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Friends of Gil (FOG) Dinner III: Magnificent Mexican Food for Fabulous Foodies

Gil GardunoAugust 7, 2014July 15, 20185:05 PM

“People who love to eat are always the best people.” – Julia Child When Friends of Gil (FOG) get together, good food happens. So do good times and great conversation among some of the most passionate gastronomes in the Duke City area. El Norteño was the site of the most recent FOG dinner shared by nineteen. Guests included five of the ten most prolific commentators on Gil’s Thrilling (And Filling) Blog: Bob of the Village of Los Ranchos, Bruce Schor (with Lady Grayce), Jim Millington (with Janet, the Child Bride), Larry McGoldrick (with the pulchritudinous Chase girls, Barbara and Linda)…

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

El Norteño – Albuquerque, New Mexico (CLOSED)

Gil GardunoAugust 7, 2014March 31, 20263:33 PM

No Mexican restaurant in Albuquerque has a pedigree that approaches that of El Norteño, a venerable elder statesperson in the Duke City’s burgeoning and constantly evolving Mexican restaurant scene. El Norteño has been pleasing local diners for more than a quarter of a century as evinced by its perennial selection as the city’s “Best Mexican” restaurant. Respondents to the Alibi’s annual “best of” poll accorded El Norteño that coveted accolade against increasingly more formidable competition every year for seven consecutive years. Launched in 1986 by Leo and Martha Nuñez, El Norteño is an Albuquerque institution, a Mexican restaurant which can’t…

Albuquerque American Brunch Closed in 2025 Gone But Not Forgotten Rating: Outstanding

Zinc Wine Bar & Bistro – Albuquerque, New Mexico (CLOSED)

Gil GardunoAugust 4, 2014March 31, 20266:06 AM

Albuquerque’s Nob Hill district largely owes its emergence as the city’s first “suburb” to Route 66, the great Mother Road which carried Americans westward. Because of Route 66, the Nob Hill area has been, since before World War II, a thriving residential community replete with restaurants, motels, a modern movie theater, pharmacies and restaurants. Today it remains the city’s cultural heart and, thanks to the preservation of Route 66 era architecture, retains much of the charm that captivated west bound sojourners. New tenants such as Zinc Wine Bar & Bistro which launched in 2003 hold court in well preserved brick…

Albuquerque Closed in 2016 Gone But Not Forgotten New Mexican New Mexico

Patricia’s Cafe – Albuquerque, New Mexico

Gil GardunoAugust 1, 2014July 15, 201812:00 PM

For nearly twenty years–from 1954 to 1972–newspaper, magazine, radio and television advertisements for Winston cigarettes deliberated whether American smokers wanted good grammar or good taste. This was in response to catchy jingles (and if you’re over 40, get ready for an ear worm) claiming that “Winston tastes good like a cigarette should.” Grammarians took umbrage with the solecism, arguing that the word “as” was more appropriate than the word “like.” From 1974 to 1991 the advertising world introduced another vexing debate: “tastes great” or “less filling.” To entice “Joe Sixpack”‘ to Lite Beer from Miller, television ads featured retired athletes,…

Albuquerque American Closed in 2017 Gone But Not Forgotten New Mexico

Delish – Albuquerque, New Mexico (CLOSED)

Gil GardunoJuly 28, 2014July 15, 20185:42 PM

Rachael Ray may be the most reviled celebrity cook or chef on network and cable television. While adoring fans admire her perkiness and down-to-earth approachability, it’s those traits grumpy detractors (including other celebrity chefs and food writers) seem to find most offensive. Well, that and the way she punctuates sentences with one of her many trademark catchphrases. Entire blogs are dedicated to disparaging her use of “Rachael Rayisms” with heated discussions revolving around the most annoying of her cutesy (or not so very much, depending on your perspective) catchphrases. It’s a true testament to her popularity that one of those…

Albuquerque Closed in 2017 Gone But Not Forgotten Italian Pizza Rating: Excellent

Nicky V’s Neighborhood Pizzeria & Patio – Albuquerque, New Mexico (CLOSED)

Gil GardunoJuly 20, 2014March 31, 20262:32 AM

Just when you think you’ve seen it all and you think nothing else can possibly been done to exploit the versatility in pizza, something comes along which surprises you. One such example is the “make your own pie” proposal by the entrepreneurial Kramerica Industries, a proposal which prompted extensive water cooler discussions. Flamboyant CEO Cosmo Kramer envisioned a pizzeria in which “we give you the dough, you smash it, you pound it, you fling it in the air; and then you get to put your sauce and you get to sprinkle it over your cheese, and they–you slide it into…

Albuquerque American Closed in 2014 Fine Dining Gone But Not Forgotten New Mexico

Bouche – Albuquerque, New Mexico (CLOSED)

Gil GardunoJuly 16, 2014July 15, 20189:44 AM

Career paths do not always unfold as stereotypes might dictate. Heavily recruited out of Mission, Texas, a high school football hotbed, Frans Dinklemann, a 6’6″ 241-pound defensive end, signed with the University of New Mexico where his Lobo teammates included perennial National Football League (NFL) All-Pro Brian Urlacher. By his senior year, Frans had grown to 6’7″ and 270 pounds and moved to the offensive line where he set the team weight room record for offensive linemen with a 33-inch vertical leap. The stereotype of the offensive lineman is of a brutish behemoth heavy on brawn and light on brain,…

American Closed in 2015 Corrales Gone But Not Forgotten New Mexico

The Spot Cafe – Corrales, New Mexico (CLOSED)

Gil GardunoJuly 13, 2014July 15, 20186:56 AM

Big Bang Theory wunderkind Sheldon Cooper has a spot he describes as the “singular location in space around which revolves my entire universe.” That spot is the left side of his couch, a location he has placed “in a state of eternal dibs.” In scientific terms, Sheldon relates his spot as “a single point of consistency in an ever-changing world.” His attachment to that one spot borders on obsession, but he’s not the only television character that possessive of his spot. In television comedies, characters have always had their favorite spots and show little tolerance for anybody who tries to…

Burgers Closed in 2021 Gone But Not Forgotten New Mexico New Mexico Green Chile Cheeseburger Trail: 2009 New Mexico Green Chile Cheeseburger Trail: 2011

Magdalena Cafe – Magdalena, New Mexico (CLOSED)

Gil GardunoJuly 9, 2014August 19, 202410:50 AM

In 1863 during the height of the Civil War, soldiers on leave from Fort Craig staked claims to silver strikes in the Magdalena Mountains. Within a few years, the boom towns of Kelly and Magdalena had sprung up, eventually achieving a population surpassing even Socorro, the county seat. The first veins of metal ore given up by the rocky promontories were lead and zinc, but ultimately silver became the principal source of wealth. With the arrival of the railroad in 1884, Magdalena became a rowdy frontier mining town and one of the Southwest’s largest cattle shipping centers with its stockyards…

Announcements

Fubelly: Solving the Age-Old Question of “Where Should We Eat Right Now?”

Gil GardunoJune 24, 2014July 15, 201811:48 AM

“Panza llena, corazon contento,” the pithy Spanish saying which translates to “full belly, happy heart” is the mantra by which many restaurants in New Mexico operate. That sentiment is expressed in other parts of the country as “fubelly,” a diminutive of “full belly” with an implied tone of “happy heart.” On Monday, June 23rd, 2014, Fubelly, an online discovery platform was launched in Albuquerque with the goal of helping Duke City diners achieve fubelly. Fubelly celebrates Albuquerque’s food culture in a medium ideally tailored for story-telling, utilizing videos with a very high production value to showcase some of the Duke…

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

Geoffrey’s Malibu – Malibu, California

Gil GardunoJune 20, 2014April 6, 20269:42 AM

The walls at Geoffrey’s Malibu are festooned with copies of whimsical framed “doodles” created by Hollywood celebrities and movie stars who have dined at the posh seaside restaurant. Most are tongue-in-cheek self-portraits which probably speak volumes about the glitterati themselves–and not just whether they lack or are blessed with an artistic talent beyond their particular medium. Thematically, all the portraits include a heart. That’s because Harvey Baskin, the restaurant’s previous owner asked the artists to donate originals for publication and sale in support of a charity for children with heart disease. Jane Russell’s heart forms her shapely derriere at the…