The Parish: A Dining Review
The Parish On Oracle Road
On an October afternoon, Neighbor Roy & I took off for The Parish, a dining establishment in a strip mall on North Oracle Road in Tucson. The Arizona Daily Star had rated its burgers as the Best in Tucson. We wanted to see if The Parish should be added to our List of Best Burgers in Tucson. It would have to be very good to qualify because the ones on our list are really great burgers.
We arrived and noticed a sign that said: “Please Seat Yourself”. OK, so we sat at a table near the front door and very quickly our waiter poured us some water and said he would return soon. “Soon” took a while. Eventually, he returned and asked what we wanted to drink. Roy asked for a cup of hot tea, his usual request. Sorry Roy, but no hot tea. Under his breath, he murmured that for that lapse he would deduct one saguaro from the rating.
For myself, I would have preferred a glass of sauvignon blanc, but it was not listed on the menu so I ordered iced tea with lemon.
The Parish Funky Art
The Parish is a Cajun/Creole, think Southern, rustic bar. On the day we were there, it was decorated for Halloween, with spider webs draped everywhere with hanging colorful spiders. These folks were definitely in the spirit. On the walls hung various funky artworks.
When our waiter finally returned to our table, Roy ordered the Backyard Burger: lettuce, tomato, red onion, with choice of White Cheddar? Goat? Bleu? American? Fried Egg? Bacon? Carolina Pork Pibil? Chorizo? ($12) Roy ordered his with Bleu Cheese.
Roy’s Backyard Burger
I ordered The Parish Burger: their award-winning signature burger with bleu cheese, bacon, red onion marmalade, Dijon mustard. ($13) All burgers include the choice of vinegar slaw, hand-cut fries, or a side salad. We both ordered fries.
Jim’s Parish Burger
Roy said his burger was very good but not as good as that wonderful bleu cheeseburger we had from a food truck at the Willcox Wine Festival a few years ago. My burger was excellent as were the fries. Both burgers came with a slice of dill pickle stabbed in the middle which neither one of us ate.
Both meat patties were large and juicy. Roy’s was so big he couldn’t finish it and took half home in a to-go box.
Service was a bit slow and it took a while to get the bill. The question remained. Should The Parish burger be added to our List of Best Burgers in Tucson? Yes, definitely! Somewhere near the top. But the place doesn’t get high marks for service. We rate The Parish four saguaros: Very Good for its burgers.
The Parish
6453 N. Oracle Road
Tucson, AZ 85704
520-797-1233