BeatRoute Magazine AB Edition - November 2019

How Sweet It Was
424 E 6th St.
Founded in 1974, How Sweet It Was
Vintage has curated its selection
for around a single mission: imagine
the way specifically found items can
have “meaning, soul, and a story.”
With racks organized by both era
and style, expect a blend of timeless
ready-to-wear finds, single-wear
show-stoppers pulled from America’s
sun-baked west, and matching
sets with prints inspired from just
south of the Mexican border.
Owl’s Club
236 S Scott Ave.
When this 86-year-old funeral
home was remodelled to make way
for the Owl’s Club, the idea was
to retain the glamour of the early
20th century. Walking up the super
lush, palm tree-lined corridor to
the doorstep of Owl’s Club feels
like an apt reflection of their menu
of “complex original” cocktails and
“Old world” wines. But don’t let
Owl’s swanky interior fool you, one
night during HOCO Festival this
year saw Deaf Kids and Vancouver
noise destroyers Minimal Violence
take the stage at the location of
the former pulpit and shake the
venue to its core.
ANDI BERLIN
Taqueria Pico De Gallo
2618 S 6th Ave.
Ordering from the takeout counter,
the menu is concise and, with most
tacos priced less than $2, the
menu is equally cost-conscious.
But what really makes these tacos
stand out are the tortilla shells,
thick and viscous rolled from a ball
of corn masa flour, and the sweet
and salty tamarind raspados.
The Boxyard
238 N 4th Ave.
Possibly one of Tucson’s most
unique local dining spots, the 10
intentionally painted shipping
containers feature four restaurants,
two bars and a courtyard to
connect everything together. From
Bronx-inspired BBQ to Vietnamese
fare, this dog-friendly new addition
to the city’s downtown strip boasts
dynamic open-air seating, capable
of withstanding Arizona’s many
changing climates.
RECORD STORES
Odds and Ends/ Don’t Forget This
some of the most forward-thinking
artists on the continent
including Dean Blunt, S.H.I.T.,
Bbymutha, and Omar Apollo to
the historic Hotel Congress.
But Tucson is much more than
a college town, or a sleepy place
to retire. It’s a community with an
underdog spirit, wrestling with its
newest period of development
while also making itself amenable
to inviting guests from outside,
squarely on their own terms.
DESTINATIONS
Hotel Congress
311 Congress St.
The folklore around the Hotel
Congress is largely derived from its
proximity to a crucial part of American
western history, and a tangled
relationship with supernatural.
Built in 1918, the Hotel Congress
first rose to national attention
when it became the site of capture
for the infamous criminal John
Dillinger, and almost 60 years later
when it acquired an in-house ghost
as a result of a death by suicide on
the premises in the early 90s.
Now named as a federally recognized
historic building, the Hotel
boasts an award-winning music
venue, Club Congress; two dining
spots, The Cup Cafe and Maynards;
and an impressive roster of
year-round programming including
as home base for HOCO fest.
Tucson Museum of Art
140 N Main Ave.
Located in the city’s Presido district,
the Tucson Museum of Art is
more than an impressive showcase
for Latin, Western, and Contemporary
art, it’s become a crucial
cultural epicenter of the ongoing
redevelopment of Downtown
Tucson. Comprised of an entire
74,000-square-feet historic block,
what sets the museum apart is its
clearly considered social mission
reflected in both the programming
and the structure of the space.
Throughout the year they offer
public lectures on the subject of
border politics and indigeneity, and
while the museum is undergoing
construction, they’re offering a pay
what you can model for all patrons.
Gates Pass
You can’t say you’ve been to
Tucson if you haven’t visited the
mountains that frame the Sonoran
Desert. Featuring a unique blend
of flora and fauna found nowhere
else in the world, from a distance,
the hills seem covered in grass
until you move closer and realize
that towering Saguaro cactus
populate the mountain’s highest
peaks. Walk, don’t run, or you’ll
miss it.
EATS AND DRINKS
Boca’s Tacos
533 N 4th Ave.
Recognizable by a puckering set
of lips adorned on both outside
the restaurant and on every menu,
Boca’s Tacos have been celebrated
by the New York Times and
the Food Network. Both open
late and conveniently located on
the historic and artsy 4th Avenue,
expect the usuals like pulled pork
and camaron tacos executed at
the highest level, their trademark
tri-colour tortilla chips, and truly
imaginative creations like the AM
taco topped with a hash brown
and fried egg.
Exo Roast Co.
403 N 6th Ave.
Bustling, laptop-ridden, co-working
cafe space by day, and smoky, live
music bar by night, Exo Roast. Co
is housed in a repurposed warehouse
with massive floor to ceiling
windows and mismatched rustic
furniture. But calling Exo a coffee
shop would do a disservice to
their ambitious event roster, which
includes Wednesday hatha yoga
classes on the patio, and Mezcal
tastings followed by traditional
cumbia and Mexican ballads on
Thursday.
NIGHTLIFE
191 Toole
What was once Skrappy’s, a
DIY-music scene devoted to
uplifting Tucson’s at-risk youth, was
renamed 191 Toole in 2013 with a
renewed effort to exist as one of
the few places in the city to regularly
host all-ages shows. A weirdly
angled venue, the stage is actually
on a diagonal, providing fantastic
sightlines for artists as diverse as
Cass McCombs and Gatecreeper,
to Chastity Belt and Maxo Kream.
Che’s Lounge
350 N 4th Ave.
Che’s states that they’ve been
located in Tucson since “forever,”
which seems hard to argue with
since its open from 12 pm to 2 am
every day of the year. From the
well-stocked bar stationed in the
centre of the room, to a gorgeous
back patio featuring live music and
the tallest and cheapest pour of
whisky on ice, this is your spot to
come early and stay late.
Wooden Tooth Records
426 E 7th St.
Depending on the night, Wooden
Tooth might be the place where
you stumble across a new Boris reissue,
or bear witness to a wild and
riotous in-store performance by
any of the city’s impressive group
of rising local artists. This year, the
record store levels up its ambition
as one of the city’s newest and
best record stores by hosting the
first annual Woodenstock, which is
exactly what it sounds like.
YOGA Annex
439 N 6th Ave.
When it comes to taking a yoga
class in a new city, comfort is key.
Newly opened, YOGA Annex is
the place where “the music goes
up and the lights go down.” The
vinyasa flow class we attended led
by Gabriela Pintado, featured live
electro-acoustic drumming by local
multi-disciplinary artist Quiahuitl,
and an intentionally malleable set
of poses. Both heart-pumping,
deliberately gentle and ultimately
restorative, the class was a necessary
reprieve from the hot desert
sun.
NOVEMBER 2019 BEATROUTE 37