Alex Chaffin had just sold his iconic family diner to a Phoenix joint that sells gourmet soul food, when he got a call from John Abbott.
Abbott's family owns the 90-year old Rincon Market, a midtown grocery store that's mostly known for its outstanding fish department. The two had been friends since 2013, when a fire had forced the market to shut down for an entire year. During that time the Abbott family would eat lunch regularly at Chaffin's Diner on Broadway, and once even brought a case of plates to the restaurant as a gift.
So when Abbott asked Chaffin if he'd like to take over the kitchen at Rincon Market, the answer was a big fat yes. For the past month, the young chef has been giving a new face to one of Tucson's oldest markets, and bringing some classic Chaffin's dishes back from the dust bin.
"When you think of Rincon Market, most people think of Yuri (the fishmonger)," Chaffin said. "We want them to think of our breakfast."
For his new breakfast menu, which is scaled down to fit on a single white paper page, Chaffin is going for fresh and fast. It's a little bit diner and a little bit coffee shop, with gluten-free options and a full list of breakfast crepes from the crepe stone. The fat slabs of steamy country potatoes have been replaced with hash browns; the eclectic omelet selection is now build your own.
Rincon Market's new breakfast menu features several Chaffin's classics like the Hawaiian Loco Moco platter.
What's still there? Benedicts like the spinach-stuffed Eggs Florentine and smoked salmon Royale (now offered on weekends), French toast and Belgian waffles, the Country Breakfast with Boar's Head bacon — and miraculously — the Hawaiian Loco Moco platter. (But to give it a fancy touch, they now grind their own hamburger meat!)
But unlike the original Chaffin's, the new digs have a beer and wine license. So that means mimosas and Bellinis by the glass and by the carafe, poured with premium Spanish Cordorniu cava.
Or you can just get your food to-go, and now even by delivery. (Soon on the Tapingo phone app.) The new operation boasts a sizable hot line where dishes are made to order in under five minutes. But, that doesn't necessarily mean it's being made by Chaffin himself. This gig has him in more of a consulting position.
"I can't do that anymore," he said. "I've done that half my life, and now it's time for the team to take over."
Rincon Market, 2513 E. Sixth St., is serving its new breakfast menu from 7 a.m. to 10:30 a.m. Mondays through Fridays, 7 a.m. to noon Saturdays, and 8 a.m. to 1 p.m. Sundays. Lunch and dinner times vary.
