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2024 James Beard Foundation "Best Chef - Southwest" Semifinalist 2024: James Beard Foundation "Best Chef - Southwest" Finalist 2026 James beard Foundation: "Best Chef - Southwest" Semifinalist Albuquerque Farm to Table Fine Dining James Beard Foundation (JBF) Award Nominees & Winners New Mexico Rating: N/R (Not Rated)

Mesa Provisions – Albuquerque, New Mexico

Gil GardunoOctober 20, 2023April 6, 202612:01 AM

When I started Gil’s Thrilling…way back in 1996, my goals were to celebrate New Mexico’s restaurant scene and to provide an escape from the mean-spirited dialogue so prevalent among petulant politicians who have long forgotten they work for us. I’ve tried not to lash out against politics through this medium I’m privileged to steward, but sometimes my frustration leaks out. For those occasions I apologize. I promise to try harder to focus on the joy I experience every time I dine with good friends. When I’m upset with the latest shenanigans in Washington, D.C. and Santa Fe, those friends buoy my spirits with convivial discourse over a great meal. Such was the case when I met Linda Johansen (my former boss and the doyenne of Information Technology at the University of New Mexico) for dinner at Mesa Provisions. You might think when IT propeller heads get together we’d talk shop for hours on end, but that’s not the case when Linda and I break bread. Linda may be even more passionate about gastronomy than this self-glossed gastronome. As a certified Kansas City Barbecue Society (KCBS) judge, she recently had the privilege of judging at the American Royal World Series…

Announcements

Red and Green: New Mexico’s Food Scene is On Fire – July, 2026

Gil GardunoAugust 1, 2026August 1, 20261:01 AM

SWEET DREAMS ARE MADE OF CHEESE: I often self-gloss as a turophile, a connoisseur, enthusiast, or lover of cheese. Compared with Hanna Lee of Albuquerque’s Mouse Hole Cheese Shop, I’m a rank amateur. At the 2026 Cheesemonger Invitational (often referred to as the “Olympics of cheese”) in New York, Hannah eaarned the title of “Best Cheesemonger in America,” one of the cheese industry’s most prestigious honors. Hannah is a cheesemonger at the Mouse Hole, the city’s only cut-to-order cheese shop. The Mouse Hole specializes in small-batch artisan cheeses from around the world and offers seasonal food, cheese pairings and a Cheese of the Month Club. The Downtown Albuquerque shop specializes in sourcing artisan cheeses from small producers who prioritize quality, animal welfare and sustainable farming.. FOR I WAS HUNGRY AND YOU GAVE ME TO EAT: The Gospel of Matthew (25:35) teaches about kindness, love, and helping people in need. “For I was hungry and you gave me to eat. I was in prison and you came to visit me.” Navajo Chef Justin Pioche, a 2026 “Chopped” winner cooked alongside incarcerated individuals and world-renowned chefs at Grafton Correctional Institution in Ohio for a charity dinner organized by the EDWINS Leadership and Restaurant…

Albuquerque New Mexico Pizza

Tony’s Pizzeria – Albuquerque, New Mexico

Gil GardunoJuly 7, 2026July 10, 202612:01 AM

Why is it so hard to convince others to change their minds and hearts? That’s a question philosophers, psychologists and even curious hoi polloi like me have pondered over for millennia. Perhaps never has that question been brought to the fore as during recent political events. Sadly, the question takes on even more of a personal bent when you believe someone else’s views betray something inherently rotten about their character—or when someone else believes the same about yours. Rightly or wrongly, we’re wired to believe people’s views are barometers of their moral conscience. Psychologists have long posited the existence of a confirmation bias which is a tendency to seek out information that confirms our existing views and to avoid information that disconfirms them. Confirmation bias has exploded with the advent of social media. Specific algorithms present information that appeals to our tastes. Finding that information confirms our beliefs and rewards our dopamine receptors. Studies have also shown that when presented with information we don’t like or with which we disagree, our brains literally shut off and ignore it. That accounts for the reason we as humans tend to “hang out” with people who are like us and believe the same…

Announcements Red or Green - New Mexico Food Scene is on Fire

Red and Green: New Mexico’s Culinary Scene Was on Fire in 2025

Gil GardunoJanuary 1, 2026January 1, 202612:01 AM

T’was the year that was, a banner year for Gil’s Thrilling (And Filling) Blog with more milestones having been achieved. Most significantly to your friendly neighborhood restaurant review blogger was the continued dialogue–your sharing of comments noting contentment, humor, news or displeasure with me or some other food topic. There are now 14,838 comments on 1,507 reviews. My edacious publicist Bob of the Village of Los Ranchos (BOTVOLR) retains the lifetime commenter achievement award with well over 1200 comments over the life of the blog. In 2024, however, he was supplanted by the always clever and witty Lynn Garner as the year’s most prolific commenter. 2025 saw the launch of several new restaurants, several of which appear to have long-term appeal. The year also saw the closure of several stalwarts, some of whom served the Duke City for decades. Among those are Zinc Wine & Bistro, Budai Gourmet Chinese and Scalo. Here is a list of the most popular reviews on Gil’s Thrilling… MOST POPULAR REVIEWS: 2025 Papa Felipe’s Mexican Restaurant (Albuquerque) Gimani: A Slice Bar (Albuquerque) Perea’s Tijuana Bar & Restaurant (Corrales) Ramona’s Mexican Cafe (Albuquerque) The Burrito Lady (Albuquerque) Il Localetto Rossi (Albuquerque The Sandwich Company (Albuquerque) My…

Announcements Red or Green - New Mexico Food Scene is on Fire

Red and Green: New Mexico’s Culinary Scene Was on Fire in 2024

Gil GardunoJanuary 2, 2025November 9, 202512:01 AM

T’was the year that was, a banner year for Gil’s Thrilling (And Filling) Blog with more milestones having been achieved. Most significantly to your friendly neighborhood restaurant review blogger was the continued dialogue–your sharing of comments noting contentment, humor, news or displeasure with me or some other food topic. There are now 14,455 comments on 1,442 reviews. My edacious publicist Bob of the Village of Los Ranchos (BOTVOLR) retains the lifetime commenter achievement award with well over 1200 comments over the life of the blog. In 2024, however, he was supplanted by the always clever and witty Lynn Garner as the year’s most prolific commenter. 2024 saw the launch of several new restaurants, several of which appear to have long-term appeal. The year also saw the closure of several stalwarts, some of whom served the Duke City for decades. Among those are Monica’s El Portal and Caruso’s Italian Restaurant in Albuquerque and Mucho Gusto in Santa Fe. Here is a list of the most popular reviews on Gil’s Thrilling… MOST POPULAR REVIEWS: 2024 MOST POPULAR REVIEWS: ALL-TIME Gimani: A Slice Bar – Albuquerque Mary & Tito’s (Albuquerque) East Ocean Chinese & Seafood – Albuquerque Buckhorn Tavern (San Antonio) Mulas – Corrales The…

Announcements Red or Green - New Mexico Food Scene is on Fire

Red or Green–New Mexico’s Food Scene Was on Fire in 2023

Gil GardunoJanuary 1, 2024January 19, 202412:03 AM

2023: The Year In Review T’was the year that was, a banner year for Gil’s Thrilling (And Filling) Blog with more milestones having been achieved. Most significantly to your friendly neighborhood restaurant review blogger was the continued dialogue–your sharing of comments noting contentment, humor, news or displeasure with me or some other food topic. There are now 13,869 comments on 1,370 reviews, an increase of 619 comments and 59 new reviews over 2022. My edacious publicist Bob of the Village of Los Ranchos (BOTVOLR) retains the lifetime commenter achievement award with well over 1200 comments over the life of the blog. In 2023, however, he was supplanted by the always clever and witty Lynn Garner as the year’s most prolific commenter. 2023 saw the launch of several new restaurants, several of which appear to have long-term appeal. The year also saw the closure of several stalwarts. The closure which seemed to draw the most ire (particularly for Mayor Keller) was Griff’s, a presence on Central Avenue for more than 60 years. In a press release, the Griff’s corporation noted “there have been too many incidents at the location making it “unsafe and undesirable” to continue operating there. Griff’s has…

Albuquerque Restaurant Index

Gil GardunoJanuary 16, 2017July 29, 20268:14 AM

Closed in 2010 Colorado Gone But Not Forgotten Steak United States

The Hamilton Chop House – Durango, Colorado (CLOSED)

Gil GardunoAugust 21, 2008March 31, 20266:17 PM

The Land of Enchantment with its 121,356 square miles of deserts, mesas, rivers, mountains, forests, cities and villages is the fifth largest state in the country. In 2007, Albuquerque’s KOAT television station began a recurring series in which the station treated its viewers to an aerial perspective of many of the communities in its viewing area. That unique bird’s eye view perspective was captured from Sky 7, the station’s news helicopter. In 2008, the station expanded its coverage, sending news anchor and New Mexico native Royale Dá skyward once again to show viewers the challenges faced by the communities featured on the series and how they are dealing with those challenges. Royale was joined by city leaders from throughout the viewing area who boarded Sky 7 to share what makes their communities so special. One of the few cities visited in 2008 outside of New Mexico’s borders was Durango, Colorado, long a part of KOAT’s viewing area. During the aerial tour of the city, Durango’s Director of Planning and Community Development Greg Hoch indicated that Durango actually has more restaurants per capita than the city of San Francisco. With a population of nearly 750,000 people, the city of San Francisco numbers just about 2,700 restaurants within its boundaries, giving…