{"id":10636,"date":"2026-10-16T14:01:17","date_gmt":"2026-10-16T14:01:17","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.diningandcooking.com\/chefs\/10636\/"},"modified":"2026-10-16T14:01:17","modified_gmt":"2026-10-16T14:01:17","slug":"amelias-mexican-kitchen-chef-plans-next-chapter-in-tucson","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.diningandcooking.com\/chefs\/10636\/","title":{"rendered":"Amelia\u2019s Mexican Kitchen chef plans next chapter in Tucson"},"content":{"rendered":"

TUCSON, Ariz. (KGUN) \u2014 For fans of Tucson\u2019s food scene, Amelia\u2019s Mexican Kitchen has become a familiar name, earning recognition for its Mexican cuisine and the work of chef and owner Jose Contreras.<\/p>\n

Tucson chef Jose Contreras builds on culinary legacy, new restaurant opening soon<\/p>\n

Inspired by his grandmother, Amelia, Contreras has built his culinary approach around family recipes and flavors rooted in his Mexican heritage, particularly the traditions of Sonora.<\/p>\n

\u201cMy grandmother, Amelia, so I was watching her the way she cooks,\u201d Contreras said.<\/p>\n

\"Screenshot<\/p>\n

Jose Contreras<\/p>\n

That inspiration has helped earn Contreras a series of accolades, including recognition as a 2025 James Beard Award semifinalist. He said the awards and attention have exceeded his expectations. Including, being named the best chef in all of the Old Pueblo.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe didn’t even expect all of these awards,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

Most recently, Contreras traveled to New York to showcase his cooking and share ingredients and flavors connected to Tucson, Mexico and Sonora.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe had the opportunity to share the opportunity all the ingredients that’s local Tucson about Mexico and Sonora,\u201d Contreras said.<\/p>\n

\"Screenshot<\/p>\n

Marc Monroy<\/p>\n

While his work has attracted attention beyond Southern Arizona, Contreras continues to serve customers at Amelia\u2019s Mexican Kitchen on Oracle Road.<\/p>\n

For some visitors, the experience is a memorable introduction to Tucson\u2019s food scene.<\/p>\n

\u201cI thought it was amazing,\u201d said a customer identified as DJ, who was trying the restaurant for the first time.<\/p>\n

Contreras said hearing positive feedback from diners remains one of the most rewarding parts of running the restaurant.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt feels amazing every time people say, \u2018Hey, we love your food,\u2019\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

\"Screenshot<\/p>\n

Marc Monroy<\/p>\n

DJ said the meal was good enough to bring him back again soon.<\/p>\n

\u201cI’ll come back here in like five more hours for breakfast, lunch and dinner,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

Now, Contreras is preparing for his next project: Carrizal Molino Mas Cocina, a new restaurant planned near downtown Tucson along Speedway Boulevard.<\/p>\n

Contreras described the project as his final venture into fine dining.<\/p>\n

\u201cSo it’s my last project for fine dining,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

\"Screenshot<\/p>\n

Marc Monroy<\/p>\n

The restaurant is expected to feature flavors from regions across Mexico, expanding on Contreras\u2019 approach to showcasing the country\u2019s diverse culinary traditions.<\/p>\n

As he prepares to open the new restaurant, Contreras continues to draw from the lessons and recipes passed down by his grandmother while building on the culinary legacy he has established in Tucson.<\/p>\n

\u2014\u2014
Marc Monroy joined KGUN 9 as a multimedia journalist after moving from KGUN 9\u2019s sister station, KXXV, in Waco, Texas. He graduated from California State University, Northridge, in 2024 with a degree in journalism. A native of Southern California and a bilingual reporter, Marc is excited to serve Southern Arizona and looks forward to connecting with neighbors in the community. Share your story ideas and important issues with Marc by emailing marc.monroy@kgun9.com or by connecting on Instagram, Twitter, or Facebook.<\/p>\n

\"MARC<\/p>\n

KGUN 9 <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

TUCSON, Ariz. (KGUN) \u2014 For fans of Tucson\u2019s food scene, Amelia\u2019s Mexican Kitchen has become a familiar name, earning recognition for its Mexican cuisine and the work of chef and owner Jose Contreras. Tucson chef Jose Contreras builds on culinary legacy, new restaurant opening soon Inspired by his grandmother, Amelia, Contreras has built his culinary<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":10637,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[10676,10669,10670,5,1567,10678,3128,486,1556,10668,694,2507,7707,7738,10680,2725,10675,10674,10677,10673,10679,10672,10671],"class_list":["post-10636","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-chefs","tag-2025-james-beard-semifinalist","tag-amelias-mexican-kitchen","tag-carrizal-molino-mas-cocina","tag-chef","tag-culinary-awards","tag-downtown-tucson","tag-family-recipes","tag-fine-dining","tag-james-beard-award","tag-jose-contreras","tag-local-restaurants","tag-mexican-cuisine","tag-mexican-food","tag-mexico","tag-oracle-road","tag-restaurant-opening","tag-sonora","tag-sonoran-food","tag-speedway-boulevard","tag-tucson-chef","tag-tucson-dining","tag-tucson-food-scene","tag-tucson-restaurants"],"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/vive.im\/@dnc\/117450957580953232","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.diningandcooking.com\/chefs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/10636","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.diningandcooking.com\/chefs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.diningandcooking.com\/chefs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.diningandcooking.com\/chefs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.diningandcooking.com\/chefs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=10636"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.diningandcooking.com\/chefs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/10636\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.diningandcooking.com\/chefs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/10637"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.diningandcooking.com\/chefs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=10636"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.diningandcooking.com\/chefs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=10636"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.diningandcooking.com\/chefs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=10636"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}