Noshing Around

Tequila Tasting

Lotus Garden, billed as Tucson's oldest family-owned Chinese restaurant, hosts a tequila tasting with an Asian twist on Saturday, May 20, from 1 to 4 p.m. Guests will sample 100 percent blue agave tequila from Las Reynas, Arizona's new distributing company. Hors d'oeuvres provided. Reservations and prepayment are required by calling BLA Worldwide at 575-0887, ext. 111. The cost is $30 per person or $55 per couple at 5975 E. Speedway Blvd.; 298-3351.


It's About 'Time'

Tucson Originals and the national parent organization, Dine Originals, made national news in an article that appears in the May 15 issue of Time magazine. To read the article, visit the Time Web site.


Tubac Tastes

Nob Hill Gourmet Market is an upscale full-service market and 60-seat fine-dining restaurant conceptualized by Alan Anderson, a member of the Bashas' team that developed AJ's Fine Foods. The market features meat, fish and select local produce, as well as staples. Executive Chef Noah Aguilar will oversee the San Francisco-style restaurant, which will be open everyday from 11 a.m. to 8 p.m. for lunch and dinner. The market opens Saturday, May 20, at 10 a.m., but regular hours are from 6:30 a.m. to 8 p.m. daily. From Tucson, take Interstate 19 south to exit 34, east to Frontage Road, then north to Plaza de Anza; 398-1010.


Agricultural Heritage

Co-founder of Native Seeds/SEARCH and winner of a MacArthur Fellowship, Gary Nabhan, along with Patty West, ethnoecologist for Northern Arizona University's Center for Sustainable Environments, will speak on their new book, Linking Arizona's Sense of Place to a Sense of Taste: Marketing the Heritage Value of Arizona's Place-Based Foods. The free event is scheduled for Friday, May 26, from 5:30 to 7 p.m. at the Tucson Botanical Gardens, 2150 N. Alvernon Way. Books may be purchased that evening. For more information, call 326-9686, ext. 10.