Rated 26 Archives - Gil's Thrilling (And Filling) Blog

If the Roman Catholic Church in the 16th century had had its way, the tomato might not be a ubiquitous ingredient in the cooking of many cultures today. So, just what is it about the seemingly innocuous tomato that once earned it a scurrilous reputation in the Church, the type of reputation which made it the Paris Hilton of the…

California Italian Rated 26

Trattoria Mollie – Montecito, California

Gil GardunoJune 15, 2014July 15, 2018

In its three best-selling editions–published in 2006, 2008 and 2012–National Geographic’s “Passport to the Best” has enthralled, excited and educated connoisseurs of matters of taste across the globe. With top ten lists in dozens of categories studded with savvy tips and inspiring imagery, this wayfarer’s bible invigorates investigative yearnings for exotic travel, if for nothing else to confirm or refute…

Albuquerque Closed in 2016 Fine Dining Gone But Not Forgotten Rated 26

JENNIFER JAMES 101 – Albuquerque, New Mexico (CLOSED)

Gil GardunoMarch 10, 2014July 16, 2018

The number 101 has some very interesting connotations. If you grew up in the 60s, you might remember the Benson & Hedges cigarette jingle, “One, oh, one, one, oh, one, a silly little millimeter longer one, oh, one, a silly millimeter longer.” Talk about ear wax. That jingle was like It’s A Small World and the Gilligan’s Island theme. Once…

California Fine Dining Rated 26

Nine-Ten Restaurant and Bar – La Jolla, California

Gil GardunoJuly 4, 2013July 17, 2018

My baby sister Anita paid me the ultimate compliment, not as a brother, but as a savvy restaurant essayist. When we ran into her at the Nine-Ten Restaurant and Bar in picturesque La Jolla, she told me “I knew you’d find this place,” acknowledgement that she recognizes my prowess in finding the very best restaurants everywhere I travel. Born nine…

California Pizza Rated 26

Pizzeria Mozza – Newport Beach, California

Gil GardunoJune 30, 2013July 17, 2018

“Breadmaking is one of those almost hypnotic businesses, like a dance from some ancient ceremony. It leaves you filled with one of the world’s sweetest smells –there is no chiropractic treatment, no Yoga exercise, no hour of meditation in a music throbbing chapel that will leave you emptier of bad thoughts than this homely ceremony of making bread.” ~M.F.K. Fisher,…

Barbecue Missouri Rated 26

Arthur Bryant’s – Kansas City, Missouri

Gil GardunoSeptember 9, 2012July 17, 2018

Shortly after Arthur Bryant died in 1982, the Kansas City Star published a cartoon showing St. Peter greeting Arthur at the gates of heaven and asking, “Did you bring sauce?” Perhaps not even in Heaven can such a wondrous sauce be concocted. Arthur Bryant’s is probably the most famous barbecue restaurant in the country, if not the world–an institution to…

Illinois Mexican Rated 26

Frontera Grill – Chicago, Illinois

Gil GardunoSeptember 5, 2012July 17, 2018

Not everyone has the relentless drive and impassioned fortitude to parlay their most ardent desires and zealous fervor into a wildly successful thematic venture, but then not everyone is Rick Bayless, America’s Mexican chef and restaurateur nonpareil. His single-minded passion for the Mexican culinary experience is reflected in multimedia ventures such as his successful PBS television series “Cooking Mexican” and…

Burgers Closed in 2013 Food Network Eats New Mexico Gone But Not Forgotten New Mexico New Mexico Culinary Treasures Trail New Mexico Green Chile Cheeseburger Trail: 2009 New Mexico Green Chile Cheeseburger Trail: 2011 Rated 26 Santa Fe Travel Channel Eats New Mexico

Bobcat Bite – Santa Fe, New Mexico (CLOSED)

Gil GardunoJuly 11, 2012July 17, 2018

Update: In a twist of cruel irony, the Travel Channel’s May 13th airing of the Burger Land program celebrating the Bobcat Bite debuted just a few days after the announcement that the world-famous Bobcat Bite as we all know and love it will be forever changed. An official statement from Bobcat Bite, issued on May 9th, announced the restaurant renowned…

Las Vegas, Nevada Rated 26 Steak

Lawry’s The Prime Rib – Las Vegas, Nevada

Gil GardunoNovember 9, 2011July 18, 2018

“What keeps me motivated is not the food itself but all the bonds and memories the food represents.” ~Michael Chiarello Many of my most cherished memories involve the act of eating and quite often those memories don’t involve the food itself. The memories which sweeten most over time invariably involve the people with whom those meals were shared. The act…

Fine Dining New Mexico Rated 26 Santa Fe

Geronimo – Santa Fe, New Mexico

Gil GardunoOctober 7, 2011July 18, 2018

Consistency over time, excellence every time–that’s what sets apart the one or two restaurants all the cognoscenti herald as the very best. These few truly extraordinary restaurants don’t so much raise the bar or reinvent themselves continuously as they do maintain the rarefied levels which earned them the distinction of being singled out in the first place. Almost without exception,…

New Mexican New Mexico New Mexico Culinary Treasures Trail Rated 26

Chope’s – La Mesa, New Mexico

Gil GardunoFebruary 19, 2011July 19, 2018

During our inaugural visit several years ago, we ran into a former Las Cruces resident now living in the nation’s capital. His near teary-eyed testimony about how much he missed Chope’s was more powerful than a Sunday sermon. When he kissed the hallowed ground in front of Chope’s, we knew he meant it. An elderly gentleman recounted the time Chope’s…

Category: Rated 26

THE LOVE APPLE – Taos, New Mexico