Category: Steak

BrunchNew MexicoRating: ExcellentSanta FeSteak

Rio Chama Steakhouse – Santa Fe, New Mexico

Gil Garduno2:56 PM

The murky Rio Chama meanders through the high plateaus of northwestern New Mexico surrounded by multi-colored sandstone cliffs reminiscent of Georgia O’Keefe’s landscape paintings in which colors seem to defy nature. The ambiance at the Rio Chama Steakhouse is of muted earth tones and subdued Southwestern patinas. Exquisite elegance is in evidence throughout the restaurant as this truly fine dining establishment exudes class and wealth. Serving prime and choice dry aged steaks, chops and seafood, this high-end and classy establishment has garnered accolades since its inception–Cocinita Magazine’s Critics’ Choice Award in 2001 and the Santa Fe Reporter Readers’ Choice award…

AlbuquerqueSteak

Gruet Steakhouse – Albuquerque, New Mexico (CLOSED)

Gil Garduno2:34 AM

Is there anything finer than a sizzling, flame kissed slab of prime beef overfilling your plate at a fine high-end chop house? Steak used to define fine dining and wealth provided the delineation between the type of steak each patron could afford–select, choice or prime, a classification based on marbling (the more the marbling, the more tender the steak). The proliferation of inexpensive steak restaurants in the 1960s made steak readily available to the common man while the advent of technology has made it available over the Internet and even in mall stores throughout America. The tragic reality is that…

New MexicoNew Mexico Culinary Treasures TrailRating: Very GoodSteak

Texas Reds – Red River, New Mexico

Gil Garduno3:09 PM

Note: On Wednesday, November 3rd, 2004 Texas Reds burnt to the ground, but like a Phoenix, it has been rebuilt, albeit no longer as a two story monolith on Red River’s main street. In 2006, Texas Red’s also launched a second Colfax county restaurant, this one in Eagle Nest. What does the alpine village of Red River in the picturesque Moreno Valley have in common with San Marcos, Texas, the beautiful gateway to the Texas Hill Country? Aside from both being heavily populated by Texans, they both can boast of a Texas Reds restaurant. The original Texas Reds has been…

ArizonaClosed in 2015Gone But Not ForgottenSteakUnited States

Pinnacle Peak Patio – Scottsdale, Arizona (CLOSED)

Gil Garduno3:12 AM

To a lexicologist like me, the word pinnacle has connotations of “the highest point of development or achievement.” In other words, it’s synonymous with ultimate, apogee, culmination, peak, summit, zenith, climax or apex…and those are just the synonyms (a word along with Thesaurus for which there are no synonyms) off the top of my head. At 3100 feet in elevation, Pinnacle Peak itself is one of the more prominent landmarks in North Scottsdale. Whether seen under a star filled night time canopy or beneath a cerulean summer sky, its weathered boulders, craggy spires and desert vegetation make it one of…

ArizonaSteakUnited States

The Keg Steakhouse – Chandler, Arizona

Gil Garduno3:11 PM

A Canadian steakhouse in the silicon desert city of Chandler, Arizona? You bet! In fact Canada’s most renown steakhouse has made expansive forays into the United States with restaurants in Arizona, Colorado, Oregon, Texas and Washington among its more than 80 restaurants in North America. Founded in 1971 in Vancouver, the Keg Steakhouse is a cut above many American dining establishments, particularly in terms of service. You won’t find stereotypical Canadian ambiance at the Chandler location, much of whose walls look as if they had been built by Chacoan stone masons. What you will find is a casual and relaxing…