MexicanNew MexicoRating: N/R (Not Rated)

Barbacoa El Primo – Albuquerque, New Mexico

Gil Garduno6:43 PM

“I went down Nagolitos looking for some barbacoa and Big Red. I went down to Nagolitos for some barbacoa and Big Red. Well, I could’ve had menudo but I got some cabeza instead. Give me two pounds of regular, cause I like a little fat. You may like la puro carne, but for me fat is where it’s at.” ~Randy Garibay, Barbacoa Blues As chief of nonresident training for my career field, one of my favorite duties was working with other subject matter experts to develop “psychometrics” (specialty knowledge tests to measure promotion fitness) for the United States Air Force.  It meant an annual trip to San Antonio, Texas, one of my very favorite cities under the spacious skies.  In collaboration with civilian human factors engineers, four other senior non-commissioned officers and I pored assiduously over manuals, regulations, pamphlets and guides to compose unimpeachable grade-appropriate exams.  As challenging and rewarding as the experience was, my fondest memories are of time off-duty spent exploring the vast and diverse culinary opportunities San Antonio had to offer. The San Antonio-based human factors engineers steered me toward some fabulous Texas specialties: chicken-fried steak as big as a truck tire at Good Time Charlie’s, amazing…

BarbecueBurgersClosed in 2023Dog FriendlyGone But Not ForgottenNew MexicoNew Mexico Green Chile Cheeseburger Trail: 2009New Mexico Green Chile Cheeseburger Trail: 2011Rating: Excellent

Sugar’s BBQ & Burgers – Embudo, New Mexico (CLOSED)

Gil Garduno3:52 AM

The winding highway meandering along the murky Rio Grande through Embudo is among the most scenic in the state, particularly in mid-autumn when leaves turn a vibrant shade of gold. You’ll want to drive slowly to take in the foliage, but especially to make sure you imbibe the hazy smoke plumes emanating from Sugar’s BBQ & Burgers which waft into your motorized conveyance like a sweet Texas smoke signal beckoning you to try a combo platter. The first time we met owners Nancy and Neil Nobles, we were blown away by their genuine humility. Until we told them, the genial proprietors of this corrugated tin shack and kitchen only a couple of hundred feet from the serpentine Rio Grande had no idea that they had been showcased on Roadfood.com. Their giddiness was unique and refreshing. While Neil prepared our meal, Nancy looked up Michael Stern’s eloquent review on the Roadfood Web site. That review is now framed and posted on the walls of the restaurant’s kitchen. Another glowing accolade–recognition as one of America’s ten best drive-ins by no less than Gourmet magazine–is also posted. That recognition came in May, 2005, culminating five years of growing acclaim.  Most recently (October, 2018),…

AlbuquerqueAsianBrunchClosed in 2019Dog FriendlyGone But Not ForgottenHawaiianLatin AmericanNew MexicoRating: Outstanding

POKI POBLANO FUSION LOUNGE – Albuquerque, New Mexico (CLOSED)

Gil Garduno1:09 PM

Starting with a raucous concert in 1954, the idiom “Elvis has left the building” was uttered at the conclusion of many of Elvis Presley’s concerts to encourage rabid fans to accept that no further encores were forthcoming and that they should go home. Today, those five simple words are an oft used catchphrase and punchline used in a humorous or sarcastic vein to refer to virtually anyone who has made an exit or vacated a premises, especially in dramatic fashion. The phrase was later co-opted in the Kelsey Grammar sitcom “Frasier” which ended with a play on the line—“Frasier has left the building.” For many Duke City diners, the term “Elvis has left the building” recalls June 1, 2017, the sad day when wunderkind Chef Elvis Boncomo shuttered the doors at Pasion Latin Fusion one final time. Pasion was unlike any restaurant in Albuquerque, showcasing a menu demonstrating uncommon creativity, imagination and willingness to experiment with ingredient and flavor combinations. It was quite simply one of the very best restaurants in Albuquerque with Elvis widely acknowledged as one of the city’s most innovative and talented chefs. The menu was an eye-opening melange of Latin fusion with elements of Cuban, Haitian,…

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La Madeleine – Albuquerque, New Mexico

Gil Garduno5:30 PM

“Show me another pleasure like dinner which comes every day and lasts an hour.” ~Charles Maurice de Talleyrand–Périgord On Wednesday, November 3, 1948, at Auberge La Couronne in Roule, France,  Julia Child ate what she later declared to be the “most exciting meal of her life,” a veritable feast she shared with her husband Paul: six Brittany oysters, Dover sole meuniere, green salad, fromage blanc with berries, and coffee. Since the airing of “Julie & Julia’’ diners (mostly American and British) have made pilgrimages to Roule in attempt to replicate the French Chef’s gastronomic epiphany. Replicating what Julia ordered is easy. The menu at La Couronne offers the very same meal, calling it “Menu Julia Child.” Replicating the experience itself is not always so easy for American diners who don’t always esteem the experiential aspects of dining as highly as the French do. American writer Alice B. Toklas relished the dining experience, too, noting: “The French approach to food is characteristic; they bring to their consideration of the table the same appreciation, respect, intelligence and lively interest that they have for the other arts, for painting, for literature, and for the theater.” Other expats—Ernest Hemingway, Gertrude Stein, James Joyce, Pablo Picasso—were…

AlbuquerqueAmericanBar & GrillRating: Good

Stone Face Tavern – Albuquerque, New Mexico

Gil Garduno12:30 AM

Boris Vallejo, one of the premier fantasy and science fiction artists in the world, might find the ambiance at the Stone Face Tavern inspirational.  He might even join the throngs of regulars who enjoy the ambiance, hospitality, libations and food at a tavern he could have designed.  The Stone Face Tavern is like an adult Disneyland for aficionados of the fantasy and erotica genres masterfully created by Vallejo.  The south-facing facade resembles a multi-turret stone castle complete with threatening gargoyles perched on the parapet.  The ominous countenance, flowing beard and piercing eyes of a Viking warrior or Norse god (maybe even Odin himself) looks down upon you from a vantage point high above the entrance. Step inside and it may take you a few minutes to adjust to the capacious dimly-lit dining room (heaven help you if you wear transition glasses) where there’s something to see wherever you turn.  Once adjusted, your eyes will scan the room and maybe take in the banners suspended from the ceiling in much the way knights’ banners adorned the great halls of medieval castles. Perhaps they’ll fixate on the large flat screen televisions (which provide much of the venue’s illumination), all tuned to sporting…

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Red Ball Cafe – Albuquerque, New Mexico (CLOSED)

Gil Garduno10:18 PM

From Red Ball Cafe’s Facebook Page (28 December 2021): It is with extreme sadness and difficulty to announce the Red Ball Cafe has officially closed its doors for good😢. With the building being as old as it is (impossible maintenance upkeep), plus trying to survive the pandemic has caused us to make the decision to close. 1922 was a year of firsts for Albuquerque an;d New Mexico.  At 15,462 citizens, Albuquerque’s population constituted for the first time ever, more than half the population of Bernalillo county.  The state’s first skyscraper, the nine-story First National Bank on Central Avenue was built.  Taking to the air waves for the very first time was New Mexico’s very first radio station, KOB which then broadcast at 833.3 on the AM dial.  Dr. William Lovelace co-founded the Lovelace Clinic, based on the Mayo clinic’s physician group practice model.  Albuquerque then was a mecca for people suffering from respiratory diseases and allergies seeking relief in the city’s warm, dry climate. 1922 also saw the launch of the Red Ball Cafe in the historic Barelas neighborhood.  It was primarily a neighborhood cafe back then, but four years later in 1926 the original Route 66 passed by its…

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Cafe 6855 – Albuquerque, New Mexico (CLOSED)

Gil Garduno12:01 AM

The cover page of the May 20, 2013 edition of Time Magazine depicts a twenty-something woman sprawled on the floor taking a selfie. In large type above the photo is the caption “The Me Me Me Generation” subtitled with “Millennials are lazy, entitled narcissists who still live with their parents.” If you believe the monolithic label “millennial” (typically assigned to a person born between 1981 and 2001) defines all young people and that popular characterizations and stereotypes about millennials are accurate, perhaps you’ll be interested in an oceanfront piece of real estate I’m selling in Arizona. If your perceptions of young people skew toward the negative, let me introduce you to Victoria and Julian Gonzales. Victoria and Julian are among the 80-million millennials across the fruited plain. As with many millennials, they’re technologically savvy, very civic-minded and conscious of health, environmental and socioeconomic issues. They’re confident and driven. They’ve got exceptional work ethics and value social connectedness very much…and not just online Both are very outgoing and friendly. They’ve had to be. We’ve known Victoria and Julian since they tagged along with their charismatic dad Michael as he launched Café Bella, his then-fledgling coffee empire in Rio Rancho. We’ve watched…

AlbuquerqueDog FriendlyFood TruckNew MexicanNew MexicoRating: N/R (Not Rated)

Rollin’ On In Food Truck – Albuquerque, New Mexico

Gil Garduno1:44 PM

While their brick-and-mortar counterparts can afford to have multi-page menus to please a wide variety of palates, mobile food kitchens (that’s food trucks to you, Bob) are somewhat at a disadvantage. By sheer necessity, food trucks must be limited, well-defined, maybe even singularly focused.  The advantage the successful ones have is that they can concentrate on creating memorable dishes around their concept using a few common ingredients.  Rollin’ On In, for example, lists only four entrees on its menu: three tacos, a quesadilla, three enchiladas and a burrito. With those four entrees, however, there are an infinite number of “build-your-own” possibilities.  Your construction options include four fillings (shredded chicken, shredded pork, ground beef and potato and veggie mix), eleven fresh faves (cheese, lettuce, tomato, onion, fresh jalapeño, grilled corn, green onion, red cabbage, cucumber, cilantro and lime) and four sauces (lime and cilantro ranch, salsa, red chile and green chile).  Okay, mathematically the number of options isn’t infinite, but with over 300 million possible combinations for each entree, (don’t ask me to show my math) that’s still an impressive number. Food Network celebrity chef Bobby Flay once lamented, “when people pile seven things onto one burger, it drives me nuts!.” …

AlbuquerqueBrewery-PubDog FriendlyNew MexicoRating: N/R (Not Rated)

Steel Bender Brewyard – Albuquerque, New Mexico

Gil Garduno11:58 AM

“Sometimes you want to go Where everybody knows your name And they’re always glad you came You want to be where you can see The troubles are all the same You want to be where everybody knows your name.” ~Theme Song From Cheers Just another banal, meaningless television show jingle?  Think again.  Urban sociologist Ray Oldenburg might even argue that the Cheers theme song exemplifies his concept of “third place.”    In 1989, Oldenburg published That Good Place in which he introduced the concept of third place into the lexicon.  Third place refers to places where people spend time between home (‘first’ place) and work (‘second’ place).  Third places are, according to Oldenburg, locations where we, as social beings, exchange ideas, have a good time, and build relationships.  Moreover, third places are face-to-face, not virtual (online).  They’re the hangout spot or “home away from home” that provides an essential and welcoming zone that’s not home and not work.  Third places cultivate essential social experiences in the company of like-minded people…ostensibly who know your name and are glad you came. In terms of design as well as functionality, a third place must be set up as an inviting hangout spot for…

AlbuquerqueBreakfastClosed in 2019Dog FriendlyFrenchGone But Not ForgottenNew Mexico

Crepe Crepe – Albuquerque, New Mexico (CLOSED)

Gil Garduno8:17 PM

Richard Olney, a cookbook author best known for his books on French country cooking described crepes thusly: “their greatest pitfalls derive, no doubt, from their versatility — not in itself a fault, but a quality that teases many a cook into overstepping the boundaries of sense and taste. One should never lose sight of the fragile and delicate, thin, tender thing that is the crepe itself.”  In his magnificent tome The French Menu Cookbook, he prefaced a recipe for Gratin of Stuffed Crepes with: “crepes may contain practically anything and they represent one of the prettiest and most satisfactory means of disposing of leftovers.”  Then as to demonstrate their versatility, he listed among the ingredients for the stuffed crepe, one calf’s brain. If you’ve ever partaken of crepes at a French restaurants in the metropolitan area, versatility is probably not how you’d describe those crepes.  Delicious, mouth-watering, delightful…yes, but they won’t surprise you with ingenuity.  They all pretty much uphold French crepe traditions (though surprisingly only one Duke City French restaurant offers Crepe Suzette, the most famous crepe dish in the world).   The versatility described by Richard Olney began with mobile food kitchens (that’s food truck for you, Bob) which began experimenting…

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Rustic On The Green & Rustic Star – Albuquerque, New Mexico (CLOSED)

Gil Garduno8:13 PM

Pop culture’s most famous exemplar of teenage angst may have been Napoleon Dynamite, a socially awkward daydreamer constantly tormented by bullies. Napoleon frequently lamented his ineptitude: “I don’t even have any good skills. You know, like nunchuck skills, bow hunting skills, computer hacking skills. Girls only want boyfriends who have great skills.” Napoleon’s best friend Pedro, on the other hand, possessed skills Napoleon coveted: “Well, you have a sweet ride. And you’re really good at hooking up with chicks. Plus you’re the only guy at school who has a mustache.” In a previous review I bemoaned my lack of skills in the manly art of grilling (though not nearly as much as my dear Kim bemoaned my having ruined thousands of dollars of meat, fish, poultry and vegetables). Despite voracious absorption of the collected works of Bill and Cheryl Jamison, America’s foremost grilling and smoking gurus, my grilling skills are probably not even at the equivalent of Napoleon’s nunchuck skills. It got so bad, my saintly Kim confiscated my treasured “kiss the chef” apron (which admittedly I set afire numerous times). Unlike Napoleon who doggedly persisted in his indefatigable efforts to develop skills, I’ve finally come to the conclusion that…