Category: Albuquerque

AlbuquerqueClosed in 2018Gone But Not ForgottenJapaneseSushi

I Love Sushi – Albuquerque, New Mexico (CLOSED)

Gil Garduno3:49 AM

According to the US Census Bureau, more than half (49.3) of all Americans reported they did not “dine out” between Fall, 2009 and Fall, 2011. That’s the lowest percentage since 2007 and could be indicative of the pervasive economic malaise or perhaps of the uncertainty as to what constitutes “dining out.”  The Census Bureau did not define the term so it’s conceivable “dining out” was interpreted as a meal at a “fancy restaurant” with table service and a wine menu as opposed to say, a meal at a fast food restaurant or  picking up a burger from a food truck. One data point the Census Bureau did not research is the percentage of people who don’t like sushi.  A sushi chef acquaintance tells me sushi isn’t something people merely just “like” or are indifferent to.  They either love it or hate it.  He contends that most, not all, people who claim to hate it have never tried really good sushi.  A quick perusal through Google seemingly contradicts his theory, revealing numerous sites and Facebook pages dedicated to the derision of sushi.  In almost all cases, the haters had tried sushi and found it not to their liking (to say the…

AlbuquerqueBarbecueClosed in 2016Gone But Not Forgotten

JR’s Bar-B-Que – Albuquerque, New Mexico (CLOSED)

Gil Garduno9:09 PM

Ryan Scott, the affable host of the enlightening and entertaining Break the Chain radio program has rapidly become the voice for Albuquerque’s mom-and-pop restaurants.  When it comes to celebrating the Duke City’s independent eateries, he’s like E.F. Hutton in that when he speaks, people listen…literally.  The Break the Chain Web site receives more than 10,000 visits per week, many visitors stopping by to catch up on programs they may have missed or more likely, listening to those they enjoyed most a second (or tenth) time. While Ryan is unabashed in his promotion of New Mexico’s non-chain restaurants, he will admit to being a snob about only one type of food.  That’s barbecue.  Ryan won’t hesitate to tell you he hasn’t found barbecue greatness anywhere in New Mexico.  He’s found good barbecue (his favorite being Josh’s in Santa Fe), but he’ll tell you if you want great barbecue, you’ve got to visit our neighbor to the east.  He should know.  His beautiful better half Kimber is from the Houston area where Ryan lived for a few years. Ryan has major street cred when it comes to barbecue.  He smokes his own meats at home–as in low and slow over fruit woods,…

AlbuquerqueClosed in 2020Gone But Not ForgottenKoreanRating: Excellent

Fu Yuang – Albuquerque, New Mexico

Gil Garduno5:12 PM

“I’ve eaten a river of liver and an ocean of fish! I’ve eaten so much fish, I’m ready to grow gills! I’ve eaten so much liver, I can only make love if I’m smothered in bacon and onions” ~ Hawkeye Pierce MASH 4077, Korea FROM THE FU YUANG FACEBOOK PAGE: Our Dear Fu Yuang friends, we closed the doors for business on Saturday, November 21st, 2020. 😢 Mia is no longer able to meet the physical demands of operating the restaurant. We tried to sell the restaurant to many prospective buyers, with no luck due to COVID-19. We want to thank everyone for their kindness, dedication, & support over the past 26 1/2 years. We will truly miss you all. Thanks for all the memories we have made together at Fu Yuang! For eleven years, televisions across the fruited plain were tuned in to CBS where the antics of the 4077th Mobile Army Surgical Hospital (MASH) enthralled audiences with a unique blend of crude hilarity and heartfelt humanity.  Set in South Korea during the Korean War, the series centered around a group of resilient doctors, nurses and support staff in an isolated hospital compound which saw more than its share…

AlbuquerqueAmericanItalianNew Mexican

Johnny’s Homemade – Albuquerque, New Mexico (CLOSED)

Gil Garduno6:14 PM

In the 1930s, Harland Sanders, the owner of a small service station in Corbin, Kentucky began an improbable journey that eventually led to the forging of a worldwide culinary empire.  In the living quarters of that service station, Sanders fed hungry travelers on his own six-seat dining  table.  Word of his culinary prowess spread and to accommodate throngs of hungry travelers stopping by solely for his food, he had to move his kitchen operation across the street to a motel and restaurant with a seating capacity of 142. The most popular item on his menu was fried chicken, made from a closely guarded secret recipe combining eleven herbs and spices and prepared in a pressure cooker. The fried chicken was so good that in 1935 the governor of Kentucky named Sanders a Kentucky Colonel.  With an unwavering belief in the quality of his fried chicken, the Colonel devoted himself to franchising his chicken business, traveling across the country by car and selling franchises to restaurant owners.  By 1964, Colonel Sanders had more than 600 franchised outlets across America for his chicken.  Today more than one billion “finger lickin’ good” Kentucky Fried Chicken dinners are served every year in more than 80…

AlbuquerqueClosed in 2012Gone But Not ForgottenNew Mexican

4 Aces Grill – Albuquerque, New Mexico (CLOSED)

Gil Garduno7:54 PM

As a proud native New Mexican, my chest still swells with pride whenever I travel outside the Land of Enchantment (even to Texas, Arizona and Colorado) and espy a vehicle displaying the license plate of the great state of New Mexico.  I’m not the only one.  While stopping for gas in Iowa a few years ago, a couple from Roswell noticed our license plate and excitedly came over to find out where in New Mexico we were from.  We wound up having lunch together, all the while discussing the great state in which we all live in. For citizens of the fruited plain not fortunate enough to live in New Mexico, seeing our state’s license plate within their borders evokes curiosity, especially if they’re attentive enough to notice that it reads “New Mexico U.S.A.”  As the “One of Our Fifty is Missing” column in New Mexico Magazine has demonstrated for more than a quarter of a century, many of our fellow American citizens and ill-informed bureaucrats don’t even realize that New Mexico is part of the United States.  When the unwashed and uninformed masses aren’t wondering if we’re carrying our passports as we cross their borders, they’re  curious about the…

AlbuquerqueBuffetClosed in 2013Gone But Not ForgottenIndian

India Palace – Albuquerque, New Mexico (CLOSED)

Gil Garduno3:59 AM

When many of us think of romantic destinations to visit or in which to honeymoon, our choices probably mirror closely those of US News & World Report which listed among their 22 best honeymoon destinations such exotic locations as Kauai, Maui, Florence, Crete, Santorini and even Las Vegas, Nevada.  The authors apparently didn’t think enchantment is synonymous with romance or wedded  bliss because no New Mexico locations made the list,  Surprisingly, neither did any destination in India.  Not everyone equates India with romance, but its ancient legends, history and monuments are rich with tales of profound love.  One of the world’s most far-famed love offerings is the opulent and ethereal Taj Mahal, built by a grieving emperor in memory of his dearly beloved wife and queen.  India also gave the world the Kama Sutra, an ancient Hindu text widely recognized as a definitive guide to the nature of love and the pleasure-oriented aspects of human life.  Hindus understood the importance of fore foreplay, paying significant attention to light, music, touch, smell, drink and food before moving on to carnal pleasures. Sensual, tactile, pleasurable–those adjectives are probably used more frequently to describe the practices of the Kama Sutra, it wouldn’t be…

AlbuquerqueMediterraneanRating: Very Good

Sahara Middle Eastern Eatery – Albuquerque, New Mexico

Gil Garduno9:35 PM

History has shown that cultures which thrived and advanced most rapidly are those which settled in arable areas rife with  natural resources.  The “Cradle of Civilization” where many of the earliest human civilizations evolved is in a seemingly unlikely region of the Middle East in which most of the land is too dry for farming.  In this largely desolate region lies a narrow strip of land known as  the “Fertile Crescent” because of its fecund soil and life-giving waters.  The Fertile Crescent lies in the ancient area stretching in an arc from the Nile to the Tigris and Euphrates, an area the Greeks of Biblical times called Mesopotamia which means “between the rivers.”  This historical region, which includes some of the very best farmlands in the world, includes parts of or the entirety of the modern day nations of Iraq, Syria, Israel, Lebanon and Jordan.  The Bible–from Genesis to the Gospels–overflows with references to the foods of the time as grown in this region. In Biblical times the most common and important foods were bread (the staff of life), olive oil (used instead of butter), milk and cheese from flocks of goats and sheep, vegetables (the most common of which…

AlbuquerqueRating: ExcellentSteak

Vernon’s Speakeasy – Los Ranchos De Albuquerque, New Mexico

Gil Garduno4:19 AM

After one year from the ratification of this article the manufacture, sale, or transportation of intoxicating liquors within, the importation thereof into, or the exportation thereof from the United States and all territory subject to the jurisdiction thereof for beverage purposes is hereby prohibited. The Eighteenth Amendment to the Constitution ushered in the era of Prohibition in the United States, an era was to last from 1920 through 1933.  Only liquors used for religious purposes were excluded.  Because alcohol was declared illegal by the Congress, bootleggers and distributors of illicit alcohol thrived.  There was no shortage of enthusiastic scofflaws willing to run afoul of the law in order to enjoy intoxicating beverages.  One of the most popular milieus in which alcohol was served was the speakeasy. A speakeasy was generally either a restaurant or a bar to which patrons gained admission by knocking on a door and uttering a secret password.  Once inside, patrons were treated very well in a swanky ambiance that may have included elaborate floor shows, fine dining and live entertainment.  Speakeasies flourished throughout the United States. Vernon’s Speakeasy (formerly known as Vernon’s Hidden Valley Steakhouse), no longer one of the Albuquerque area’s best kept secrets, celebrates…

AlbuquerqueClosed in 2018Gone But Not ForgottenIndian

Saffron Tiger Indian Cuisine Express – Albuquerque, New Mexico (CLOSED)

Gil Garduno8:13 AM

Is there anything that screams monotonous, tedious homogeneity louder than the typical food court at any mall in cosmopolitan America?   “But,” you might argue, “the food court is a paragon of diversity where you can get your fill of pizza, sushi, burgers, cinnamon rolls, sweet and sour mystery meat and a veritable United Nations line-up of ethnic foods all in one place.”  While that might be true, my argument is that the same boring sameness you find in Albuquerque’s mall food courts can be found at any food court in any mall.  Only airports have a similarly comparable array of uninspiring food-court-type selections. Despite the “culinary diversity” in food courts, there is an almost general scarcity of local culinary representation.  At least that’s the case in the contiguous area shared by multiple food vendors; small private vendors are usually relegated to outlying areas of the mall.  Food courts are, by and large, the haven of fast food chains which can afford the steep rent commanded in the premium heavily-trafficked area. Typical food court tenants may include McDonalds or Burger King, Edo Japan, Sbarro, China Wok, Cinnabon and others of that ilk. An argument could be made that food courts make…

AlbuquerqueBreakfastBrunchClosed in 2013Fine DiningGone But Not Forgotten

Lucia – Albuquerque, New Mexico (CLOSED)

Gil Garduno12:58 PM

There was a time the name “Hilton” didn’t conjure up images of a ditzy blonde airhead whose celebrity is based largely on promiscuity. On second thought, maybe not. More than 50 years ago, another ditzy blonde temptress, Zsa Zsa Gabor honeymooned at Albuquerque’s Hilton Hotel with her then husband Conrad Hilton, a New Mexico native and founder of the historic downtown hotel.  It was Hilton’s fourth hotel and the very first modern high-rise hotel in the Land of Enchantment. The ten-story hotel, launched in 1939, was an example of New Mexico Territorial style architecture, showcasing earth tone stucco and southwest woodwork, furnishings and artwork.  Its imposing two-story lobby, stately arches, hand-carved beams and balconies overlooking the lobby made it one of the finest hotels in the Duke City.  Being within easy walking distance of the city’s transportation hubs–the Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railroad Depot and America’s mother road, historic Route 66, made it convenient for weary sojourners and well-heeled travelers. Though the hotel’s guest registry was signed by a veritable who’s who in celebrity and politics–many of whom came for the hotel’s Spanish colonial charm, opulent ambience and impeccable service–the Hilton Hotel chain eventually outgrew its classic downtown hotel,…

AlbuquerqueClosed in 2012Gone But Not ForgottenHot DogsSandwich

Señor Dog – Albuquerque, New Mexico (CLOSED)

Gil Garduno4:39 AM

H. K. Duff VIII:  Why not break your fast with our brand-new Isotope Dog Supreme? [Homer sniffs the hot dog.] Homer Simpson:  Oh, so hard to resist. Mesquite-grilled onions. Jalapeño relish. … Wait a minute, those are Southwestern ingredients. … Mango-lime salsa? That’s the kind of bold flavor they enjoy in … Albuquerque! Lenny: He’s right. Moe:  Yeah … and the wrapper says “Albuquerque Isotopes”! Within three months after the Duke City’s Triple-A baseball team, the Albuquerque Isotopes, co-opted its team name from The Simpsons animated television series, it sold more merchandise than the city’s previous Triple-A team, the Albuquerque Dukes, had sold in any entire season.  That was even before a single game had even been played. In that magical, inaugural year of 2003, the team led all of minor league baseball in merchandising revenue. Unfortunately, the Isotopes moniker wasn’t accompanied by the fictional Isotope Dog Supreme.  Who wouldn’t love a hot dog with mesquite-grilled onions, jalapeño relish and mango-lime salsa?  It certainly would be oh, so Albuquerque.  Alas, the  Isotopes Park concession menu doesn’t include a hot dog nearly as imaginative or, ostensibly, as delicious as the Isotope Dog Supreme.  A case could easily be made that there…