New MexicanNew MexicoNew Mexico Culinary Treasures TrailNew Mexico Green Chile Cheeseburger Trail: 2009New Mexico Green Chile Cheeseburger Trail: 2011Rating: Very Good

El Farolito – El Rito, New Mexico

Gil Garduno3:59 AM

The most contentious seasonal difference of opinion between Northern and Southern New Mexico residents isn’t whether Chimayo produces better chile than Hatch (though this will forever be in dispute). The great civil debate dividing the Land of Enchantment has all to do with semantics. More specifically, it has all to do with the appropriate name for the little paper bag lanterns which house a votive candle and light the way for the Holy Family on Christmas Eve. Misguided citizens of New Mexico’s lower half (just about anywhere south of and including Albuquerque) mistakenly call those lanterns luminarias while their more enlightened Northern brethren call them farolitos. Luminarias–stacked and crossed piñon boughs ignited on Christmas Eve to light the Holy Family’s path to shelter–were brought to the new world from Spain, first to Mexico then to the American Southwest.  When delicate paper lanterns made their way from China to the Southwest via Mexico, they were called farolitos, or little lanterns. No one seems to know for sure how farolitos came to be called luminarias and even a children’s book by Rudolfo Anaya, one of New Mexico’s most prolific novelists, didn’t illuminate the truth.  His book “The Farolitos of Christmas” is a…

New MexicanNew MexicoNew Mexico Culinary Treasures TrailRating: GoodSanta FeTravel Channel Eats New Mexico

Maria’s New Mexican Kitchen – Santa Fe, New Mexico

Gil Garduno1:00 PM

In 1712, the provincial governor for the kingdom of New Mexico decreed that henceforth, an annual reenactment of Diego De Vargas’ triumphant reentry into Santa Fe would be celebrated every year. Santa Feans have dutifully obeyed the proclamation ever since, making the Fiesta de Santa Fe the oldest civic celebration of its kind in North America.  Approaching its 400th year, the Fiesta is renown not only for its pageantry and pomp, but for its respectful reflection on a significant historical event. By 1951, however, the Fiesta as we know it today, had degenerated into a parody of its former self, a victim of crass commercialism which Santa Fe’s Pulitzer Prize winning writer Oliver La Farge called “a shabby commercial carnival.”  Incensed that the Fiesta was overrun by concessionaires who turned the Fiesta into “a hot dog and popcorn affair,” La Farge recruited a contingent of Santa Fe’s movers and shakers in the business, religious and arts communities to restore dignity to the Fiestas.  Both the Museum of New Mexico and the Catholic Church sided with La Farge’s group. It took the ouster of several Fiesta Council members who had fostered the circus-like atmosphere wrought by deep pocketed concessionaires before the…

AlbuquerqueAmericanClosed in 2015Gone But Not Forgotten

Tim’s Place – Albuquerque, New Mexico (CLOSED: 2015)

Gil Garduno8:35 PM

“In my walks, every man I meet is my superior in some way, and in that I learn from him.” — Ralph Waldo Emerson WARNING:  The program you are about to see…seeks to throw a humorous spotlight on our frailties, prejudices and concerns.  By making them a source of laughter, we hope to show–in a mature fashion–just how absurd they are.”  With that stark warning, the landmark satire All in the Family debuted on January 12th, 1971.  No television program–before or since–has changed the face of television to the extent All in the Family did.  Some credit it for ushering in the era of political correctness. At its peak, All in the Family was the highest rated television show in America from 1971 through 1976, commanding as many as sixty percent of all television sets across the fruited plain.  Many tuned in to see what the show’s central character Archie Bunker would say or do.  A bigoted loading dock worker from Queens, Archie unabashedly expressed his every racial and political view, all of which were borne out of negative stereotypes, intolerance and ignorance.  Invariably his malapropisms and foibles made for very humorous television. In one especially memorable episode, the target…

AlbuquerqueClosed in 2011Gone But Not ForgottenMexican

Guicho’s Authentic Mexican Food Restaurant – Albuquerque, New Mexico (CLOSED)

Gil Garduno7:04 AM

There have been Mexican restaurants in the Land of Enchantment for as long as there have been restaurants.  While the distinction between Mexican restaurants and New Mexican restaurants has become less obfuscated over time, there is still a tendency among many casual diners to think “a Mexican restaurant is a Mexican restaurant.”  That errant thinking is probably due to the preponderance on this side of the border of Mexican restaurants from the northern Mexican state of Chihuahua. The cuisine of Chihuahua is characterized by its simplicity, reflecting the resilience of its people, settlers of a land steeped with rugged terrain, craggy mountains and rough lands in which great temperature variations exist between scalding heat and almost freezing cold.  Dehydrated chile is a staple of Chihuahua.  When reconstituted, flour is added to thicken it for such popular favorites as enchiladas, tacos, chile rellenos, quesadillas, beans and tamales, all foods with which New Mexicans are intimate.  The cuisine of this region is also characterized by the use of melted or roasted cheese, much of it courtesy of the large Mennonite population in the area. In the past decade or so, New Mexico has seen a growing number of restaurants from states other than Chihuahua.…

AlbuquerqueAmericanClosed in 2015Gone But Not Forgotten

Cool Water Fusion Restaurant – Albuquerque, New Mexico (CLOSED)

Gil Garduno10:27 PM

All day I’ve faced a barren waste Without the taste of water, cool water Old Dan and I with throats burned dry And souls that cry for water Cool, clear, water. – The Sons of the Pioneers Cool Water!  For all of us who have experienced the energy-depleting sensation of being parched on a sweltering, sudorific day in the desiccated southwest, there is nothing which will quench that thirst better than cool water.  Country crooner Marty Robbins sang about it in 1959 when he released his version of the classic Sons of the Pioneers song, his velvety smooth voice conveying the anguish of a man (and his mule Dan) in dire need of cool water’s life-giving, energy-replenishing qualities. Cool Water!  From the sense that in the American vernacular, being cool is hot, being bad is good and being really great is wicked, “cool water” conveys something superlative, exciting or attractive as opposed to something merely acceptable, ordinary or satisfactory.  The word “cool” acquired that connotation in the jazz era, but the slang term reached its pinnacle in popularity in the 1950s when the beatniks of the age used it to differentiate themselves from the “straights.”  Cool could mean relaxed, laid-back,…

AmericanClosed in 2012Gone But Not ForgottenSanta Fe

Real Food Nation – Santa Fe, New Mexico (CLOSED)

Gil Garduno11:16 PM

“Come on, you know you want it!”  Television commercials, movies and especially cartoons frequently depict temptation as a battle being waged by two miniature versions of the person being tempted. Faced with a crisis of conscience–doing the right or the wrong thing–a devil-self (complete with horns and a pitchfork) suddenly pops up on the left (or sinister) shoulder and an angel-self on the right.  Quite naturally, the devil-self prods and prompts for the person to do the wrong thing while the beatific angel-self implores the person to resist temptation. When waging an internal conflict as to whether or not I should have some unhealthy dessert, a greasy burger or another slice of pizza, my muse, angel and conscience is often Kate Manchester, the brilliant and beautiful publisher of Edible Santa Fe.  For more than five years, Kate has been educating the readers of her fabulous publication about the virtues of actually paying attention to how and where our food is raised, processed and how it arrives at their tables.  In the process she’s introduced us to such concepts as “locavorism,” “sustainable,” “slow foods” and “organic.” With my benevolent angel over my right shoulder during times of caloric trial, I’m prompted…

AlbuquerqueChocolateRating: Excellent

Chocolate Cartel – Albuquerque, New Mexico

Gil Garduno9:22 PM

“Strength is the capacity to break a chocolate bar into four pieces with your bare hands — and then eat just one of the pieces.” Judith Viorst, American Author & Journalist “Betcha can’t eat just one.”  In the early 1960s, Lay’s Potato Chips made that slogan a household phrase, in the process increasing potato chip sales significantly and opening up new markets internationally.  Today, North Americans consume approximately 1.2 billion pounds of potato chips every year, making it the most consumed snack food in the entire continent.  There is no physiological basis, however, for Lay’s assertion that its salty snack favorite is so addictive it can’t be resisted.  The same can’t be said of chocolate Chocolate most assuredly does have psychoactive properties.  Similar to turkey, chocolate is replete with tryptophan, amino acids in the human diet which assist in the production of serotonin, our mood-modulating neurotransmitter. It is also imbued with phenyl-ethylamine, a substance which stimulates the same bodily reaction as falling in love. Female humorists have often extolled the superiority of chocolate over sex, even comprising a list of twenty reasons chocolate is better than sex. Perhaps in retort, Italian researchers (mostly men) “discovered” that women who eat chocolate…

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Malee’s Thai Bistro – Scottsdale, Arizona

Gil Garduno1:47 AM

Many a time have I luxuriated in the pleasures of a memorable repast at a restaurant outside of New Mexico and found myself thinking “if only these tastes were available back home.”  I typically then fantasize about bringing those tastes to the Land of Enchantment myself.  Alas, lofty intentions, a profuse lack of culinary talents and the absence of the capital necessary to realize my fantasies subsume those dreams and I instead yen for future visits to restaurants whose incomparable tastes have captured my reality. In Deirdre Pain, I found someone through whom I can live vicariously.  An aficionado of Thai food, she became disillusioned with most Thai restaurants, many of which lacked wine lists and whose wait staff struggled mightily with English.  In 1987 with the launch of Malee’s Thai Bistro (affectionately known as Malee’s on Main), she created an upscale venue for the exceptional cuisine of a favorite chef. Today Malee’s on Main is one of the most popular and highly regarded (earning a “24” rating on Zagat’s) Thai restaurants in the Phoenix area.  Housed in a circa 1921 building with a colorful history, Malee’s is only one of few restaurants on Main Street, denizen for a veritable pantheon…

AlbuquerqueClosed in 2020Gone But Not ForgottenMexicanNew Mexico Green Chile Cheeseburger Trail: 2011

Sandiago’s Mexican Grill – Albuquerque, New Mexico (CLOSED)

Gil Garduno2:35 AM

You don’t have to go out of town to dine to feel like you’re dining out of town.  A drive to Sandiago’s Mexican Grill on the base of the Sandia Tramway will do that for you.  This colorful restaurant in which everything but the ceiling appears tiled in multi-hued splendor evokes images of coastal Mexico Lindo Y Querido in all its glory. If you’re an atheist, the spectacular view of the city lights, particularly on a cold winter night, might just convince you that there is a God.  The summer view of the entire city bathed in light under Albuquerque’s cerulean skies is equally awe inspiring. Sandiago’s is part of the sprawling, multi-story complex which houses the boarding station to the world’s longest tramway.  Situated at 6,300 feet above sea level, it is the highest (in altitude anyway) restaurant in the city. If you’re seated against the windows on the restaurant’s east side, your view is of Sandia Peak and of tramway cars climbing to the 10,378 foot peak. If you’re seated on the restaurant’s west side or on the patio, your view is of the Duke City.  It’s a picturesque panorama, particularly on nights in which a spectacular sunset…

BurgersClosed in 2014Gone But Not ForgottenNew Mexican

Willard Cantina & Cafe – Willard, New Mexico (CLOSED)

Gil Garduno9:30 PM

When it comes to staycations (stay at home vacations), New Mexicans rank near the bottom among America’s traveling public.  Citizens of the Land of Enchantment, it seems, prefer to spend their discretionary income elsewhere.  Monique Jacobson, Secretary of New Mexico’s Tourism Department, hopes to change that with a number of initiatives targeted at reminding New Mexico’s citizenry of all there is to do and see in our state. During the press conference in which she introduced the New Mexico Green Chile Cheeseburger Trail for 2011, Secretary Jacobson stressed that in addition to New Mexico’s natural treasures and storied past, culinary tourism–traveling throughout the state to experience its unique cuisine–is one of the best reasons to travel in New Mexico.  It’s something about which she’s personally very passionate, admitting to having consumed five green chile cheeseburgers during her first week back in the state after a stint as a marketing executive for Pepsi. As a practitioner of frequent “daycations” (day-long trips near home) throughout the Land of Enchantment, I take Secretary Jacobson’s words to heart.  Inspired by her heartfelt testimony about culinary tourism and vacationing near home, my first daycation following her press conference would be in pursuit of yet another…

AnnouncementsNew Mexico Green Chile Cheeseburger Trail: 2011

Introducing the New Mexico Green Chile Cheeseburger Trail for 2011

Gil Garduno7:08 PM

“You can find your way across this country using burger joints the way a navigator uses stars. We have munched Bridge burgers in the shadow of the Brooklyn Bridge and Cable burgers hard by the Golden Gate, Dixie burgers in the sunny South and Yankee Doodle burgers in the North. We had a Capitol Burger — guess where. And so help us, in the inner courtyard of the Pentagon, a Penta burger.” — Charles Kuralt, journalist, television host of “On the Road”.” For more than a quarter century, award-winning journalist Charles Kuralt hit the road on a motor home, crisscrossing the fruited plains where waving fields of wheat passed in review and snow-capped mountains reached for cobalt colored skies. Kuralt loved the cuisine of the Land of Enchantment. In his book America, he declared the Owl Cafe in San Antonio, New Mexico “one of the best food tips” he’d ever gotten. For years, maybe decades, the Owl Cafe’s green chile cheeseburger was the standard against which all green chile cheeseburgers were measured. Not only did Charles Kuralt rave about it, so did every travel guide published about the Land of Enchantment. Few would dispute that the green chile cheeseburger made…