Tag: Mac and Cheese

CajunDog FriendlyNew MexicoRating: ExcellentRio RanchoSoul FoodSouthern

K’Lynn’s Cuisine – Rio Rancho, New Mexico

Gil Garduno5:29 PM

Before permanent signage was mounted, a tethered banner in front of K’Lynn’s Southern & Cajun Fusion in Rio Rancho listed a few of the delicious treasures available in the tiny restaurant: “catfish, BBQ, gumbo, po boys, jerk chicken, carne adovada fries & more!” Yeah, we did a double-take, too. One of those items just seemed a bit out-of-place? If you’re thinking “carne adovada fries” don’t belong on the list because they’re not Soul food, you’d be wrong. Carne adovada fries definitely belong on the list. So does jerk chicken which, by most conventional definitions, isn’t soul food either. The one item we thought to be out-of-place was “& more.” I mean what more could you possibly want listed on the banner. If it didn’t have you at “catfish” you probably haven’t had catfish down South…and if it didn’t seal the deal with “gumbo,” you definitely need an infusion of South in your mouth. Beyond catfish and gumbo, the rest is gravy and it’s absolutely delicious. Until the summer of 2016, restaurant-goers craving Southern cuisine had only one option for soul food, albeit a wonderful option in Bucket Headz (sadly now closed). For those of us on the “west side,” the…

AmericanClosed in 2025Dog FriendlyGone But Not ForgottenNew MexicoRio Rancho

Whiptail – Rio Rancho, New Mexico (CLOSED)

Gil Garduno12:01 AM

We all know New Mexico has an official state aroma (green chiles roasting),  an official state cookie (biscochito),  official state vegetables (chile and pinto beans), but did you know the Land of Enchantment has an official state reptile?  Chastity Bustos does.  In fact, in she named her new eatery  in honor of that reptile, the New Mexico whiptail (Aspidoscelis neomexicanus).  When I asked Chastity if she knew the New Mexico whiptail is a female-only species that doesn’t need male lizards to reproduce, she jokingly replied “it’s all about girl power.” Don’t get the impression that Chastity subscribes to the slogan popularized by feminist icon Gloria Steinem: “A woman needs a man like a fish needs a bicycle.”  Chastity and her husband Brian have an egalitarian business relationship.  She manages day-to-day operations for Whiptail and he does the same for their other restaurant, Philly Steaks on Albuquerque’s east side. As soon as work began on the Highway 528 restaurant that for years had housed Banana Leaf, City of Vision residents became giddy with excitement.  It’s not everyday a new restaurant opens up in Rio Rancho.  Social media postings, particularly on Nextdoor swelled excitement and divulged revelations. “Visionaries” not only learned the new…

AlbuquerqueAmericanDog FriendlyNew MexicoRating: Excellent

The Kosmos – Albuquerque, New Mexico

Gil Garduno8:22 AM

Even though New Mexico’s license plates have been graced with the sobriquet “Land of Enchantment” since 1941, it didn’t become the state’s official nickname until 1999. For much longer than that, the more derisive epithet “Land of Entrapment” has also been in use. In 1955, the New Mexico Motor Club began using it because state highway police were perceived as being overly “aggressive and deceptive” in ticketing motorists. That infamous Land of Entrapment nickname is sadly still in use, primarily by malcontents and miscreants who wouldn’t recognize enchantment if it gave them 280 days of sunshine a year. Those of us with unbridled state pride prefer to think that New Mexico enrapts you with its enchantment; it doesn’t entrap you. For us, New Mexico truly is the Land of Enraptment…er, Enchantment. No matter the length of time away, every time we set foot back in the Land of Enchantment, we just “get it” the same way we got it the first time we stepped onto its enchanted soil.  Perhaps more accurately, New Mexico gets to us. It weaves its preternatural spell and stirs something deeply in those of us open enough to its calling. English writer D. H. Lawrence said…

AmericanBakeryBernalilloBreakfastDog FriendlyNew MexicanNew MexicoRating: Very Good

The Range – Bernalillo, New Mexico

Gil Garduno2:43 AM

The phoenix of ancient Egyptian mythology was a sacred firebird of beautiful red and gold plumage said to live for centuries. At the end of its life, the phoenix built itself a nest of cinnamon twigs which it then ignited. Both the phoenix and the nest burned fiercely and were reduced to ashes from which a new phoenix arose. Similarly, the Range Cafe in Bernalillo was claimed by a fiery conflagration only to rise up from the ashes to exceed its former glory to become one of the most popular restaurants in New Mexico. Like the phoenix, the Range is a rare breed–one of the few locally owned and operated (non-chain) restaurants which at any given time (make that, almost all the time) has diners lining up for a seat. That may be because the Range offers the “familiar” in serving comfort foods and local favorites and serves them in the profuse portion sizes American diners love. The original Range debuted in September, 1992 in Bernalillo’s main street, Camino Del Pueblo. The restaurant was an instant success, quickly becoming more than a local favorite. Not quite three years later (on May 30, 1995), the Range went up in smoke–a huge…

AlbuquerqueChickenDog FriendlyNew MexicoSpecialty

KūKri – Albuquerque, New Mexico

Gil Garduno12:01 AM

In one of the most famous soliloquies ever penned, Juliet Capulet pondered “What’s in a name?  That which we call a rose by any other name would smell as sweet.”  As restaurateurs know, the success or failure of a new restaurant can hinge on many factors, not the least of which is an intriguing name.  Great restaurant names can create an aura that elicits salivation even before a guest has stepped through the door.  A restaurant’s name should add to its allure not cause potential guests to ponder what the heck it means. That is…unless you’re a logophile (someone who loves words).  Those of us with that particular affliction try to figure out a word’s etymology (study of the meanings of words) without consulting a dictionary.  Such was the case when I read about a new Duke City eatery called KūKri.  My initial assessment that the name was a twist on the city’s name, much like television station KRQE and radio station KRKE.  Had the “r” and the “K” been transposed, that assessment would have made sense.  I would have to look it up. According to online sources a “kukri” is a type of machete originating used as a handheld…