When Sunset magazine released its 2024 list of where to eat in the West on Tuesday, Sept. 10, Tyler Fentonβs innovative downtown restaurant Bata was the only Arizona eatery to make the cut.
The restaurant, which chef-owner Fenton opened in spring 2022 in a historic 1930s downtown warehouse, is in prestigious company. The list includes three California Michelin-starred restaurants β Valle in Oceanside, Aphotic in San Francisco and Carusoβs in Santa Barbara β and Denverβs Safta, helmed by the two-time James Beard Award-winning chef Alon Shaya.
βThatβs pretty amazing company to be in consideration with,β Fenton said Thursday, giving much of the credit for the honor to his staff.
βThey are amazing and they do the work everyday so this award is very much in recognition of their contribution,β he said. βI get most excited when we get an award because I think itβs very validating for the team as a whole.β
The Sunset nod was Bataβs second national accolade this year after Wine Spectator in June gave it an Award of Excellence and its fourth since opening in spring 2022. Bata, which Fenton owns with his siblings, Zach and Courtney, had been open just six months when Bon AppΓ©tit named it one of the magazineβs best new restaurants of 2022
In March 2023, Time magazine name-dropped Bata as part of its βWorldβs Greatest Places 2023β story. Tucson was one of only seven U.S. places on the list, which cited the cityβs UNESCO City of Gastronomy designation and diverse restaurant scene as a driving factor.
Bata specializes in locally-sourced dishes.
Fenton said the national attention, which he attributed to efforts by Visit Tucson to spotlight Tucson restaurants on the national stage, usually brings a boost in business. Soon after the Bon AppΓ©tit mention, the guest count at Bata nearly doubled.
βAs a Tucson kid Iβm always happy seeing the city get the recognition it deserves,β Fenton said. βOur goal is to serve people great food and make them happy, and the more people we can do that for the happier we are and the happier our staff is and the more successful we get to be.β
In addition to Bata and its sister Barbata in the basement at 35 E. Toole Ave., the Fentonsβ stable includes Reilly Craft Pizza & Drink and its downstairs Tough Luck Club at 101 E. Pennington St. and Fentonelliβs Pizzeria & Bar at 7262 N. Oracle Road on the northwest side.
Early next year, Fenton hopes to open an outdoor sister restaurant at Bata once he builds out the backside of the property. Plans call for an outdoor kitchen and seating area, as well as an active garden.
Bata occupies one of the old warehouse spaces lining the railroad tracks in downtown Tucson.
Fenton said he is still working on a name and finalizing what the concept will look like, but heβs considering a more casual, laid-back version of Bata. Ideas he and his staff are spitballing include an outdoor world barbecue concept that would take you into the culinary and cultural world of barbecue from around the globe.
βIt would look like a backyard party in South Africa, Mexico or the U.S.,β he said.
He hopes to have the project finished in six months and open while the weather is still nice, he said.
To learn more about Bata, visit batatucson.com.
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