A new Locale

January 26, 2023

It’s cold again this morning, but it’s at least a few degrees warmer. If it weren’t for the stronger winds it would be a quite pleasant day to ride, but with better conditions just a day away we both decide to stick to familiar routes again - Once it warms up sufficiently Rachael will head east up Julian Wash, and somewhat later I’ll leave for a ramble that takes me out the Aviation Bikeway, through the KERP Basin to Julian Wash, then southwest to the end of the Santa Cruz path at Valencia Road before turning north for home again.

Other than the fact that it’s considerably windier than either of us expected, it was a good day to ride; and Rachael loved flying west down Julian Wash on the way back to town, downhill and with the wind at her back. And she was pleased too with her roadrunner sighting for the day, a bird up a tree that flew down and ran across the path right in front of her for her viewing pleasure.

Still, nothing new to see here; and not a day I expected to post at all until we went out for dinner and a show last night. We ate at a new restaurant Rachael discovered by accident, Locale, an Italian trattoria that opened a year or two ago a few miles east of downtown. It was excellent, probably the best meal we’ve enjoyed in Tucson this winter. Locale is a large, open space - a mix of restaurant, wine store and gift shop - and very popular.

It’s open from midday until closing and doesn’t take reservations so we arrived just before five to be sure we’d get seated and served in time for our seven o’clock show at The Loft. The place was almost empty when we arrived, but packed solid and with people waiting by the fireplace to be seated when we left.

We started with an arugula salad, large enough that it splits well; had the delicious mains shown below; and because we had been served promptly and had some time to kill, we filled it with the crostata of the day, pear and berry a la mode. Oh, and there was also the outstanding loaf of fresh, warm from the oven focaccia bread that our server Jenna thankfully talked us into trying. All excellent, and leaving us especially pleased that we’ve cancelled our plan to go to Bisbee for three days (too cold!) and extended our stay here instead. It means we’ll be in town long enough that it makes sense to come back to Locale again before we leave town.

And the film, Women Talking, was exceptional too. Highly recommended, if its unusual plot line interests you.

So, think of this as less of a ride report than a public service announcement for the foodies and film buffs out there.

Oh, and one last thing. We tried our best to lose my iPad this evening, which would have inhibited the issuance of today’s post. When leaving the restaurant waiting at the door for Rachael to arrive, a server rushed out the door after a departing customer with a small backpack they’d apparently left behind. Observant and insightful soul that I am, I noted that it looked just like Rachael’s but didn’t add two and two together until Rachael arrived soon after but without her backpack. Fortunately the server didn’t succeed in forcing it onto the wrong customer.

Which is only half of the story. Later, when leaving the theater we realized we didn’t have the backpack this time either, but decided we must have just left it in the car; until three miles later when we arrived home and I reminded Rachael to take her pack inside with her and we realized we’d forgotten it after all - apparently at the first place we sat before deciding to move back a row. We drove back immediately of course, and were relieved when Rachael called the box office on the way and confirmed it had been found.

Rachael’s: pan-roasted salmon, Tuscan potatoes, broccolini.

Mine: Sfoglia (hand made pasta ribbon, braised pork, mushroom, saba, dandelion greens).

As long as we’re here anyway, we might as well see a few more photos to fill out the post a little. First, there are the cute food delivery rovers that you see rolling around the UA campus now that school’s back in session. In late 2021 the university was the second in the country to introduce these. But the program (an innovation offered by GrubHub) only lasted a couple of months because the rovers were manufactured in Russia and were no longer politically acceptable after the Ukrainian invasion.

They’re up and rolling again though since the start of the current school year, after a new Silicon Valley startup developed a replacement. Here’s an article from the student newsletter describing the program, the history, and the plans for the future. They’re oddly charming, I think. It’s bemusing to bike down the street and see one waiting at the curb for me to pass before proceeding into the crosswalk. I’m not sure of the protocol though - if a robot is waiting at the crosswalk am I expected to stop?

And, a few shots from the Lost Barrio.

In the Lost Barrio. Especially nice that the electrical boxes add color.

And, a few more of the same old birds. Sorry, but I forgot to take a bike photo too.

Ride stats today: 42 miles, 1,100’; for the tour: 1,285 miles, 44,200’

Today's ride: 42 miles (68 km)
Total: 1,243 miles (2,000 km)

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