Danny Cordova has eaten eight different kinds of oysters in the past few weeks, and heβs on track to try more by the end of this one. Such are the sacrifices made by the entrepreneur behind Cruda Mariscos & Oyster Bar, the newest in a slew of opulent, Mexican-influenced restaurants across Tucson. βI havenβt tried enough to tell you which is my favorite yet,β he said. βI only want to recommend the best to my customers.β
The concept for Cruda emerged when Cordova wanted to fill the lease left empty when his first downtown venture, La Chingada, moved into the former location of the now-closed restaurant Cafe Poca Cosa. βI know [Chingada had] a good spot,β he said. βSo I did some searching to see what downtown needs.β
βTucson was an oyster town back in the day,β Cordova said. βThere are still a couple spots with some options for oysters, but [itβs limited]. We donβt want to overwhelm ourselves, but we want to present our customers with three to four kinds of oysters on a weekly basis.β
Server Lili Garcia heads for the patio with a drink order during the soft opening for the new restaurant Cruda, 31 N. Scott Ave., Tucson, Ariz., Feb. 10, 2022.
While every restaurant demands logistical prowess, oyster bars require an additional feat: chefs have 14 days from harvest to receive and sell the mollusk, which is kept cold and alive until the second it is cut from its shell and eaten.
The rest of Crudaβs menu is in its final stages of development, but their Instagram previews a few menu items. A video of a cheese pull off of the baked-mozzarella top of shrimp culichi and a picture of lobster-stuffed toritos (yellow jalapenos) are shot in the signature food-porn style of Cordovaβs other outposts, The Neighborhood and La Chingada.
Claudia Ruiz, left, Lizeth Payan and Lilian Ortiz make up stuffed shrimp and bacon in the kitchen of the new restaurant Cruda, 31 N. Scott Ave., Tucson, Ariz., Feb. 10, 2022.
Cordova imagines the menu in terms of lunch and dinner. βAt lunch weβre tackling more of the fresh stuff, raw items. The dinner service will focus more on our cooked dishes, and thatβs where weβre playing around a bit, putting some fusion in it. Not just straight mariscos, but weβll play around with pasta, some interesting things.β
The bar menu, meanwhile, will definitely feature the michelada that made The Neighborhood famous. βWe tried to do a more traditional michelada at La Chingada, and people kept requesting it with all the candies,β said Cordova. Right before our phone call, he had been on the phone with his sister as she picked up their order of tamarindos in Nogales. But Cordova aspires to outdo himself. Cruda will also offer a michelada topped with 8 to 10 ounces of ceviche.
The pineapple agua fresca, from the new restaurant Cruda, 31 N. Scott Ave., Tucson, Ariz., Feb. 10, 2022.
Cordova describes himself as a βmarisco fanatic,β with a litany of favorite seafood dishes: shrimp culichi (cooked shrimp in a poblano cream sauce), aguachiles (raw shrimp marinated in lime and a salsa of serrano chiles and cilantro), callos de hacha (scallops) are all favorites, βbut itβs really just whatever Iβm in the mood for,β he said.
This weekend Cordova will be trying the Kumiai oyster, farmed in the cold waters off the coast of Baja California Sur. βItβs supposed to taste like Mexico,β he said.
The Neighborhood manager German Fuetes, left, owner/CEO Danny Cordova and assistant manger Aaron Alvarez talk in Cordova's latest project Cruda, 31 N. Scott Ave., Tucson, Ariz., Feb. 10, 2022.
CRUDA Mariscos & Oyster Bar
Location: 31 N. Scott Ave.
Hours: While theyβre still finalizing their hours based on customer demand, their initial opening times will be: 11 a.m. to 8 p.m. Monday-Thursday | 9 a.m. to 9 p.m. Friday-Sunday
For more information, check out their website.
