Eurasia Bistro & Sushi Bar – Albuquerque, New Mexico (CLOSED)

In an ideal world, the culinary connotation of the term “Eurasia” would be a fusion of the distinct cuisines of both continents available all under one roof under which culinary adventurers would be like Venetian explorer Marco Polo tasting all the Silk Road has to offer. We should have realized that while the continents of Europe and Asia may be connected as a land mass (certainly not geopolitically), an Albuquerque restaurant featuring the cuisine of both continents is still far too novel a concept. While Eurasia turned out to be a misnomer, this contemporary Japanese restaurant may turn out to be one of the better, albeit more expensive restaurants launched in 2005. Situated on the site of the now defunct…

Perennials Restaurant – Albuquerque, New Mexico (CLOSED)

What most people seem to know about Perennials Restaurant is that it’s owned by the parents of Albuquerque’s own Neil Patrick Harris, a 1991 graduate of La Cueva High School, who at age sixteen, landed the lead role in Doogie Howser, M.D. The television series about a teen prodigy doctor propelled him into teen heartthrob status. After two visits to Perennials, I’m somewhat surprised that this bright, east-facing restaurant isn’t even better known for the terrific quality of its food. It seems to be especially popular for breakfast among the geriatric set, a demographic my stand-up comedian friend swears have two criteria for selecting a restaurant: tasteless or cheap. He also observes that among the “blue-hairs” as he calls them,…