One of the things I appreciate most about being an adult (chronologically if not maturity) is not having to finish a meal before partaking of the sweet indulgence of dessert. Why save the best for last, especially if there’s a chance you’ll be full before diving into a delectable dessert? In the list below, I share some of my very favorite post-prandial indulgences. By clicking on the name of the restaurant for which you wish to know my opinion, you will be magically transported directly to my review of that restaurant.
| Dessert | Restaurant | What Makes It a Special Dessert |
| Pistachio Baklava | Alqud’s Mediterranean Grill & Grocery (Albuquerque) | Finely ground pistachios top triangle-shaped baklava, offsetting the cloying honey syrup and lending both texture and flavor. This is a dessert so good you’ll want it before your entrees are served. |
| Maple Pecan Pie | Sugar Nymphs Bistro (Peñasco) | Layer upon layer of rich, sweet maple and chocolate overlayed by pecans made decadent and delicious and served with whipped cream. It takes pecan pie to another level. |
| Banana Bread Pudding | Blades’ Bistro (Placitas) | Firm yet spongy texture that’s absolutely spot-on. Mouth-watering flavor coupling bananas and rum, the latter cutting the sweetness of the former. It’s a winning combination, an adult bread pudding. |
| Banana Split | Slate Street Cafe (Albuquerque) | Caramelized bananas, chocolate, vanilla, berry ice creams, cashew nuts, peanuts, chocolate sauce and whipped cream and it’s big enough for two! |
| Tiramisu | Joe’s Pasta House (Rio Rancho) | The unanimous best dessert winner during the 2014 Taste of Rio Rancho, this tiramisu has been known to make grown men (and a few food critics) swoon with appreciation and love. |
| New Mexican Wedding Cake | Mary & Tito’s (Albuquerque) |
The home to New Mexico’s best red chile is also home to one of its best desserts, a decadent yellow cake made with walnuts and pineapple and topped with a cream cheese frosting. It’s spectacular! |
| Chocolate Cake | Western View Diner & Steakhouse (Albuquerque) | A thick slab is easily big enough for two and is as delicious as any chocolate cake you’ve ever had anywhere. The frosting is thick yet not at all cloying as are the frosting in those hideous store-bought Plaster of Paris designer cakes. It’s diet devastating delicious. |
| Mangoes with Sticky Rice | Thai Cuisine (Albuquerque) |
When in season, mangoes with sweet sticky rice make a refreshing dessert contrasting the sweet tanginess of mangoes and the near cloying flavor of coconut with the neutral to sweet flavor of sticky rice |
| Gajar ka Halwa | Namaste Restaurant (Rio Rancho | This sweet and dense confection made with carrots, butter and milk is my very favorite Indian dessert. No one does it better than Rio Rancho’s Namaste Restaurant. |
Hi Gil, I’m looking for a restaurant that serves good cherry or berry cobbler or crumble. Can you help?
Thank you so much.
I love your blogs.
Hi Zuzana
There are a number of restaurants in Albuquerque, Rio Rancho and Santa Fe which offer good fruit and berry cobblers. Among them are:
(1) Pepper’s BBQ on San Pedro (blackberry cobbler);
(2) Rub-N-Wood in Rio Rancho (blackberry cobbler);
(3) Model Pharmacy on Carlisle (peach cobbler and others);
(4) Jambo Cafe in Santa Fe (mango cobbler a la mode)
Please reply back and share your experiences with these cobblers and others you may find.
Gil
You’ve come a long way, Gil. I remember when your favorite dessert was the pigs in a blanket from Milton’s.