P.m.: Lunch + Dinner

Lunch + Dinner

\ Oct 06, 2011

15 min read

P.M. — Best Burger: Five Guys (Eric Williams ericwphoto.com)

See A.M.: Best Brunch for contact information.

Best Of Burque Restaurants 2011:

Before the entrées arrive, you like to munch on Zinc’s duck confit egg rolls or seared ahi tuna resting on a bed of tempura-fried shoestring veggies. And the charcuterie plate does double duty as a late-night snack.

Best Of Burque Restaurants 2011:

2) StreetFood Asia

3) Gecko’s Bar and Tapas

Best Of Burque Restaurants 2011: Best Burger

6650 Holly NE • 797-4600

fiveguys.com

Best Of Burque Restaurants 2011:

This franchise has stolen readers’ hearts with fresh, juicy burgers that are reportedly “floppy in a good way.” The toppings don’t cost extra (though, sadly, chile is not among them), the patty sizes are ample and there are shell-on peanuts to snack on while you wait. That’s a citywide high-five to you, Five Guys.

Best Of Burque Restaurants 2011:

2) Blake’s Lotaburger

3) Holy Cow

Best Of Burque Restaurants 2011: Best French Fries

More than 75 locations statewide: complete list of addresses and phone numbers at lotaburger.com

Best Of Burque Restaurants 2011:

A New Mexico icon that’s mastered the fine art of the french fry, as well as the regional craft of smearing them with green chile and cheese.

Best Of Burque Restaurants 2011:

2) Tie: Brasserie La Provence, Five Guys

3) bRgR

Best Of Burque Restaurants 2011: Best Pizza

510 Central SE • 243-0130

farinapizzeria.com

Best Of Burque Restaurants 2011:

In a historic Best of Burque Restaurants upset, Farina’s artisan pizzas have snatched the crusty crown from longtime favorite Dion’s. Toppings like local greens, imported olives and farmhouse goat cheese must have swayed the votes in Farina’s favor.

Best Of Burque Restaurants 2011:

2) Il Vicino

3) Dion’s Pizza

Best Of Burque Restaurants 2011: Best Pasta

3118 Central SE • 268-5965

Best Of Burque Restaurants 2011:

You want it al dente. You want it fresh. You want it in the belly of Nob Hill, where the view out the window provides some of the best people-watching in town. That’s why you vote for Vivace every year.

Best Of Burque Restaurants 2011:

2) Scalo Northern Italian Grill

3) Trombino’s Bistro Italiano

Best Of Burque Restaurants 2011: Best Salad

Far Northeast Heights: 10401 Montgomery NE • 293-7183

Far Northeast Heights: 8010 Academy NE • 821-3911

Far Northeast Heights: 8100 Wyoming NE • 857-0100

Southeast: 1600 Towne Center Lane SE • 248-1010

Southeast: 11000 Central SE • 296-0771

Upper Nob Hill: 4717 Central NE • 265-6919

North Valley: 6308 Fourth Street NW • 345-4900

Westside: 10010 Coors NW • 899-0400

Westside: 121 Coors NW • 831-3131

Westside: 4200 Montaño NW • 898-1161

Rio Rancho: 4101 High Resort SE • 896-2222

Bernalillo: 520 Hwy. 528 • 867-6161

dionspizza.com

Best Of Burque Restaurants 2011:

Piled high with shredded provolone, fresh tomatoes and salty-good pastrami, the signature ranch salad at Dion’s tastes too good to be healthy. All of the greens options on the menu are bigger than advertised, not to mention ridiculously affordable.

Best Of Burque Restaurants 2011:

2) The Grove Café and Market

3) Flying Star Café

Best Of Burque Restaurants 2011: Best Sandwiches

8019 Menaul NE • 299-0001

relishsandwiches.com

Best Of Burque Restaurants 2011:

Relish stands its ground as Albuquerque’s best sandwich shop thanks to innovative creations like a grinder with jalapeño relish and the smoked turkey sandwich with apple butter. But seriously, Albuquerque, don’t overlook the salads. The "chop chop" with grilled chicken, haricot verts and roasted red beets does just fine sans bread.

Best Of Burque Restaurants 2011:

2) Tie: Baggin’s Gourmet Sandwiches, DG’s Deli

3) Al’s Big Dipper

Best Of Burque Restaurants 2011: Best Falafel

See Around the World: Best Middle Eastern for contact information.

Best Of Burque Restaurants 2011:

It make sense that this neighborhood joint took home the prize. Sahara also won Best Middle Eastern, and it’s the falafel you’re writing home about. Chefs there grind the chickpeas fresh and add their own special blend of herbs and spices.

Best Of Burque Restaurants 2011:

2) Café Istanbul

3) Yasmine’s Café

Best Of Burque Restaurants 2011: Best Gyros

See Around the World: Best Greek for contact information.

Best Of Burque Restaurants 2011:

Another longtime ethnic juggernaut, the UNM Area’s Olympia Café takes home the gold, delivering hot lamb meat shaved right off the twirling metal shank—just like you like it. Overstuffed, dripping with tzatziki and sitting on a blue-and-white tablecloth? Now that’s a proper gyro.

Best Of Burque Restaurants 2011:

2) Sahara Middle Eastern Eatery

3) Tie: Café Istanbul, Gyros Mediterranean

Best Of Burque Restaurants 2011: Best Tacos

109 Yale SE • 247-2503

Best Of Burque Restaurants 2011:

The tacos at Pericos make for a nice takeout lunch—if you can resist eating them before getting back to the office. A little guac, some salsa, and your tongue is tingling.

Best Of Burque Restaurants 2011:

2) Taquereía Mexico

3) Taco Cabana

Best Of Burque Restaurants 2011: Best Quiche

401 Copper NW • 242-2808

laquicheparisienne.com

Best Of Burque Restaurants 2011:

Quiche is kind of perfect. You get the flaky crust of a pie, the breakfast-for-lunch satisfaction of eggs and the ingredient versatility of a pizza. And readers say no quiche is as perfect as La Quiche’s, which had the good sense to name itself after one.

Best Of Burque Restaurants 2011:

2) Brasserie La Provence

3) P’tit Louis Bistro

Best Of Burque Restaurants 2011: Best Mac And Cheese

See A.M.: Best French Toast for contact information.

Best Of Burque Restaurants 2011:

If consuming large quantities of fat and calories in one sitting is wrong, we don’t want to be right. Flying Star proves that to make amazing macaroni and cheese, you don’t need truffle oil, or panko, or high-end cheeses from Northern Italy. All you need is Velveeta.

Best Of Burque Restaurants 2011:

2) The Standard Diner

3) The Cube

Best Of Burque Restaurants 2011: Best Barbecue

Midtown: 2321 Carlisle NE • 884-4000

Westside: 10136 Coors NW • 890-7113

rudys.com

Best Of Burque Restaurants 2011:

Rudy’s evokes a down-home charm—from the giant picnic tables and room-length ice troughs full of beer and old-fashioned sodas to the smell of a backyard smokehouse. And when your face is slathered in peppery barbecue sauce, your taste buds glazed in the unctuous juices of nicely barked brisket, it’s hard not to feel a sense of Southern comfort.

Best Of Burque Restaurants 2011:

2) The Cube

3) Mr. Powdrell’s Barbeque House

Best Of Burque Restaurants 2011: Best Steakhouse

1000 Juan Tabo NE • 294-1461

Best Of Burque Restaurants 2011:

If walls could talk, the ones inside Paul’s Monterey Inn likely would have been subpoenaed to testify in more than one federal case. The famed, old-school meeting place for local politicians is the beefiest dining institution in Burque.

Best Of Burque Restaurants 2011:

2) Monte Carlo Steakhouse

3) Vernon’s Hidden Valley Steakhouse

Best Of Burque Restaurants 2011: Best Seafood

4214 Central SE • 266-5544

desertfishabq.com

Best Of Burque Restaurants 2011:

We’ve heard it all before: "Seafood? In the Desert???" Although it’s a newcomer, Nob Hill’s Desert Fish readily acknowledges the oxymoron right there in the restaurant’s name. The upscale yet casual eatery features Northwest-inspired seafood and has already taught us desert dwellers a thing or two about shucking oysters.

Best Of Burque Restaurants 2011:

2) Pelican’s Restaurant

3) Los Equipales

Best Of Burque Restaurants 2011: Best Sushi

3310 Central SE • 265-9166

Best Of Burque Restaurants 2011:

It’s the boats isn’t it? It’s OK to admit. You love to see your sushi floating around the counter in little wooden boats. Nob Hill’s Shogun Sushi returns to the tops in the Best Sushi category thanks to readers who wisely equate fresh fish with boats.

Best Of Burque Restaurants 2011:

2) Crazy Fish

3) Tie: AmerAsia & Sumo Sushi, Sushi & Sake

Best Of Burque Restaurants 2011: Best Tempura

See Best Sushi for contact information.

Best Of Burque Restaurants 2011:

Our readers have spoken: Carrots, potatoes and zucchini never tasted so damn amazing. Thinly sliced and encased in the most delicately sweet layer of crispy tempura, these veggies may lure you away from the other goodies on the menu.

Best Of Burque Restaurants 2011:

2) Japanese Kitchen Steakhouse

3) Light and Healthy Mirai Express

Best Of Burque Restaurants 2011: Best Pho

See Around the World: Best Vietnamese for contact information.

Best Of Burque Restaurants 2011:

It can be a hangover cure or simply a bowl of something hot and delicious to soothe your soul on a cold winter’s day. There isn’t a much better fix than pho. And stateside, there aren’t many locales that compare to the fare found in Burque. Viet Taste represents with a balanced broth of sweet and salty, replete with a mountain of verdant add-ins, meat variations and a hint of star anise.

Best Of Burque Restaurants 2011:

2) Tie: 2000 Vietnam, Café Trang

3) Tie: Pho #1 Vietnamese, Que Huong

Best Of Burque Restaurants 2011: Best Spring Rolls

601 San Mateo SE • 232-0900

Best Of Burque Restaurants 2011:

Is it the sauce? That thick, peanuty concoction with chunks of crushed peanuts suspended on the surface? Or is it the cilantro? Or is it the delicate shrimp? Maybe the tofu version is more your speed. Either way, these babies take the Vietnamese cake.

Best Of Burque Restaurants 2011:

2) Thai Vegan

3) Tie: Café Trang, May Café

Best Of Burque Restaurants 2011: Best Curry

See Around the World: Best Indian for contact information.

Best Of Burque Restaurants 2011:

You can get your curry about a million different ways here—there’s Kashmiri style, or with shrimp, or sautéed with potatoes and searing chilies. Whatever dietary direction our readers are pointed in, Taj Mahal curries favor.