When Groundwork Promotions started working in Tucson, it began in partnership with Tucson Night Out. Paul started doing videography, video production and photography for restaurants and local night spots. It was enjoyable getting to know the city this way, especially downtown.
Photo of Tucson Night Out
The only problem is, Paul and I were both wanting active lifestyles with athletic training, and Tucson Night Out was taking us to the opposite of what we should have been doing for that: Great food, delicious drinks, and nighttime life. The last thing you want to do when craving an athletic lifestyle is go to the greatest chefs in town, or the best food, or the tastiest drinks. I remember one of our first videos, I was straight out of MMA training and we went to Rocco’s Pizza and his pizza was so good, I gained 10 lbs on the video shoot. Deep dish Chicago-style pizza. The man is a master. Then we did photos and video for Skybar and Brooklyn Pizza Company, and there was no hope for me. MMA training could not save the foodie waistline.
Photo of Boca Tacos, Chef Maria Mazon
Photo of Brooklyn Pizza Company, Tony Vacarro
Photo of Sky Bar, Tony Vacarro
We have covered many restaurants and great food stops since then. Boca Tacos is a favorite of ours, and her tacos are out of this world. For night life, we went to outdoor music at JoJo’s Restaurtant and has some wonderful nights there, working and relaxing. My friendship and work relationship with Paul strengthened during these times, learning how to do promotions and marketing with these wonderful people. Paul became an expert of the area and knew all the restaurants, owners, chefs and stores throughout the downtown area. It was a fun time in our lives. We even found Connect Coworking and had an office downtown, and it made it even easier to get to know the city and the people there.
Photo of Sky Bar
Photo of Sky Bar, Tony Vacarro
Photo of Sky Bar, Tony Vacarro
One of the fondest memories I had downtown (besides doing yoga at Tucson Yoga and taking the Sun Link Streetcar everywhere), was standing on the balcony of Connect Coworking in the heart of downtown, and watching the life of the city at night. The balcony was quiet, but we were surrounded by people of all ages, going to the night spots and enjoying all that Tucson has to offer. The best nights were Second Saturday, when entertainment, food and shopping were everywhere.
Photo of JoJo’s Restaurant (Formerly La Cocina), Jo Schneider
Paul is now living in San Diego and his place of greatest fulfillment is the beach and swimming pool instead of the nightlife and being a foodie. That is how he met Deep End Fitness. The truth is, we both gave up the focus on restaurants and started self-creating towards athleticism in our own lives and work. Working with the fitness industry keeps us motivated. I was sorry to see Robb Walker stop AZ Fit Kitchen, because he was a chef that specialized in athlete’s meals. He even delivered right to your door. I found his meals in a gym and ate them for years, and even lost weight with them. Now that is a good chef for me.
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Photo of Boca Tacos, Chef Maria Mazon
