Month: April 2016

AlbuquerqueAmericanClosed in 2016Gone But Not ForgottenNew Mexico

Desert Grows – Los Ranchos de Albuquerque, New Mexico (CLOSED)

Gil Garduno

“And he gave it for his opinion, that whoever could make two ears of corn, or two blades of grass, to grow upon a spot of ground where only one grew before, would deserve better of mankind, and do more essential service to his country, than the whole race of politicians put together.” – Jonathan Swift, Gulliver’s Travels Had Jonathan Swift not uttered those words of sagacious cynicism, there’s a good chance Armand Saiia would have. It’s a sentiment that resonates with Armand, the effusive chef-owner of Desert Grows. Sensing our confusion as we approached the towering trees providing sweet, salubrious shade to a charming courtyard at his first Albuquerque location, Armand welcomed us to one of the Duke City’s…

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Naruto – Albuquerque, New Mexico

Gil Garduno

During a 2015 episode of the Travel Channel’s Delicious Destinations, glaborous host Andrew Zimmern articulated what may be the very best–or at least most comprehensive–definition of comfort food ever. “Comfort food,” he explained, “makes us feel good. Every culture has its favorites–satisfying classics carried throughout the generations. Simple recipes loaded with carbs and full of love. It’s the taste of a feeling: warm, cozy, hearty and homey. Comfort foods satisfy more than physical hunger. They’re the feel good favorites that connect us to our past, family and cultural classics that fill us with sustenance and warm feelings at the same time.” At first browse, it appears that Zimmern’s definition applies solely to the act of consuming comfort foods, however, read…

Announcements

Friends of Gil (FOG) Dinner: A Gathering of Gastronomes

Gil Garduno

Next week the Pueblo Harvest Cafe within the Indian Pueblo Cultural Center will host a number of events during the world-renowned Gathering of Nations, but on Friday, April 22nd at 6:30, the venue belonged to the Friends of Gil (FOG) who convened for dinner at the spectacular cafe. This Gathering of Gastronomes included ten first-timers who joined us for an evening of fun, food and friendship. A good time was had by all. Though we were invited to enjoy music and dancing on the patio after our dinner, several of us lingered in the dining room where we continued to enjoy great conversation and even better people. This wasn’t the first FOG Dinner in which we closed the restaurant. So…

AmericanClosed in 2023Gone But Not ForgottenNew MexicanNew MexicoTaos County

Old Martina’s Hall – Ranchos de Taos, New Mexico (CLOSED)

Gil Garduno

Between the years 2000 and 2014, The Taos News had the prestigious distinction of being named the best weekly newspaper in the United States by the National Newspaper Association. Although the most famous words in American journalism–“all the news that’s fit to print”–don’t grace its masthead, The Taos News has fairly and objectively reported news of events and personalities that seemingly can exist only in Taos county. Readers like me marveled at the periodical’s ability to refrain from punchline-pocked cynicism when, for a couple of years, three topics perhaps more appropriate for Jerry Springer or The National Inquirer ostensibly dominated the front page. One topic was the dysfunctional shenanigans of the Questa school board, the behavior of whom warranted a…

AlbuquerqueClosed in 2019Gone But Not ForgottenNew MexicoVietnamese

Que Huong – Albuquerque, New Mexico (CLOSED)

Gil Garduno

“Wisdom oft comes from the mouth of babes.” ~George R.R. Martin After far too many meals at restaurants in which children are either screaming at the top of their lungs, throwing hysterical tantrums or wandering unsupervised around the dining room, our inaugural meal at Que Huong proved a very pleasant surprise. Across the dining room, we espied a Vietnamese family with several young children. Theirs was the quietest table in the restaurant. All of them were completely focused on their meals. When my Kim commented on how well behaved Vietnamese children are, I reminded her of at least one Vietnamese child who doesn’t always behave as well as the children Kim was idealizing. In fact, that child is as candid…

AlbuquerqueClosed in 2017Gone But Not ForgottenNew MexicoRated 23Soul FoodSouthern

Bucketheadz – Albuquerque, New Mexico (CLOSED)

Gil Garduno

“I think it’s easy to dismiss Southern food as nothing but grease and grits. I happen to like both grease and grits, And if you call them lardo and polenta, no one would have a problem with it.” ~John T. Edge Author John T. Edge acknowledges that negative stereotypes are rampant about Southern food, crediting some of those perceptions to how Southern food is marketed. Instead of Southern food being presented as one of America’s great culinary traditions, all too often it’s presented as bumpkinly and backwater. Instead of focusing on its soul-warming deliciousness and comforting properties, it’s presented as fatty, fried and laden with butter. It could well be argued that Southern cooking is the Rodney Dangerfield of American…

AlbuquerqueChinese

ABC Chinese Restaurant – Albuquerque, New Mexico (CLOSED)

Gil Garduno

NOTE:  The site which housed ABC Chinese for nearly four decades is now the home of ABC Cajun Seafood & Noodle House. Hungry sojourners venturing east on Menaul between Wyoming and Eubank will discover two of the dining options on this stretch are among Albuquerque’s elder statesmen in the Duke City’s Chinese restaurant community. You’ll first espy Ho Lo Ma, a venerable institution launched in 1972 and well on its way to a half-century of serving the Duke City. A couple blocks later lies a comparative newcomer named ABC Chinese which has been in business only since 1988. Both restaurants are anachronisms with many of the stereotypical trappings that typified Chinese restaurants in the 1960s and ’70s. Though showing their…