AlbuquerqueContinentalDog FriendlyNew MexicoRating: OutstandingSpecialty

The Mouse Hole – Albuquerque, New Mexico

Gil Garduno12:01 AM

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,…

BreakfastBreakfast BurritosNew MexicoRating: ExcellentSanta FeSouthwestern

Plaza Cafe Southside – Santa Fe, New Mexico

Gil Garduno2:37 PM

Santa Fe’s oldest restaurant (circa 1918), the Plaza Cafe is so popular that long waits to be seated are commonplace. Compound that with the hassle of trying to find a parking spot that isn’t a marathon’s length to walk to and from the Cafe then having to navigate through throngs of awestruck tourists and it’s a restaurant we don’t visit as often as we’d like. Our visits have become even more infrequent thanks to the 2003 launch of the Plaza Cafe’s sister restaurant (albeit a sister that’s 84 years younger) on Santa Fe’s south side. The Plaza Cafe Southside, situated…

AlbuquerqueAsianKoreanNew MexicoRating: N/R (Not Rated)

Kokio Chicken – Albuquerque, New Mexico

Gil Garduno12:01 AM

Most culinary historians agree that black American soldiers stationed in Korea during the Korean War (June 25, 1950 – July 27, 1953) taught the Korean soldiers with whom they fought side-by-side how to make fried chicken.  Popular theory holds that black American soldiers wanting to celebrate American Thanksgiving feasted with fried chicken. (Apparently not even scrounge-master Radar O’Reilly could find a turkey in the entire Korean peninsula).   The fried chicken was shared with their Korean compatriots. Before that memorable Thanksgiving celebration, chicken in Korea was commonly served boiled in stews.   Eating it  fried was an entirely new experience…

AlbuquerqueItalianNew MexicoRating: Excellent

Il Localetto Rossi Italian Cuisine – Albuquerque, New Mexico

Gil Garduno12:01 AM

Academy Award-nominated actor Stanley Tucci and I share a selfsame perspective on eating well:  “To me, eating well is not just about what tastes good but about the connections that are made through the food itself. I am hardly saying anything new by stating that our links to what we eat have practically disappeared beneath sheets of plastic wrap. But what are also disappearing are the wonderful, vital human connections we’re able to make when we buy something we love to eat from someone who loves to sell it, who bought it from someone who loves to grow, catch, or…

AlbuquerqueMexicanNew MexicoRating: N/R (Not Rated)Tacos

La Zenita – Albuquerque, New Mexico

Gil Garduno12:01 AM

In his immortal play Romeo and Juliet, William Shakespeare used two lines to convey that the naming of things is irrelevant: “What’s in a name? That which we call a rose by any other name would smell just as sweet.”   My friends Bruce and Loren Plata like to remind me that in Hebrew, the name “Gil” represents a “small goat,” an animal that definitely doesn’t smell quite as fragrant as a rose.  My retort, of course, is that “goat” is an acronym for “greatest of all time.”  So, relevant or not, names do have meanings and can provide a…

AlbuquerqueBrunchBuffetClosed in 2026Gone But Not ForgottenMexicanNew Mexico

Los Felix – Albuquerque, New Mexico (CLOSED)

Gil Garduno12:01 AM

As we strode into Los Felix on a windy Saturday in May, we espied a very attractive young lady pointing an extendable selfie stick at her face as she spoke a thousand words a minute.  “Great,” we figured “another self-absorbed Gen Xer sharing the mundane details of her day on social media.”  Boy were we wrong.  That young lady turned out to be Gaby Camez, a social media influencer who posts restaurant reviews on Facebook.  Gaby’s site, Comiendo Rico en Albuquerque, is a celebration of the Duke City’s Mexican restaurants. Even if you’re not fortunate enough to speak and understand…

AlbuquerqueAmericanNew Mexico

Hollow Point Cuisine – Albuquerque, New Mexico (REDESIGNATED)

Gil Garduno12:01 AM

NOTE:  This review is no longer accurate.   According to The Bite: In other distillery news, >Hollow Spirits is moving into the building vacated by Bosque Brewing’s Heights Public House. The third-largest distillery in the state, Hollow Spirits has switched gears more than once with their original downtown Albuquerque location, which now operates strictly as a production facility and events space. Their new spot in the Heights will be open to the public, with a 5,000-foot patio in addition to indoor space, but no reports yet on what will be coming out of the kitchen. In every profession–from teachers to NFL players–some people…

AmericanMadridNew MexicoNew Mexico Culinary Treasures TrailNew Mexico Green Chile Cheeseburger Trail: 2011Rating: Excellent

The Mine Shaft Tavern – Madrid, New Mexico

Gil Garduno12:01 AM

“You load sixteen tons and what do you get? Another day older and deeper in debt. St. Peter, don’t you call me cause I can’t go. I owe my soul to the company store.” Those immortal lyrics, hauntingly performed by crooner Tennessee Ernie Ford describe with a poignant reality, the plight of the American miner even onto the 20th century. By payday, which came at month’s end, miners did indeed owe their souls to the company–for the company house in which they were living, for groceries to feed their families, for doctor bills and even for the tools they used…

Dog FriendlyItalianNew MexicoPizzaRating: OutstandingRio Rancho

M’tucci’s Moderno – Rio Rancho, New Mexico

Gil Garduno4:23 PM

“If I can make it there, I’ll make it anywhere It’s up to you, New York, New York <” ~Frank Sinatra Jeff Spiegel, the much-missed managing partner of the insanely popular M’tucci’s family of restaurants once described flagship restaurant M’tucci’s Italian Restaurant (previously M’tucci’s Kitchina) as “as good as anything we did in New York City.” That is really saying something considering over the course of 23 years, Jeff and his wife, life and business partner Katie Gardner owned and operated eleven restaurants in The Big Apple. Those eclectic eleven were highly regarded dining establishments, earning praise and acclaim from…

AlbuquerqueItalianNew Mexico

Trombino’s Bistro Italiano – Albuquerque, New Mexico

Gil Garduno12:15 AM

One commonality among conservatives and liberals is an unwaivering belief that “their side” is right and the other side is pretty stupid.  Idealogues on both sides wonder how the other side can be so wrong in their thinking. They both wonder why people on the other side refuse to listen to reason and to truths that are so obvious.  On a bilateral basis, both sides stubbornly hold to their beliefs, refusing to concede any merit to any matter contrary to their own.  Partisan affiliations get tied up in personal identities.  Any attack on our strongly held beliefs is a personal…

AlbuquerqueAmericanDog FriendlyIndianNew MexicoRating: Very Good

Marigold Cafe – Albuquerque, New Mexico

Gil Garduno12:01 AM

It’s not all parents who can give birth to two children in a six week period, but that’s precisely what Harrison and Violet did.  In early October, 2019, they welcomed into the world a beautiful bundle of love they christened Jasmine.  Just before Thanksgiving six weeks later, they greeted their second “baby” when Marigold Cafe opened its doors in the Journal Center area retail space which also houses Restoration Pizza and Cabela’s.  Along with Torinos @ Home, these two bookend restaurants just may make the Journal Center area a dinnertime dining destination instead of just two other restaurants serving the…