The Mouse Hole – Albuquerque, New Mexico
My Chicago born-and-bred bride and I often debate the merits and pitfalls of the Albuquerque metropolitan growing large enough to support more cultural opportunities, larger sports venues and ethnic restaurants we don’t currently have. Having grown up with those amenities, she knows more urban growth also means an increase in crime (as if we didn’t have enough already); more cronyism, corruption and collusion among the political cabal; more pollution, gentrification, traffic congestion, etc. Neither one of us wants Albuquerque to become another Big Cheese like Phoenix (though increasingly we’ve grown to love the Valley of the Sun’s restaurants). We would, however, love a Big Cheese shop like one in Toronto. If you’ve tuned in to a Hulu series called “Cheese: A Love Story,” you know of what I speak. The series centers around Afrim Pristine, one of the youngest maître fromagiers (cheese masters) in the world. That means he really is a big cheese…so much more than a turophile (a gourmet/ connoisseur of cheese) like me. His appreciation for and knowledge of cheese puts me to shame. As in every métier, it took significant time and effort to achieve his level of expertise. It did help that he was born…