{"id":241,"date":"2019-05-29T20:12:06","date_gmt":"2019-05-30T02:12:06","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.nmgastronome.com\/?p=241"},"modified":"2025-04-09T09:54:05","modified_gmt":"2025-04-09T15:54:05","slug":"cecilias-cafe-albuquerque-new-mexico","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.nmgastronome.com\/?p=241","title":{"rendered":"Cecilia’s Cafe – Albuquerque, New Mexico (CLOSED)"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Cecilia’s Cafe, a hidden downtown gem and one of New Mexico’s most famous restaurants<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

FROM INSTAGRAM (December, 2024)<\/strong>:\u00a0 After 25 years on the corner of 6th & Silver, Cecilia’s Caf\u00e9 has closed its doors. This New Mexican breakfast and lunch restaurant was once featured on the Food Network and was a beloved space for locals.\u00a0 Owner Cecilia Baca cited persistent challenges with homeless people, issues finding employees, and the remote\/hybrid work phenomenon as key reasons for closing. Since the pandemic, “customers aren’t working a full week,” she said. “Just a lot of little things that made me realize that Downtown will not come back to life the way it was before COVID.”<\/span><\/p>\n

Pasqual Baylon’s devotion to the Mass and the Holy Eucharist was so fervent that even when assigned kitchen duty, he remained so enraptured in adoration of the Eucharist that angels had to stir the pots to keep them from burning.\u00a0 It’s deliciously ironic, therefore, that San Pasqual is the recognized patron saint of Mexican and New Mexican kitchens, a beloved saint whose smiling countenance graces many a kitchen, including the one in Cecilia’s Cafe, one of Albuquerque’s most authentic (and best) New Mexican restaurants. <\/span><\/p>\n

On the day Cecilia opened her cafe back in 1999, she found a small retablo (a painting with a religious theme) of San Pasqual on her restaurant’s stoop.\u00a0 To this day, no one knows who left that retablo which now hangs near the kitchen’s entrance.\u00a0 If you’re inclined to believe in miracles…or at least in a favorable omen, San Pasqual was portend of greatness for this humble little restaurant. <\/span><\/p>\n

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San Pascual Watches over Cecilia as she Discusses her Menu With us<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

When Cecilia says the secret ingredient in her cooking is love, she knows it comes from her heart, but she also doesn’t discount divine inspiration from her kitchen’s patron saint.\u00a0 One meal at Cecilia’s Cafe and you’ll probably be disposed to believe her food is inspired.\u00a0 If you’re a native New Mexican, you might even call it miraculous.\u00a0 That’s because this is New Mexican food the way it’s been prepared by and for New Mexicans for generations.\u00a0 It is unadulterated and in no way “anglicized” for touristy tastes.\u00a0 This is the real thing!<\/span><\/p>\n

Cecilia worked at several restaurants (including Little Anita’s, Garduno’s and Garcia’s) before embarking on her restaurant venture.\u00a0 Because her goal is to deliver authenticity and consistency to her customers, she insists on preparing all the food herself (with Pasqual’s angels no doubt lending a hand).\u00a0 The result is no less than some of the very best New Mexican food in the city–far better than the food at any of the restaurants in which she worked.<\/span><\/p>\n

\"Cecilia's
Cecilia’s comfortable restaurant<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Cecilia was born and raised in Albuquerque’s North Valley and is a stickler for the details–the little things that make a difference between authenticity and a parody.\u00a0 Preserving centuries old New Mexican culinary traditions is one of the reasons she opened her restaurant.\u00a0 It’s also one of the reasons she had her daughters Stephanie and Claudette work with her.\u00a0 Cecilia wanted to ensure they learn traditional New Mexican culinary techniques and taught them how to prepare even those dishes (such as meat empanadas) they might not like.\u00a0 Her daughters learned much more than cooking.\u00a0 Their engaging and friendly personalities are obviously a reflection of the old-fashioned New Mexican manners they’ve learned from their mother.<\/span><\/p>\n

Cecilia’s Cafe is the essence of an off-the-beaten path restaurant.\u00a0 Situated in a hundred year old plus brick edifice a few blocks south of Central Avenue, it is both amazingly obscure and surprisingly well known.\u00a0 Cecilia’s loyal clientele include white- and blue-collar workers who have frequented her cafe from the start. That clientele includes Ed Romero, former ambassador to Spain, a New Mexico native.\u00a0 Romero gave Cecilia the wood-burning stove that keeps her homey restaurant warm. Considering its relative anonymity until “discovered” in 2009, you might wonder if the faithful throngs wanted to keep this divine dining destination a well-kept secret.<\/span><\/p>\n

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Green chile Salsa and chips<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Much of Albuquerque didn’t learn about Cecilia’s until the Albuquerque Journal’s<\/em> erstwhile restaurant critic Andrea Lin rated it three and a half stars, a rating rarely accorded by the fire-eating Wisconsin native.\u00a0\u00a0 During her time in New Mexico, Andrea came to realize that true greatness in chile is rare, even in the Land of Enchantment.\u00a0 As such, for her to use the adjective “great” to describe Cecilia’s chile, it has to be something special.\u00a0 I believe Cecilia’s red chile is in rarefied company along with Mary & Tito’s<\/strong><\/a>, The Shed<\/strong><\/a>, La Choza<\/strong><\/a> and Pete’s Cafe<\/strong><\/a> when it comes to capturing the essence of outstanding red chile.\u00a0 Cecilia’s red chile is a dark, rich and earthy chile never adulterated with flour or with cumin, that accursed spoiler of chile (Cecilia and I commiserated on the use of that vermin spice cumin, both aghast that any self-respecting New Mexican cook would use it on chile).
\n<\/span><\/p>\n

Today, Cecilia’s is no longer a well-kept secret thanks to an episode of Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives which aired on February 16th, 2009. \u00a0Host Guy Fieri couldn’t get enough of Cecilia’s chicharrones (more on those later) and appreciated the multiple layers of flavor in Cecilia’s made from pods red chile. \u00a0 He even took a stab at frying sopaipillas and watching tortillas on the griddle (under Cecilia’s watchful eye, of course).\u00a0 Shortly after the episode aired, a monitor on a wall showed the “Triple D” episode perpetually.<\/span><\/p>\n

\"Blue
Blue Corn Enchiladas with a fried egg on top<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

In January, 2010, the Travel Channel traveled from coast to coast to uncover the 101 tastiest places to chow down\u2013\u201djoints serving some of the biggest and best dishes of deliciousness around<\/em>.\u201d\u00a0 The only New Mexico restaurant to make the list–at\u00a0 number 45 on the chow down countdown–was Cecilia\u2019s Cafe, a downtown Duke City institution. \u00a0The program described Cecilia\u2019s as \u201cwhere they serve up New Mexican food so messy not even a stack of napkins won\u2019t help<\/em>.\u201d \u00a0The description aptly described the Fireman\u2019s Burrito<\/strong><\/em>, \u201ca burrito bursting with so many mouthwatering and mind-blowing fillings, they serve it with a side of\u2026apron<\/em>.\u201d \u00a0The Travel Channel gave it a \u201cfour-napkin\u201d rating.\u00a0 <\/span><\/p>\n

This behemoth burrito was created by Cecilia at the behest of two local firemen Cecilia describes as \u201ccharacters\u201d who came into the restaurant famished and asked for something really big. \u00a0Cecilia put together sausage, bacon, eggs and hashed browns then loaded them into a homemade tortilla and piled on red chile, green chile, beans and carne adovada. \u00a0She topped the \u201cgloriously messy mound of chow\u201d with cheese and red and green chile. \u00a0Cecilia says it weighs between two and a half and three pounds, depending on who makes it. \u00a0When she makes it, it\u2019s always three pounds.\u00a0 This is the Fireman’s Burrito on the menu for just over a ten spot.\u00a0 There’s also a competition-size burrito which goes for $42 (as of February, 2012), but it’s yours at no charge if you can finish it in an hour.\u00a0 Because it’s roughly the size of a barge (seriously–it’s the length of a table and is more than three-inches high), only one gurgitator has managed to finish it and he did so in 36 minutes.\u00a0 Nearly eighty others have tried and failed.<\/span><\/p>\n

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Salsa and Chips<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

29 May 2019<\/strong>: As has become rather common in many New Mexican salsa and chips<\/em><\/strong> are no longer complementary but this is one salsa worth splurging (a pittance really) for.\u00a0 This salsa’s piquancy will sneak up on you and before you know it the roof of your mouth and tongue will be tingling with the spicy vibrancy of a fresh and delicious salsa.\u00a0 At many New Mexican restaurants salsa is often the most piquant menu item.\u00a0 That’s not the case at Cecilia’s whose chile can be quite incendiary.\u00a0 Another rare treat is that Cecilia sometimes offers a green chile-based salsa.\u00a0 <\/span><\/p>\n

29 May 2019<\/strong>: I may have been a day late for National Hamburger Day (May 28, 2019), but thankfully wasn’t a dollar short…and while I’m at it, thank you to Alibi<\/strong> <\/a>food editor Dan Pennington who alerted me to Pablo’s Burger<\/strong> <\/em>from Cecilia’s.\u00a0 Pablo’s Burger (double-patty burger topped with crispy bacon, melted cheese, juicy tomatoes, creamy guacamole, saut\u00e9ed jalapenos and your choice of red or green chile) is reason enough to brave the parking challenge of downtown Albuquerque. It’s a superb burger!<\/span><\/p>\n

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Pablo’s Burger<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

One of the very first things you’ll notice about this this behemoth creation is the high-quality beef patties, the antithesis of the formerly-frozen hockey pucks too many restaurants serve.\u00a0 These patties are hand-formed from beef procured at Nelson’s Market, the best in town.\u00a0 If you’re wondering whether the dual-threat of jalapenos AND green chile might be a bit much, most New Mexicans should be able to handle the heat easily.\u00a0 Besides, as Dan Pennington noted this combination creates “that extra oomph that pushes it into the extraordinary.”<\/span><\/p>\n

29 May 2019<\/strong>: Over the years my dear friend Becky Mercuri and I have debated the fine points of chimichangas<\/strong> <\/em>with me taking a contrarian view and her professing a deep, abiding love for these “deep-fried burritos.”\u00a0 Though she’s never outright accused me of it, I suspect she believes my low opinion is at least partially based on the fact that the humble chimichanga was invented in Arizona.\u00a0 If indeed she has that belief, she may be right, but readers have to admit there just aren’t many good chimichangas in the Land of Enchantment (and if there are, why haven’t you told me about them?).\u00a0 <\/span><\/p>\n

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Carne Adovada Chimichanga<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Cecilia’s chimichanga has made a believer out of me. It also helped me realize that one of the things I’ve most disliked about chimichangas is that they’re almost always deep-fried to the point that the tortilla resembles an egg roll wrapper. Yeah, crispy, crunchy and brown. Not so at Cecilia’s where the tortilla is still very much a tortilla with its blanket softness just a fork press away. That means the carne adovada stays tender, moist and incomparably delicious. Red chile is the best (make that the ONLY) chile for this chimi.<\/span><\/p>\n

The menu includes many New Mexican favorites, all prepared to order. This isn’t fast food, or worse, frozen food thawed when ordered. Cecilia frowns on institutionalized restaurants who don’t use the freshest ingredients possible. Though I normally order my New Mexican entrees “Christmas style” so as to sample both red and green chile, Cecilia’s red chile is so good that it might be a while before I find out what the green is like. It’s that way at Mary & Tito’s, too.<\/span><\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>
Carne Adovada Burrito with Beans and Rice<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

27 December 2007<\/strong>: That red chile shines on blue corn enchiladas<\/em><\/strong> engorged with shredded beef and topped with a fried egg. If it’s possible for your taste buds to be happy, this entree will do it for you. The shredded beef, like all the meats Cecilia uses, comes from Nelson’s Market, a long-time Old Coors neighborhood institution and for my money, the very best meat market in the Duke City. The shredded roast beef is tender and delicious. <\/span><\/p>\n

27 December 2007<\/strong>: Having certified that Cecilia’s red chile is in exclusive company, we picked up Andrea’s gauntlet and ordered the carne adovada breakfast plate<\/strong><\/em> (hashed browns, two eggs any style, beans and carne adovada). The carne adovada is achingly tender and melt-in-your-mouth delicious–shredded pork marinated in luscious red chile and slow-cooked to perfection. As my great friend Becky Mercuri<\/strong><\/a> might say, “it’s so good I’d like to comb it through my hair<\/em>.” Guy Fieri called it “pulled pork gone wild<\/em>” after spilling the contents of a hand-held carne adovada burrito onto his beard. Combing it through your hair or spilling it onto your beard might let it linger a bit longer, but in your mouth is where this carne adovada belongs. This is carne adovada you will dream about.<\/span><\/p>\n

\"Chicharones
A humongous burrito at Cecilia’s<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

18 January 2008<\/strong>: Not surprisingly, Cecilia’s brings authenticity to a New Mexican specialty few restaurants seem to do well any more. That would be chicharrones<\/em><\/strong> or pork cracklings (not pork rinds, but deep-fried cubes of pork with maybe a bit of pork fat thrown in for flavor). A six- or eight-ounce portion at Cecilia’s is served with just off-the comal flour tortillas. Fieri made the mistake of declaring that chicharrones are eaten like potato chips. “That’s pork rinds, baby<\/em>.” Cecilia corrected him. She then showed him how they’re made–four hours of meticulous preparation time. Another venue for chicharones is in Cecilia’s chicharones and bean burrito<\/strong><\/em> (pictured above). Covered in cheese and smothered in heavenly red chile, it is among the very best burritos in the city. Guy Fieri declared them “the size of a small football.” Utterances of “wow” punctuated each bite he took of these delicious burritos. <\/span><\/p>\n

Desserts rotate in and out at Cecilia’s whose prowess at baking is equal to its preparation of main entrees. Alas, sometimes the entire baking bounty is gone by noon courtesy of savvy diners buying the sweet stuff in bulk. This is definitely a case of their gain and your loss. One of the specialties of the house are natillas<\/strong><\/em>, a rich Spanish custard that is equally wonderful whether served cold or warm. Cecilia’s rendition is reputed to be fabulous, but if you don’t get it early, you might not get it at all. You’ll also want a cup or three of the coffee. It’s only Maxwell House, but perhaps because the pot is brewing all day long, it’s a good coffee.<\/span><\/p>\n

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Huevos Rancheros served Christmas style with Chicharones, Potatoes and Beans<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Visit during the Lenten or Advent seasons and Cecilia might just be serving capirotada<\/em><\/strong>. To call this dessert “bread pudding” is a vast understatement. Made well, it is a terrific dessert. Made authentically, it can be extraordinary. Cecilia’s capirotada is extraordinary! Like most capirotada, its component ingredients include toasted bread, lots of butter, cheese and raisins. Cecilia also adds New Mexican roasted pi\u00f1on which gives it a subtle hint of pine and for good measure, she might throw in cranberries to lend a tart taste. She also uses piloncillo, a Mexican brown sugar.<\/span><\/p>\n

Capirotada isn’t the only traditional Lenten dish Cecilia prepares. During Lent, her menu might include quelites (wild spinach) and torta de huevo (a light egg-based dish served on Good Friday when Catholics abstain from eating meat). Non-Lenten desserts include some of the best chocolate brownies I’ve ever had. My friend Mike Muller said he’d dream about them after having lustily consumed the very last one left at Cecilia’s. Being the good friend that he is, he shared it with me. It’s so good, I might not have shared it.<\/span><\/p>\n

The walls at Cecilia’s Cafe are adorned with several images of San Pasqual, as appropriate an inspiration as there could be for this wonderfully authentic New Mexican restaurant. As you partake of Cecilia’s wonderful red chile, visualizing Pasqual’s angels helping out in the kitchen won’t be much of a stretch. Get to know Cecilia and you’ll come to the realization that working miracles is a specialty for her. <\/span><\/p>\n

Cecilia’s Cafe<\/strong><\/span>
\n230 6th Street
\nAlbuquerque, New Mexico<\/strong>
\n505 243-7070
\nFacebook Page<\/strong><\/a>
\n<\/span><\/p>\n

LATEST VISIT<\/strong>: 18 September 2020
\n# OF VISITS<\/strong>: 6
\nRATING<\/strong>: 23
\nCOST<\/strong>: $$
\nBEST BET:<\/strong> Blue Corn Enchiladas with Shredded Roast Beef, Carne Adovada, Salsa and Chips, Capirotada, Chicharones and Bean Burrito, Chocolate Brownies, Pablo’s Burger with Fries, Coffee
\n<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

FROM INSTAGRAM (December, 2024):\u00a0 After 25 years on the corner of 6th & Silver, Cecilia’s Caf\u00e9 has closed its doors. This New Mexican breakfast and lunch restaurant was once featured on the Food Network and was a beloved space for locals.\u00a0 Owner Cecilia Baca cited persistent challenges with homeless people, issues finding employees, and the remote\/hybrid work phenomenon as key reasons for closing. Since the pandemic, “customers aren’t working a full week,” she said. “Just a lot of little things that made me realize that Downtown will not come back to life the way it was before COVID.” Pasqual Baylon’s devotion to the Mass and the Holy Eucharist was so fervent that even when assigned kitchen duty, he remained so…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":51974,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_exactmetrics_skip_tracking":false,"_exactmetrics_sitenote_active":false,"_exactmetrics_sitenote_note":"","_exactmetrics_sitenote_category":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[440,540,3569,1762,544,262,112,563,609],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-241","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-albuquerque","category-breakfast","category-closed-in-2024","category-diners-drive-ins-and-dives","category-food-network-eats-new-mexico","category-closed","category-new-mexican","category-rating-excellent","category-travel-channel-eats-new-mexico"],"yoast_head":"\nCecilia's Cafe - Albuquerque, New Mexico (CLOSED) - Gil's Thrilling (And Filling) Blog<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.nmgastronome.com\/?p=241\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Cecilia's Cafe - Albuquerque, New Mexico (CLOSED) - Gil's Thrilling (And Filling) Blog\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"FROM INSTAGRAM (December, 2024):\u00a0 After 25 years on the corner of 6th & Silver, Cecilia’s Caf\u00e9 has closed its doors. This New Mexican breakfast and lunch restaurant was once featured on the Food Network and was a beloved space for locals.\u00a0 Owner Cecilia Baca cited persistent challenges with homeless people, issues finding employees, and the remote\/hybrid work phenomenon as key reasons for closing. Since the pandemic, “customers aren’t working a full week,” she said. “Just a lot of little things that made me realize that Downtown will not come back to life the way it was before COVID.” Pasqual Baylon’s devotion to the Mass and the Holy Eucharist was so fervent that even when assigned kitchen duty, he remained so…\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/www.nmgastronome.com\/?p=241\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Gil's Thrilling (And Filling) Blog\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:author\" content=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/nmgastronome\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2019-05-30T02:12:06+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2025-04-09T15:54:05+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/www.nmgastronome.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/02\/Cecilia17.gif\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"750\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"563\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/gif\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Gil Garduno\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"Gil Garduno\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"14 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\\\/\\\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.nmgastronome.com\\\/?p=241#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.nmgastronome.com\\\/?p=241\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"Gil Garduno\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.nmgastronome.com\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/423b9c3eeeb199e43ab4f1f584fa67bf\"},\"headline\":\"Cecilia’s Cafe – Albuquerque, New Mexico (CLOSED)\",\"datePublished\":\"2019-05-30T02:12:06+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2025-04-09T15:54:05+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.nmgastronome.com\\\/?p=241\"},\"wordCount\":2721,\"commentCount\":66,\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.nmgastronome.com\\\/#organization\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.nmgastronome.com\\\/?p=241#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.nmgastronome.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2012\\\/02\\\/Cecilia17.gif\",\"articleSection\":[\"Albuquerque\",\"Breakfast\",\"Closed in 2024\",\"Diners Drive-Ins and Dives\",\"Food Network Eats New Mexico\",\"Gone But Not Forgotten\",\"New Mexican\",\"Rating: Excellent\",\"Travel Channel Eats New Mexico\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"CommentAction\",\"name\":\"Comment\",\"target\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/www.nmgastronome.com\\\/?p=241#respond\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.nmgastronome.com\\\/?p=241\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.nmgastronome.com\\\/?p=241\",\"name\":\"Cecilia's Cafe - 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Please take a few minutes to tell me what you think. 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