The High Noon Restaurant and Saloon in Albuquerque’s Old Town

“Oh, to be torn twixt love and duty
Supposin’ I love my fair haired beauty
Look at that big hand movin’ round
Nearin’ high noon.”
~ Tex Ritter

The 1952 Academy Award winning movie High Noon follows taciturn marshal Will Kane as he single-handedly prepares to face a posse of murderers hellbent on revenge when the clock strikes twelve. Though the memorable showdown between Marshal Kane and the villainous scourges lasts only a few minutes, viewers are held spellbound by the movie’s black-and-white cinematography and hauntingly relentless soundtrack which accentuate the clock’s inexorable ticking down toward the confrontation at high noon.

The minute hand on the wooden clock facade at the foyer of the High Noon Restaurant & Saloon is on its upward trajectory, scant seconds away from high noon. Instead of tension, your mood will be one of eager anticipation to discover for yourself whether the flavors of the restaurant’s dishes are as welcoming as the aromas which greet you at the door. Since the restaurant was launched in 1974, locals and tourists alike have been beckoned by those alluring aromas to enter and dine at the popular Old Town restaurant.

It’s high noon at the lobby

The timeworn adobe edifice which houses The High Noon Restaurant & Saloon appears contemporaneous with the wooden homes on the dusty streets of Marshal Kane’s Hadleyville in the New Mexico Territory. In actuality, the building—one of Old Town’s original structures—was constructed in 1785, making it about 100 years older than the fictional town of Hadleyville. The High Noon truly provides a glimpse back in time, having served not only as a residence, but reputedly as a gambling casino and brothel. Steeped in history and legend, the building is also said to be haunted.  

Anyone six feet or taller will have to bend down to walk through the doorway from the foyer into the cozy bar lounge known as the “Santo” room for the original nichos which have decorated the room since 1810. Within the nichos stand meticulously restored Santos from Mexico and the Philippines. This room honors New Mexico’s Spanish heritage. Further back are two esthetically diverse dining rooms, each one honoring the remaining two of New Mexico’s three dominant cultures. The walls of the “Gallery Room” (the Anglo room) are adorned with large photographs taken during the building’s renovation with participants attired in regalia from the Gay Nineties. The “Kiva Room” stands out by virtue of its thick adobe walls, high ceiling, Pueblo-style bancos with Hopi kachinas, Navajo rugs and Acoma pottery completing the Native American theme.

One of the dining rooms at the High Noon Restaurant & Saloon

As with other restaurants clustered throughout Albuquerque’s historic Old Town, The High Noon has had to contend with the derision of nay-sayers who bucket all Old Town area restaurants into the category of “tourist traps.” While many of its guests are indeed visitors, The High Noon also has a loyal following among locals who appreciate that the restaurant’s eclectic menu includes a smattering of New Mexican entrees and some of the most highly regarded Margaritas (the saloon boasts of more than 30 tequila offerings) in town. The High Noon has been owned since its inception by the Villa family, lifelong Duke City philanthropists.

Although the menu is described as serving “new food from the old west,” at its heart and essence The High Noon is a steakhouse. Never mind that the winter 2013 menu lists only three steaks (a 16-ounce center-cut ribeye, an 8-ounce brown sugar-cured beef tenderloin and a 12-ounce New York strip Au Poivre), steak is where the restaurant carved out its reputation. The menu seems tailored mostly for the carnivorous persuasion, but it does includes something to appease even vegetarian palates.

Kobe beef sliders: green chile, cheddar cheese, chipotle ketchup

The chile served with the “New Mexican Favorites” menu is made with cumin as is the salsa. All New Mexican favorites are served with Spanish rice and whole pinto beans. “House Specialties” include a number of diverse offerings—from rock shrimp Pappardelle (one of four Italian inspired items on the menu) to a bourbon-roasted chicken. The “From the Grill” menu offers burgers, seafood and chops (including the aforementioned steaks). Soup and salad offerings include a bowl of green chile stew and a number of salads.

The “Starters” menu lists only six items, including Kobe Beef Sliders. Compared to many sliders (can you say White Castle?) on which the beef patties are about as thick as a slice of baloney, the patties on High Noon’s sliders are on steroids. Come to think of it, the patties are thicker than patties on most standard or upscale sized burgers. The burgers are served with only two toppings—Cheddar cheese and green chile—with chipotle ketchup on the side. You won’t need anything else. The chile has just enough bite to complement the Kobe beef. On burgers Kobe (or wagyu) beef isn’t quite as marbled as on steaks, but you can still taste the buttery richness of the beef.

Apple & Cranberry Salad: baby greens, sliced granny smith apples, blue cheese chipotle candied pecans, balsamic vinaigrette

Simply having a garden salad on the menu as an appetizer, entrée or side just doesn’t cut it anymore. Diners want fresh ingredients, lighter dressings and an inventive assembly of ingredients on their salad plate. Most restaurants who care to provide a holistic dining experience will accommodate them. The High Noon certainly does, offering an apple and cranberry salad with baby greens (arugula, frisee, radicchio), sliced Granny Smith apples, blue cheese, chipotle candied pecans and a thick Balsamic vinaigrette. The textural and flavor variety offered in the greens alone make this a salad worth eating, but the supporting cast makes it a salad you’ll order again. There’s just something magical about apples and blue cheese that spritzes up any salad or sandwich.

When we asked our server and the server attending to adjacent tables what their favorite entrees are, they both resounded with praise for the Ancho-BBQ Short Ribs, three braised, boneless short ribs slathered with an Ancho chile and Bing Cherry barbecue sauce with hashed potatoes, haricot vert and onion strings. Reminiscent of an 80s restaurant trend, the items on the plate were stacked on top of each other. The hashed potatoes served as the foundation with the three short ribs on top then the haricot vert and serving as the proverbial topping is a mound of onion strings.

Ancho-BBQ Short Ribs: braised, boneless short ribs, Ancho chile and Bing cherry BBQ sauce, hashed potatoes, haricot vert, BBQ-demi

Reminiscence notwithstanding, the short ribs were nearly as good as advertised—tender and melt-in-your-mouth delicious. The Ancho chile-Bing Cherry barbecue sauce doesn’t pack much punch and is a bit on the sweet side, but there’s plenty of it for use as a “gravy” with the hashed potatoes. The haricot vert (thin French green beans) are perfectly prepared with a nice snap to them. The tangle of onion strings reminded us (in a good way) of the onion loaf served at Hackney’s in the Chicago area with a combination of oniony and sweet flavors that go very well together.

The second entrée our servers recommended most highly (and it’s not even among the most expensive entrees on the menu) was the bourbon-roasted chicken served with mashed potatoes, baby carrots and natural jus. When we lived in the Deep South, we became quite familiar with bourbon roasted meats, most of whom were slathered with a cloying Jack Daniels sauce vaguely reminiscent of whiskey maple syrup. The High Noon’s rendition isn’t cloying in the least. The natural jus is seasoned to complement the roasted chicken, not to change its flavor profile. It’s a perfectly prepared and meaty chicken served in the 80s “stacked” style.

Bourbon roasted chicken: mashed potatoes, baby carrots, natural jus

The dessert menu is relatively small, but I stop listening when bread pudding is mentioned anyway. The High Noon’s bread pudding is made with white chocolate and cranberries topped with cajeta (goat cheese caramel). This tasty triumvirate may sound sickeningly sweet, but we were surprised at just how balanced the bread pudding is. The pastry chef obviously knows that a little salt and baking powder goes a long way in cutting the cloying qualities of desserts. One of the most surprising elements of this bread pudding is the cajeta, an addictive and luxurious topping for a bread pudding that’s hard to top. My friend Larry McGoldrick, the professor with the perspicacious palate and a fellow bread pudding aficionado, would enjoy this one.

Over the years, The High Noon Restaurant has undergone a number of thematic menu changes.  Until rather recently, it was one of few restaurants in town in which wild game (including rattlesnake) could be found.  Now, if you want to see rattlesnakes, you’ve got to walk down the street to the rattlesnake museum.  As with many progressive restaurants, its menu changes periodically to maintain diner interest. 

White Chocolate and Cranberry Bread Pudding With Cajeta Sauce

Our server confided that he eats at the restaurant five days a week, and while some of that may be salesmanship, he was certainly familiar with the nuances of every item we had and gracefully led us on our dining adventure.

High Noon Restaurant & Saloon
425 San Felipe Street,  N.W.
Albuquerque, New Mexico
(505) 765-1455
Web Site
LATEST VISIT: 9 March 2013
# OF VISITS: 1
RATING: *
COST: $$$ – $$$$
BEST BET: White Chocolate & Cranberry Bread Pudding, Apple & Cranberry Salad, Kobe Beef Sliders, Bourbon Roasted Chicken, Ancho-BBQ Short Ribs

View High Noon Restaurant & Saloon on LetsDineLocal.com »

The fatted cow lets you know you’ve arrived

America’s highway system expansion which began in the 1930s not only “shrank” America, it introduced the entertaining, educational–some might say bizarre–phenomenon of the roadside attraction.  Entrepreneurs competed with each other to create gawk-inspiring, curiosity motivating, must-see-to-believe attractions to snare the attention of motorists and motivate them to part with some of their money.  Neon lights festooned Route 66 while fiberglass and concrete statues became part-and-parcel of America’s highways and byways.  This was true roadside art which became a part of the fabric of Americana, albeit a kitschy tradition fading with the passage of time (which aptly describes many of the statues themselves). 

Among the most famous statuary art are life-sized fiberglass statues of stocky steers (corpulent cows and beefy bulls, if you prefer) which became the symbol of steakhouses along the motorways and byways.  Ironically, this statuary was not designed for use as symbology for restaurants.  In the 1950s, Bob Prewitt, a manufacturer of fiberglass trailers created life-sized fiberglass animals to prove the trailers were large enough to accommodate the real thing.  Soon the manufacture of animals became the primary focus of his business.  He created almost as many types of animals as Noah took on board his ark.  The steer became one of the most popular.  Restaurants such as the Hilltop Steak House in Saugus, Massachusetts actually have corrals full of Hereford and black Angus statues on display.

The Townhouse Dining Room on Central Avenue just east of Wyoming

One of the Duke City’s  longest-standing and most famous steers served as a beacon for 45 years to Albuquerque diners, letting them know that they were within steak sniffing, sizzling sound hearing distance of the Town House Lounge & Restaurant on Central Avenue just west of Washington.  To detractors, the steer on the roof helped reinforce the stereotype that Albuquerque is a “cow town,” but to its many long-time diners, it was an open invitation to dine on grilled steak and lamb, prime rib and chops, hamburgers and salads as well as many popular American and Greek favorites. 

The Town House was just as welcoming once you stepped inside its friendly confines and were enveloped by its oversized tuck-and-roll Naugahyde booths.  The Town House had all the stereotypical trappings of steak houses launched in the 1960s including the use of anthropomorphic adult beverage decanters as decorative touches.  Amber sconces provided a low lighting milieu that helped ensure privacy. Service was attentive and personable with frequent visits by your server assured during every visit.

Texas toast and an olive oil-feta cheese dip

The Town House was founded by George Argyres, a Greek immigrant who opened his restaurant in 1962 and was a ubiquitous presence until its closing on Saturday, May 5th, 2007.  His success followed in the long tradition of successful Greek restaurateurs in the Land of Enchantment, many of whom still own and operate some of the state’s most popular eateries.  When Argyres closed the Town House, it was a sad day for generations who had spent many a special occasion within its comfy confines.  

Sadness turned to joy with the announcement that the Town House would reopen in November, 2011, albeit in a different location several blocks east of the original venue.  Alas, because of permit issues, the opening date was pushed out several times and several months until finally the restaurant  reopened on Thursday, February 16, 2012.  The restaurant’s new owner as well as its chef is Dino Argyres, scion of the restaurant’s founder.  Even long-time Duke City denizens might not recognize the Town House’s new digs as once having been home to The Mint, a restaurant which served the most piquant chile in the city.  That’s how remarkable the transformation of a once dark and dank edifice has been.  The new Town House is bright and airy, also quite unlike its own former instantiation.

Townhouse Combination Platter (Antipasto): Stuffed Grape Leaves, Olives, Mild Peppers, Greek Feta Cheese, Casseri, Ham, Salami, Garlic Dip, Taramosalata (fish roe spread)

At first browse, the menu may appear to be solely a carnivore’s delight, a meat fest and protein party, but there’s actually something for everyone.  Only four of the dozen appetizers include meat or fish based dishes and three of five a la carte salads also include meat.  A number of sandwich and burger specialties can be had as well as several low-calorie items.  The “From the Lakes and Seas” menu includes a number of seafood items, including market priced twin lobster tails while the surf and turf combinations give you the best meat and seafood items. 

Most guests, however, visit for the “from the broiler” selections including the house specialty, an all beef shish ka-bob, chunks of lean top sirloin, chicken and pork tenderloin marinated in the Town House’s special marinade and prepared to your exacting specifications.  Steaks and chops and choice prime rib with au jus round out the broiler menu.  Entrees and luncheon specials, served from 11AM to 2PM, are served with a tossed salad (with your choice of dressing from among Bleu Cheese, 1000 Island, French, Vinegar and Oil, Feta or Ranch), bread and your choice of baked potato, rice pilaf, French fries or oven-roasted Greek potatoes.

Choice spring lamb chops (four chops, 16-18 ounces) Greek style with a baked potato and mint sauce

Shortly after the menu is brought to your table, a basket with Texas toast and a bowl of olive oil and feta cheese is delivered to your waiting hands.  It’s a refreshing change from the de rigueur bread and olive oil-Balsamic vinegar offering at many restaurants.  The Texas toast is lightly toasted and thick with absorbing qualities which make it a perfect for sopping up the olive oil and feta mix.  It’s an excellent introduction to the Town House and you’re likely to be tempted to request a second helping.  Do so at your peril because you’ll want to save room for either the restaurant’s sumptuous soups (the soup-of-the-day is always tempting) or amazing appetizers.

One of the items for which the Town House has been and will be best known is a behemoth combination antipasto platter the cognoscenti once considered the very best in town–for good reason.  You might visit with carnivorous cravings, but you’ll fall in love with the antipasto combination plate, the restaurant’s star attraction.  By definition if not function, antipasto is meant to pique one’s appetite, not sate it; however, at the Town House, the antipasto plate is an oversized appetizer for two or a gargantuan meal with for one.

Rib Eye with Mushroom Marsala Sauce and Baked Potato

The antipasto plate has a bit of everything and then some: stuffed grape leaves, Kalamata olives, Pepperonici, feta cheese, Kasseri cheese (a sharp, salty and hard cheese with a Cheddar-like texture made from sheep or goat’s milk), ham, salami, garlic dip, pita bread, and taramosalata as well as a number of pickled vegetables (carrots, artichokes, cauliflower and more).  If you’ve never had taramasalata, you’re in for a treat. It’s a Greek style “poor man’s” caviar traditionally served as an appetizer. Consisting of carp roe, breadcrumbs soaked in milk, olive oil and more, it is whipped until light and fluffy. It’s wonderful on its own or spread onto the restaurant’s signature pita bread.

Chops connoisseurs generally agree that the best degree of “doneness” for lamb chops is always to let the chef prepare them to his or her preference as ostensibly the chef should best know what the optimum doneness is for the restaurant’s chops.  For the most part, lamb chops seem to be prepared at medium rare with a warm red center and copious juiciness.  It takes a very confident and skilled chef to serve lamb chops well done.  That’s how my lamb chops were delivered.  Well done is not synonymous with desiccated at the Town House.  In fact, these chops are wonderfully delicious–four chops, each at least four ounces, with a surprising degree of juiciness despite an exterior char.  The chops are served with a mint sauce the color of lime Kool Aid.  The mint sauce doesn’t have herbaceous qualities that make it “minty.”  Instead it’s quite sweet, a nice contrast to the slight gaminess of the chops.

Char Burger with Baked Potato

The luncheon special on the day of our inaugural visit was a rib eye steak with a mushroom Marsala sauce.  This is one of those specials so special it should be part of the daily menu.  A twelve-ounce rib eye as tender and juicy as possible is topped with a mushrooms sauteed in a Marsala wine.  Unlike some Marsala sauce, the Town House’s rendition isn’t gravy-like in texture or flavor.  You can actually appreciate the wine reduction, a dry sweet flavor that punctuates each of the thinly shaved mushrooms and permeates into the steak.  It’s a very good steak! 

Opt for a baked potato instead of rice pilaf, French fries or oven-roasted Greek potatoes and you’ll be rewarded with a football-sized potato baked to absolute perfection.  It’s served with butter, sour cream and chives, but an equally good topping is the aforementioned olive oil and feta mixture.  The accompanying salads are anachronisms, the type of salads which might have been served in the  60s when the Town House first opened.  That means iceberg lettuce, cucumbers, tomatoes, croutons and lots of dressing.  The feta and bleu cheese dressings are quite good, albeit thin and light.

Shish Ka-Bob

A house specialty is an “all meat” shish ka-bob, chunks of lean meat (your choice of top sirloin, chicken or pork tenderloin) marinated in the Townhouse’s special marinade. Unfortunately you have to select only one of the three meats and can’t have a mix of all three. Nor does the shish ka-bob include grilled onions and bell peppers, two seemingly de rigueur shish ka-bob standards. This is a meatfest, a carnivore’s delight. The marinade appears to be a fairly standard Greek recipe that includes lemon and olive oil. The broiler sears in a light char that gives the bite-sized ka-bobs a slight crust, but doesn’t detract from the moistness of the top sirloin.

The Townhouse also offers a “Char-Burger” that has no bun and isn’t accompanied by the burger toppings to which we’re all accustomed. The char-burger is a half-pound of choice ground round stuffed with the Townhouse’s cheese mixture (primarily Cheddar) broiled to your exacting degree of doneness. At medium, the exterior has a seared-in crust while the interior is moist with a barely bubbling cheese interior. There’s not as much cheese as you’ll find in the stuffed Cheddar burger at Maria’s of Santa Fe where the cheese is molten and positively erupts out. Still, it’s a nice round slab of chopped steak that probably could use a steak sauce of some sort.

Chocolate Layered Cake and Baklava

Desserts are made in-house save for the spumoni ice cream.  There are five dessert items and unless you’ve asked for a doggie bag or three, you’re not likely to have room for them.  Make sure to leave room because these desserts are terrific.  The baklava is layers of flaky phyllo pastry, ground pistachios and of course lots of rich honey.  It’s nearly cloying in its sweetness, but absolutely delicious.  According to Dino Argyres, if you offer someone in Greece a slice of chocolate cake, you might be asked why you’re handing out bread.  Ironically, the Town House serves one of the very best layered chocolate cakes in the Duke City.  It’s the antithesis of the store-bought cakes and their thick, cloying frosting.  This cake is rich and moist, but not overly sweet. 

If anything, the near five-year hiatus may actually have improved the Town House Restaurant or maybe that’s just its new bright and airy ambiance.  Though its new digs bear little resemblance to its former home, a visit to the Town House is like coming home.  You’ll be welcome.  You’ll be well-fed.  You’ll leave happy. 

The Town House Restaurant
9019 Central, N.E.
Albuquerque, New Mexico
505 255-0057
Town House Facebook Page
LATEST VISIT: 4 August 2012
1st VISIT: 18 February 2012
# OF VISITS: 2
RATING: 17
COST: $$$ – $$$$
BEST BET: Antipasto, Lamb Chops, Rib Eye with Mushroom Marsala Sauce, Baklava, Chocolate Layered Cake