Tag: Food Network

ColoradoDiners Drive-Ins and DivesItalianRating: N/R (Not Rated)United States

Paravicini’s Italian Bistro – Colorado Springs, Colorado

Gil Garduno12:01 AM

Para vicini translates roughly from Italian to “for the neighborhood.”  Paravicini’s Italian Bistro isn’t located in just any Colorado Springs neighborhood.  It’s located in the heart of Old Colorado City, the historic west side of Colorado Springs. Founded in 1859 during the Pikes Peak Gold Rush, Old Colorado City was the first permanent settlement in the region and briefly served as the first capital of the Colorado Territory. In 1917, it was annexed and incorporated into Colorado Springs. Today, the former wild-west town is listed on the National Register of Historic Places and functions as a pedestrian-friendly arts and dining…

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Red Gravy – Colorado Springs, Colorado

Gil Garduno12:01 AM

There wasn’t much ethnic or cultural diversity in Peñasco where I grew up. Our little village was overwhelmingly (probably 98% if not more) Hispanic. One of the only other ethnic groups in the area were non-Hispanic white residents, most of whom worked either as teachers or for the forest services. Other whites were “left overs” from the years in which a hippie commune set up camp nearby. We also had a couple of families (Sahds and Owens) of Lebanese descent. Everyone referred to them as “Los Arabes” because Arabic is the principle language in Lebanon. Los Arabes were (and still…

ArizonaDiners Drive-Ins and DivesItalianPizzaRating: OutstandingUnited States

Fat Olives – Flagstaff, Arizona

Gil Garduno12:01 AM

Several years and a couple of tons ago, my friend “Macho” Mike Moretti and I were the type of trenchermen that all-you-can-eat Chinese restaurants feared so much they established strict time limits.  When a German restaurant on San Mateo offered a free dessert to any diner who could finish a gargantuan combination plate, we easily surmounted the challenge and asked for seconds.  Perhaps our most impressive culinary conquest transpired when Pizza Inn offered a “order one pizza, get the next size free” deal.  We ordered an extra large pizza and a large pizza then polished them off.  That was the…

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The Wild Thaiger – Phoenix, Arizona

Gil Garduno12:01 AM

Wild Thaiger, burning bright In the Phoenix desert night, What immortal hand or eye Could frame thy fiery beef Panang curry? I’m no William Blake, but my inaugural visit to Wild Thaiger in Phoenix, Arizona inspired me to wax poetic.  It would be peurile of me to pen an unctuous description of Chef-Owner Olashawn Hasadinratana-Weaver (Ola for short) that might have included the terms “cougar” or “tigress.”   Chef Ola is a serious, self-taught chef who learned the art of cooking from her family’s rich Thai culinary traditions and honed her skills hands-on in the restaurant industry.  To view her as…

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Coda Bakery – Albuquerque, New Mexico

Gil Garduno12:01 AM

JP, my former boss at Intel used to pride himself on consistently working “half days.” If you’re thinking you’d like a job where you work only four hours a day, you’ve misinterpreted his definition of “half days.” To him, half days is a literal term meaning twelve hours a day. When most of us are done for after only nine or ten hours, he was just starting what he called his “second shift.” Very few of us have the stamina, initiative and especially the passion for what we do to work “half days.” I know restaurateurs for whom half days…

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Harry’s Roadhouse – Santa Fe, New Mexico

Gil Garduno3:12 AM

Roadhouses–great inns and restaurants located near major highways traversing the country–once dotted America’s fruited plain, offering respite and sustenance to weary or hungry travelers. Renown for serving great comfort foods, they have been an important part of America’s heritage though with the advent of fast food restaurants and chains, fewer authentic roadhouses exist today.  Harry’s Roadhouse may be a bit more sophisticated and eclectic than its roadhouse brethren, offering several kinds of pizza, sandwiches, burgers, salads, pastas, Cajun and Asian cuisine as well as American comfort food standards that give it a feel and taste of home. To say it’s…

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Birdies by Chef Kevin Lee – Edmond, Oklahoma

Gil Garduno12:01 AM

My Kim and I regard ourselves as ambassadors for the great state of New Mexico, especially when we travel.  We’re often asked where we’re from.  Invariably we run into people whose perceptions about the Land of Enchantment are far from kind.  Some actually believe Breaking Bad is a documentary about the condition of life in New Mexico where wild west lawlessness is rampant.  If only perceptions of New Mexico were as gracious and kind as those of Oklahoma.  Throughout our week-long sojourn in the Sooner State, state pride was palpable.   You would expect that from locals, but some of the…

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My Moms – Albuquerque, New Mexico (CLOSED)

Gil Garduno5:01 PM

“God could not be everywhere, and therefore he made mothers.” —Rudyard Kipling Should you have the pleasure of getting to know Chef Marie Yniguez, even a little, you’ll come away with three absolute certainties.  First, Albuquerque’s arguably most famous celebrity chef is unabashedly herself.  The happy, loving, gregarious person you’ve seen on numerous Food Network culinary competitions doesn’t have a pretentious bone in her body.  She is as genuine and sincere as they come.  Though she left the hardscrabble mining town of Hurley, New Mexico a lifetime ago, she remains a country girl at heart. And even though she was…

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Level 5 Rooftop Restaurant – Albuquerque, New Mexico

Gil Garduno12:01 AM

For a nearly four-hundred year period, the Anasazi civilization which preceded New Mexico’s Pueblo cultures achieved the pinnacle of its technological and cultural advancement at a magnificent,  deep gorge called Chaco Canyon. Within the walls of Chaco Canyon, construction of multi-level buildings sprung up, some structures accommodating as many as  800 rooms. Not surprisingly, lower walls had to be made massive in order to support heavy stone walls up to five floors high.  It took remarkable planning to locate doors, passageways, kivas and other architectural features.  At five stories high,  Pueblo Bonito was the largest structure and the inspiration for…

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Monte Carlo Steakhouse – Albuquerque, New Mexico

Gil Garduno4:48 AM

“Last night I broke the seal on a Jim Beam decanter That looks like Elvis.” ~George Jones Having spent much of his career in an inebriated state, Country music icon George Jones actually lived the life experiences that inspired much of his music. After one of his four divorces, Jones sat alone in a rather empty home, his ex-wife having absconded with almost everything–furniture, china, glassware and more. Among the few items left behind were a small table, a Jim Beam whiskey decanter bearing the likeness of Elvis Presley, and a Fred Flintstone jar of jelly beans. After dumping the…

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Alyonka Russian Cuisine – Boise, Idaho

Gil Garduno12:01 AM

In the 1970s when most people still had a sense of humor and society wasn’t offended by virtually everything, Wendy’s ran a commercial humorously depicting a Soviet fashion show.  This fashion show portrayed a heavyset (calorically challenged if you insist on political correctness) Russian woman modeling day wear, evening wear and swim wear.  In each case, the attire was exactly the same–a drab wool sack with matching hat.  Only her accessories were different: a beach ball for swim wear and a flashlight for evening wear.  A Soviet ambassador appeared on television to condemn the depiction of Russian womanhood.  Before the…