Category: Dog Friendly

AlbuquerqueAmericanBreakfastBreakfast BurritosDog FriendlyNew MexicanNew MexicoRating: Excellent

Hello Deli – Albuquerque, New Mexico

Gil Garduno12:01 AM

HELLO DELI (to the tune of Hello Dolly) “Hello Deli, this is Joe, Deli would you please send up a nice corned beef on rye. A box of RITZ, Deli and some Schlitz, Deli Some chopped liver and a sliver of your, apple pie. Turkey Legs, Deli hard boiled eggs, Deli and a plate of those potatoes you french fry, oh Don’t be late, Deli I just can’t wait Deli, Deli without breakfast, I’d just die.” ~ Frank Jacobs (Writer for MAD Magazine) In 2016, BBC Travel lamented the imminent demise of the New York City deli.  “Not the corner markets or bodegas that appear on nearly every New York block,” but “the true New York City delicatessen: the brick and…

AmericanBreakfastBreakfast BurritosDog FriendlyNew MexicoPizzaRating: N/R (Not Rated)

Trail Rider – Cedar Crest, New Mexico

Gil Garduno12:01 AM

During the prehistoric and dark ages when I went to school, we were taught a song called “The Bear Went Over The Mountain.”  When that wandering ursus got to the other side of the mountain, all he could see was the other side of the mountain.  Ostensibly, this song recalls a bear’s fruitless journey to see what lies beyond.  It symbolizes the endless nature of life’s constant undertakings, the continuous, sometimes futile, effort in life to find something beyond the current experience.  Now, that’s the allegorical meaning of the song.  In literal terms, a bear (or anyone of us) going over the Sandia Mountains won’t see the same sights or have the same experiences we have in the Albuquerque side…

AlbuquerqueAmericanDog FriendlyNew MexicoRating: Very Good

Sixty Six Acres – Albuquerque, New Mexico

Gil Garduno6:36 PM

My high school football coach Jesus Bautista used to call his team “chiquitos pero picosos,” a Spanish term meaning “small but piquant” (like New  Mexico’s chiles). At 6’1” and a svelte 175 pounds in full uniform, I was the biggest guy on the team.  That made me an enforcer of sorts when players on the other teams tried to bully my smaller teammates. For the most part, I was able to handle the biggest, meanest, roughest players we lined up against. The one exception was when we played Albuquerque Indian School. To keep us from touching their quarterback, the Braves positioned a steel wall in the backfield, an impenetrable barrier President Trump would envy. Disguised as a fullback, that human…

AlbuquerqueDog FriendlyNew MexicoPizzaRating: Outstanding

Gold Street Pizza – Albuquerque, New Mexico

Gil Garduno12:01 AM

Get Smart, a comedy television series which aired from 1965 to 1970 showcased the exploits of Don Adams as Maxwell Smart, a secret agent for CONTROL, a secret government counter-espionage organization. CONTROL’s nemesis was KAOS an international organization of evil bent on world domination.  The head of the Asian arm of KAOS was a man called “The Claw,” who had a large mechanical claw in place of a left hand.  The claw was magnetic, allowing him to pull phones, guns, and other metal objects toward him. Stereotypically, he couldn’t pronounce the letter L , which made Maxwell Smart think his name was “The Craw” and not the “The Claw.”  Every time Max makes this mistake, The Claw corrects him saying,…

AlbuquerqueDog FriendlyItalianNew MexicoPizzaRating: Very Good

Sal’s Ristorante & Pizzeria – Albuquerque, New Mexico

Gil Garduno11:51 PM

“Everything you see, I owe to spaghetti.” ~Sophia Loren The ageless movie siren (currently age 90), perhaps the most voluptuous nonogenarian in the world, is hardly a proponent of low carb diets, admitting to daily dosages of macaroni. She maintains her classic hourglass figure by limiting portions–never consuming too many calories in one meal–and by not overloading pasta with rich, thick cream or cheese sauces. Though La Dolce Sophia once told a Sunday morning CBS program that she cannot diet, she actually does adhere to a strict Mediterranean diet which advocates a lot of vegetables, olive oil, pasta and red wine. That Sophia Loren maintains a figure women half her age envy is a credit to her discipline.  For many…

AlbuquerqueDog FriendlyNew MexicanRating: Good

El Patron – Albuquerque, New Mexico

Gil Garduno8:13 PM

I was a strapping lad of fifteen when hired as a “box boy” at a country store in Peñasco. Now, being a box boy at a small village country store is to being a bagger at Smith’s or Albertson’s in Albuquerque what the red chile at Mary & Tito’s is to McCormick’s chili seasoning mix. The former is so much more than the latter. For one thing, my duties included bailing hay, rounding up cattle, stacking lumber, loading cement, operating a forklift and every once in a while actually bagging or boxing groceries. The job kept me in great physical condition for football season. “Eloy,” my fellow “box boy” was a crusty curmudgeon sixty-some years old who didn’t always take…

AlbuquerqueDog FriendlyItalianPizzaRating: Outstanding

M’tucci’s Italian Restaurant – Albuquerque, New Mexico

Gil Garduno11:27 PM

“Sometimes the spaghetti likes to be alone..” —Stanley Tucci as Segundo in Big Night With a name like M’Tucci’s Italian Restaurant, you might wonder if the Italian restaurant on the intersection of Coors and Montano is named for Academy Award nominated actor Stanley Tucci. After all, Tucci co-starred in Big Night and Julie & Julia, arguably two of the very best food movies in recent years. Initially christened M’tucci’s Kitchina, the “Kitchina” part of the restaurant’s name was obviously a whimsical play on “cucina,” the Italian term for kitchen, but was spelled more similarly to Kachina, the Hopi ancestral spirits. In any case, if the amusing name and fun, casual ambiance don’’t ensnare you, the food certainly will. Step into…

AlbuquerqueAmericanBreakfastBreakfast BurritosBurgersDog FriendlyGreekRating: Very Good

Vic’s Daily Cafe – Albuquerque, New Mexico

Gil Garduno12:02 AM

“When you wake up in the morning, Pooh,” said Piglet at last, “what’s the first thing you say to yourself?” “What’s for breakfast?” said Pooh. “What do you say, Piglet?” “I say, I wonder what’s going to happen exciting today?” said Piglet. Pooh nodded thoughtfully. “It’s the same thing,” he said.” Unlike the great philosopher Winnie the Pooh, many Americans, it seems, don’t equate breakfast with excitement. Studies show that far too many of us fuel our bodies with a “gobble and go” mentality that typifies our frenetic lifestyles. In 2007, one food service industry research firm concluded that most Americans spend no more than three minutes shopping for breakfast (at such paragons of nutritional virtue as McDonald’s and Starbucks).…

AlbuquerqueAmericanDog FriendlyNew MexicoRating: N/R (Not Rated)

Lescombes Winery & Bistro (Cottonwood) – Albuquerque, New Mexico

Gil Garduno12:01 AM

Years ago when my job at Intel required frequent travel to the Phoenix area, I marveled at the desert landscaping at Phooenix’s Sky Harbor Airport.  Its xeriscaping approach uses  native, drought-resistant flora arranged in ways that promote efficient water usage.  Towering saguaros and spindly, spine-covered ocotillos greeted sojourners as they vacated the airport.  Not only does this xeriscaping save the city $400,000 annually and reduce water usage by more than five-million gallons per year, it gives visitors a welcome respite from the sun-baked asphalt and cement jungle that is the Valley of the Sun. Driving away from Albuquerque’s Sunport provided a stark contrast to the affable reception of the Sky Harbor.  While the latter was like a warm (scorching) embrace,…

AlbuquerqueDog FriendlyIce CreamNew MexicoRating: Excellent

Heidi’s Jam Factory – Albuquerque, New Mexico

Gil Garduno11:01 PM

How many of us have dreamt about a churning chocolate waterfall; a meadow full of candy;  a candy (Everlasting Gobstopper) that not only changes colors and flavors when sucked on, but also never gets any smaller or disappears; or a carbonated beverage (Fizzy Lifters) that give you flight?  Such were the dreams of children of all ages after the 1971 release of Willy Wonka & The Chocolate Factory a movie that is more popular in syndication than it was after its release.  Albuquerque has its own version of a magical place where dreams are actually fulfilled.  It’s called Heidi’s Jam Factory. To New Mexicans, the terms “Heidi” and “jam” are inextricably tied.  Heidi’s Raspberry Farm in the village of Corrales…

Dog FriendlyRating: Very GoodSteakTexasUnited States

The Big Texan Steak Ranch – Amarillo, Texas

Gil Garduno12:01 AM

If you’ve ever wondered about the meaning of the line “I’ll be lookin’ for eight when they pull that gate” in George Strait’s classic hit Amarillo By Morning, here’s a theory you probably haven’t heard.  The country crooner was actually looking for eight brawny guys to help him finish the 72-ounce steak at Amarillo’s The Big Texan Steak Ranch.  Seriously it might just take a few of your most hungry friends to tackle that behemoth slab of beef–four and a half pounds of well-marbled meat with a deep, rich flavor and mahogany color. Since its launch in 1960, The Big Texan has thrown down the gauntlet to all comers with Texas-sized appetites: finish the 72-ounce Steak Dinner Challenge–shrimp cocktail, baked…