CODY'S BEEF AND BEANS - TUCSON, AZ

yep, this ain't a vegan gluten-free calorie conscious restaurant. but oh, it is GOOD. its located on Fort Lowell between Country Club and Tucson.

We've been eating here since Tucson #1 and the food is always of great quality, the service is exemplary, the prices are reasonable and the atmosphere (dated cowboy) is soothing and never noisy.

Bill had baby back ribs and french fries and coleslaw and a salad. All the portions are big and this cost $14. I had my usual; a codyburger (the meat comes from Dickman's Butcher shop. We used to get all our beef needs met at Dickman's when we lived on the NW side but now it's too far away.) which is absolutely delicious; moist and flavorful inspite of my "real well done" request.

And they have the best Thousand Island dressing; even better than Beyond Bread. I always order a side salad because of the awesome dressing but there is a choice of beans or soup or coleslaw or fries or - i forget what else. And this meal is only $8.

SCORE.

PIONIC PIZZA & PIZZA - TUCSON, AZ

a great addition to the Campbell avenue restaurant row.

You go up to the counter and order your pizza or pasta or salad and you can pick any ingredients you want including the type of sauce on your pizza. this is like the subway of pizza.  This also includes fresh basil options and different cheeses and the type of thin crust; traditional or whole wheat. All the pizzas are 13 inches which is a great size for 2 people to share. The choices of salad dressing is limited to balsamic viniagrette, ranch or poppyseed.

and the price for anything you order no matter how many ingredients is $7.45.

and the food was delicious. The pizza crust was crispily tasteful without being dry like a saltine cracker and the ingredients were fresh - if not particularly plentiful. The salad was great. Though it was served in those over large bowls that have a walrus sized rim that's slanted upwards and the base is tiny so to me, it always seemed like the bowl was ready to tip over.

The salad was also big enough for 2 people to share which is what Bill and I did.

We will be back.

B.K.'S - TUCSON, AZ

First time back at this fabulously delicious Mexican restaurant since the end of our road trip (or is it REALLY the end?). Its on 1st between Grant and Glenn. The service has always been excellent and friendly and their prices are incredibly low. they have a great salsa bar; several different kinds of both chunky and 'liquidy'; cheeses, radishes, cucumbers, limes, coleslaw, cut up olives, onions, cilantro, and then about 8 dishes which i don't know the name of but are wonderful. The heat quotient of these out of the norm salsa's differ from visit to visit so i always taste judiciously and with caution. Oh, they also have a huge warmer of grilled peppers and large white onions (chives)?

We are stick- in- the- mud orderers at this place. Bill always gets a bowl of their charro beans (more like chili) and 2 carne asada tacos. I get a sonoran hot dog and 2 shrimp tacos. But the next time here, i'm going to be "adventurous" and not get the hot dog but instead get the beans.

Dare I be that culinarily risky?