Category: Mexican

AlbuquerqueClosed in 2021Dog FriendlyGone But Not ForgottenMexicanNew Mexico

Guaca Guaca Tacos & Beer – Albuquerque, New Mexico (CLOSED)

Gil Garduno7:30 PM

What culinary voluptuaries consider exotic and delicious, timorous eaters might find distasteful and even nauseating. With M.F.K Fisher as their muse, culinary voluptuaries–the truly adventurous diners among us–don’t let themselves be drawn into a vortex of memories recalling foods they’ve already experienced. Instead, they live with carpe diem engraved on their hearts, ever in pursuit of their next culinary epiphany, the next “aha” moment when their taste buds awaken to never before experienced symphonies of incredible flavors. Sometimes to achieve the discoveries they crave, they have to reach into the distant past, their culture’s culinary roots. That’s certainly the case in contemporary Mexico where, for the past quarter-century or so, the scions of Montezuma have been frequenting restaurants and markets…

AlbuquerqueClosed in 2022Dog FriendlyGone But Not ForgottenMexicanNew MexicanNew Mexico

The Jealous Fork – Albuquerque, New Mexico (CLOSED)

Gil Garduno4:02 PM

In December, 1997, two-time James Beard award-winning author Deborah Madison penned a memorable article for Sunset Magazine.  Its  provocative title “Land of Enchiladas” certainly resonated with me.  Before relocating to the Santa Fe area where she now lives, Deborah would visit New Mexico quite regularly.  As with most New Mexicans returning home–whether from vacation or relocating permanently–the incomparable cuisine of our enchanted state was a priority even before she crossed into our sacred borders.  She always looked forward to that first plate of flat enchiladas smothered with red chili sauce. One bite and I knew I was in New Mexico. It tasted like home cooking, It tastes like home.  That’s a sentiment to which many of us can relate.  No…

AlbuquerqueClosed in 2026Gone But Not ForgottenIce CreamMexicanNew Mexico

Pop Fizz – Albuquerque, New Mexico (CLOSED)

Gil Garduno7:57 PM

NOTE: The review below is primarily for the Pop Fizz instantiation at the National Hispanic Cultural Center which closed during the Cabrona Virus.  Pop Fizz continued to operate at other locations, but did not have the comprehensive menu it once had.  Pop Fizz announced its closure in March, 2026. The geriatrically advanced among us who grew up during the golden age (1950s through the 1970s) of the “jingle” were constantly bombarded with earworm-inducing singing commercials, those catchy and memorable short tunes used to convey advertising slogans. We couldn’t help but sing along, often to the annoyance of our parents. When, for example, the Garduño family visited the big city (Taos), the kids would belt out the familiar jingle “Let’s all…

AlbuquerqueMexicanNew MexicoRating: N/R (Not Rated)Tacos

La Reforma Brewery – Albuquerque, New Mexico

Gil Garduno3:27 AM

When my friend Schuyler saw the name of the restaurant on this review, he teased me that my life of dissipation, debasement and debauchery finally caught up with me.  “39-year-old juvenile delinquents like you belong in a reformatory.”   Being the mad scientist cerevisaphile he is, he also told it’s about time I ended my teetotaling ways.  “You’ve tried everything else.  Why not beer?”  Frankly, when my friend Ryan “Break the Chain” Scott first told me about La Reforma Taqueria, Brewery and Distillery, I had no idea what the context of the term “Reforma” meant, but doubted it had anything to do with a reformatory (which Wikipedia defines as “a youth detention center or an adult correctional facility popular during…

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Urban Taqueria -Albuquerque, New Mexico (CLOSED)

Gil Garduno12:01 AM

My sagacious friend Bill Resnik is like a 6’5″ Yoda. Perhaps because he was a stand-up comedian for several decades, he seems to invite good-natured teasing from among our mutual friends and colleagues.  Like gunfighters sporting black hats in the westerns of yore, would-be comics seem to come out of the woodwork to challenge the fastest quipster in the west.  Instead of six shooters, the villains arrive sporting their put-downs, taunts and insults…and like the white chapeau-wearing good guy fighting on behalf of the forces of goodness and niceness, Bill dispatches them quickly with witty retort. I once asked Bill how he could put up with constant ribbing from colleagues and friends.  He reminded me that being offended is a…

AlbuquerqueMariscosMexicanRating: Good

Bandido Hideout – Albuquerque, New Mexico

Gil Garduno12:04 AM

Lucha libre, a Spanish phrase loosely translated into English as “free-style fighting,” is not just a genre of professional wrestling, it is the poor man’s theater in Mexico.  For a mere pittance, the common man can treat his entire family to an incredible world in which classic battles of good versus evil are waged by stalwart heroes (los technicos) and compelling villains (los rudos). Throngs of frenetic fans suspend their disbelief as muscular luchadores perform spectacular high-flying moves and execute joint-wrenching holds in the squared circle.  Lucha libre’s theatrics are enhanced by the presence of wrestlers whose identities are protected by colorful masks designed to evoke archetypal images of animals, heroes and gods.  The luchadores take on the persona represented…

AlbuquerqueMexicanNew MexicoRating: Very Good

Taqueria Mexico – Albuquerque, New Mexico

Gil Garduno12:09 PM

“Baby let’s make a run for the border, I’ve got a hunger only tacos can stop. I know exactly what I’ll order Three tacos two tostadas and a soda pop.” ~Jennifer Lopez (Eric Cartman from South Park) Ironically, every time Taco Bell has made its own run for the border, it invariably winds up scurrying away like a frightened cur (the chalupa-loving Chihuahua), its nachos bellgrande tucked between its legs.  Mexico hasn’t even had to build a wall to keep Taco Bell away. During multiple forays into the Land of Montezuma, the Mexican dining public very loudly and very clearly derided “America’s favorite Mexican restaurant” for what it is—uninspiring Mexican-inspired food. Cultural critic Carlos Monsivais likened Taco Bell’s attempt to…

AlbuquerqueClosed in 2020Gone But Not ForgottenMexicanNew MexicoTacos

Dia De Los Takos – Albuquerque, New Mexico (CLOSED)

Gil Garduno7:47 PM

NOTE: Although Dia De Los Takos has closed, founder-owner-chef Dominic “Dom” Valuenzuela has launched a new restaurant called Tako Ten.  Look for a review soon. Felix, a character in Adi Alsaid’s young adult fiction book North of Happy was asked what makes a taco perfect. “It’s a taco that tastes as good as the idea of a taco itself. A taco that’ll hold steadfast through memory’s attempt to erase it, a taco that’ll be worthy of the nostalgia that it will cause. A taco that won’t satisfy or fill but will satiate your hunger. Not just for tonight but for tacos in general, for food, for life-itself, brother. You will feel full to your soul. “But!” he added, a callused…

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Los Primos Mexican Grill – Albuquerque, New Mexico (CLOSED)

Gil Garduno2:29 PM

When you’re young and dumb and have an inflated sense of invisibility, you commit some youthful indiscretions that often evoke pangs of regret and remorse during your wizened years.  Invariably your reflections prompt the question “could I really have been that stupid?.”  Sometimes, however, those indiscretions are mischievous and harmless, prompting pleasant memories, maybe even laughter.   Indiscretions of the latter type invariably involved my favorite primos Edward and Lawrence.  When my primos visited us in Peñasco, all their Duke City slickness and urban sophistication went out the window and they became rural ruffians like us. One of my favorite memories of my primos involves an interloping herd of cows.  Because Peñasco was open-range country and cattle didn’t understand either…

AlbuquerqueBurgersMexicanNew MexicoRating: Good

Caveman Burgers – Albuquerque, New Mexico

Gil Garduno5:25 PM

“It’s so easy, even a caveman can…find it.” The Geico commercial depicting metrosexualized troglodytes living in contemporary America came to mind when I couldn’t find CaveMan Burgers on Central Avenue. While your typical caveman about town would probably have googled the restaurant’s address, this homo-dumbassicus took for granted that when KRQE reported CaveMan Burgers was “on Central near Coors,” it was in immediate proximity to Coors, not blocks away. I also took for granted that there would be clear signage, if not a prominent storefront, pointing out exactly where this primitive-themed purveyor of prodigious burgers is located. Thankfully serendipity won out where poor planning failed and I located CaveMan Burgers while stopped at a small strip mall parking lot to…

AlbuquerqueClosed in 2019Dog FriendlyGone But Not ForgottenMexicanNew MexicanNew MexicoRating: Outstanding

Sophia’s – Albuquerque, New Mexico (CLOSED)

Gil Garduno10:01 AM

Exterior signage for Dennis Apodaca’s new restaurant venture sports the name of the previous tenant, a short-lived eatery named MIXX. In a February blurb announcing Dennis’s return, the Albuquerque Journal called his new venture “REMIXX.” A handwritten note scrawled on the front door, however, informs you that you’ve arrived at “Sophia’s – that you knew & loved on 4th St. NW.” Not taking any chances, Yelp lists entries for both “REMIXX by Sophia’s Place” and “Sophia’s.” So which is it? Ask Dennis and he’ll tell you that despite what the sign says, his restaurant is a relaunch of Sophia’s, the celebrated restaurant that made him one of Albuquerque’s most talked-about and respected chefs. “I’d rather spend money on serving great…