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Sunday, November 30, 2003

The Pause That Refreshes by Karyn Zoldan

New to the Williams Centre area is Intermezzo owned by Daniel Scordato of Vivace fame. Quite frankly it’s a welcome respite in a sea of chains like Olive Garden, TGIFriday, and Baja Fresh; and the down-home Jerry Bob’s Southern-style cooking with freshly baked white bread and bad coffee.

Intermezzo means pause or refresh in Italian. Every culture except the US seems to have a civilized idea for siesta or taking a break from the busy day. Perhaps ours is the happy hour, then to stumble home, eat dinner and sit in front of the multi-channeled idiot box all night long. At Intermezzo, a soothing palette of colors greets you and you’ll feel transported away from the bumbling traffic on Broadway.

My friend and I and her young daughter met there recently for breakfast. Intermezzo is just another façade for regularly priced, upscale fast food, of sorts. You know the kind where you order at the counter, help yourself to beverages, and then the food gets delivered to the table. Should you want more coffee, you must get up to request a refill.

Since very few people were in there at 9 a.m. we chose a big table so her daughter could spread out with crayons and toys. I ordered a large Italian roast coffee ($2) and bruschetta with poached eggs ($5.95). My food came but the coffee did not. The cashier said he screwed up and was supposed to direct us to our own beverages. An honest mistake. Sally ordered the continental breakfast for her daughter. At $3.95 it was a carbohydrate feast of croissant and two coveted pieces of LaBrea Bakery’s chocolate cherry bread. Think dessert. Think 100 times better than white bread. With enough cholesterol to gag a horse, generous scoops of whipped butter and whipped cream cheese came along for the ride on the plate.

Sally ordered the ham and Asiago cheese frittata which took a little extra (as noted on the menu) to prepare. This vast plate arrived along with bread and toast and fruit garnish ($5.95). Next time I’m going to order a frittata. My poached eggs were done to perfection and the asparagus, Provolone cheese, and Prosciutto di Parma ham all blended nicely together on the toasted bread. As soon as someone finished their plate was whisked away. My friend Barbara hates that; she sees it as rude if other people are eating. I, on the hand, want my plate to leave when I’m finished so I can do the uncouth thing and put my elbows on the table.

Choices are limited to a few breakfast items, sandwiches accompanied by pasta salad or mixed greens, two panini sandwiches, soups and salads, and some desserts and many coffee and espresso drinks. Open Mon-Sat from 7 a.m. to 4 p.m.

Intermezzo
5350 East Broadway - next to the Good (sic) Egg
Tucson
(520) 748-8100

Hungry? Try some delicious copy2go

Sunday, November 16, 2003

La Encantada - Part 1 by Karyn Zoldan

La Encantada or the enchanted has not always been so enchanting to its nearby foothills residences. Their greatest fear was that people from everywhere else will come knocking. But time heals wounds and today at least everyone and their mothers were out shopping at La Encantada.

Ask a jaded Californian about LaE and it’s not that big of a deal but ask a long time Tucsonan who has been dying for some upscale-ness beyond Casa Adobes and St. Phillips Plaza and they’re in heaven.

Walking into AJ’s Fine Foods, I felt like I was in West Hollywood’s Pavilions (the upscale Von’s), Gelson’s, or Bristol Farms. If you’re from Northern California you might compare it to Andronico’s. The first thing I noticed was a magnificent magenta protea – one of those fuzzy, phallic flowers so rarely seen around these parts. Certainly walking through the flower section was an assault of color but lacked fragrance.

We moved into the produce aisles abundant with more varieties than agriculturally possible. I have never seen violet kohlrabi before. Brussel sprouts were strung on long stems resembling a bouquet of vegetables. Star anise, passion fruit (ugly), a jewel box of berries, ripe pineapple, a basket of multiple varieties of mushrooms…everything looked unreal in its freshness. People were three-deep reaching out to touch and fondle freshness. Warning: Buy your pre-washed, pre-bagged lettuce elsewhere. In Trader Joe’s it costs $1.89, in Fry’s $2.49, and here $3.49.

The crowd swept me up and I missed the seafood grotto entirely but landed in front of the meat counter where ground round ranked in at $4.19 a pound. Ground pork was fashioned into a pig face which was totally cute. Already prepared skewers and stuffed pork roast was ready to go. We passed the wine cellar with a tasting room off to the side.

Beyond lay prepared foods with a sushi bar, pizza takeout ($2.99/slice), and a gourmet array of food fare just waiting to be carried out. Sesame chicken all aglow along with chutney turkey salad, Asian noodles, purple potato salad, and so much more to boggle the tummy. Chocolate truffles and minutely manicured pastries wait for consumption around the coffee bar.

Fortunately we weren’t hungry so just meandered up and down the aisles oohing and aahing at all the packaging. There were entire aisles for mustards, sauces, teas, ethnic foods, baking supplies that I never knew existed. Even the frozen food aisle held more choices than what you find in Safeway. And ice cream addicts can opt for some unusual Bertie’s flavors of fig, roasted banana, cinnamon vanilla along with Japanese labeled ice cream for green tea, azuki bean, and ginger bliss. A pint of Atkins’ Endulge was $3.49, less than it costs at Fry’s. Look beyond Coke and Pepsi to the rainbow of psychedelic colors and bottle shapes and flavors. Beers went around the world and back and the good thing is that you can make your own six-pack.

A large outdoor patio with a crackling fireplace encourages you to socialize and eat so you don’t have to wait until you get home. If La Encanta is this busy now, don’t even think about going there pre-holiday. Waiting for summer might be your best bet because this is an outdoor shopping experience and crowds are bound to subside when the thermometer hits triple digits.

AJ’s Fine Foods is open daily at Skyline & Campbell.

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