Category: German

BakeryGermanNew MexicoRio Rancho

Dagmar’s Specialties – Rio Rancho, New Mexico

Gil Garduno

In her last Facebook post, Dagmar Gertrude Ingeborg Schulze Marshall Mondragon remained optimistic about making a full recovery from the most recent of the many recent health woes that plagued her otherwise rich and wonderful life. Dagmar refused to be defined by those health woes. Instead, we’ll remember her as not only an extraordinary chef and baker, but as one of the kindest, most loving and optimistic souls to ever grace our Earthly plane. Dagmar was devoted to her customers.  She passed away on  25 February 2023. Michael Almanzar, a long time friend of Dagmar’s who is affectionately known as Dagmar’s “Brother from another Mother” is the new Owner/Operator of Dagmar’s!   Dagmar’s reopened on August 25, 2023.  We’re happy…

ArizonaDiners Drive-Ins and DivesDog FriendlyGerman

Haus Murphy’s – Glendale, Arizona

Gil Garduno

To some of us of a certain age and generation, the term “grandma’s food” evokes emotionally-arousing childhood memories of the foods our grandmothers would prepare. That’s especially true for those of us who no longer have those heaven-sent treasures.  Food was just one of the many ways grandma showed how much she loved her family.  Memories of grandma’s cooking sustain us and bring a flood of warm, fuzzy, happy memories to us–powerful memories that touch our senses of taste, touch, smell.  For the sentimental among us, “grandma’s food” summons the sense of love and happy familiarity in our hearts.   For restaurateur Thomas Hauck, the term “grandma’s food” also represents how German food is perceived by an American dining public…

Closed in 2016GermanGone But Not Forgotten

Heimat House and Beer Garden – Albuquerque, New Mexico (CLOSED)

Gil Garduno

“We’re not normal people. We’re the Griswolds.” Laughs abound in National Lampoon’s European Vacation, the 1985 movie which follows the antics of well-meaning blunderer Clark W. Griswold and his equally inept family. In a television game show called “Pig In a Polk,” the Griswold family accidentally wins a trip to Europe where they leave a trail of destruction everywhere they go (who can forget when Clark knocked down Stonehenge by accidentally backing into it with a rented car?). The family foray into Germany was no less fraught with hapless humor. In a German village, the Griswolds burst in on “Fritz and Helga”, a bewildered elderly couple whom they mistakenly believe are long-lost relatives. Though language barrier issues prevent any mutual…

AlbuquerqueBakeryBreakfastClosed in 2014GermanGone But Not ForgottenNew MexicoRated 23

Dagmar’s Restaurant & Strudel Haus – Albuquerque, New Mexico (CLOSED)

Gil Garduno

According to the 2000 United States Census, there are 47 million Americans of German ancestry, making them the largest self-reporting ethnic group in the country. German Americans represent 16 percent of the total U.S. population.  With such a large ancestry group, you might wonder why German cuisine isn’t as popular as the cuisine of its European neighbors Italy and France.  It’s a question which also seems to baffle the National Restaurant Association which posits that Americans characterize German food as “rich, indulgent foods; good, hearty portions; and irresistible desserts.”  With reasons like those, you might expect that there would be more German restaurants across the fruited plain (and more than one German restaurant in the Land of Enchantment).  Bon Appetit‘s…