Editor's note: This story was originally published in 2022 and updated in 2023.
As a food writer, the question I get asked above any other is: where should we eat?
I can never give a straightforward answer. My response is always: It depends. What do you feel like eating? I’m not about to send someone craving a fried chicken sandwich to get my favorite Sichuan beef dish at Noodleholics. While I do have my fail-safe options, I like customizing my suggestions to what will make my friends most happy on a given day.
While I love every single place on this list, there are eight restaurants that are absolute must-tries. Six are my favorite go-tos, marked with a yellow heart (💛), and the other five are bucket-list icons that no one should leave Tucson without having tried, marked with a cactus (🌵).
Disclaimer: This list is a living document. While I’m confident that all of these places are good, if I’m missing your favorite place, please send me an email with your favorite thing to eat there and why: elueders@tucson.com.
Indian | Chinese | Vietnamese | Japanese | Korean| Thai | Burgers| Pizza | Italian| Mediterranean | Tacos | Burritos |Quesadillas | Enchiladas | Tamales | Antojitos | Sonoran Dogs | Seafood/Mariscos | Baked Goods and Sweets | Date Night | Vegan | Brunch | Munchies | Fried chicken | Mac and cheese |Ethiopian | Caribbean|BBQ | Markets | Icons
💛 Indian Twist
Location: 4660 E. Camp Lowell Dr.
Indian Twist is not only my favorite Indian restaurant, but one of my favorite restaurants in Tucson. As someone who orders vegetarian at Indian restaurants, I’ve never been as impressed by veg options as I am at Indian Twist (it might have to do with their vegetarian chefs).
The first time I ate there, their navratan korma left the strongest impression on me of almost any meal I’ve had in Tucson. Each vegetable was cooked in its own time to the ideal texture, held together by a miraculously creamy, nuanced cashew sauce. The spice level, which I ordered medium-plus or 7/10, hit the nail on the head. The garlic naan was fresh and singed with char in all the right places, still crispy on the outside and soft on the inside despite some travel time. Each bite brought its own pleasure.
While picking up, the service was impeccable, just attentive enough and shining with earnestness. The open kitchen allows you to see the back-of-house staff at work, throwing naan against the tandoor oven and pulling sauces from pots with long ladles. The interior is upscale enough to complement birthdays and anniversaries, but casual enough to sit on the patio with a beer and some samosas. It’s a perfect restaurant.
Honorable mentions: Reader Karen Kahn loves the chicken tikka masala at Sher-e-Punjab. Saffron Indian Bistro and its sister restaurant Kebabeque Indian Grill are also great. Ellice still needs to try: Gandhi Cuisine of India.
Noodleholics
Locations: 3502 E. Grant Road; 7850 N. Oracle Road
When in doubt, go to Noodleholics. Its housemade noodles are a consistent crowd-pleaser. While everything on their menu is good, when you find the thing that you like best, it’s hard to branch out. Their Guilin regional specialties shine, like the rice noodle dishes at the center of their menu. But my favorite, personally, is the Sichuan beef noodle, which offers tender meat in a heady, numbing broth. The Oro Valley location has vegan options!
Chef Wang
Location: 356 E. Grant Road
Chef Wang has a big menu. It’s a Chinese restaurant in the style of the cold Dongbei region, which favors hearty tapas to be shared by the table. Dongbei specialties include jiaozi (饺子), a delicate boiled dumpling. The cabbage and pork jiaozi at Chef Wang are not-to-be-missed — I always regret not ordering them.
A hallmark ingredient of the region is sauerkraut, which is especially worth trying in their rich stews. If you want a more familiar gateway item, the guo bao pork (锅包肉), fried sweet and sour pork, is another signature dish of the region.
While you can order from the “Popular Dishes in America” or Sichuan portions of the menu, you’re missing the best stuff.
81 Hong Kong Cafe
Location: 625 E. Wetmore Road
I was told to order 81 Hong Kong Cafe’s chicken bites and basil eggplant by Isabella Joffroy (@yelptucson), and that was one of my favorite meals of 2022. The basil eggplant has a beautiful, custardy texture and generous flavor. The fried chicken bites are the best popcorn chicken in Tucson. I reheated the leftovers for lunch for days and didn’t get tired of them once.
Honorable mentions: Sushi Lounge, Go Dim Sum for dim sum. Ellice still needs to try: eHotPot.
Phở Cần Thơ by 1
Location: 2746 N. Campbell Ave.
There’s a loose superstition that all the best Vietnamese restaurants have numbers in their name. For instance, downtown’s Eleven Cafē has the best Vietnamese coffee in Tucson.
Phở Cần Thơ by 1 is similarly case in point. Their bánh mìs are my predecessor Andi Berlin’s favorite in Tucson, and I reckon mine as well.
Vegans rejoice, you can find plant-based pho here! While other honorable mentions offer stellar meat options, the quality of Phở Cần Thơ’s vegetarian and vegan selections separate it from the pack.
Honorable mentions: Pho Ngan, Banhdicted, Miss Saigon. Ellice still needs to try: Com Tam Thuan Kieu and Nhu Lan.
💛 Sushi:Yamato Japanese Restaurant
Location: 857 E. Grant Road
Yamatois on the short list of my favorite restaurants in Tucson. The sushi chef Noboru Nakajima is old-school, taught in Japan. The restaurant’s been around since 1988. Once you try sushi here, you’re going to be holding the rest of Tucson to its standard.
That being said, it also has a formidable grill menu. I’m waiting for their distributor to get hamachi kama back in stock — yellowfin collar is one of the most precious, tender cuts of meat out there and I don’t want to try it anywhere else before I have had it here.
Ramen: Raijin Ramen
Location: 2955 E. Speedway
Raijin’srich broth makes their ramen addictive. In case you opt for to-go, their takeout travels better than most, because they separate the stuff they don’t want to get soggy.
Honorable mentions: Toss Fried Chicken and Ramen, Yoshimatsu. Ellice still needs to try: Ikkyu,SamuraiandSushi on Oracle.
General: HeeMee Coffee + Bakery
Location: 20 E. Congress St.
HeeMee is my editor Gloria’s favorite restaurant in Tucson (she can't help but order their spicy beef bulgogi). Their chicken katsu sandwich is practically a carnal pleasure. They also have specialty coffee drinks you can’t find anywhere else, like the Viennese einspänner (made with whipped cream) and a sweet dalgona honeycomb latte.
KBBQ: Ellice still needs to try Korea House Restaurant.
Pro tip: You can get fresh tteokbokki at Kimpo Market to cook on your own!
Tuk Tuk Thai
Locations: 2990 N. Campbell Ave.; 12125 N. Oracle Road; 6878 E. Sunrise Dr.
Portland, Oregon’s loss is our gain. This stylish restaurant, Tuk Tuk Thai, shines with regional cuisine like the Khao Soi chicken curry.
CowPig’s CowMelt
Chase us down! It’s the merited catchphrase of food truck CowPig, especially for their CowMelt, juicy and packed with both roasted green chiles and grilled onion.
Graze Burgers + Truland Burgers & Greens
Locations: Grazeand Trulandare local sibling chains with locations across town.
Not only are their burgers great, their house-made condiments keep me coming back. Their curry ketchup is a dead ringer for what gets dressed on Berlin’s iconic currywurst. Their fry sauce is guzzle-able. I always take more than I should.
Ellice still needs to try: Divine Bovine.
Neapolitan-style: Family Joint Pizzeria
This mesquite-fired Neapolitan pizza oven on wheels is a showstopper. While Family Joint's margherita pizza is still great, you’re doing it right if you order their tomatillo carnitas or elote pies (ask for more cilantro-lime crema, it’s worth paying extra).
NY-style: Empire Pizza & Pub
Location: 137 E. Congress St.
Empireis my favorite late-night eatery. Their slice of cheese ($3.25) is true to New York style: equal parts utilitarian and delicious, with a generous portion of cheese. Their downtown patio transforms with Congress Street: from a spot to grab a quick work lunch to a safe harbor to end the night.
Sicilian-style: Squared Up Pizza
Location: Park Place Mall, 5870 E. Broadway
As a red sauce devotee, I do not declare this lightly: Squared Up’s ricotta and honey white pie is exquisite. It’s rich and gently sweet, like a European dessert. While it’s located in the Park Place Mall, it functions like a traditional pizzeria — feel free to call in orders!
Tucson-style: Los Olivos
Location: 937 W. Congress St.
Los Olivos does not imitate any other style of pie. It’s unique to here. Each of the medley of roasted vegetables on its vegetarian pie is cooked and roasted to its own perfection. The sauce pulls the diverse flavors together seamlessly.
Honorable mentions: Anello. I’ve lived in New York City, and I’ve had a LOT of good pizza in Tucson. Chances are, if it’s a local place, it’s good.
Roma Imports
Location: 627 S. Vine Ave.
Don’t go to Romawithout a list you plan to stick to: it’s easy to blow your food budget for the week here. This place is a cult classic for a reason. Their Italian sandwiches are made with the freshest ingredients and special imports hard to find elsewhere. I swear by their premade meals (their gorgonzola sauce is dangerous). Budget shoppers: buy your olive oil in bulk here for a fraction of the cost at grocery stores.
Honorable mentions: Locale Neighborhood Italian Restaurant, CeresandNoodiesall make fresh pasta in-house.
Homemade Freshly Mediterranean
Mediterranean is my favorite kind of food, and I hadn’t found a place in Tucson that blew me away until I came across the Homemade Freshly Mediterranean food truck.
Homemade Freshly Mediterranean’s Lebanese sandwiches are some of the most densely flavored you can find in Tucson. Garlic girls will love their garlic chicken sandwich — each must be made with at least a few cloves.
Honorable mentions: Zayna’sandNur Import Market.
Tacos El Cuate de Obregon
Location:4817 S. 12th Ave.
Tacos El Cuate de Obregon is an experience as much as it’s a delicious meal. Their informal patio, packed with families in a weekend-good mood after church on a Sunday, is practically hallowed ground. Their ribeye taco is just another blessing.
Taqueria Pico de Gallo
Location: 2618 S. Sixth Ave.
While Sonora is known for its flour tortillas, Taqueria Pico de Gallo’s menu is Baja Californian. They’re best known for their fluffy, fresh-made corn tortillas and mouthwatering fried fish and shrimp. And their pico de gallo, of course — not the salsa, but fruit cups cut fresh every day.
While there are countless honorable mentions, one rises above the rest: El Taco Rustico. Ellice still needs to try: Karamelo King.Side note: Tacos Apson is in our "icons" section.
🌵 Anita Street Market
Location: 849 N. Anita Ave.
Anita Street Market’s flour tortillas are translucently thin, flavorful and stretchy — the platonic ideal of the iconic Sonoran food. In a burrito, their huge tortillas do not outshine their homemade fillings, but instead amplify their deliciousness. It’s a great place to try the traditional Sonoran red chile beef, but their breakfast burritos are just as compelling.
🌵Barista del Barrio
Location: 1002 N. Grande Ave.
Barista del Barrio is a meeting place for all of Tucson (and many in-the-know visitors). While waiting in the infamously long line outside their Grande Avenue storefront, you'll see UA students shoulder-to-shoulder with abuelas and preteens from Barrio Hollywood, hipsters sitting next to snowbirds who just hiked Tumamoc and, more often than not, a food writer waiting patiently for her weekly little treat.
Their chorizo breakfast burritos are a top 3 favorite food of mine, especially when I have the presence of mind to ask for green chile and extra salsa.
Honorable mentions: I also really love the hand burritos at Tortilleria Don Juan.
The Quesadillas
Location: 2418 N. Craycroft Road
While people don’t typically think of the area near Tucson Medical Center as a hotspot for Mexican food (try La Doce for that), The Quesadillas makes a compelling argument with their succulent carne asada.
💛 St. Mary’s Mexican Food
Location: 1030 W. St. Mary’s Road
St. Mary’s is the first place I take friends visiting from out of town to introduce them to Tucson. Standing in line in their lobby, waiting patiently to order anything that uses their standout tortillas and, always, a horchata, is a rite of passage.
💛Rollies Mexican Patio
Location: 4573 S. 12th Ave.
Everything at Rolliesis delicious (including its eponymous rolled tacos, dipped in queso… yum), but their flat enchiladas, doused in their award-winning birria, are life-changing. Their quesabirria tacos, called birria rojo cheesies, are also not to be missed.
Buendia Breakfast and Lunch
Location: 2530 N. First Ave.
The best tamales I’ve had in a restaurant in Tucson are stuffed in a poblano at Buendia. The owners source the tamales from a local artisan and are the closest to Matilde Santa Cruz’s you can get over the counter.
Honorable mentions: The iconic Lerua’s tamales are still made at El Torero.
Oasis Fruit Raspados
Location:4126 S. 12th Ave.
Oasisis the oldest raspaderia in Tucson and a true icon.
Mangos Refresqueria y Cafe
Location: 4990 S. Campbell Ave.
Mangosis heaven for munchies. Blow your diet with their nachos, then keep digging with their raspados.
🌵 Aqui con El Nene
Locations: 4415 N. Flowing Wells Road, 65 W. Valencia Road
Back to homepage
Keep reading with a digital access subscription.
