Category: New Mexico

AlbuquerqueChineseDim SumNew MexicoRating: N/R (Not Rated)

It Dim Sum – Albuquerque, New Mexico

Gil Garduno6:22 PM

Shortly after “moving on up to the east side, to a deluxe apartment in the sky,” George Jefferson was uncharacteristically late returning home.  Knowing George had gone to a Chinese restaurant after work, his dutiful wife Weezy asked neighbor Tom Willis what Chinese restaurant George might have visited.  Ever the gourmand, Tom asked what style of Chinese food George liked then proceeded to rattle off five different types of traditional Chinese cuisine available in the neighborhood: Mandarin, Sichuan, Hunan, Cantonese and Shandong.  Until that very moment I had no idea there were so many different styles of Chinese cuisine, wrongly believing there was only Chinese food period. That’s pretty much what most Americans believed even back in the 80s when that particular Jefferson’s episode aired…especially those of us who didn’t live in a populous, cosmopolitan city.  In our naivete, we also believed such favorites as crab Rangoon, orange chicken, chop suey and even the ubiquitous fortune cookie to have originated in China.  It didn’t dawn on us that many Chinese dishes were “invented” to cater to American tastes.  We also had no idea how significantly Chinese dishes in China differed from those adapted to American tastes.   Some of us even…

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Burque’s Burgers & Dawgs – Albuquerque, New Mexico (CLOSED)

Gil Garduno12:40 PM

A 2016 quality of life survey conducted by the city of Albuquerque revealed that denizens of the Duke City are split pretty much down the middle when it comes to the nickname “Burque” (which, by the way, is NOT pronounced “burr-key” though you’ll be forgiven if you can’t roll your r’s).  28-percent of respondents viewed the sobriquet favorably while 28-percent had an unfavorable impression and 35% were neutral.  Residents of the Northeast Heights viewed the nickname less favorably than did dwellers of North Valley, downtown, west side and UNM areas. The survey did not address former Mayor Marty Chavez’s 2007 branding efforts to replace Burque with a more generic city nickname, “The Q.” In response to Mayor Chavez’s perceived folly, a grassroots cultural resistance movement arose.  Sporting plain red tee-shirts emblazoned with the words “¡SOY DE BURQUE!, or “I am from Burque,” the movement’s members garnered worldwide support, particularly from former Burqueños.  In an interview with The Alibi, the movement’s founder declared, “The Q, more than anything, represents not having a voice. Burque–it’s a name that has been given by the people over generations, and it’s always sort of existed. The Q, the fact that they’re trying to make it…

AmericanBrunchCorralesDog FriendlyNew MexicoRating: Excellent

Indigo Crow Cafe – Corrales, New Mexico

Gil Garduno11:55 PM

Now I lay myself down to sleep I pray oh lord my soul to keep Cause if I should die before I wake I hope up in Heaven they’ve got lobster and steak It’s a sin if Heaven ain’t got an Indigo Crow Best food down here up there they’ve gotta know. A Sin if Heaven ain’t got an Indigo Crow But if they don’t then why the hell should I go. Now I’ve tried every joint around here I’ve had green chile stew, I’ve had had my root beer But when I want to treat my taste buds right I know this place is drop-dead tight It’s a sin if Heaven ain’t got an Indigo Crow Best food down here up there they gotta know. – Oscar Butler What would possess troubadour Oscar Butler to rhapsodize in his inimitable melodious timbre about a charming rural retreat in Corrales, New Mexico which serves some of the very best food in the metropolitan Duke City area?  A native New Yorker now living in Albuquerque, Butler sums it up in four words, “Great food, great atmosphere!” There’s a lot to love about the Indigo Crow and it starts with ambiance (atmosphere, if…

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Ponderosa Family Restaurant & Grill- Tijeras, New Mexico (CLOSED)

Gil Garduno2:20 AM

The teeth, tail and eye of the tiger caused quite an uproar in the Sandia National Forest near Tijeras, New Mexico back in 2015 and it made the national news. A mountain biker took a blurry photo of what appeared to be a tiger and posted it online. The photo went viral, prompting Bernalillo county officials to issue a warning urging hikers to take caution and call 911 if they saw it. A subsequent investigation by the New Mexico Game and Fish Department uncovered a life-sized plastic statue of a tiger. Because of the uproar it had caused, the plastic tiger was destroyed. New Mexicans found the presence of the jungle cat in Tijeras wilderness quite ironic. There’s been a standing joke for years about tourists being unable to pronounce Tijeras so they just call it “Tiger Ass.” These, by the way, are probably the same tourists who’ve given alternative names to such New Mexico places as “Elephant Butt,” “Lost Curses,” and “Toucan Carrie” among others.  Other than as an assault to proper pronunciation, Tijeras has nothing to do with tigers.  Tijeras actually translates from Spanish to “scissors.”  It sits in Tijeras Canyon (Tiger Ass Canyon to some tourists), which…

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Rusty Taco – Albuquerque, New Mexico (CLOSED)

Gil Garduno8:18 PM

In 2015, food critic Mike Sutter embarked on a quest Don Quixote would envy when he ate at a different taco joint in Austin, Texas every day for an entire year. During his 365-day adventure, he consumed a whopping 1,600 tacos. When he moved from Austin to San Antonio, he embarked on a similar venture and not even life-altering thyroid cancer and its associated treatments and surgery could stay this critic from his appointed quest. He had surgery on a Tuesday and was back on the taco trail on Friday. Asked what his favorite taco was, he singled out a simple carnitas taco with a balance of lean, fatty and crispy bits and salsa–not some elegant or complicated creation of sundry fusion ingredients. That’s the way it goes with tacos sometimes. My Kim prefers the simplicity of carnitas, but will occasionally go wild and order tacos al pastor. Her mad scientist of a husband will invariably order the weirdest tacos on the menu and tends to find classics such as carnitas tacos boring.  Tacos offer such a potential for diversity that there’s bound to be a taco for every taste…and for every level of weirdness.  In Austin where Mike Sutter…

AlbuquerqueBreakfastClosed in 2024Diners Drive-Ins and DivesFood Network Eats New MexicoGone But Not ForgottenNew MexicanRating: ExcellentTravel Channel Eats New Mexico

Cecilia’s Cafe – Albuquerque, New Mexico (CLOSED)

Gil Garduno8:12 PM

FROM INSTAGRAM (December, 2024):  After 25 years on the corner of 6th & Silver, Cecilia’s Café has closed its doors. This New Mexican breakfast and lunch restaurant was once featured on the Food Network and was a beloved space for locals.  Owner Cecilia Baca cited persistent challenges with homeless people, issues finding employees, and the remote/hybrid work phenomenon as key reasons for closing. Since the pandemic, “customers aren’t working a full week,” she said. “Just a lot of little things that made me realize that Downtown will not come back to life the way it was before COVID.” Pasqual Baylon’s devotion to the Mass and the Holy Eucharist was so fervent that even when assigned kitchen duty, he remained so enraptured in adoration of the Eucharist that angels had to stir the pots to keep them from burning.  It’s deliciously ironic, therefore, that San Pasqual is the recognized patron saint of Mexican and New Mexican kitchens, a beloved saint whose smiling countenance graces many a kitchen, including the one in Cecilia’s Cafe, one of Albuquerque’s most authentic (and best) New Mexican restaurants. On the day Cecilia opened her cafe back in 1999, she found a small retablo (a painting with…

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El Pinto – Albuquerque, New Mexico

Gil Garduno3:41 PM

Over the years, perhaps no restaurant across the Land of Enchantment has garnered as much recognition from the national media as has El Pinto.  Rather than recap all its accolades across the years, let’s focus on just one year: 2015.   For almost any other restaurant in New Mexico (or anywhere else for that matter), 2015 would be considered a banner year, an auspicious annum, the type of year for which every restaurateur aspires. For Albuquerque’s El Pinto, however, 2015 could be considered just another year in which praise and recognition–local and national–seem to be heaped on in abundance. It’s probably safe to say El Pinto is the most heralded and acclaimed dining establishment in the Land of Enchantment. Terms such as “institution,” “paragon” and “iconic” have been used to describe the sprawling restaurant at the terminus of 4th Street. El Pinto, in fact, started 2015 off by being declared New Mexico’s “most iconic restaurant.” That distinction was accorded by Thrillist, an online presence “obsessed with everything that’s worth caring about in food, drink.” Thrillist is unabashed about its love of El Pinto, also naming it one of the “best Mexican restaurants in America.” 2015 also saw filming begin for…

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Southwest Savories Cafe – Albuquerque, New Mexico (CLOSED)

Gil Garduno9:18 AM

After years of toiling as a quality engineer in a pressure cooker environment in which the happiest time of day was usually 5PM,  Charlene McBain has truly found her happy place.  It’s a cozy little cafe named Southwest Savories which she founded in 2018.  She’s eager to share her happy place with guests.  Although most of us probably won’t even notice the placard on a wall which reads “Our Happy Place,” you’ll certainly feel the spirit of that aphorism. In fact, in a scant lunch hour, you just might find Southwest Savories is the temporary respite you’ve been looking for, a warm, welcoming place where you can–if only for just a brief time–forget the daily rigors of the rat race. Charlene’s perpetual smile isn’t pasted on solely when she’s got a roomful of guests.  My brother Mario who had the joy and privilege of having worked with her for years tells me she’s a naturally happy person with an infectious smile.  Nor is she smiling broadly because Brinks trucks are backing up in front of the cafe to transport the day’s proceeds to the bank.  In fact, Southwest Savories is one of those rare gems that not even the connected…

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Taj Mahal – Albuquerque, New Mexico

Gil Garduno10:36 AM

Don Shirley: “How is that?” Tony Lip: “Salty.” Don Shirley: “Have you ever considered becoming a food critic?” Tony Lip: “Nah, not really.  Why?  Is there money in it?” Don Shirley: “I’m just saying you have a marvelous way with words when describing food.  Salty.  So vivid one can almost taste it.” Tony Lip: “Hey, I’m just saying it’s salty.  Salt’s cheating.  Any cook can make food salty.  To make it taste good without the salt, with just the other flavors, that’s the trick.” ~ The Green Book, 2018 “Best Picture” Academy Award Winner In the hundreds of restaurant reviews to have crossed my path in my decades of restaurant appreciation, I’ve  seen many adjectives used to describe to Indian cuisine, but never the term “salty.”  Critics tend to use such hackneyed terms as “exotic,” “diverse,” and even “mysterious” to describe the cuisine of the Indian subcontinent.  When my friends Nader and Elaine dined with me at Taj Mahal Cuisine of India on the day after my Kim and I watched The Green Book, I had to wonder how Tony Lip would have described Indian food.  Spicy?  Maybe.  Different?  Probably.  Delicious?  Absolutely!  Salty?  Never!  Indian chefs do not cheat! Indian…

AlbuquerqueChickenDog FriendlyPeruvianRating: Outstanding

Pollito Con Papas – Albuquerque, New Mexico

Gil Garduno9:29 PM

I think a rotisserie is like a really morbid ferris wheel for chickens. It’s a strange piece of machinery. We will take the chicken, kill it, impale it and then rotate it. And I’ll be damned if I’m not hungry because spinning chicken carcasses make my mouth water. I like dizzy chicken. – Mitch Hedberg Comedian Mitch Hedberg may have meant it in a funny vein, but it’s no joke that Americans are finding rotisserie chickens not only sexy and sumptuous, but convenient, flavorful and oh, so easy to prepare. The latter three were reasons most cited by consumers for liking rotisserie chicken. In 2015, the National Chicken Council survey estimated that 900 million rotisserie chickens are sold each year in the United States, a number that’s expected to exceed one billion by 2018. According to Lohud, a trade publication, nearly 700 million of those birds will be sold in supermarkets. At $5 a pop, that’s $3.5 billion in sales. Since 1980, the per capita consumption of poultry–and not just rotisserie chicken–in America has increased significantly. According to the U.S. Department of Agriculture and the National Chicken Council, Americans are eating more chicken than ever. The per capita consumption of…

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Pho 505 – Albuquerque, New Mexico (CLOSED)

Gil Garduno3:58 PM

“Eating slowly is good for the stomach; plowing deeply is good for the fields.” ~Vietnamese Proverb Imagine if the village of Hatch was granted a trademark that awarded it exclusive rights to the name “chile.”  Imagine Hatch then taking legal recourse against Chimayo, Lemitar, Jarales, et al. to prevent them from using the term.  Civil war would surely ensue.  A similar situation actually occurred in England when in 2013, an owner-operator of a small Vietnamese restaurant chain  trademarked the term “Pho” (as well as “pho” and “PHO).”  In a letter, the audacious trademark owner sent the following cease and desist request to existing restaurants: “…we have to ask all restaurants, large and small, to refrain from using the trademark Pho in their name. And with what we think is a fair amount of time to rename…” While it’s not at all unusual for a restaurant to trademark its name in order to protect its identity, this particular overreach exemplifies either bureaucrats sleeping on the job or having absolutely no knowledge of the genesis and cultural significance of pho.  How, after all, can the national dish of Vietnam possibly be trademarked?  How could Vietnamese restaurateurs possibly be made to stop selling…