introduced to the classic New Orleans cocktail called the sazerac, and talked about his new tequila aging program. Our featured guests were Teddy Hall and Maryanne Baines of Kingfisher, who walked us through the spectactular Mardis Gras menu that was assembled for Fat Tuesday. Laissez les bons temps rouler!

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 43:24 — 12.4MB)

Sitting in for a vacationing Matt Russell this week was the Tucson Foodie himself, Adam Lehrman! Adam had an all-star line-up of guests including Tucson Weekly food business writer C.J. Hamm, who talked about some of his favorite eateries and watering holes these days; Manish Shah of Maya Tea, who was buzzing about the upcoming Viva La Local event on April 6; and Chef Maria Mazon of Boca, who talked about her unique perspectives on tacos, salsas and life! She even brought in some goodies for the guys to try, including a spectrum of salsas, fish tacos, and taco dogs…yes, taco dogs!

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 47:49 — 13.7MB)

We went totally tamale this week, and when the fever hits, one of our favorite destinations is the Tucson Tamale Company!

Todd Martin, Matt Russell, Sherry Martin & John Fina

This broadcast came to you live from their newest location on Tucson’s east side, and what a blast it was. Our celebrity co-host was fellow foodie and former NFL star John Fina, who talked about how he spent Valentine’s Day and what was on his menu! We also caught up with Aaron DeFeo, master mixologist at Casino Del Sol, who shared what he had planned for the upcoming Arizona Cocktail Week. Our featured guests were Tucson Tamale Company’s own Todd and Sherry Martin, who talked about their unique, tamale-inspired journey, and what they believe is behind their sensational success. Then the tamales arrived, and we had a difficult time deciding which was our favorites. Was it the Santa Fe? The Blue? The JoJo? The St. Valentine’s? Try them all, and tell us what you think!

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 48:54 — 14.0MB)

In this our last broadcast before Valentine’s Day, the theme of the entire show was love, and there was a lot of love to go around!

Matt Russell, Chef Omar Huerta & Rita Connelly

Our celebrity co-host was Rita Connelly, food writer for the Tucson Weekly and the Well-fed Foodie on Facebook, who talked about all the love she has encountered lately on the local food and beverage scene. We then caught up with Aurelie Bessiere of Palais des Thes, who spoke about her passion for premium tea. We even shook up some of her Geisha Green Tea Cherry Margaritas right in the studio, which we think will make the perfect Valentine’s TeaTail! Our featured guest was Executive Chef Omar Huerta of Wildflower, who walked us through his criteria for romantic cuisine. He brought in some examples for us to taste, including the Burrata Cheese Board and the Bars of Sin dessert. Now that’s amore!

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 48:59 — 14.0MB)

When a local restaurant makes Food and Wine magazine’s list of the best bars in America, we just had to check it out, and Penca was the venue for this delicious broadcast! Food writer Edie Jarolim got things kicked off as our celebrity co-host for the week, discussing some of her latest coverage of the Tucson food landscape. We also checked in with Tina Liao, president-elect of the Tucson Chinese Association, who shared all the information on the upcoming Year of the Horse dinner to celebrate Chinese New Year. Penca barmen Bryan Eichhors and Luke Anable brought some amazing cocktails to the table to demonstrate what they think attracted the attention of Food and Wine magazine, and featured guest Patricia Schwabe of Penca discussed what’s behind authentic Mexico City cuisine. We said si to the Lengua Tacos, Tuetano, Costillas de Res y Chile en Nogada!

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 49:16 — 14.1MB)

In this “keeping it real” edition of our program, we came to you live from Acacia Real Food & Cocktails!

Kendra Johnson, Chef Albert Hall, Bella Joffroy, Bryan Lapham & Matt Russell

Celebrity co-host Bella Joffroy, Tucson Community Manager for Yelp, shared some real Yelpings on Tucson’s streets, and Bryan Lapham of Blanco had some really good ideas for preparing the table at your Super Bowl parties. Acacia bar manager Kendra Johnson also assembled a real libation for us to enjoy while talking about her cocktail program. Our featured guest was Acacia’s own Albert Hall, who filled our plates while sharing his unique perspectives on real cuisine. The reality is, we don’t know that we’ve had better duck liver moussse with duck proscuitto and a beet puree!

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 48:57 — 14.0MB)