Tucson Meet Yourself, 2023

Edgar Lanay, left, holds a tray for his daughter Luna Lanay while she enjoys corn on the cob at Tucson Meet Yourself.

It’s that time of year again.

There’s a chill in the air, pumpkin spice lattes have overtaken the coffee shops, and soon, the Jácome Plaza will be full of delicious food and dazzling performances.

is back! For three days, Downtown Tucson will be bustling with various vendors serving up tasty, authentic dishes from all over the world.

From West Africa to the Caribbean, this year’s festival is jam packed with all kinds of delicacies that are sure to make your tastebuds very happy.

They even introduced a new option this year called Taste of the Festival. Those who buy a pass for Taste of the Festival will have the opportunity to enjoy five exclusive small plates from participating vendors. That way, you’ll be able to sample more without having to try and finish full plates on your own.

The Taste of the Festival pass is $25 in advance and $30 during the festival. For more information, you can visit the .

With over 40 vendors this year, it can be a bit overwhelming to figure out what you’re going to chow down on. Below, we’ve compiled all the , that way you can plan your meals ahead of time to ensure you don’t miss something delicious!

Tucson Meet Yourself takes place at Jácome Plaza, , from 11 a.m. to 10 p.m. Friday Oct. 17- Saturday, Oct. 18 and from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. Sunday, Oct. 19. The weekend also will feature exciting events like car shows, pop-up exhibits, demonstrations, folk artists and music.

A Picantear

Helen Oberling, a Peruvian chef with over 20 years of experience, started A Picantear as a way to reconnect with the flavors and traditions of the dishes prepared by her family. Some of the delicious traditional Peruvian meals on her menu will be papa a la huancaina (boiled potatoes covered in creamy and spicy yellow sauce), papa rellena de res carne molida (stuffed and fried potato filled with Peruvian-marinated ground beef) and sandwich de chicharrón. For those with a sweet tooth, A Picantear will also have desserts like alfajores (cornstarch-based cookies filled with dulce de leche and coated in powdered sugar) and arroz con leche.

Everyone’s waiting for the Tsatziki sauce to top off the gyro sandwich at the Daughters of Penelope/Order of Ahepa Greek Food Booth in 2017.

Order of Ahepa Greek Food

This booth has been at Tucson Meet Yourself since 1974, raising money for local charities and to help provide scholarships for students in the Greek community. They will be serving up classic Greek dishes like gyros, spanakopita, dolmades and baklava.

Alafia West African Cuisine

At this booth, you’ll be able to try all the tasty flavors from the West African region. Expect to see dishes like egusi and fufu plates with barbecued meats, jollof rice with grilled chicken, ginger juice, and peanut stew.

Arizona-Palestine Solidarity Alliance

Taste authentic Palestinian food made fresh by community members. Falafel and salad, aqras Za’atar (Za’atar patties), Mtabbal (roasted eggplant hummus) and aqras sabanech (spinach pie) will be on the menu.

Boriken Modern Puerto Rican Cuisine

Chef Carlos and Jackeline Garcia run Boriken, where they use heirloom recipes to serve up exceptional Puerto Rican meals. You’ll be able to order Boricua nachos- which are made with plantain chips and roasted pork- or an empanada sampler that comes with three different variants. They will also be offering chicharrónes de pollo con yucca frita, and Puerto Rican sodas.

They are also participating with the Tase of the Festival. Their small plate will consist of sorullitos de maiz- deep-fried cornmeal fritters that have a crispy exterior and soft interior.

Che Café Empanadas Argentinas

At this booth, you'll be able to choose from all kinds of empanadas. On their menu this year are beef, chicken, spinach, sweet corn, and pizza empanadas.

Churros El Rey

Churros El Rey makes each of their churros from scratch, deep frying them to golden perfection and coating them in cinnamon sugar. You can get traditional churros, or try one that’s filled with a rich dulce de leche. You can even get a churro sundae if you’re looking for the ultimate sweet treat.

Churros Inzunza

At Churros Inzunza, they use their family recipe to craft their delectable treats. You can expect to find vegan and gluten-free churros, as well as choco flan, fried plantains, cinnamon rolls, coconut horchata, and more!

They are also a participating vendor with the Taste of the Festival where they will be offering strawberry horchata.

Club Colombia

This booth has participated in almost every Tucson Meet Yourself, thanks to Dr. James S. “Big Jim” Griffith and Alfonso Lemos. Here, they specialize in Colombian food like empanadas, arepas, papas choreadas (a steamed potato topped with a sauce made from onions, tomatoes and spices), tropical juices, and Colombian coffee.

Viviana Fimbres is all smiles as she hands an order to a customer at the Cocina Oaxaqueña booth during the 49th annual Tucson Meet Yourself.

Cocina Oaxaqueña

José Toledo, an El Espinal native, learned about Oaxacan cuisine from his grandmother and mother. In fact, his recipes, including his signature mole, were passed down from generation to generation in his family. Now, he’s sharing his love of Oaxacan food with Tucson. You’ll be able to try dishes like tamal Oaxaqueño, enmoladas, quesadilla de flor de calabaza, and aguas frescas.

CreSer: Culture & Resource Center for Women & Families

CreSer is a center dedicated to exploring healing, learning and organizing as a Latine community. At their booth, you can expect to see different Latin dishes like tamale plates, frijoles caseros, Spanish rice, and hand made flour tortillas.

They will also be a participating food vendor with the Taste of the Festival, collaborating with the Chinese Chorizo Festival and offering a Chinese Chorizo taco with a freshly made flour tortilla.

David’s Outdoor Kitchen BBQ

This booth has all your barbecue and soul food cravings covered! David’s Outdoor Kitchen BBQ transformed their father’s front yard into a mini restaurant, making customers feel all the love while they stuff their faces with comfort food. For the festival this year, they will be offering BBQ ribs, brisket, fried catfish, fried shrimp, mac and cheese bites, collard greens, and hush puppies.

Eatgypt

Come to this booth to try Egypt’s ultimate street food, koshary. This vegan dish made up of rice, pasta, lentils, crispy fried onions and chickpeas, and topped with a vinegary tomato sauce. They will also be serving bamia (an Egyptian stew), baklava, and karkade (a drink made with hibiscus, lemon juice and sugar).

They are also a participating vendor with the Taste of the Festival, offering a small plate of bamia.

Elif’s Kitchen Kumpir and Gozleme

The owners behind Elif’s Kitchen have fond memories of helping their mothers make flatbreads and stuffed breads for the wintertime. Being able to share that warm food with one another was pure joy, and now, they want to bring that same joy to Tucson. At their booth, they will be offering gozleme stuffed with various fillings, kumpir (stuffed cooked potatoes), and baklava.

Empanadas El Dominicano

You may have seen this food truck on Broadway and Rosemont, bringing a piece of the Caribbean to Tucson. They are cooking up all their favorites, including their various empanadas, fried pork chops, arroz con pollo, fritos con salami, and tropical drinks. I LOVE their ground meat empanadas and plantains. I would also recommend their morir soñando drink, which tastes like a refreshing, creamy lemonade.

They are also a participating vendor with the Taste of the Festival, offering a small plate of smoked tuna empanadas.

Espressoul Café

Eris Movahedi is the mastermind behind Espressoul café, where she makes vegan espresso lattes, matcha lattes and refreshers. Take it from me, it’ll be worth standing in line to try one of her creative drinks. One of my all-time favorites is her Honey Bear drink, which is a honey cinnamon latte. Her signature lattes will be on the menu for the festival, so you’ll be able to sip on a baklava latte while you explore all the performances and other dining.

Food 2 Door Catering

Shadi and Kiana, two lifelong friends, decided to start a catering company in hopes of sharing authentic Persian food with the community. Food 2 Door, serves up flavorful meals and saffron ice cream, and their menu this year includes kashk bademjan (an appetizer made of sauteed eggplants, onion, garlic and dried mint), and corn on the cob. They will also be selling saffron and pistachio ice cream, baklava and saffron sharbat- a beverage made of rose water, saffron and chia seeds.

Alberta Chu, owner and head chef at Herculean Chicken, checks the temperature of an order of chicken while her husband Kyle Virden helps customers during Park(ing) Day in Tucson on Sept. 20.

Herculean Chicken

Get a taste of Taiwanese street food at Herculean Chicken, known for their Taiwanese-style fried chicken. Their popcorn chicken and funky-shaped cutlets have captured the hearts of Tucsonans for years now. They will be selling popcorn chicken, fried cutlets, chicken skewers, waffle fries and Taiwanese soft drinks.

La Fondita Chilena

This year, La Fondita Chilena is brining Chilean food back to the festival, honoring the legacy of the Grupo Chileno booth that came before them. Here, they will be plating up authentic Chilean dishes like empanadas, humitas, and torta de Durazno (a layered cake filled with caramel-like majar and topped with sweet peaches).

They are also a participating vendor with the Taste of the Festival, offering a small plate of cheese empanadas with Chilean pebre.

Los Chiquilines Aguas Frescas

You can never go wrong with horchata! Los Chiquilines makes refreshing aguas frescas in flavors like jamaica, limonada, sandía, tamarindo, horchata, mango and piña.

Los Poblanitos

After meeting while volunteering for Tucson Meet Yourself, Gustavo and Aylin fell in love. After spending years in Mexico and experiencing the food from Puebla, Gustavo’s home, the two decided to come back to where their story started. At their booth, they will be serving up authentic Puebla dishes like enfrijoladas (enchiladas with beans topped with vegan Chinese Chorizo), Tlacoyos (corn masa cakes stuffed with split peas and topped with salsa), tamale poblano, taco arabe, and dulce blueberry tamale cheesecake.

Joesph Gauci, owner of Malta Joes baked goods helps customers during the Tucson Meet Yourself folklife festival, Jácome Plaza, Oct. 5, 2024.

Malta Joe’s Baked Goods

Malta Joe's, a Tucson staple, is known for it's pastizzis- a Maltese pastry made with phyllo dough and filled with savory filings. At his booth, you’ll be able to get pastizzis with filings like ricotta cheese, spilt pea and curry, pizza, the Malta dog (a hotdog wrapped in phyllo dough) and blueberry cheesecake.

Mama Carey’s

This booth puts soul in everything they make! You can expect classic soul food dishes like fried catfish, collard greens, mac and cheese, cheese steak, hot links, and chicken strips on their menu.

Moreno’s Roasted Corn

Stop by and try roasted corn prepared with butter, mayonnaise, lemon, salsa and cotija cheese.

O’odham Ladies

These women make Indian fry bread using a recipe that has been handed down to them from their elders. The best part of their popovers: they can be savory or sweet! You’ll be able to get popovers topped with powdered sugar, honey, and cinnamon or red chile and beans.

They also are a participating vendor with the Taste of the Festival, where they will be offering a saguaro fruit popover.

On the Fly Kitchen

This chef-driven mobile kitchen is known for their bold flavors and creative comfort food. Some of their southern delicacies include cauliflower wings, fried catfish nuggets, fried chicken wings, and fried okra.

Albert "Romeo" Morris, far left, cooks up jerk chicken for the "Pam's Kitchen" booth as Lorinda Harvey, far right, stirs red chili for the "O'odham Ladies" food booth during the 49th annual Tucson Meet Yourself.

Pam’s Kitchen

Pam’s Kitchen is bringing Sunday dinners to Tucson Eat Yourself. At this booth, they make incredible Jamaican dishes using their mother’s recipes. Curry chicken, jerk chicken, curry goat and oxtail are all on the menu.

Patricia’s Cuban Kitchen

Born and raised in Cuba, Patricia Espinosa came to live in Tucson and continued to make Cuban food to bring back memories of her childhood. Her event menu features Ropa vieja, empanadas, plantains, ham croquettes, and guava pie.

They are also a participating vendor with the Taste of the Festival, offering a small plate of papas rellenas.

The Polish Folk Ensemble and Wat Buddhametta food vendors get high traffic during lunchtime at the 50th annual Tucson Meet Yourself in Jácome Plaza, Oct. 13, 2023.

Lajkonik Polish Folk Ensemble

The Lajkonik Polish Folk Ensemble have been cooking up Polish dishes at Tucson Eat Yourself for decades now. You'll find all of your favorites, from Kielbasas and pierogis to potato pancakes.

They are also a participating vendor with the Taste of the Festival, offering a small plate of golabki, traditional Polish cabbage rolls.

Pupuseria Rosita’s

Try all kinds of Salvadoran pupusas at this booth. Cheese, pork, bean, spinach, and squash are all the different fillings offered.

Purple Tree Truck

This beloved acai truck will be making an appearance at this year’s festival. Expect to see various smoothies, acai bowls, ginger shots, and dairy-free milkshakes on their menu.

They are also a participating vendor with the Taste of the Festival, offering a pitaya cup with dragon fruit, bananas, and strawberries.

Ricuras de Venezuela

This booth specializes in authentic Venezuelan cuisine, honoring their mother’s legacy by using her recipes to create the traditional dishes. They will be serving arepas, cachapa, specialty plates with chicken or shredded beef, and papelon con limon (a lemon drink).

Kamaran Kadimo, left, Suleyman Alkhazov, and Fatima Alkhazov, right, sell a variety of Central Asian cuisine from Salima’s Bakery during the Tucson Meet Yourself folklife festival, Jácome Plaza, Oct. 5, 2024.

Salima’s Bakery

The family behind Salima’s Bakery is bringing rich flavors from Uzbekistan and the Republic of Georgia to Tucson Eat Yourself. Their menu includes hachapuri (a flatbread with cheese and spinach), walnut cookies with caramel, baklava, pilav rice with carrots and beef, and cinnamon rolls.

They are also a participating vendor with the Taste of the Festival, offering a small plate of piroshki- a fried boat-shaped bun stuffed with seasoned beef and tender potatoes.

San Xavier Cooperative Farm

Come taste the Sonoran Desert. This Tohono O’odham booth is dishing up farm-to-table food, using naturally-grown and ethically-harvested ingredients. They will have popover flights, cholla bud and cheese tamales, mesquite cookies, lemon saguaro seed scones, yellow watermelon lemonade, and more!

They are also a participating vendor with the Taste of the Festival, offering a ciolim tostada made with cholla buds.

Sema Foundation

Not only is the Sema Foundation a nonprofit organization dedicated to bringing local communities together, but they also share delicious Turkish food with us. Their event menu includes doners (Turkish wraps), grilled chicken, kofte kabap, various gozlemes, baklava, and Turkish tea.

Senae Thai Street Food

This Thai food truck has made its way to the festival. At Senae Thai Street Food, Chef Dee cooks up authentic Thai food inspired by recipes from her mother and grandmother. Their menu includes Thai tacos and Thai iced tea.

Sonoran Delights

Who doesn’t love a good raspado?! Sonoran Delights will be selling raspados, sour rasapados with chamoy and Mexican candies, fruit sundaes, pepihuates, Tosti Lokos, and coctel de elote.

Sumaj Bolivian Street Food

This Bolivian food truck is bringing people together with their authentic flavors and passion. At Tucson Eat Yourself, you'll find traditional dishes like salteña (Bolivian-style baked empanadas), rellenos de papa, cheese empanadas and mocochinchi- a chilled drink made with dehydrated peaches and cinnamon.

Owner Tomomi Katz, left, and cook Miharu Lee, with the Takoyaki Balls food truck.

Takoyaki Balls

Since 2015, these octopus dumplings have been a festival favorite. Along with their famous dumplings (Takoyaki), they will also be serving gyozas, Japanese curry rice, beef and rice bowls, and Yakisoba noodles. They will also have taiyaki, a popular dessert that’s made with pancake mix and sweet beans.

The Makan Bowl

Experience the vibrant flavors of Singapore at the Makan Bowl. You can expect to see items like satay plates, fried bee hoon (Stir fried rice noodles) and achar (Singapore slaw) on their menu.

Tucson Afghan Community

For their fourth year at Tucson Eat Yourself, Tucson Afghan Community is hoping to continue to bring smiles to our faces with their traditional cuisine. Signature Afghan plates, kabobs, vegetarian plates, khajoor (golden fried cookies) and doogh, a yogurt-based drink with cucumber, mint and salt, are just some of items you'll see at their booth.

Tucson Eat Yourself Sonoran Hot Dogs

This Sonoran hot dog booth helps support the weekend's events. All of the proceeds will go to the production of Tucson Eat Yourself, so it can continue to be free for all. Stop by for one of their signature Sonoran dogs and a special chorizo Sonoran dog made in collaboration with the Chinese Chorizo Festival.

Tucson Tea Company

Get yourself a sweet treat, and choose from a variety of caffeinated and caffeine-free teas, in addition to decadent French pastries.

UA Chinese Student Association

This student association will be selling classic Chinese dishes like siumai, hargow, fried rice, sesame balls and milk tea.

UA Filipino American Student Association

For over a decade, FASA has been dishing up Filipino treats at Tucson Eat Yourself. This year, they will be offering pork skewers, lumpia, mango juice refreshers, ice candy, and ube and chocolate crinkle cookies.

UA Muslim Students Association

This student group not only supports the Muslim students on campus, but also shares their culture by cooking flavorful traditional food. They will have shawarma bowls and wraps, Mediterranean mint lemonade, tamr hind (tamarind drink), and baklava.

They are also a participating food vendor with the Taste of the Festival, offering a small plate of basbousa- a sweet semolina cake soaked in honey syrup.

UA Vietnamese Student Association

Get fresh, traditional Vietnamese food and drinks at this booth! Chicken or pork skewers, banh mi, egg rolls, chicken or pork bun thit nuong, Vietnamese iced coffee, and limeades are all on the menu.

Wat Buddhametta

This booth has been serving up homemade Thai food at the festival for over 20 years. Their menu includes pad Thai, stir fried rice, egg rolls, fried bananas and Thai iced tea.

They are also a participating vendor with the Taste of the Festival, offering a small plate vegetarian pad thai and a vegetarian egg roll with special chili sauce.


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Jamie Donnelly is the food writer for #ThisIsTucson. Contact her via e-mail at jdonnelly@tucson.com