"Payson is an expensive place to live," Tristan Nanty told the Payson Roundup earlier this month. He was explaining why everything on his family's chicken-and-waffles menu costs under $14.
That quote fits this fall in Payson. The newest places to eat and drink did not open in big new storefronts. Coffee now comes from a trailer parked at Tractor Supply, and chicken and waffles come out of a family kitchen inside American Legion Post 69. A new pub opened on the Tonto Apache reservation. Out on the trails and along Main Street, the work is also about joining up things Payson already has. Here is what's new and how it fits together.
A coffee trailer in the Tractor Supply lot
David and Jennelle Brandt opened Grindhead Coffee Payson in a mobile trailer at the Tractor Supply store off Highway 260. The Roundup reported that the trailer is part of their semi-retirement plan. They also run 48 Mobile Restroom, which delivers restroom trailers to events around the state.
The coffee comes through a larger company based in Tennessee. Beans are shipped from the Caribbean to Tennessee, roasted there, and then sent to locations in Tennessee, California, Illinois, Louisiana, New Mexico, and now Payson. Every drink has a pirate name:
- Salty Sailor: a salted caramel truffle latte
- Black Beard: a cappuccino
- Scallywag: a chocolate chai
- Captain Hook: a dark chocolate hazelnut mocha
The menu also has Red Bull-based energy drinks, chai, lemonade, hot chocolate, and whole beans to take home. Regular hours are 7 a.m. to 2 p.m., Tuesday through Saturday. The trailer has a permanent spot at Tractor Supply, but the Brandts plan to take it on the road. The only other place they plan to sell this year is the town's ice skating rink during the holiday events. Keep that in mind for the calendar at the end of this post.
Chicken and waffles inside American Legion Post 69
Brothers Gunner, Tristan, Brendan, and Brady Nanty started Batter Up at American Legion Post 69 in spring 2026. It began as Gunner's idea. He bartended at the Post, where the big food day had always been the Friday fish fry, and he thought the kitchen could offer more.
The chicken that comes with the waffles is battered and breaded in corn flakes. A second "country chicken" recipe, with a smoother batter, goes into an $8 tenders sandwich. The menu has about four main dishes, plus a few items from earlier menus that the brothers call their secret menu, available to anyone who knows to ask. According to the Roundup, the brothers priced the menu with families in mind. They are young parents themselves, and their families trade babysitting while they work.
With Batter Up added, the Post's kitchen now serves three days a week. These are the times listed on Post 69's website:
- Thursday: Batter Up, noon to 6 p.m.
- Friday: Friday Fish Fry, noon to 8 p.m.
- Saturday: Batter Up, noon to 6 p.m.
Scout Loop gets a pub with a golf simulator
The Tonto Apache Pub opened to the public on Friday, October 9. It's at 100 G East Scout Loop on the Tonto Apache reservation. The Payson Roundup called it "a new upscale sports bar and family-friendly hangout." The paper covered a preview night for staff and their families, which bar manager Pam Newman said was meant to collect feedback, down to "what's a little salty."
The menu at that preview included mozzarella sticks, fried pickles, mac and cheese bites, foot-long chili dogs, Philly cheesesteaks, and the "Angry Bird," a spicy chicken sandwich with pepper jack and jalapeños. Desserts ranged from creamsicle floats to cheesecake. The main draw may be the games. Inside are a golf simulator, darts, pool tables, air hockey, a free-throw basketball game, and claw machines. La Plata cigars are sold on site for the patio.
The posted hours are uneven, so check before you go:
- Monday: 4 p.m. to 10 p.m.
- Tuesday: Closed
- Wednesday: 4 p.m. to 9 p.m.
- Thursday: 4 p.m. to 10 p.m.
- Friday: 4 p.m. to midnight
- Saturday: 9 a.m. to midnight, with breakfast
- Sunday: 9 a.m. to 8 p.m., with breakfast
Live music, karaoke, and football-season specials will be announced as they're scheduled. The pub is also still hiring, especially dishwashers and food runners.
On the trails, this fall's work is about linking routes
The same pattern holds outside town. A Payson Roundup report from October 9 called 2026 a "banner year" for trail building in Rim Country, with key connections around Pine and Strawberry planned for December. Years of effort have already produced a 21-mile network around Pine that ties into parts of the Arizona Trail and the Highline.
Buckshot Trail runs two miles from the Pine Trailhead to the Highline Trail, with 283 feet of elevation gain. The Highline end still needs work. Once that's done, hikers will have a five-mile loop from the Pine Trailhead. Volunteer workdays start at 8 a.m., and two are left after this post goes up: October 27 and October 31. The organizers ask volunteers to bring gloves and water and to wear long pants and closed-toe shoes.
Strawberry Mountain Trail is a bigger job. An Arizona State Parks grant is paying a contractor for blasting and heavy-equipment work, which has been going on since summer 2025. Work stopped in the spring to protect nesting Mexican spotted owls and picked back up in the summer. Hikers are asked to stay off the north end Tuesday through Friday while crews are working, because rocks can roll down onto the switchbacks. When it's finished, the trail will be a 7-mile out-and-back from near Pine off Highway 260 to Fossil Creek Road. It climbs more than 1,000 feet and has views of the Mogollon Rim, Pine, Payson, and Fossil Creek.
The Rim Country Trail Fund has worked on $3.4 million in grants over the past 18 months, two of them with the Town of Payson. Payson is also working on its own connected loop around town by repairing and extending the long-neglected Payson Area Trails System.
Timing helps this year. Adventure Payson lists the Mogollon Rim, Tonto Natural Bridge, and the East Verde River area as fall-color spots, and says color usually peaks in mid-to-late October. That means the next week or two.
Main Street's connecting plan is still on paper
The biggest connecting idea in town is still early. The town council recently heard a Main Street proposal, which the Roundup covered in a story updated September 22. It would link an arts and cultural district, a walkable commercial area, an event center, American Gulch, and a proposed extension of Green Valley Parkway. According to the Payson Roundup, the council did not vote, and town staff are still working out the scope and the cost.
For now, most of the town's year-end events are held at places that already exist, with Green Valley Park and Historic Main Street hosting the biggest ones.
The rest of the year, on the town calendar
These dates come from the Town's Adventure Payson event listings. Times can change, so check with organizers as each date gets closer.
Saturday, October 24 · Monster Mash. 4 to 9:30 p.m. at Green Valley Park.
Saturday, November 21 · Turkey Trot & Turkey Bowl. 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. at Green Valley Park.
Friday, November 27 · Swiss Village Lighting. Listed for 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. the day after Thanksgiving.
Saturday, December 12 · Winter Wonderland & Electric Light Parade. On Historic Main Street, with the event starting at 3 p.m. and the parade at 6 p.m.
Thursday, December 31 · New Year's Eve Ball Drop & Fireworks. 4 to 7 p.m. at Green Valley Park and the Payson Ice Rink, with free ice skating, a dance floor, the ball drop, and fireworks. The Brandts named the ice rink's holiday events as one of the few places they plan to bring the Grindhead trailer this year.
This fall's first events have already wrapped up. The first North Inch Renaissance Faire was held at Payson Golf Course October 3 through 5, and its organizers are already talking about next year. The Payson Community Garden held its pumpkin patch and corn maze October 8 through 10.
If you've found a new favorite in town this fall, whether it's a Salty Sailor at Tractor Supply or a Thursday plate of waffles at Post 69, I'd love to hear about it. And if you're weighing a move within Rim Country, the Payson community page is a good place to start. When you're ready, Liv AZ Real Estate Group is happy to talk it through over coffee. Let's Connect.
