Pizza
Chama River Brewing Co.
Two completely different locations serving the same excellent beer! Downtown has a casual, easy-going vibe (with food nearby). Up north is the huge, swanky brewery. Choose for location, mood, or who it is you intend to run into. Neither disappoints.
Charlie’s Back Door
A Burque classic! This dark Scottish-themed bar tends to the daytime-break needs of ever-present Heights construction workers. Boasts a wide variety of whiskeys and dark ales, as well as the full Front Door menu. Try the sheepdip, a bowl of just-tender meat in chile.
CLOSED M-SA 2–5
Dion's Pizza
If you didn’t work at Dion’s in high school, you’ve dated someone who did. Named after the Greek god Dionysus, they’ve spread as far as Lubbock, but the business model stays pure Albuquerque. Their pizza is among the best, and their subs, served with their famous Greek dressing, are craved around the world.
Ed’s Pub (inside Leisure Bowl)
While Leisure Bowl has its own Lebowskian merits, Ed’s brings it all together. An excellent karaoke DJ works every night of the week. The waitstaff are stern, but they’ll grow on you.
el madrid
Voted by Guide staff both Best Place to Get Shanked and Best Place to Get a Drink From a Dirty Glass. Those of you already grabbing your keys based on that description, vayan con Dios.
El Rey Theater
An old school theater that’s seen better days. Designed by Luigi Puccini, cousin of the famous opera composer, and maintained (barely) by his granddaughter. The building also used to house a kick-ass smaller venue, The Golden West, but a 2008 fire burned it to the ground.
Exhale Night Club & Grill
If you’re looking for LGBTQ-anything, you’ll find it here–from cute bois to the ever-elusive half-naked Burqueño gogo.
Farina Pizzeria
This is what pizza is like when real foodies get in the kitchen. Opened in 2008 by one of Albuquerque’s most established fine-dining restaurants, the Artichoke Café, Farina has been packed to the walls since day one.
Gecko’s
Amanda’s Bloody Mary shares company in our hearts with the Anodyne’s best, plus some delicious-but-pricey tapas. Tuesdays are 3-for-2 tapas; Sunday’s bartender’s drink of the day.
Golden Crown Panaderia
An Old Town veteran. Empanadas, panes (Green Chile, Marble Rye, Cinnamon Pecan, Guess How Many Grains, and more), gourmet pizzas, huge salads, biscochitos like your jefita used to make, and everything else, baked (or assembled) fresh.
Howie’s Sports Page
Your neighborhood bar, replete with neighborhood bar folk. Sturdy selection of beers on tap and in unfancy bottles. There’s a pay-by-quarters pool table in the back, and on Monday nights in the fall, free potluck while you watch the game.
Il Vicino
While there are many Il Vicino eateries all over the southwest, this Northern Italian eatery started it all in Nob Hill. The name means “the neighbor,” and being a neighbor itself to the Guild Cinema, Il Vicino is a great pre– or post-movie dinner choice.