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Albuquerque Closed in 2014 Gone But Not Forgotten New Mexican New Mexico Culinary Treasures Trail

Charlie’s Front Door – Albuquerque, New Mexico (CLOSED)

Gil GardunoJuly 31, 2010May 31, 20251:36 AM

For almost four and a half decades, Charlie Elias, an avuncular septuagenarian with the energy of a teenager, has greeted his customers and treated them like welcome guests at his eponymous Northeast Heights restaurant and bar. Charlie doesn’t always make it to work nowadays, but his son Jamie, who’s probably the same age today that Charlie was when I first discovered this long-time family favorite, is now the restaurant’s official ambassador, a smiling presence who meets and greets all patrons with the same homespun, genuine friendliness as his father. Charlie was thirty-something when he launched his Front and Back Door operation in 1966. That type of longevity is rare today and speaks volumes about the loyalty generations of patrons have for Charlie and his restaurant. An elder statesman among the Duke City’s New Mexican restaurants, Charlie’s Front and Back Doors haven’t changed much over the years, offering the same menu and same friendly service diners have come to expect over the decades. Newcomers still experience confusion as to the “Front” and “Back” door names, believing them to be the same restaurant, but with front and back door entrances. Charlie’s Front Door’s windowless frontage faces Menaul in the Hoffmantown Shopping Center. …

Albuquerque Closed in 2015 Gone But Not Forgotten Mexican Rating: Excellent

Los Equipales – Albuquerque, New Mexico (CLOSED)

Gil GardunoJuly 11, 2010July 19, 20183:27 AM

CLOSED ON FRIDAY, JUNE 26, 2015: Crafted from fibrous materials removed from maguey cactus and fixed with leather bands, equipales furniture graces the sala of many a New Mexican home and certainly many more homes south of the border. Originally produced for the comfort of Aztec landlords and priests, equipales furniture has been around since before Columbus. Even Montezuma, the nefarious ruler of Tenochtitlan, reputedly cherished a favorite equipale-type chair. It’s likely he sat on that chair while consuming a daily repast that may have included the traditional Aztec staples of the day: corn, chilies, beans, potatoes and other foods native to the Americas during his time. Legend has it that Montezuma’s daily constitution also included 50 golden goblets of thick, red dyed hot chocolate flavored with chili peppers. Los Equipales, a fabulous Mexican fine dining restaurant patterned after some of the fine cosmopolitan restaurants of Mexico City, serves many of the staples with which the Aztec despot may have been intimately familiar, albeit prepared and served within the temperature controlled climes of an attractive, modern edifice. It opened in December, 2005. Montezuma would have loved Los Equipales. You can bank on it! Well, almost literally. The commodious restaurant is…

Albuquerque Closed in 2024 Gone But Not Forgotten Mexican New Mexico

Rincon Del Pollo – Albuquerque, New Mexico (CLOSED)

Gil GardunoJuly 8, 2010July 14, 20243:03 AM

In 1928, the presidential campaign featured several slogans and ads promising an era of prosperity. The most memorable of these was a boast that the Republican administrations of Warren Harding and Calvin Coolidge had “reduced hours and increased earning capacity, silenced discontent, and put the proverbial ‘chicken in every pot.’ And a car in every backyard, to boot.” If a chicken in every pot is a measure of prosperity, then the Rincon del Pollo (Chicken Corner) Mexican restaurant on North Fourth must epitomize success and affluence. That’s because this diminutive eatery specializes in all things chicken, albeit al estilo Mexicano (Mexican style). The Rincon del Pollo launched in 2003 and was originally situated in the Northdale Shopping Center (which Duke City history buffs might recognize was built in 1961 by famed local builder Dale Bellamah). Owners Rafiel Rivera and Ana Luna have created within their tiny space, a homey and welcoming atmosphere for their faithful patrons. It’s not uncommon to see blue and white collar diners sitting practically side-by-side in the somewhat crowded restaurant. The main portion of the restaurant, where the lovely Ana takes your order, has but two tiny tables and a couple of stools. In the summer…

Burgers California Rating: N/R (Not Rated)United States

The Squeeze Inn – Roseville, California

Gil GardunoJune 14, 2010April 6, 20267:46 AM

Tried to amend my carnivorous habits Made it nearly seventy days Losin’ weight without speed, eatin’ sunflower seeds Drinkin’ lots of carrot juice and soakin’ up rays But at night I’d had these wonderful dreams Some kind of sensuous treat Not zucchini, fettucini or Bulgar wheat But a big warm bun and a huge hunk of meat Cheeseburger in paradise (paradise) Heaven on earth with an onion slice (paradise) Not too particular not too precise (paradise) I’m just a cheeseburger in paradise ~Jimmy Buffett Just what is a cheeseburger in paradise? In his top 40 song Cheeseburger in Paradise, Jimmy Buffett seems to infer that a cheeseburger in paradise can be any cheeseburger you consume after depriving yourself, or as he put it, “after trying to amend your carnivorous habits.” There’s much truth in this. Every dieter with whom I’ve spoken admits that what they dream about most after any period of deliciousness deprivation are cheeseburgers. Cheeseburgers are, after all, America’s most popular, arguably most delicious, fast food offering. In Buffett’s case, the cheeseburger in paradise was inspired by a boating excursion on the azure waters of the Caribbean. While sustaining himself on peanut butter and canned foods, he fantasized…

American California Chinese Rating: N/R (Not Rated)United States

Chuck’s Restaurant – Placerville, California

Gil GardunoJune 13, 2010April 6, 202610:48 AM

In 2009, James Beard Award-winning food journalists Jane and Michael Stern published a terrific tome entitled 500 Things to Eat Before It’s Too Late. Despite the ominous (some might say fatalistic) name, the book is actually a celebration of the best dishes that are unique to this country. The Sterns, who have been focusing on quirky All-American food haunts since 1977, describe in delicious detail, the best dishes proffered at roadside stands, cafes, street carts throughout the fruited plain. It’s a marvelous tribute to those dishes that are uniquely American. As encompassing as the book is, it could not possibly have included every single culinary rarity and singularly distinctive dish. Leave it to my friend Barbara Trembath to lead me to a uniquely American dish that the Sterns did not mention. When she found out about my business trip to the Sacramento area, Barbara encouraged me to stray from the well-beaten, well-eaten paths to the local favorites and to drive nearly one-hundred miles east to experience culinary history. She urged me to try what she described as potentially the “dodo bird of food,” a “rare American original that’s in danger of becoming extinct.” She had me at “hello.” The dish…

Albuquerque Closed in 2014 Gone But Not Forgotten National Chain Pizza

RedBrick Pizza – Albuquerque, New Mexico (CLOSED)

Gil GardunoJune 12, 2010July 19, 20181:41 AM

The American culture of instant gratification may be precipitating the decline of the independent neighborhood pizzeria. In recent years, this traditional bastion of pizza preparation has been largely supplanted by ubiquitous pizza delivery companies with their gratuitous gimmicks, copious coupons and promises of breakneck deliveries. Pizzaiolis, the artisans who deftly toss and craft prandial perfection in the form of circular, precisely seasoned and superbly sauced oven-baked flat-bread have been unseated by pimply teenagers slathering ketchup on cardboard spheres then setting land speed records to ensure the day’s special of five for the price of one reaches its intended destination within seconds after an order is placed. The American consumer seemingly prefers quick and cheap pizza of inferior quality and taste that he or she can devour in front of the 500-channel living room altar to the greater expenditure of time spent with family or friends at a pizzeria in which sensory titillation includes the imbibing of incomparable aromas you just can’t get by opening a cardboard box. RedBrick Pizza purports to address the gap between the delivery-oriented market and the more traditional sit-down restaurant approach with a revolutionary “fast casual” concept, ostensibly giving the American consumer a product far superior…

Food Network Eats New Mexico James Beard Foundation (JBF) Award Nominees & Winners New Mexico Rating: Outstanding Santa Fe Tapas

La Boca – Santa Fe, New Mexico

Gil GardunoJune 8, 2010March 31, 202611:49 AM

In a 1997 episode of Seinfeld, the “show about nothing,” George Costanza declared food and sex to be his two passions, reasoning that “it’s only natural to combine them.” Jerry’s retort, “Natural? Sex is about love between a man and a woman, not a man and a sandwich.” George Costanza may actually have gotten it right! The mouth is actually considered an erogenous zone, an area of the body with heightened sensitivity, the stimulation of which may result in a sexual response. While most people don’t get sexually stimulated by eating, the mouth does host very sensitive taste receptors, including 10,000 taste buds on the tongue. Perhaps that’s why so many people derive so much pleasure from the act of eating. It may have been with this realization that chef and proprietor James Campbell Caruso named his restaurant venture “La Boca,” which translates from Spanish to “the mouth.” La Boca launched in the summer of 2006. Formerly executive chef at El Farol, Caruso is renown for melding Spanish and Mediterranean cuisines to create a unique cuisine that’s both traditional and contemporary. It’s also extraordinary in its ability to tantalize the mouth with inimitable taste sensations. La Boca specializes in tapas,…

Albuquerque American Closed in 2012 Gone But Not Forgotten National Chain

Zea Rotisserie & Grill – Albuquerque, New Mexico (CLOSED)

Gil GardunoMay 31, 2010July 19, 20186:00 AM

Our first visit to Zea followed the day after it was savaged by an erstwhile Albuquerque Journal restaurant critic, but any trepidation we might have had quickly dissipated when we were greeted enthusiastically at the hostess station by Betty, the luminous former waitress at the incomparable and much missed (to this day, I dream of its timbale tuna) Nouveau Noodles restaurant in Tijeras. At Nouveau, Betty was a whirling dervish of perpetual motion and the restaurant’s consummate ambassador. As warm and effusive a waitress as you’ll find anywhere, Betty’s unabashed enthusiasm for Nouveau’s cuisine was evident in her flowingly eloquent descriptions of the restaurant’s menu items–polysyllabic descriptions which she peppered with adjectives synonymous with fabulous. We trusted her recommendations and appreciated the personable and attentive service she lavished upon us. After seating us at Zea, she cautioned against any pre-conceived notions we might have about chain restaurants, indicating this one was was different. She explained that Zea was founded in New Orleans in 1997 and that its founders’ goal is to celebrate the cultural phenomenon that is eating and drinking for the sheer pleasure of it (sounds like my kind of people). There are currently five Zea locations in the…

Closed in 2020 Española Gone But Not Forgotten New Mexican New Mexico

Angelina’s Restaurant – Espanola, New Mexico (CLOSED)

Gil GardunoMay 30, 2010October 25, 20217:40 PM

“I get no respect.” Comedian Rodney Dangerfield parlayed that catch-phrase into a lengthy and lucrative career. With his uniquely self-deprecating sense of humor, Rodney invariably made himself the butt of his own brilliant one-liners: “I could tell my parents hated me. My bath toys were a toaster and a radio.” Despite his schtick as a perpetual loser, Dangerfield was a beloved comedic icon about whom Jim Carrey once wrote, “Rodney is, without a doubt, as funny as a carbon-based life-form can be.” True to the formula which made him a success in life, his tombstone is engraved, “there goes the neighborhood.” The citizenry of the beautiful Española valley can certainly empathize with Rodney Dangerfield. Inexplicably, Española has, for decades, been the punch line of cruel jokes. My friend Bill Resnik, a stand-up comedian for nearly three decades, says every stand-up comedian performing in New Mexico has at least one Española joke in their repertoire, but admits that in the comedy circuit, the name of the town being made fun of changes from state to state. Española jokes are, to some extent, just repackaged jokes. Many of those jokes will work if you substitute “blond” or “Aggie” or “Redneck” for Española.…

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New Mexico Magazine Presents The Land of Enchantment’s Best Eats for 2010

Gil GardunoMay 15, 2010July 19, 201810:36 PM

Having spent nearly two decades away from my beloved Land of Enchantment, what I cherished most were letters from home (in the years before e-mail) and my monthly copy of New Mexico Magazine. Every issue transcended time and distance and transported me back home. Every vivid photograph was like a series of brushstrokes from God, awash in ethereal, other-worldly colors on a breath-taking topographical canvas. Every word stirred a longing to return home and swelled my chest with pride. Every issue was dogeared from my reading it over and over again. Fifteen years later, New Mexico Magazine still moves me. I marvel at the fact that the venerable elder statesmen among America’s official state magazines still showcases the Land of Enchantment in a fresh, dynamic and respectful manner. Launched in 1923, just nine years after New Mexico attained statehood, the magazine is an ambassador in print. To expatriated New Mexicans, it is a refuge and a reminder of what they are missing every day they are away from the Land of Enchantment. New Mexico Magazine‘s pages have been graced by almost all of the state’s best-known authors and journalists–literary icons such as Tony Hillerman, Rudolfo Anaya and John Nichols and…

Albuquerque Breakfast Closed in 2010 Gone But Not Forgotten New Mexican

Blue Cactus Grill – Albuquerque, New Mexico (CLOSED)

Gil GardunoMay 15, 2010July 19, 20181:26 PM

In the early 80s I tried to impress my very traditional grandmother by taking her to a recently opened restaurant on Academy Boulevard. What was not to like? The restaurant shared the mellifluous name she had proudly worn for over fifty years. It was a locally owned and operated and had earned several awards. It boasted a multi-page menu. Surely Garduno’s of Mexico offered something she would like. It turns out the restaurant’s name was the only thing she liked. One nod of disapproval after the other ensued as she meticulously perused the menu, a compendium of Mexican and New Mexican appetizers, entrees and desserts. Scanning the descriptions carefully, she dismissed the contemporary interpretations of the foods on which she was raised and had prepared for more than eight decades. My mind floods with sweet memories of my cherished Grandma Piedad every time I visit a restaurant offering contemporary twists on traditional New Mexican food. Such was the case when my friend Bill Resnik and I first visited the Blue Cactus Grill, a modern and attractive new restaurant on Albuquerque’s West side, just north of Paseo del Norte on Coors Boulevard. Bill reminded me that the Blue Cactus Grill is situated at…