Cazuela’s Mexican Grill – Rio Rancho, New Mexico
Here’s an interesting bit of Jeopardy level trivia which you might contemplate the next time you dine at this Rio Rancho spot: In the Spanish golden age, a “cazuela” was the gallery located above the tavern in the back wall of a theater–the area in which women were segregated. Today “cazuela” is a Mexican word for casserole meal. Cazuela’s restaurant is a friendly, family-owned operation, which in 2007 saw significant change, precipitated in part by a motorist crashing through the diminutive dwelling which had been the restaurant’s home for several years. That original site was a tiny, time-worn building imbued with charm and warmth that belied its Lilliputian size. Cazuela’s new location is an expansive edifice which once housed Rio…