{"id":281,"date":"2021-04-15T17:32:01","date_gmt":"2021-04-15T23:32:01","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.nmgastronome.com\/?p=281"},"modified":"2026-04-03T12:19:30","modified_gmt":"2026-04-03T18:19:30","slug":"gardunos-of-mexico-albuquerque-new-mexico","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.nmgastronome.com\/?p=281","title":{"rendered":"Gardu\u00f1o’s of Mexico – Albuquerque, New Mexico"},"content":{"rendered":"
\n
\"\"<\/a>
Gardu\u00f1os\u00a0 on restaurant row near the Cottonwood Mall<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

All too often faulty premises are based on a lack of information or experience. Take for example, British author Simon Majumdar, a recurring judge on the Food Network\u2019s Next Iron Chef competition who once declared \u201cgiven how abysmal Mexican food is in London, I always thought that it was a cuisine made up of remains from the back of the fridge<\/em>.\u201d It wasn\u2019t until Majumdar experienced tacos de tripa at a restaurant in Guadalajara, Mexico that he achieved an epiphany and fell in love with Mexican food. He called it a meal that changed his life. \u00a0 <\/span><\/p>\n

Similarly, many of my colleagues from Arizona perceived Mexican food as lacking personality–a misconception borne from their culinary experiences with Phoenix area Mexican food. When business travel brought them to Albuquerque, we exposed them to New Mexican and Mexican food the way it\u2019s done in the Land of Enchantment. It was love at first taste. The addictive properties of capsaicin-blessed New Mexico chile ensnared their affections and haven\u2019t let them go to this date. The very favorite restaurant of many of them became Gardu\u00f1o\u2019s of Mexico.<\/span><\/p>\n

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The capacious interior of Gardu\u00f1os of Mexico<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Over the years, Gardu\u00f1o\u2019s has become the favorite of many of its guests\u2014New Mexicans and visitors alike. When the familiar Gardu\u00f1o\u2019s of Mexico jingle declared \u201cnobody serves up Mexico like Garduno\u2019s<\/em>,\u201d it wasn\u2019t rhapsodizing solely about the restaurant’s culinary fare. From the day Gardu\u00f1o\u2019s first launched in 1981\u2014fittingly on the intersection of Fourth and\u00a0Gardu\u00f1o Streets\u2014it became a popular draw, as much for its lively and fun ambiance as for the generous portions of Mexican and New Mexican favorites–all washed down, of course, with one of the cantina\u2019s popular margaritas crafted with premium tequilas.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Despite the name on the marquee, Gardu\u00f1o\u2019s has always straddled the fine line between New Mexican and Mexican food, serving both cuisines on a menu that reads like a compendium of local favorites. Detractors (and there aren\u2019t nearly as many of them as there are devotees) decried Gardu\u00f1o\u2019s as a \u201ctourist trap\u201d and questioned its authenticity. The latter point of contention is likely because they weren’t familiar with the vast diversity of culinary offerings throughout Mexico\u2019s 31 states and one Federal District. <\/span><\/p>\n

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

At the height of its popularity, there were six Gardu\u00f1o\u2019s locations in the Land of Enchantment alone, served by more than 500 employees. Gardu\u00f1o\u2019s had a presence in nearly every section of the Duke City including a capacious presence in Albuquerque\u2019s Sunport where departing locals often stopped for their last fix of New Mexican food before leaving the Duke City. Those bound for the Phoenix and Las Vegas areas could find a Gardu\u00f1o\u2019s there, too. There were even conversations with developers about expanding the Gardu\u00f1o\u2019s enterprise to such potential sites as Disney World.<\/span><\/p>\n

In 2010, three of the five Gardu\u00f1o\u2019s restaurants closed, including the original Gardu\u00f1o\u2019s on Fourth Street. Only the Winrock and Cottonwood locations remained in operation, both under a new ownership group which assumed the helm at the local empire in 2011. From outward appearances, the new ownership group seems to know better than to tamper with a tried and proven formula that made Gardu\u00f1o\u2019s the highest volume Mexican restaurant across the fruited plain and a local favorite which earned several awards and accolades from both the New Mexico Restaurant Association and various Peoples\u2019 Choice mediums.<\/span><\/p>\n

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Shrimp and Avocado Cocktail<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

The expansive menu includes many popular favorites.\u00a0 Alas, the one major change made by the new ownership group is that both red and green chile based entrees are now prepared with cumin.\u00a0 This obviously goes to show the name Gardu\u00f1o can be associated with the use of cumin (long-time readers of this blog have been exposed ad infinitum to my diatribes about the use of that foul demon spice on chile).\u00a0 Fortunately the menu also includes several items made without chile.\u00a0 It’s solely those items we order.<\/span><\/p>\n

Gardu\u00f1o\u2019s remains a sensory experience (some might say sensory bombardment) that involves all five of your senses. It is one of the most visually stimulating and interesting milieus in which to dine with eye-catching features in front, in back and even above you.\u00a0 From the moment you walk in, you’ll be enveloped by the aroma of Mexican food being prepared on the premises.\u00a0 The ambiance can be raucous, but that’s because the venue inspires guests to have a good time and enjoy themselves.<\/span><\/p>\n

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Shrimp Tacos with Beans and Rice<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Rich, red salsa<\/em> <\/strong>is complimentary.\u00a0 It’s a jalape\u00f1o-based, fire-roasted salsa with a pleasant piquancy New Mexicans can handle easily, but which might have tourists sputtering and reaching for water.\u00a0 The salsa has a nice viscosity for scooping up large qualities of salsa on each chip.\u00a0 Thankfully the triangular-shaped chips are formidable enough to hold up against Gil-sized scoops.\u00a0 Before cumin was added to the salsa, we would easily go through three ramekins of salsa before and with our meal.\u00a0 <\/span><\/p>\n

15 April 2021<\/strong>: Pre-Covid there were twelve appetizers on the menu in addition to ensaladas y sopas (salads and soups).\u00a0 With Bernalillo county mired in the restaurant restriction status of “high risk<\/strong><\/a>,” we encountered a very abbreviated menu during our visit.\u00a0 The appetizer menu had exactly half the number of items listed as it did before the pandemic.\u00a0 We probably would have selected the shrimp and avocado cocktail<\/strong><\/em> (Mexican white shrimp, avocado, lime, cucumbers, pico de gallo, and cocktail sauce) regardless.\u00a0 The fresh shrimp (an oxymoron for shrimp the size of these) had a firm, crisp texture when you bite into them with the ripe avocado providing a nice textural contrast.\u00a0 Unlike some incendiary cocktail sauce we’ve had, the Gardu\u00f1o’s version is rather mild and has a sweet, “doctored” ketcupy flavor.\u00a0 It worked well with this cocktail.<\/span><\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>
Sizzling Beef Fajitas<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

15 April 2021<\/strong>:\u00a0 With cumin-infused entrees limiting my choices, shrimp tacos<\/strong><\/em> (grilled shrimp on corn tortillas with Monterey cheese, pico de gallo, shredded cabbage sliced avocado) seemed to be a safe, if unexciting, option.\u00a0 Available in hard- or soft-shell corn tortillas as well as flour tortillas, these shrimp tacos could be (in my humble opinion) made better with a couple of changes.\u00a0 First, one of the ingredients in the pico de gallo is finely chopped jalape\u00f1o, just incendiary enough to be a dominant flavor in a dish where the shrimp should be the star.\u00a0 Second, shredded cabbage may be fine texturally, but it lends nothing to the flavor of the tacos.\u00a0 Many restaurants are creating delicious slaws using shredded cabbage in creative ways.\u00a0\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

15 April 2021<\/strong>: One entree for which Gardu\u00f1o’s has long been popular is fajitas<\/em><\/strong>, which can be constructed from your choice of steak, chicken, shrimp or a unique garden-fresh vegetarian specialty with your choice of flour or corn tortillas.\u00a0 All eyes will train on your server ferrying these fajitas to your table. More specifically, all eyes and ears will follow the trail of sizzling, aromatic smokiness.\u00a0 The fajitas are served with sizzling onions, tomatoes, red and green peppers, shredded cheese and sides of guacamole and pico de gallo.\u00a0 All fajitas can be ordered in half-pound or full-pound sizes.\u00a0 A half-pound will sate even the most prolific of appetites. The steak is of very high quality and is prepared perfectly for a flour tortilla repository. <\/span><\/p>\n

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All the fixings for fajitas<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Sopaipillas are another long-time staple of Gardu\u00f1o’s.\u00a0 Few New Mexican restaurants do sopaipillas<\/strong> <\/em>like Gardu\u00f1o’s.\u00a0\u00a0The sopaipillas are large golden, deep-fried deliciousness served fresh and hot.\u00a0 Don\u2019t wait to break open a sopaipilla and cut off a piece while it\u2019s still hot.\u00a0 The sensation of steamy puffs wafting upwards is an experience not to be missed.\u00a0 The sopaipillas beckon for the cooling effect of sweet honey to be drizzled onto them.\u00a0 Unfortunately, the restaurant serves a honey-flavored syrup, a poor pretender that just doesn’t cut it.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Whether Gardu\u00f1o’s ever reclaims its once lofty position among the Land of Enchantment’s New Mexican restaurant scene remains to be seen.\u00a0 One thing is for certain, it will remain the favorite restaurant of many of its guests, including my former colleagues from Arizona.\u00a0 <\/span><\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>
Sopaipillas<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

DISCLAIMER<\/strong>:\u00a0 I’m frequently asked if I’m related to the Gardu\u00f1o family which owned and operated their eponymous restaurant for more than three decades.\u00a0 Perhaps generations ago our families descended from the same lineage, but our family trees diverged a long time ago.\u00a0 Even if we were related, I wouldn’t accept special food or treatment. \u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Gardu\u00f1o’s of Mexico<\/strong>
\n10031 Coors Blvd., N.W.
\nAlbuquerque, New Mexico<\/strong>
\n(505) 890-7000\"\"<\/a><\/span>
\nWeb Site<\/strong><\/a> | Facebook Page<\/strong><\/a><\/span><\/p>\n

LATEST VISIT<\/strong>: 15 April 2021
\n# OF VISITS<\/strong>: 2
\nRATING<\/strong>: Good<\/strong><\/span>\u00a0\u2013 good food, decent service, and a clean environment; provides a satisfactory, dependable, and standard experience
\nCOST<\/strong>: $$
\nBEST BET<\/strong>: Sopaipillas, Fajitas, Chips and Salsa, Tacos Al Pastor<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

All too often faulty premises are based on a lack of information or experience. Take for example, British author Simon Majumdar, a recurring judge on the Food Network\u2019s Next Iron Chef competition who once declared \u201cgiven how abysmal Mexican food is in London, I always thought that it was a cuisine made up of remains from the back of the fridge.\u201d It wasn\u2019t until Majumdar experienced tacos de tripa at a restaurant in Guadalajara, Mexico that he achieved an epiphany and fell in love with Mexican food. He called it a meal that changed his life. \u00a0 Similarly, many of my colleagues from Arizona perceived Mexican food as lacking personality–a misconception borne from their culinary experiences with Phoenix area Mexican…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":57519,"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":[440,141,5632],"tags":[942,896,856,944,854,780,857,943],"class_list":["post-281","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-albuquerque","category-new-mexico","category-good","tag-ambiance","tag-burritos","tag-enchiladas","tag-margaritas","tag-new-mexican-food","tag-salsa","tag-tacos","tag-tequila"],"yoast_head":"\nGardu\u00f1o's of Mexico - Albuquerque, New Mexico - 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=281\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Gardu\u00f1o's of Mexico - Albuquerque, New Mexico - Gil's Thrilling (And Filling) Blog\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"All too often faulty premises are based on a lack of information or experience. Take for example, British author Simon Majumdar, a recurring judge on the Food Network\u2019s Next Iron Chef competition who once declared \u201cgiven how abysmal Mexican food is in London, I always thought that it was a cuisine made up of remains from the back of the fridge.\u201d It wasn\u2019t until Majumdar experienced tacos de tripa at a restaurant in Guadalajara, Mexico that he achieved an epiphany and fell in love with Mexican food. 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Take for example, British author Simon Majumdar, a recurring judge on the Food Network\u2019s Next Iron Chef competition who once declared \u201cgiven how abysmal Mexican food is in London, I always thought that it was a cuisine made up of remains from the back of the fridge.\u201d It wasn\u2019t until Majumdar experienced tacos de tripa at a restaurant in Guadalajara, Mexico that he achieved an epiphany and fell in love with Mexican food. 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