Gone But Not Forgotten Archives - Page 52 of 58 - Gil's Thrilling (And Filling) Blog

Albuquerque Closed in 2008 Gone But Not Forgotten Mariscos Mexican

La Costa Azul – Albuquerque, New Mexico (CLOSED)

Gil GardunoOctober 7, 2006July 23, 20182:15 PM

Costa Azul…The Blue Coast…the name evokes images of brilliant sapphire blue waters, perilous promontories and pristine sandy beaches which seem to go on without end. With over 1,000 miles of coastline along the translucent Pacific, Mexico has spawned a thriving tourist trade, particularly in heavily developed resort locations. Increasingly, Mexico has also become known for high-quality seafood (mariscos) so fresh that even in land-locked locations like Albuquerque, the mariscos taste as fresh as if caught off the coast of Puerto Vallarta, not far from the famous Costa Azul resort. La Costa Azul launched in 2005 on the former site of Mariscos Altamar, one of Albuquerque’s very best and longest running mariscos dining establishments. While similarly named, it is not affiliated…

Bakery Breakfast Closed in 2012 Donuts Gone But Not Forgotten New Mexico Specialty

The Hole Thing Donut Shop – Red River, New Mexico (CLOSED)

Gil GardunoOctober 1, 2006July 23, 201811:40 PM

A less optimistic man than I once lamented that the healthiest part of the donut is the hole, but you’ve got to eat the entire donut to get to it. To me, that’s a “glass is half empty” perspective on one of the most popular breakfast and dessert items in the world. With almost thirty percent of American adults indicating they are trying to control their diets, donuts have also been lambasted and their consumption decreased with the increase of cholesterol conscious consumers. Adkins himself might have given up his cholesterol denouncing diet had he found The Hole Thing Donut Shop in Red River, New Mexico, easily the best donut restaurant we’ve visited in the Land of Enchantment. How good…

American Closed in 2008 Gone But Not Forgotten New Mexico Taos County

Altitudes Restaurant & Wine Bar – Red River, New Mexico (CLOSED)

Gil GardunoSeptember 30, 2006July 23, 20188:42 AM

No place is so dear to my childhood, As the little brown church in the vale. Step out of Altitudes Restaurant & Wine Bar on a dark moonlit night and the first thing you see is a large, illuminated alabaster cross atop a wooden church steeple. Directly beneath the cross is a colorful stained glass window depicting Christ, the Good Sheppard. It’s no wonder the popular gospel standard “The Church In The Wildwoods” is on our mind after each and every wonderful meal at what has long been the site of one of Red River’s dining treasures. Before the blue, two-story edifice housed Altitudes Restaurant & Wine Bar, it was the site for years of Brett’s Homestead, one of our…

Closed in 2011 Española Gone But Not Forgotten New Mexican New Mexico

Matilda’s Restaurant – Espanola, New Mexico (CLOSED)

Gil GardunoSeptember 29, 2006July 23, 20185:45 PM

In Asi Es Nuevo Mexico, the official state song of New Mexico, former Lieutenant Governor Roberto Mondragon extols in a rich timbre, the incomparably beauteous flowers of The Land of Enchantment–its women. When the verse “lindas mujeras que no tiene igual” (beautiful women without equal) was written, the composer must certainly have had Matilda Guillen in mind. At 81 years young, there is no surcease to Matilda’s boundless energy. She has owned and operated her eponymous restaurant for fifty years and has no plans to retire. On Sunday, September 24th, 2006, throngs of friends, family and admirers gathered together to celebrate her 81st birthday. Surrounded by hundreds of people who know and love her, she was practically showered in flowers,…

American Closed in 2008 Gone But Not Forgotten New Mexico Santa Fe

Dave’s Not Here – Santa Fe, New Mexico (CLOSED)

Gil GardunoSeptember 22, 2006July 23, 201810:34 AM

Dave’s not here. You really can’t blame him. After all, a Santa Fe district court judge issued (and later rescinded) a temporary restraining order alleging Dave (Letterman) had been tormenting a city resident for more than ten years by using coded words and signals to woo her on his television program. A better theory than mine is posited by David “Whochacha” Pederson, who points out that the line “Dave’s not year” is used repeatedly in a hilarious Cheech and Chong routine you’ve got to listen to. Wrong Daves? Maybe or maybe not. No one really seems to know for sure whom this quaint restaurant is named for. Theories abound, most speculating that the uniquely named neighborhood diner is whimsically named…

Bernalillo Closed in 2008 Gone But Not Forgotten Italian New Mexico

Capo’s Bottega Ristorante Italiano – Bernalillo, New Mexico (CLOSED)

Gil GardunoSeptember 15, 2006July 23, 201812:38 AM

Fifty years ago when Frank Venaglia opened the first of his family of Capo’s restaurants in Albuquerque, the Italian term “capo” didn’thave quite the notoriety it does today thanks to countless Mafia movies and the Sopranos television series. In the Mafia, capo is a shortened term for “caporegime” or “capodecina” which essentially translate to a high-ranking family member of a crime family who is in charge of a crew of soldiers–a captain so to speak. Today the Venaglia family owns and operates a family of four Italian restaurants-Capo’s Piazza (722 Lomas, N.E.) and Villa Di Capo (722 central, S.W.) in Albuquerque, Capo’s Corner (110 Pioneer Road) in Red River and the latest addition, Capo’s Bottega in Bernalillo. Another family venture,…

Albuquerque Closed in 2007 Fine Dining Gone But Not Forgotten New Mexico

Ambrozia – Albuquerque, New Mexico (CLOSED)

Gil GardunoSeptember 13, 2006July 23, 201811:56 AM

theophany: an encounter with a visible manifestation of a deity. Greek mythology chronicles the adventures of the gods and goddesses of Mount Olympus whose primary sustenance was ambrosia, a magical repast which bestowed immortality upon those who consumed it, including humans. The word ambrosia literally means “sweet smelling or delicious,” an appropriate description of the wonderful meals proffered at Ambrozia, an Old Town fine-dining establishment launched in 2003. While dining at Ambrozia probably won’t confer immortality, diners might feel they’ve partaken of divine gastronomy. The gods certainly conferred many culinary talents on Ambrozia’s proprietor and chef savant Sam Ethridge, one of the most creative, talented and inspired restaurateurs in the Duke City. Etheridge has the rare ability to take any…

Albuquerque American Breakfast Brunch Closed in 2010 Gone But Not Forgotten

JB’s Restaurant – Albuquerque, New Mexico (CLOSED)

Gil GardunoAugust 27, 2006July 23, 20184:37 AM

The first thing that comes to mind when someone invites me to a buffet is a paragraph from E. B. White’s 1952 classic Charlotte Web. In that paragraph, an old sheep describes the county fair to Templeton the lovingly irascible rat: “A fair is a rat’s paradise. Everybody spills food at a fair. A rat can creep out late at night and have a feast. In the horse barn you will find oats that the trotters and pacers have spilled. In the trampled grass of the infield you will find old discarded lunch boxes containing the foul remains of peanut butter sandwiches, hard-boiled eggs, cracker crumbs, bits of doughnuts, and particles of cheese. In the hard-packed dirt of the midway,…

Albuquerque Closed in 2009 Mexican

La Norteñita – Albuquerque, New Mexico (CLOSED)

Gil GardunoAugust 19, 2006July 23, 201812:27 AM

The only disappointment (and it was a minor one) we experienced during our inaugural visit to La Norteñita was in not hearing the lively Mexican polka “Mi Nortenita” crackling over the restaurant’s tinny speaker system. That would have made our visit to “Old Mexico” complete. More than most Mexican restaurants in Albuquerque, La Norteñita (the little northern girl) has the look and feel of a restaurant in one of Mexico’s northern states. That means a kitchen and wait staff (and most customers) barely conversant in English, a lustrous color palate on the stark walls, mañana paced service and flavorsome food not adulterated for American tastes. The original La Norteñita has been around for several years, situated on Central Avenue in…

American Bakery Closed in 2008 Food Network Eats New Mexico Gone But Not Forgotten New Mexico Santa Fe

Cloud Cliff Bakery & Cafe – Santa Fe, New Mexico (CLOSED)

Gil GardunoAugust 6, 2006July 23, 20189:56 AM

In the 1880s, Northern New Mexico was a prolific wheat growing region. More than 250 varieties of wheat grew in its rocky but fecund soil. Thanks to a rural revitalization program called the Northern New Mexico Organic Wheat Project, the region’s wheat production is becoming genetic diverse once again. Today under the program’s auspices, more than 20 families are growing several heirloom wheat varieties which are marketed under the very popular Nativo label. The driving force behind the program is Willem Maltem, a former Zen monk who arrived in Santa Fe in the mid 1980s. To earn bread, Maltem sold bread, in 1984 founding the Cloud Cliff Bakery, Cafe and Artspace. The artisan Bakery now produces 35,000 loaves of bread…

Albuquerque Closed in 2007 Fine Dining Gone But Not Forgotten New Mexico Tapas

Graze – Albuquerque, New Mexico (CLOSED)

Gil GardunoAugust 5, 2006July 23, 20181:57 PM

When uncredentialed food critics (like me) sing the praises of a restaurant, their fulsome rants might not garner much notice, but when professional chefs and critics are unabashedly effusive about that same restaurant, you’d be well advised to listen. Graze, launched in December, 2002 by chef luminary Jennifer James, has had all the cognoscenti waxing poetic. La Cocinita magazine’s best chef award winner for 2002, James has been all but beatified, so prolific is her reputation. Renown for melding seemingly disparate ingredients into concordant meals, she is as much an artist as a chef. Note: In September, 2006, Jennifer James ended her affiliation with Graze, leaving it in the hands of her business partner Michael Chesley. On January 27, 2007,…