Category: Gone But Not Forgotten

AlbuquerqueClosed in 2013Gone But Not ForgottenNew MexicanNew Mexico

Prickly Pear Bar & Grill – Albuquerque, New Mexico (CLOSED)

Gil Garduno7:37 PM

Philip Stanhope, the 4th Earl of Chesterfield offered the following advice to his son: “There is time enough for everything in the course of the day, if you do but one thing at once, but there is not time enough in the year, if you will do two things at a time.” To Chesterfield, focusing on a singular task was not only a practical way of structuring one’s time; it was a sign of intelligence. “This steady and undissipated attention to one object, is a sure mark of a superior genius; as hurry, bustle, and agitation, are the never-failing symptoms of a weak and frivolous mind.”  In university life as in the workforce of the 21st century, the notion that to work efficiently we have to focus on one task at a time is fairly well understood.  To understand that notion, however, is not necessarily to abide by its wisdom.  Students eat lunch in front of the television with their laptops open as they cram for a test, taking frequent breaks to tweet and post on Facebook while sending emails and chatting online, too.  The same research which has borne out that multi-taskers are most certainly not being more productive, reveals…

AlbuquerqueBreakfastBrunchBuffetClosed in 2014Gone But Not ForgottenLatin American

La Fonda Del Bosque – Albuquerque, New Mexico (CLOSED)

Gil Garduno12:24 AM

In the millennium year, after years of planning and lobbying, the dream was finally realized of a haven  dedicated to the preservation, promotion, and advancement of Hispanic culture, arts, and humanities. In 2000, the National Hispanic Cultural Center (NHCC), launched along the Camino Real in the Albuquerque’s historic Barela’s neighborhood.  The Center is an architectural anomaly in a largely adobe-hued area, its unique structures including a renovated hacienda-style school, a stylized Mayan pyramid with interior elements modeled on Romanesque architecture and a torreon (tower) housing a 4,000 square foot concave fresco depicting over 3,000 years of Hispanic history. Ironically the complex chartered to preserve, protect and promote Hispanic culture had to displace several families, thereby disenfranchising some of the very families who embody the Hispanic culture in Albuquerque.  One resident–the late Adela Martinez–stared down bureaucrats and made them blink, refusing to move.  The forty-million dollar Cultural Center had to be redesigned to accommodate her family in the home she moved into in the 1920s.  Today, her family’s two small houses stand out, not like a sore thumb, but as a testament to the courage of one 80-year old Hispanic woman whose treasured memories were worth much more than the monetary…

AlbuquerqueClosed in 2014Gone But Not ForgottenNew Mexican

ZS&T’s Great Grub – Albuquerque, New Mexico (CLOSED)

Gil Garduno7:45 PM

“Here’s an idea: Quit playing on the Internet and get over to 5017 Menaul, N.E. for lunch. And dinner.” That’s not Gil Garduño admonishing you to take a break from the invaluable research you’re conducting on the Internet. That’s ZS&T’s Web site inviting you to what could very well be one of the best Duke City restaurants you’ve never heard of, a restaurant so confident in its cooking that its Web site boasts, “If you don’t think it’s the best food in Albuquerque, we’ll refer you to a good Ear, Nose and Throat doctor to get your taste buds adjusted.” Audacity, braggadocio or confidence? As Muhammad Ali used to say, “it’s not bragging if you can back it up.” ZS&T’s owners have the pedigree to back it up! While the restaurant itself is a relatively new player on Albuquerque’s culinary stage, having opened in March, 2012, Suzie and Daniel Baca are certainly not newcomers to the city’s dining scene. In fact, under their stewardship, La Fonda Del Bosque, the National Hispanic Cultural Center’s flagship restaurant, garnered significant critical acclaim and hosted international glitterati from both the political and the cinematic arena. When the National Hispanic Cultural Center decided to take…

Closed in 2017Gone But Not ForgottenIllinoisRating: N/R (Not Rated)SteakUnited States

David Burke’s Primehouse – Chicago, Illinois (CLOSED)

Gil Garduno11:48 PM

By day, my friend James Sorenham was an architect of his business group’s data warehouse and business intelligence strategies.  By night and on weekends, James was a gentleman farmer tending to a small herd at his Broke Again ranch outside Portland, Oregon.  James took immense pride in raising prized beef cattle and kept his colleagues apprised of their progress through his weekly status reports.  Alas, his writing skills weren’t in the same zip code as his data management skills so when he reported that he had “personally inseminated sixteen cows,” he got teased mercilessly about his deviant bestial activities. The fact that David Burke is the first chef to own his own bull means “personal insemination” of beef cattle can best be left to the bovine persuasion.  That leaves Chef Burke to follow his passions as one of America’s most pioneering chefs and self-proclaimed chef, artist, entrepreneur and inventor.  The New York-based Burke is a practitioner of culinology, a revolutionary approach to food that blends technology and the culinary arts.  By experimenting with interesting ingredients and cooking techniques, he has developed such culinary innovations as an edible bacon candle which can be lit, smelled and eaten.  His innovative style translates…

AlbuquerqueClosed in 2016Gone But Not ForgottenNew MexicoRating: OutstandingVietnamese

May Hong – Albuquerque, New Mexico (CLOSED)

Gil Garduno2:39 AM

In late 2002, long-time proprietor and friend James Nguyen sold May Hong.  Fortunately he kept this wonderful jewel in the family, selling it to his lovely and talented sister-in-law. Best of all, he didn’t relinquish ownership until fully ensuring she could perfectly prepare the recipes that have made May Hong one of the two or three best Vietnamese restaurants in the Duke City.  That short list, by the way, includes James’ second restaurant Cafe Dalat. May Hong (along with Saigon Vietnamese Restaurant) is somewhat of an anomaly in that it’s not located anywhere near Albuquerque’s tightly-knit Vietnamese neighborhoods, most of which seem to be concentrated on the city’s southeast quadrant.   Though situated on bustling Montgomery Avenue, you’ll forget the cares of the world the minute you step into the dimly lit restaurant, take in the dulcet tones of a very soothing Vietnamese music track and sit in one of the comfortable and enveloping booths.  Roughly translated as “Pink Horizon,” May Hong interestingly has a color palate of red, white and green, the colors of the Italian flag.  White walls trimmed in red and green are festooned with Vietnamese artifacts and framed prints depicting life in Vietnam.  Large tropical plants add to…

BurgersClosed in 2015Diners Drive-Ins and DivesFood Network Eats New MexicoGone But Not ForgottenNew MexicoNew Mexico Culinary Treasures TrailNew Mexico Green Chile Cheeseburger Trail: 2009New Mexico Green Chile Cheeseburger Trail: 2011Santa Fe

Bert’s Burger Bowl – Santa Fe, New Mexico (CLOSED)

Gil Garduno12:57 AM

The tee shirts worn by a nattily attired and enthusiastic wait staff at Bert’s Burger Bowl say it all: “Since 1954: One Location Worldwide.” Celebrating its golden anniversary in 2004, Bert’s seems to transcend time with a winning formula: great burgers, terrific service and reasonable prices. Generations of New Mexicans and visitors have made Bert’s a beloved Santa Fe dining destination.  It is such a beloved local institution that then-Representative Tom Udall entered it into the Congressional Record in September, 2004 to commemorate its 50th anniversary. It’s easy to believe Bert’s popularity is an anomaly. It’s open only until 7PM six days a week and until 5PM on Sundays. There’s nowhere to sit inside the restaurant and if you’re in a hurry, you’re out of luck because every burger is prepared to order. So why do generations of burgerphiles make Bert’s Burger Bowl a popular indulgence? World famous chef Martin Rios of the Anasazi may have said it best in the May, 2007 edition of Santa Fean magazine, “no one beats these burgers.” That’s high praise indeed from a culinary artiste who has been named Chef of the Year by both the city of Santa Fe and the State of…

Closed in 2023Gone But Not ForgottenNew MexicoPizzaSanta Fe

Rooftop Pizzeria – Santa Fe, New Mexico (CLOSED)

Gil Garduno3:03 PM

When I come home feelin’ tired and beat I go up where the air is fresh and sweet (up on the roof) I get away from the hustling crowd And all that rat-race noise down in the street (up on the roof) On the roof, the only place I know Where you just have to wish to make it so Let’s go up on the roof (up on the roof) – The Drifters: Up On The Roof In the early 1990s, Fortune magazine named Santa Fe one of America’s top ten dining destinations. The City Different has earned and solidified that reputation over the years with cutting edge restaurants that have culled worldwide acclaim. One of the cuisine types for which Santa Fe (and New Mexico for that matter) is not highly regarded on a national stage is pizza. Launched in March, 2006, the Rooftop Pizzeria appears to have made it its mission to prove that the inventiveness for which Santa Fe’s chefs are renown can extend to one of America’s favorite culinary obsessions–pizza. The Rooftop Pizzeria is a sister restaurant to Santa Fe restaurants La Casa Sena, Rio Chama Steakhouse and the Blue Corn Cafe as well as the…

AlbuquerqueClosed in 2012Gone But Not ForgottenItalian

Ravioli Italian Kitchen – Albuquerque, New Mexico (CLOSED)

Gil Garduno7:59 PM

The older I get, the more my favorite part of the Academy Awards every year is the teary-eyed tribute to all the famous screen legends who passed away during the preceding twelve months.  The montage of glitterati greatness on the “In Memoriam” segment not only provides a much-needed respite from self-absorbed acceptance speeches and tedious dance numbers, it  evokes a flood of memories and emotions as viewers pause to remember the movie makers who have touched us all. Similarly, the closure of a favorite restaurant gives diners pause to reflect on meals we’ve had at restaurants gone, but not forgotten. Even in booming economic times, restaurants have a higher mortality rate than most, if not all, businesses.  It’s the natural order of the restaurant business that not all restaurants are destined to survive.  Closures aren’t always the consequence of an economic malaise.  Nearly thirty percent of restaurants close within their first year of operation. So why a dour diatribe instead of my usual effusive celebration of a restaurant I just visited?  Ravioli Italian Kitchen, we found out, will be closed for good on Friday, September 1st, 2012.  Launched in November, 2011, Ravioli demonstrated promise and potential, but was never able…

AlbuquerqueClosed in 2013Gone But Not ForgottenSandwich

Christy’s Food Factory – Albuquerque, New Mexico (CLOSED)

Gil Garduno1:48 PM

A few years ago at the urging of an obviously taste-deprived, chain restaurant loving colleague, I had breakfast at a misnomer of a restaurant named Goody’s, a now defunct restaurant on Yale. He bragged about Goody’s breakfast burrito being as good as Milton’s Family Restaurant, sacrilege if it was ever uttered. A business trip provided the opportune time to debunk my colleague’s blasphemy. Not only did Goody’s version of a breakfast burrito provide one of the most insipid breakfasts I can remember, it led to a sacred pledge that defines my last meal in Albuquerque each and every time the friendly skies take me away from the Land of Enchantment. My sacred pledge is that my last meal in Albuquerque will always be one worthy of the last meal for a “dead man walking.” More often than not, that meal is at Christy’s Food Factory, a mere mile or so from the Albuquerque International Airport. A sandwich would have to be pretty darn good to be a potentially last meal ever. The sandwiches at Christy’s Food Factory are! Whether you partake of Christy’s Food Factory as a dine-in, carry-out or catering option, you’re in for a treat. Christy’s has been…

AlbuquerqueClosed in 2018Gone But Not ForgottenSteak

The Town House Restaurant – Albuquerque, New Mexico (CLOSED)

Gil Garduno3:53 PM

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…

AlbuquerqueChickenClosed in 2014Gone But Not ForgottenSpecialty

El Pollo Picante – Albuquerque, New Mexico (CLOSED)

Gil Garduno8:32 AM

Pollo asado, marinated grilled chicken, has been a staple in Mexico for years, but save for those pockets within metropolitan areas heavily populated by scions of Mexico, it hasn’t made significant inroads throughout the fruited plain. Mexican grilled chicken restaurants seem to fly under the radar, unbeknownst to much of the local populace outside the Mexican neighborhoods in which they’re clustered. Many grilled chicken sahops–even in Albuquerque– operate in ramshackle, lilliputian buildings not much larger than roadside stands. In the 1980s, El Pollo Loco, a Mexican grilled chicken chain expanded into the United States, launching in about a dozen states including New Mexico. Today, the chain operates in five western states (Nevada, Arizona, Utah, Texas and California) as well as in Illinois (and in episodes of Breaking Bad), but despite expanding beyond its grilled chicken niche to include burritos, quesadillas, salads and more, it hasn’t been able to compete significantly with the popular pseudo Mexican concept restaurants. After Albuquerque’s erstwhile El Pollo Loco restaurant–which operated on San Mateo (in the location which currently houses Siam Cafe)–closed, it would be more than a decade before another Mexican grilled chicken restaurant would open in a heavily-trafficked commercial area.   In May, 2012,…