Category: Albuquerque

AlbuquerqueAmericanBar & GrillRating: Good

Stone Face Tavern – Albuquerque, New Mexico

Gil Garduno12:30 AM

Boris Vallejo, one of the premier fantasy and science fiction artists in the world, might find the ambiance at the Stone Face Tavern inspirational.  He might even join the throngs of regulars who enjoy the ambiance, hospitality, libations and food at a tavern he could have designed.  The Stone Face Tavern is like an adult Disneyland for aficionados of the fantasy and erotica genres masterfully created by Vallejo.  The south-facing facade resembles a multi-turret stone castle complete with threatening gargoyles perched on the parapet.  The ominous countenance, flowing beard and piercing eyes of a Viking warrior or Norse god (maybe even Odin himself) looks down upon you from a vantage point high above the entrance. Step inside and it may…

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Red Ball Cafe – Albuquerque, New Mexico (CLOSED)

Gil Garduno10:18 PM

From Red Ball Cafe’s Facebook Page (28 December 2021): It is with extreme sadness and difficulty to announce the Red Ball Cafe has officially closed its doors for good😢. With the building being as old as it is (impossible maintenance upkeep), plus trying to survive the pandemic has caused us to make the decision to close. 1922 was a year of firsts for Albuquerque an;d New Mexico.  At 15,462 citizens, Albuquerque’s population constituted for the first time ever, more than half the population of Bernalillo county.  The state’s first skyscraper, the nine-story First National Bank on Central Avenue was built.  Taking to the air waves for the very first time was New Mexico’s very first radio station, KOB which then…

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Cafe 6855 – Albuquerque, New Mexico (CLOSED)

Gil Garduno12:01 AM

The cover page of the May 20, 2013 edition of Time Magazine depicts a twenty-something woman sprawled on the floor taking a selfie. In large type above the photo is the caption “The Me Me Me Generation” subtitled with “Millennials are lazy, entitled narcissists who still live with their parents.” If you believe the monolithic label “millennial” (typically assigned to a person born between 1981 and 2001) defines all young people and that popular characterizations and stereotypes about millennials are accurate, perhaps you’ll be interested in an oceanfront piece of real estate I’m selling in Arizona. If your perceptions of young people skew toward the negative, let me introduce you to Victoria and Julian Gonzales. Victoria and Julian are among…

AlbuquerqueDog FriendlyFood TruckNew MexicanNew MexicoRating: N/R (Not Rated)

Rollin’ On In Food Truck – Albuquerque, New Mexico

Gil Garduno1:44 PM

While their brick-and-mortar counterparts can afford to have multi-page menus to please a wide variety of palates, mobile food kitchens (that’s food trucks to you, Bob) are somewhat at a disadvantage. By sheer necessity, food trucks must be limited, well-defined, maybe even singularly focused.  The advantage the successful ones have is that they can concentrate on creating memorable dishes around their concept using a few common ingredients.  Rollin’ On In, for example, lists only four entrees on its menu: three tacos, a quesadilla, three enchiladas and a burrito. With those four entrees, however, there are an infinite number of “build-your-own” possibilities.  Your construction options include four fillings (shredded chicken, shredded pork, ground beef and potato and veggie mix), eleven fresh…

AlbuquerqueBrewery-PubDog FriendlyNew MexicoRating: N/R (Not Rated)

Steel Bender Brewyard – Albuquerque, New Mexico

Gil Garduno11:58 AM

“Sometimes you want to go Where everybody knows your name And they’re always glad you came You want to be where you can see The troubles are all the same You want to be where everybody knows your name.” ~Theme Song From Cheers Just another banal, meaningless television show jingle?  Think again.  Urban sociologist Ray Oldenburg might even argue that the Cheers theme song exemplifies his concept of “third place.”    In 1989, Oldenburg published That Good Place in which he introduced the concept of third place into the lexicon.  Third place refers to places where people spend time between home (‘first’ place) and work (‘second’ place).  Third places are, according to Oldenburg, locations where we, as social beings, exchange…

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Crepe Crepe – Albuquerque, New Mexico (CLOSED)

Gil Garduno8:17 PM

Richard Olney, a cookbook author best known for his books on French country cooking described crepes thusly: “their greatest pitfalls derive, no doubt, from their versatility — not in itself a fault, but a quality that teases many a cook into overstepping the boundaries of sense and taste. One should never lose sight of the fragile and delicate, thin, tender thing that is the crepe itself.”  In his magnificent tome The French Menu Cookbook, he prefaced a recipe for Gratin of Stuffed Crepes with: “crepes may contain practically anything and they represent one of the prettiest and most satisfactory means of disposing of leftovers.”  Then as to demonstrate their versatility, he listed among the ingredients for the stuffed crepe, one calf’s brain.…

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Rustic On The Green & Rustic Star – Albuquerque, New Mexico (CLOSED)

Gil Garduno8:13 PM

Pop culture’s most famous exemplar of teenage angst may have been Napoleon Dynamite, a socially awkward daydreamer constantly tormented by bullies. Napoleon frequently lamented his ineptitude: “I don’t even have any good skills. You know, like nunchuck skills, bow hunting skills, computer hacking skills. Girls only want boyfriends who have great skills.” Napoleon’s best friend Pedro, on the other hand, possessed skills Napoleon coveted: “Well, you have a sweet ride. And you’re really good at hooking up with chicks. Plus you’re the only guy at school who has a mustache.” In a previous review I bemoaned my lack of skills in the manly art of grilling (though not nearly as much as my dear Kim bemoaned my having ruined thousands…

2020 James Beard Foundation - "Best Chef - Southwest" Semifinalist2025 James Beard Foundation Finalist: Outstanding Wine and Other Beverages ProgramAlbuquerqueBreakfastFine DiningJames Beard Foundation (JBF) Award Nominees & WinnersNew MexicoRating: Outstanding

Campo at Los Poblanos – Los Ranchos de Albuquerque, New Mexico

Gil Garduno3:59 PM

A simple day laborer at a wealthy estate, Ysidro began his days by rising early and attending Mass. His fellow laborers complained that they had to do some of his share of the work because he lingered in church. After hearing the complaints of his farmhands, the land owner visited his fields while Ysidro was at Mass. To his astonishment, he saw two angels guiding Ysidro’s plow in his absence. Later when Ysidro returned to work, the angels stood next to him and plowed alongside. Ysidro was essentially doing twice as much work as he would have on his own and while at Mass, his work was getting done, too. One snowy day when taking wheat to the mill to…

AlbuquerqueAmericanRating: Very Good

Christy Mae’s – Albuquerque, New Mexico

Gil Garduno1:38 PM

If you want to know the best places to eat in any part of any town, don’t buy a tourist guide. Don’t even consult Yelp or the local restaurant critic (even if it is a blogger gastronome). Your best bet is to ask a policeman because “everybody knows that cops always know the best places to eat.” That’s the advice of Chris Cognac, a police detective for a South Bay police department in Los Angeles. Walking his beat gave him the opportunity to investigate off-the-beaten path and hole-in-the-wall restaurants that usually only locals know about–the real local gems. Aside from being a police detective, Cognac was an “informant” for the Daily Breeze newspaper in Los Angeles. He was the Daily…

AlbuquerqueAmericanBar & GrillDog FriendlyNew Mexico Green Chile Cheeseburger Trail: 2009Rating: Very Good

Alien Brew Pub – Albuquerque, New Mexico

Gil Garduno3:09 AM

“If the government is covering up knowledge of aliens, they are doing a better job of it than they do at anything else.” ~Stephen Hawking An alien walked into the Alien Brew Pub and says, “take me to your liter.” Okay, that joke is admittedly a groaner. It probably wouldn’t even work in one of those countries which use the metric system, but it might work in some other planet where advanced lifeforms are ostensibly more civilized.  I say ostensibly because frankly, we don’t really know what to expect from alien lifeforms.  While the politically correct stereotype is of a benevolent and benign race singing Kumbaya with us awestruck and primitive terrans,  Stephen Hawking took a contrarian view about extraterrestrial…

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Gigi Italian Bistro – Albuquerque, New Mexico (CLOSED)

Gil Garduno8:45 PM

“If you can go through with what Gordon Ramsey puts you through there’s nothing much more you can do. I mean the berating from that guy is unbelievable, but the reward is even greater.” ~ Chef Robert Hesse Veni, Vedi, Veci (I came, I saw, I conquered):  Chef Robert Hesse, the superstar consulting chef who launched Gigi left Albuquerque in February, 2019. The review below was based on three visits to Gigi when Chef Hesse prepared our meals.  In light of his departure, I have removed the rating of “26” I accorded Gigi and will update my review accordingly after my next visit. Chef Robert Hesse isn’t the man he used to be. In fact, he’s literally and figuratively a…