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MEE Hmong Cuisine 68 Bastille Dr. Pagosa Springs, CO Update: The restaurant closed in 2021 but reopened in a new location in 2024 The Hmong people (pronounced “mung” according to the restaurant owner’s message on Yelp) are a large ethnic … Continue reading
Porter’s
First of all, I want to clear up some confusion about what Porter’s is. The official name of the restaurant is “Porter’s Restaurant & Smokehouse.” When looking at different web sites I saw that it was everything from a steakhouse to an American restaurant to a barbecue restaurant. The answer is that it is all of these things under one roof, and I think they must be awfully busy preparing all these different types of food. After examining the menu, though, I asked one of the employees if this was a steakhouse that had barbecue or a BBQ restaurant that had steaks, inquiring about the restaurant’s true specialty and what is popular with local people. Her reply was that it was a barbecue restaurant that had steaks, keeping this in context that she was only saying what was most popular and not necessarily what was the best food.
A second question some may have may be “why was I in Farmington in the first place?” All right, this is probably not a question anyone has, but I will give an answer anyway. It is quite notable that Farmington has one of the last remaining K-Marts in New Mexico, and in fact in the entire country. Last year I visited the K-Mart in Roswell which has since closed, and it is very uncertain what will be the fate of the remaining stores. It seems that the K-Marts have items that you cannot find anywhere else because of the fact that they do not jettison items as quickly which are not the top sellers, while the typical big box stores do not have as much patience for anything which is not earning them the top profit margins. K-Mart has good items, but just ones that are harder to find.
Also pretty hard to find, though, is good barbecue. New Mexico has become one of the top barbecue states in recent years, but of course not all restaurants in any state are of equal quality.
I told the staff that I was from Oklahoma and that I had high standards for barbecue, and after the meal I let them know that this restaurant passes the test. I would classify it as Texas style barbecue rather than Oklahoma–two of their best items are beef ribs and brisket which are known as being Texas specialties. I could not pin down the origin of the sauce but it was more spicy than in most Oklahoma restaurants (and more spicy than most I have tasted in Austin).
Moreover, I found out that their most popular item was the beef ribs, and that people literally make trips from all four of the Four Corners states to eat it. This is not a reflection of there being very little competition, but the fact that these ribs are so good that really anyone would come here who had a reasonable means of doing so. I did not know any of this before coming to the restaurant, but I am glad I found out.
The staff also let me know that the beef is locally sourced, and I think that not only the beef BBQ but also the steaks are known to be of very high quality.
BBQ Plate
BBQ plate with beef rib, sausage, and brisket
First of all, I should disclose that this was not my meal for the evening. Having previously eaten at El Bruno’s in Cuba, I had only samples of the meat while my friend and traveling companion (also named Steve) ate most of the meal. The BBQ plate includes three meats which are your choice, and you can choose side dishes as well. I do not remember whether Steve asked for recommendations or not, but I believe the rib and brisket are always his first choices at barbecue restaurants. I did not eat very much of any of them, but I thought all three meats were very good.
Of course I discovered that the Beef Rib is the restaurant’s specialty. This item is almost non-existent in Oklahoma, although I have had some recently in El Paso (which largely serves central Texas style BBQ). The beef rib at Porter’s included a very large portion of fat, but there was enough meat for both of us to cut off a reasonable serving and to be very satisfied (although I had a smaller appetite as was satisfied more easily). This was honestly the tenderest and most flavorful beef rib that I think I have ever eaten, and it was through asking the staff how they did this that I found out about the local sourcing of the meat.
The Brisket had a very good quality that I almost never get in Oklahoma, and which is not universal in the Texas barbecue world which includes El Paso. This was also a very good barbecued meat, which I would get as a supplement to the ribs (also in contrast to the rib’s high fat content, the brisket is very lean).
The Sausage was also very good, and I would say it was one of the best I have had anywhere. However, I am not that big a fan of BBQ sausage, so for me this was another item which took second place to the rib.
The sauce had a very good bite and in Oklahoma I would classify it as “spicy,” although it is not really at the level that New Mexicans think of as being extra spicy. The sauce went very well with the rib and sausage. For anyone who happens to see this blog before going to Porter’s, though, I would say to order the brisket plain with the sauce on the side. This brisket most likely would have been very good plain without any sauce, but I did not get to taste it this way.
The restaurant does give you a choice of whether you want sauce on the meat, on the side, or not included. I did like the sauce on the rib and the sausage.
Other Items
There is a popular buffet which I think includes all the BBQ items but not the steaks. I believe they also have regular meats which are not smoked on the menu and the buffet. The buffet is supposedly a bargain if you are fairly hungry. When I went the buffet was already closed (shortly before the restaurant’s closing time) but they did have the same type of soft serve ice cream machine I find at many barbecue restaurants in Oklahoma.
Summary
I did not have a large sample of this restaurant’s food, but I did try the beef rib which is what people “drive from Durango” in order to eat. This was an exceptional rib, and even more so because it had enough meat to satisfy what I would judge to be a normal meat portion when I consider the size of an average meal.
My other general recommendation is that prices here are extremely good for the amount and quality of food that you get.
There are other barbecue restaurants in Farmington that come up higher on the Yelp ranked list of restaurants, so I cannot say which one is actually the best. For beef ribs, though, it seems to be Porter’s.
RATING: 24
Cuisine: BBQ, Steaks
Cost: $$
Hours: Open Daily
Accessible: Yes
Smoking: No smoking
Alcohol: Beer & Wine
Most Recent Visit: Aug. 6, 2019
Number of Visits: 1
Best Item: Beef Ribs
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Beef Ribs |
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Brisket |
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Sausage |
This gallery contains 10 photos.
El Bruno’s Restaurante y Cantina 6453 Main St. Cuba, NM (575) 289-9429 I have made two treks to Cuba, New Mexico in recent years in which I stopped to visit the famous El Bruno’s Restaurant (famous to me, at least, because … Continue reading
Red Rock Deli
Mark, the owner of Red Rock Deli, seems to be the eternal optimist. While I say Red Rock Deli is closed on Monday, the Red Rock Facebook page says it is “open Tuesday through Sunday.” When I found out he actually spends weekdays in Blanca, Colorado working at his other business (Red Rock General Store) he said he is excited about both business opportunities, and that he enjoys the commute between them every week!
Actually I should point out that Red Rock Deli in Albuquerque is run by Mark’s wife, and the General Store in Colorado is owned by other family members (who also have a deli in the store and serve Polish sandwiches as the one in Albuquerque does). The Albuquerque enterprise resulted from Mark’s desire to operate a full blown restaurant with sandwiches and complete dinner plates. The restaurant is based on food from Mark’s native Poland, but he points out that he loves food from other countries too, and includes menu items from such countries as Germany and Ukraine.
Displays in the store featuring imported items from Europe
Red Rock is also a European style grocery store selling such items as sausages, pierogi, jellies and preserves from several countries, candy, cookies, and much more. Mark said he makes periodic trips to Chicago (I believe every three months) to buy sausages, etc., and items on the shelves and in the freezer are all well within their proper shelf lives. Apparently there is a very high demand for his European delicacies resulting in a high turnover of the product.
Red Rock Deli used to be located on the far east side of Albuquerque, but recently opened a new store and restaurant on San Mateo Place just north of Interstate 40. It is open from 10:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m. (closed on Mon.) and has table service for lunch and dinner as well as anything you would like to buy in the store to take home.
Pierogi
Russian Roulette
I was very happy for the opportunity to try Polish food for the first time since Maggie’s Cafe in Oklahoma City closed. I think if anyone had tried Maggie’s Polish specialties they would probably welcome the opportunity for more of the same as I did.
I immediately focused on two items at Red Rock Deli that corresponded to some of my favorites at Maggie’s–the stuffed cabbage (golabki at Maggie’s but I am not sure what it is called at Red Rock) and the pierogi. I think both would have been good choices, but my decision was swayed by the fact that the Russian Roulette pierogi plate had a sample of fillings with different flavors such as spinach, cabbage, sauerkraut, and potatoes with cheese. These are mostly evident only by cutting or biting into the individual dumplings to see what is inside (although I think the spinach one had a green color that could be seen through the dumpling). One of best parts of this plate was the variety, although I did like the spinach pierogi quite a bit.
Something especially recommended would be the optional onion and bacon sauce for the pierogi the restaurant makes in house.
I should note that they have frozen pierogi in the freezer section of the store which can be taken home, and I think these are also the ones served on the pierogi plate in the restaurant. Because of this I did not think the pierogi were the best items served at the restaurant, but the flavors were very good, especially with the onion and bacon sauce.
Art Wiener Schintzel
Art Wiener Schnitzel
I was fortunate enough to be able to split two meals instead of just having my own, so I was treated to half of an excellent Wiener Schnitzel which I would say is the best item I tried. The meat was tender and the breading was excellent, as were the side dishes. The only comment I would make is to ask for a lemon slice to sprinkle on the schnitzel–to me this made it almost perfect (but the lemon is not provided unless you request it).
Potato salad, sauerkraut, and German mustard
Of the three side dishes I thought the star was the Sauerkraut, which is made in house. This had the flavor I find in good versions of sauerkraut without the acid which is most pronounced in canned versions but which is also present is some home made varieties.
Although I was not a big fan of the Potato Salad my dining companion was, and I certainly did not dislike it in any way.
The German Mustard was very good but I did not find any items that were enhanced by adding mustard to it.
Sausage
Guinness beer brat
On my visit to the new store I tried the Guinness Beer Brat with Sauerkraut. This is called “Double Barrel” on the menu because you get two of them, but since this was a snack for me rather than a full me I just tried a portion of one of them. This was enough, though, to convince me of the excellent flavor. Although I really liked the sauerkraut and the spicy brown mustard, the big attraction for me was the sausage itself, which made me think you can indeed get authentic European sausage in the Southwest.
The “General Store”
The new building, like the old one, is filled with display shelves stocked with imported food and other goods from Europe. While most of it looked very good and would be very useful if I knew how to cook, I decided I could at least get good use out of the sweet items that were available here but probably nowhere else that I knew about.
Cookies and candy from Red Rock Deli
These are several of the cookies and candy they have available, but buying these was a shot in the dark from the vast array of items that are available. All of them made very good snacks, and I did not try anything that I would not buy again.
Items Previously Sold at the Eastside Store
There is one special item I bought at the old store, though, but could not find at the new one (perhaps it was there and I missed it). This was one of the more expensive candies, but I thought it was the best.
Mella jelly in chocolate
The Mella Galaretka w Czekoladzie (jelly in chocolate) came with 16 rather small but very rich pieces of chocolate candy filled with orange flavored jelly. It reminded me of the old orange slice candy I used to enjoy when I was growing up, except that the one here has a slightly more liquid texture (like a jelly).
The Mella candies
This is what the inside of the box looked like, and the 16 pieces lasted for a surprisingly long time. Even though I was taking a long time eating them in order to extend the time I could enjoy them, they stayed fresh for several months (they could not last indefinitely because they were too good not to be enjoyed).
I had never really explored the world of Polish chocolates before, but it turned out to be surprisingly worthwhile.
RATING: 23
Cuisine: Polish
Cost: $$
Hours: Closed Mon.
Accessible: Yes
Smoking: No smoking
Alcohol: No
Most Recent Visit: Aug. 6, 2019
Number of Visits: 2
Best Items: Schnitzel, Sauerkraut, Guinness Beer Brat
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Art Wiener Schnitzel |
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Guinness Beer Brat |
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Pierogi |
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Sauerkraut |
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Potato Salad |
Papa Felipe’s
When I lived in Albuquerque for a short time in the early 1980’s I made a list of all the Mexican restaurants in the city and then proceeded to make comments and rate the ones I visited (see my blog post Albuquerque Mexican Restaurants 1981). Papa Felipe’s was on this list, although at the time it was located in the Coronado Shopping Center. Furthermore I rated it as four stars out of four (one of the few that I considered to be this good).
Since then I have had enormous curiosity about whether it has stood the test of time, until I was able to visit again in 2019. The short answer is that I was not disappointed on my return visit, and I think this is still a very good New Mexican restaurant. In truth, I think all the restaurants on my 1981 list were New Mexican style, while today there are many restaurants with south of the border style food that might compete as the city’s best Mexican restaurants.
Since the days Papa Felipe’s was in Coronado Center it has had a somewhat upscale setting and the large number of booths give it a coffee house feeling. I do not consider it to be expensive, but it is not a mom and pop restaurant which generally have the cheapest prices. It is still a comfortable restaurant with good food, and probably most importantly for my most recent visit, is open until 9:00 p.m. (this seems to be very late for most restaurants in Albuquerque).
Chips and Salsa
Chips and salsa
I thought the chips and salsa were very good–a good start to what turned out to be a good meal.
Enchiladas
Christmas enchiladas
The regular order of Enchiladas is served with corn tortillas and comes rolled. The blue corn tortillas I ordered, though, dictates that it be served flat (and the regular order will also be served flat if you request it this way). I definitely recommend the blue corn tortillas, though, since this is one of the important elements of northern New Mexican food that I really enjoy. Although the flavor of the blue corn is sometimes barely noticeable in an enchilada, I think what I like most is the lack of corn oil flavor I have always found with this type of tortilla.
I thought a good choice for this meal would be to order the enchiladas “Christmas” (both red and green chile) which if nothing else at least makes the dish very colorful. As usually happens with me, though, I preferred the red chile in terms of flavor. Still, though, the green chile was better than I find at most restaurants, and was a worthwhile experience. As for the red, it was not only good, but was one of the best I have found in town (as I did in the 1980’s).
The restaurant has a sign warning customers that the green chile is “hot,” but it does not reach the level I find at some Hatch, Las Cruces, or rural northern NM levels (I put it at four chiles out of five). The red was what I call a “solid 4” (hot enough to have a good flavor but you do not get a chile overload on your tongue).
The drawback to these enchiladas, though, seemed to be the cheese they put inside. It did not seem to melt sufficiently when they cooked it, and I did not like the harder than normal texture it had.
Despite the cheese (which was either not prepared properly or else this is the style they do it) this was one of my favorite New Mexico style enchiladas I have found anywhere, and overall was very good. Even the green half was quite good, but I like the red half better.
Chile Relleno
Chile relleno
When I sampled a friend’s order of Chile Relleno it was quite a surprise in a good way. Not only did it taste very good covered with green chile, but the batter around the chile relleno was flavorful enough to almost be competitive with the ones at Chope’s in southern New Mexico. Of course most Albuquerque residents cannot travel to a location south of Las Cruces for their chiles rellenos, but I think the ones at Papa Felipe’s are very satisfying and are a very good alternative.
Other Notes
The whole beans here were excellent, and the rice was “OK.” Both plates came with a salad (no dressing–just the raw elements of lettuce, tomato, and cheese). These side dishes were very good, but mainly because of the beans.
I requested the sopaipillas with my meal, and I was very happy because this allowed me to have the perfect “blue corn enchilada” experience. The chiles rellenos were supposed to have their own order of sopaipillas to be served for dessert, but these never came. This was one of several issued I found about the service where certain items are available if you want, but you have to request it. Another issue is that by the time anyone comes around so that you can request something, you may not really want it anymore.
The bottom line is that this is some of the best red and green chile I have had anywhere, but I particularly like the red.
RATING: 24
Cuisine: Mexican New Mexican
Cost: $$
Hours: Open Daily 11:00 am to 9:00 pm
Accessible: Yes
Smoking: No smoking
Alcohol: Full Bar
Most Recent Visit: Aug. 5, 2019
Number of Visits: 2
Best Items: Red Enchiladas, Chile Relleno, Salsa, Beans, Sopaipilla
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Red Enchiladas |
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Green Enchiladas |
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Chile Relleno |
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Beans |
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Chips |
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Salsa |
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Sopaipilla |
Coffee Emporium
Although Coffee Emporium is quite popular and gets good reviews, it was not really on my radar until the time I visited. I do not drink coffee, and even having the chance to drink the best coffee (as in New Orleans) is not enough for me to acquire a taste for it. Nevertheless, the coffee here is reputed to be some of the best people have had.
What I know about this shop is that it had a long time owner who retired about 2017, and since that time it has done some minor things to reinvent itself. I think it downsized a little bit, but still maintains the theme of coffee plus treats (candy, etc.). I saw quite a large selection of sweets, which interest me even if I am not going to order any coffee.
The sweets are not made on site (I think some of them were before). What they have, though, is gourmet and comes from sources that seem to have been sought out so that customers would have the best items available.
Chocolate Candy
Coffee flavored chocolateses
I thought that since I was not drinking coffee that I would at least see if they had some good coffee flavored candy. The answer was yes to the coffee flavored part and yes to the good part. I certainly do not include every store I visit on the blog (mainly because of time constraints), but when I get very good leads that I want to share these will be included.
Sweet Shop box
The coffee flavored chocolate came from a company in east Texas called Sweet Shop USA. I had never heard of them, but they make some very good chocolates.
The chocolates are sold individually, and I chose three that were made with different coffee flavors so that I could pick a favorite (at least in terms of coffee flavored candy).
It turned out that my favorite was the Latte (shown in the photo with a swirl on top). I thought I would like it less because it had more of a milk chocolate, but it had a strong coffee flavor (which is a good thing for candy) and had a good flavor overall.
The Cappuccino flavored chocolate had white stripes on top, and although I did not think the coffee flavor was as good as the latte, it had a very good chocolate flavor and overall was a very good candy.
The plain looking dark chocolate with a bean on top was Espresso. This completes the continuum on the scale that the chocolate was probably the best of all of them, but the coffee flavor was the least evident that I could tell.
All of the candies were very good and made an impression on me to the point that I wanted to include them in the blog.
Sweet Shop address
There are many choices in El Paso for good candy, but the chocolates here were some of the best and most decadent I have had. I really enjoyed the coffee flavors, although they have many varieties of chocolate with other flavors.
I did not try their drinks but many people like them, and I can tell that much attention is paid to the details in the way they are made.
RATING: *
Cuisine: Coffee
Cost: *
Most Recent Visit: *
Number of Visits: *
Best Items: Sweet Shop Chocolates
Special Ratings
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Sweet Shop Chocolates |
Bella Cora
I first learned about Bella Cora when they were selling bread at Whole Foods, and as long as this happened I think theirs was what I always bought. In Spring 2018, though, Whole Foods began baking their own versions of these breads and no longer sold the Bella Cora brand. Although many times Whole Foods produced an acceptable version of the same breads, I still wanted to get the original breads from time to time.
I had a hard time, though, figuring out when the bread was available, and several times went on the wrong day or went too late when they had already sold out (although in my mind it was still relatively early in the day).
I have since learned that I can look on their web site for the schedule of when the bread is sold. The ones I enjoyed the most from Whole Foods were the Cranberry Walnut and the Raisin Challah, and these are the ones I have tried to buy at the store.
Pastries at Bella Cora
Pastries seem to be Bella Cora’s best sellers, and there is good reason for this. The ones I tried ranked with Le Rendez-vous in Las Cruces as being the best I have tried in the area. They do not sell the exact same items, but I think the quality is very similar.
The display case on one hand presents a difficult challenge in deciding what to order. On the other hand, though, it seems that everything is good and I think I would be happy with anything they bake.
Bella Cora’s web site also points out that they have holiday pies for Thanksgiving.
Bread
Cranberry walnut bread
The Cranberry Walnut Bread is my number one reason for coming to Bella Cora. It is only available one day per week (and only at the west side store), although their web site says they will try to have it for sale more often beginning in Fall 2019. The thing that makes it available so seldom is also what makes it so good–it is freshly made without preservatives. What Bella Cora’s web site does not specifically say is that the ingredients are top quality that put this in a special category of bakeries.
The Raisin Challah was the other bread sold in Whole Foods that I especially enjoyed (and like the Cranberry Walnut is now available only at the Bella Cora Bakery). While I think Whole Foods many times produces a reasonable approximation of Bella Cora’s Cranberry Raisin, I have not found this to be as true for the Challah bread.
Pastries
Chocolate hazelnut cake
The Chocolate Hazelnut Cake is a pastry I chose at random to try, mainly because I could not remember having one anywhere else. I think most people can probably guess my verdict–it was exceptionally good like everything else I have tried from this bakery. I like to point out that Chinese pastries are good because they have the flavor without being overly sweet, and in a way this was the same. The cake was not as sweet as many, but it did have a strong butter flavor which made it over-the-top in a good way. There was a good balance between the chocolate and hazelnut flavors.
There is another location in east El Paso at 1830 Joe Battle Blvd. Bella Cora is a relatively new bakery, and is in the process of expanding their production as well as their locations. I would not have known about it if they had not had a presence in Whole Foods, but I think at this point the word is getting out and they have plenty of business. Just the pastries alone seem to give them a constant stream of customers (from what I have observed).
RATING: *
Cuisine: Bakery
Cost: *
Most Recent Visit: *
Number of Visits: *
Best Items: Cranberry Walnut Bread, Chocolate Hazelnut Cake
Special Ratings
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Chocolate Hazelnut Cake |
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Cranberry Nut Bread |
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Raisin Challah Bread |
Sometimes I not only get tips from my friends about very good places to eat but I also get samples, and this was the case with Little Swan Bakery. In this case the samples were sent by Priority Mail in a larger package of other items, and were sent this way because the bakery items do have a limited shelf life. Fortunately they last several days before they have a noticeable deterioration of quality.
Little Swan Bakery Cafe has two locations–one in Alhambra, California (in the Los Angeles area) and one in the San Francisco area. They do not serve meals in the store, but apparently have water or coffee to go with your pastries if you want to eat on site. The bakery is Chinese style, and I assume that it is Cantonese. They serve a wide variety of pastries including crepes, buns, bread, croissants, etc. Egg tarts are a popular item.
I know from my samples and from other experiences that Chinese pastries are not as sweet as American ones, and I am told by some this is done on purpose “so you can eat more” (they like to have desserts more often rather than having less frequent treats that are over the top in sweetness). From the flavor of the samples I tried I would say you are not missing out on anything by having the less sweet Chinese pastries. In fact, I think they have a great flavor and are special treats when I have had them.
I should mention that there is a plethora of Chinese bakeries in the Los Angeles area, and my friends mentioned that this was one of their favorites (worthy of sending a “care package” to those who do not have regular access to the authentic Chinese baked goods).
Wife Cakes
Wife cakes are sold by the box
The Wife Cake is one of the best sellers at the bakery, and I think Little Swan is known as one of the best places to buy them. These have a flaky crust, a sweet filling, and are topped with white sesame seeds. The filling is winter melon, and it has a slightly crunchy texture as well as a moderately sweet flavor.
A few wife cakes left in the box
A dozen come in a box, and I would say the size of each “cake” is similar to many of the Mexican style pan dulce items. The terms “bread” and “cake” do not mean the same at Chinese bakeries as they mean in English–the bread is usually more sweet than is normal for Americans while the cake varies from a barely perceptible sweetness to one that I would consider as about medium (I would say the wife cake is the latter).
A serving of wife cake
A single wife cake makes a satisfying dessert, but you could eat more and not go over the safe sugar intake level.
Happy Everyday
Happy Everyday jar
The second item I tried is considered a snack rather than a dessert. It was just barely sweet, but enough so that it would be equivalent to the American “sweet” snacks rather than the “salty” ones.
Happy Everyday
I was told that the actual Chinese name for this is “Chicken And,” which I would probably say should be something like “Chicken Plus.” In other words, it has chicken plus whatever makes it sweet. Like the wife cake, it also had sesame seeds on top.
My friend thinks it may actually be pork rather than chicken, but I could not tell. All I know is that it makes a good snack, and is apparently devoid of the products that American manufacturers love to include that you cannot pronounce and which have little to no nutritional value.
If you go to the bakery there are many more items that are fairly perishable, but these are two that are able to be shipped and maintain their freshness for a while.
RATING: *
Cuisine: Bakery
Cost: *
Most Recent Visit: *
Number of Visits: *
Best Items: Wife Cake, Happy Everyday
Special Ratings
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Wife Cake |
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Happy Everyday |