Category: Albuquerque

AlbuquerqueBreakfastBreakfast BurritosCoffeeNew MexicoRating: Excellent

Blackbird Coffee House – Albuquerque, New Mexico

Gil Garduno12:01 AM

“Sing a song of sixpence A pocketful of rye Four and twenty blackbirds Baked in a pie.” One interpretation of this English child’s 16th Century nursery rhyme posits that it was written about entremet, an Old French term referring to dishes served between courses of a meal.  “Dishes” had a very figurative meaning and could represent anything from edible scenic displays to foods designed to amuse or surprise.  One of the more popular amusements was to place live birds in a pie.  An Italian cookbook from 1549 (translated into English in 1598) actually contained such a recipe: “To make pies…

AlbuquerqueBakeryNew MexicoRating: ExcellentVietnamese

Le Bakery – Albuquerque, New Mexico

Gil Garduno12:01 AM

“What colonialism does is cause an identity crisis about one’s own culture.” ~Lupita Nyong’o Academy Award Winning Actress Much as we might believe geopolitics has no place in a food blog, food and geopolitics are undeniably intertwined.  Perhaps nowhere is that more evident than in the history of Vietnam.  In the 17th Century, France began a trade relationship with Vietnam.  Two centuries later, France began the colonization of Vietnam.  For six decades, France ruled over the Southeast Asian country, essentially relegating the indiginous population to second-class status, if not servitude. During this time, French influence spread across Vietnamese cuisine, architecture,…

AlbuquerqueDog FriendlyItalianPizzaRating: Outstanding

M’tucci’s Italian Restaurant – Albuquerque, New Mexico

Gil Garduno11:27 PM

“Sometimes the spaghetti likes to be alone..” —Stanley Tucci as Segundo in Big Night With a name like M’Tucci’s Italian Restaurant, you might wonder if the Italian restaurant on the intersection of Coors and Montano is named for Academy Award nominated actor Stanley Tucci. After all, Tucci co-starred in Big Night and Julie & Julia, arguably two of the very best food movies in recent years. Initially christened M’tucci’s Kitchina, the “Kitchina” part of the restaurant’s name was obviously a whimsical play on “cucina,” the Italian term for kitchen, but was spelled more similarly to Kachina, the Hopi ancestral spirits.…

AfghanAlbuquerqueNew MexicoRating: N/R (Not Rated)

Afghan Kebab House – Albuquerque, New Mexico

Gil Garduno12:01 AM

The juxtoposition of beauty, humanity and tragedy may best be exemplified by a photographic portrait taken in 1984 that graced the cover of National Geographic.  Christened “Afghan Girl,” the photograph depicted Sharbat Gula, a 12-year-old Afghan refugee in Pakistan during the Soviet-Afghan War.   Widely described as the “First World’s Third World Mona Lisa,” the image became a rallying cry for compassion among the Western world for the attrocities being committed in Afghanistan.  CNN called it the world’s most famous photograph.  A framed photograph of the green-eyed Afghan girl hangs prominently on one wall of Albuquerque’s Afghan House. Since 1979 when…

AlbuquerqueJames Beard Foundation (JBF) Award Nominees & WinnersJames Beard Foundation Americas Classic Award WinnerNew MexicanNew Mexico Culinary Treasures TrailRating: ExceptionalTravel Channel Eats New Mexico

MARY & TITO’S CAFE – Albuquerque, New Mexico

Gil Garduno2:17 AM

Old-timers whose opinions I respect consistently rate Mary & Tito’s as Albuquerque’s best restaurant for New Mexican food, a restaurant that has been pleasing the most savvy and indoctrinated palates alike since 1963. It takes a lot to impress some of those old-timers, none of whom see much substance in the flash and panache of the nouveau restaurants and their pristine veneer and effusive, over-the-top flamboyance. These guys and gals are impressed only by New Mexican food the way their abuelitas prepared it–unadorned, authentic and absolutely wonderful. If you want to evoke their ire, take them to one of the…

AlbuquerqueAmericanBreakfastBreakfast BurritosBurgersDog FriendlyGreekRating: Very Good

Vic’s Daily Cafe – Albuquerque, New Mexico

Gil Garduno12:02 AM

“When you wake up in the morning, Pooh,” said Piglet at last, “what’s the first thing you say to yourself?” “What’s for breakfast?” said Pooh. “What do you say, Piglet?” “I say, I wonder what’s going to happen exciting today?” said Piglet. Pooh nodded thoughtfully. “It’s the same thing,” he said.” Unlike the great philosopher Winnie the Pooh, many Americans, it seems, don’t equate breakfast with excitement. Studies show that far too many of us fuel our bodies with a “gobble and go” mentality that typifies our frenetic lifestyles. In 2007, one food service industry research firm concluded that most…

AlbuquerqueBarbecueNew MexicoRating: Very Good

Duke City BBQ – Albuquerque, New Mexico

Gil Garduno12:01 AM

During a 2016 campaign event in Phoenix, Arizona, Latinos for Trump founder Marco Gutierrez warned that if the country did not adopt tighter immigration standards as proposed by Republican nominee Donald Trump, there would be “taco trucks on every corner.”  For many of us, the only conceivable retort was along the lines of “what could possibly be wrong with that?”  Tacos (Mexico) have become as American as pizza (Italy), apple pie (England), French fries (Belgium), hot dogs (Germany), peanut butter (Ancient Inca and Aztec civilizations) and barbecue (Caribbean).  These foods may not have been invented in the good ol’ USA,…

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Sergio’s Bakery & Cafe – Albuquerque, New Mexico

Gil Garduno12:01 AM

In Italy, the oft-used idiom “Senza il pane tutto diventa orfano” translates to “without bread everyone is an orphan.” That’s how important bread  is in Italian culture.  Is it any wonder bread consumption in Italy is higher than in any other European country, even France. Many loaves are made by artisan bakers operating out of family-owned and operated bakeries.  Most work on a small scale and are heavily influenced by family recipes and regional traditions.  Those secrets and techniques have been handed down from baker-to-baker over the years. Family is essential to retaining the continuity of bread-making excellence in Italy. …

AlbuquerqueAmericanDog FriendlyNew MexicoRating: N/R (Not Rated)

Lescombes Winery & Bistro (Cottonwood) – Albuquerque, New Mexico

Gil Garduno12:01 AM

Years ago when my job at Intel required frequent travel to the Phoenix area, I marveled at the desert landscaping at Phooenix’s Sky Harbor Airport.  Its xeriscaping approach uses  native, drought-resistant flora arranged in ways that promote efficient water usage.  Towering saguaros and spindly, spine-covered ocotillos greeted sojourners as they vacated the airport.  Not only does this xeriscaping save the city $400,000 annually and reduce water usage by more than five-million gallons per year, it gives visitors a welcome respite from the sun-baked asphalt and cement jungle that is the Valley of the Sun. Driving away from Albuquerque’s Sunport provided…

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Los Altos Grill – Albuquerque, New Mexico

Gil Garduno12:01 AM

For almost four and a half decades, Charlie Elias, an avuncular septuagenarian with the energy of a teenager,  greeted his customers at Charlie’s Backdoor, his eponymous Northeast Heights restaurant.  On a hot sunny day, there was probably no more welcome respite from the sun’s blinding rays and scorching heat than Charlie’s. The minute you walked in, the temperature seemed to drop 20 degrees thanks to the restaurant’s subdued lighting and heat.  On cold winter days, there was no surcease of warmth courtesy of Charlie’s friendly and welcoming nature which made guests feel right at home   As Charlie began to wind down…

AlbuquerqueDog FriendlyIce CreamNew MexicoRating: Excellent

Heidi’s Jam Factory – Albuquerque, New Mexico

Gil Garduno11:01 PM

How many of us have dreamt about a churning chocolate waterfall; a meadow full of candy;  a candy (Everlasting Gobstopper) that not only changes colors and flavors when sucked on, but also never gets any smaller or disappears; or a carbonated beverage (Fizzy Lifters) that give you flight?  Such were the dreams of children of all ages after the 1971 release of Willy Wonka & The Chocolate Factory a movie that is more popular in syndication than it was after its release.  Albuquerque has its own version of a magical place where dreams are actually fulfilled.  It’s called Heidi’s Jam…