Tucson 23 Mexican Food Festival

Preservation and advancement of art and culture is of paramount importance to keeping the magic of Southern Arizona alive. I was honored to attend an event that not only celebrated the Best 23 Miles of Mexican Food in America, but also supported The Southern Arizona Arts & Cultural Alliance. It was a fun evening of culinary surprises and delectable delights. Some of the highlights included La Estrella Bakery's Mexican pastries, Tito's Vodka celery gimlet & Seis Kitchen's street tacos with pickled onions. Honestly, the star of the show was a spicy Mexican gazpacho (if anyone who attended the event knows the name of the restaurant who served it, please DM me)!The venue, though lacking in cultural flair, provided excellent parking & shuttle service and had a picturesque desert location. It was great that the organizers had the Compost Cats onsite to provide recycling & composting options for the waste!I would recommend this event to anyone who enjoys Mexican food & libations and wants to support this amazing organization.

Three stars because this event benefits a good cause.Two stars for actual event execution.Despite the fact that the event space seemed gigantic, it was just packed with so many people constantly moving around. The dishes served were very juicy/messy and there were definitely not adequate amounts of seating or tables. People were "reserving" or saving seats with napkins at tables and leaving stuff behind. The guests were complete slobs and there was just food covering any surface where a person could actually set a plate down to eat a bite. The space was so crowded I kept getting run into by people trying to eat or not watching where they were going.The food being served tasted good but was super disappointing. For the cost of a ticket I could wait in line for 5-10 minutes and get one tortilla chip or an extremely tiny (size of my pinky fingernail) piece of flan? Seis was the only vendor that really had it going on: they had their cast iron skillets bubbling on hot rocks at the table and gave out a full size taco that was high-end, demonstrated Mexican cooking and food, and tasted out of this world. There was also a ton of boozy drinks and beer (which I know most people like) but no water and no non-alcoholic drinks (horchata, agua frescas, jamiaca iced tea) that I found.- The shuttles were super fast and impeccably clean to and from the parking lot.- There were so many people helping to guide guests into the event and they were all above and beyond friendly and helpful.

I reached there at 7:15 PM. Lemme get the disappointment out of the way. For 65$ per head, knowing very clearly how many people would show up to the event, most of them ran out of food just an hour into the event. An overrated food festival that's not worth the money.1. 12/22 : Only 12 stalls were open out of the 22 listed in the event email.2. No dessert: The La Estrella Bakery was not present. I'm guessing they closed early because they ran out. The fact that only one bakery was present is little dissatisfying to me.3. Nachos and tacos were in abundance.There could have been more effort on trying to showcase different Mexican dishes rather than everyone serving the same among multiple stalls. 4. The sample sizes were way too tiny. 5. I was late to catch up with the mariachi performances. But when I got there, the environment was dull, just felt like it was put together in a haphazard fashion. Positives : The welcoming staff and frequent shuttle services.

This festival was incredible! Throughout the night there were musical and dance performances. There was an entire room of murals by local artists. Best of all there were tons of local vendors giving samples of food.If you're like me you've seen Mexican food places that you keeps meaning to go to, but never seem to have time time or reason. At this festival I was able to try food from at least 10 places that match that description.I sampled various beers from local breweries, aguas frescas, tons of tacos, a surprising amount of ceviche, salsas, mezcal, and even some mole popcorn!The even went from 6-9, but most vendors ran out of food and the event wound down at about 8pm. The ballroom the event was in was filled, so for some of the better looking food there were lines wrapped around the hall, but they moved quickly.We got to the ballroom at 6:30 and with a little hustle we were able to try everything!The Marriott also had special rates and activities all weekend for the festival, so you can easily make this a part of a stay-cation!

Wasn't as good as it looks, some of the vendors ran out of food within the first hour, the suppose to be ready for and event like this, besides that the tickets are so expensive, every time less restaurants become part of this event for some reason...... I wanted to give a last chance to saaca goin to Tucson 23 but I don't recommend it any more. With $65 you can go to each of the restaurants And grab a regular size taco and at list 2 or 3 beers to complete your dinner.

All in all, the inaugural Tucson 23 Mexican Festival was a fine foodie event. I like all of the events that SAACA has thrown and other similar fundraising events, with SAVOR being my favorite, but unfortunately Tucson 23 did not meet those expectations given the lack of environment (in a dull ballroom), lack of food (they ran out before 8pm) and the very limited drink selections. The event SOLD OUT, however, while they tried to limit it to 700 tickets, there were in excess of 820 sold, so it made the event very busy with long lines. The event was scheduled 6-9pm, however before 8pm the majority of the food and drinks were gone and most vendors were packed up with only empty tables left. You can see the vendors and items listed below. The El Cisne mole was excellent, as were the Blanco Machaca beef tacos and corn off the cob from BOCA. Overall, the Roasted Ricky drink from Pasco was the best things offered, however the drink selection at this event were very limited with just a few tastes of juice, kombucha, Cruz tequila, Titos vodka, XX Equis/Tecate samples and Pasco had a few (michelada, roasted Ricky and sangria). They offered a cash bar which made the event price go from $45 a ticket to $45+++. The event was held in a large ballroom which was lackluster. There were a few dancers for a brief period, but no real entertainment or music. I think the concept was good, and understand it was the first year, but I hope if they continue they learn from the 1st years mistakes.Gringo grill + cantinaChorizo and queso fresco empanadasPasco Kitchen & LoungeChili infused cocktail paired with a fresh Ceviche, tomato sangritaEl CisneCamarones Adobo - Gulf Shrimp sautéed in an Adobo marinade, wrapped with avocadoCrossroads RestaurantSonorense paired with Chicken fajitas, Red chile mini chimi, Rice, Beans, Chips & homemade salsa Molina's Midway RestaurantRed Chile Tostada- Small red chile meat and bean tostada topped with lettuce. Chips and Hot SauceSonoran Sno-ConesShaved ice Raspados, topped with fresh fruit pieces. Mango, Strawberry, CoconutDish for DoshaRaw juice unsweetened aguas frescasBlanco Tacos + TequilaMachaca beef tacos - Chipotle Sauce, Roasted Habanero Salsa, Onion, Cilantro, and Cotija "Esquites" Grilled Mexican Street Corn - Cilantro, Lime, Cotija Cheese, paired with a Mexican Chocolate Cake. Penca RestauranteFried corn tortilla achiote-braised pork grilled pineapple green salsa cilantroLa Estrella BakeryTraditional Mexican Pan Dulce, Empanadas (various fillings) Cochitos (gingerbread cookie) Pan de Huevo (traditional Mexican pan dulce) Chimichangas (fruit filled) Revolcadas Orejas ChurrosSeis Kitchen and CateringWatermelon Cucumber Aqua Fresca with Al Pastor street tacoMariscos Chihuahua-GrandeShrimp ceviche, made with a variety of house spices and vegetables.Boca Tacos Y TequilaSelection of gourmet salsas & chipsEl Charro Café & Charro SteakFive chile pork carnitas and a featured Mexican steak dishCalle TepaCarnitas tacos, with hand made corn tortilla topped with salsa verdeFermented Tea CompanyPrickly Pear Kombucha- White tea with chamomile, hibiscus, rose hip, and prickly pear. Tropical Kombucha- Black tea, sunflower and safflower petals, passion fruit, and mango. Cuatros Amigos- Blend of four teas with jasmine.La Fresita RestaurantHorchata, Jamaica "hibiscus" paired with Mini chimis, rolled tacos, signature Enchiladas, Rice, beans, Birria Chicken and beef fajitasLa Parrilla SuizaBeef and chicken alambre tacos - Diced sirloin or chicken breast sautéed with bacon peppers and onions served on a flour tortilla.Rigo's RestaurantChile beef in red sauce, chips & hot salsa Sevada, paired with mexican agua frescaReforma Cocina Y CantinaPork Belly Taco - Flour tortilla, flat grilled pork belly, diced onions, sesame seed, green cabbage, salsa negraPure Love JuiceSpicy Colada Agua Fresca: Pineapple, Jalapeno, Purified Water, and Agave Watermelon Menta Agua Fresca: Watermelon, Mint, Purified Water and Agave Lemonade Habiscus: Lemon, Habiscus Flower, Purified Water, and Agave Oatmeal Horchata Steel Cut Oatmeal, Cinnamon, Vanilla, Purified Water, and Agave