The Best Restaurants in Albuquerque, According to our Tastemakers

The most noticeable characteristic of Albuquerque's dining scene – one that somehow spans all cuisines – is an obsession with local green and red chiles. It's not an unreasonable infatuation, as the fiery peppers enliven everything from burgers to pizzas as well as the full canon of New Mexican cuisine. Yet the complexity of the city's culinary landscape goes far beyond a single iconic ingredient. The best restaurants in Albuquerque draw upon the rich indigenous, Mexican and Spanish influences of the local cuisine to create their own unique and contemporary menus. So where do the most seasoned, savviest diners eat out in ABQ? Welcome to our Tastemaker List. We compiled data covering thousands of restaurants to determine the top spots among OpenTable's smartest, most expert diners. From Old Town to downtown and beyond, many of these top tastemakers in the city boast glorious Sandia Mountain views, historic adobe venues, and striking outdoor dining spaces. Book a table at one of these amazing restaurants and get ready for an unforgettable sensory experience.

The OpenTable Team

12 Restaurants

Updated February 25, 2020

Restaurants:	Indigo Crow, Seasons Rotisserie & Grill, Blades' Bistro…
Price Range:	$$ - $$$
Cuisines:	Contemporary American, American, International…
Neighborhoods:	Albuquerque, Placitas…

Indigo Crow

$$$$

Contemporary American

Albuquerque

4.6

1998 reviews

Diners at Indigo Crow in Corrales might have a hard time choosing where to sit. There’s a large patio shaded by stately elm trees, a bar area with a wood-burning kiva fireplace, and the main dining room that evokes the feel of a family home. Fortunately, there’s no poor choice. Indigo Crow’s lunch, dinner and Sunday brunch menus are just as promising. Expect cuisine packed with robust southwest flavors and liberal doses of cheese and chilies. Exemplary entrees include salmon with green chile hominy risotto and chimichurri, and pork tenderloin with braised Brussels sprouts, black bean succotash and green chile apple sauce. Lunch and brunch lean a little more casual.

At the moment, there's no online availability within 2.5 hours of your request. Do you have another time in mind?

Seasons Rotisserie & Grill

$$$$

American

Albuquerque

4.7

1500 reviews

Seasons Rotisserie and Grill is one of the best restaurants in Albuquerque with one of the best locations in the city. It’s steps from the historic Old Town Plaza and offers glorious views across Old Town and the Sandias from its rooftop patio. The cuisine is modern American with a noticeable California wine country influence. However, local microbrews, hand-crafted cocktails and from-scratch sangrias rival wine as an option. The bright, cheerful space features an open kitchen. Diners can watch the chefs create their modern cuisine with a focus on grilled meats and fish. The rotisserie half-chicken is a signature entree.

At the moment, there's no online availability within 2.5 hours of your request. Do you have another time in mind?

Experiences available

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Blades' Bistro

$$$$

International

Placitas

4.7

1562 reviews

Blades’ Bistro brings elevated, European-influenced cuisine to the village of Placitas. Chef-owner Kevin Bladergroein, who was classically trained in Paris, designs his dishes to represent a “melting pot of taste.” The bistro’s exhibition kitchen is the focal point of the stylish, upscale dining room. Patio seating is a nice alternative, especially for Sunday brunch. Many menu items nod to the classic bistros of Paris. Among them are steak au poivre, boeuf bourguignon and an entrée-sized salad Nicoise featuring seared yellow-fin tuna. Others, like New England-style crab cakes with Cajun remoulade, draw inspiration from homegrown cuisines.

At the moment, there's no online availability within 2.5 hours of your request. Do you have another time in mind?

Prairie Star Restaurant & Winebar

$$$$

Contemporary American

Santa Ana Pueblo

4.6

1837 reviews

Prairie Star Restaurant and Wine Bar occupies a century-old adobe mansion at Santa Ana Golf Club. The former ranch house retains original viga ceilings and offers views of the sunset over the Sandia Mountains. It’s open for dinner only, offering a menu of contemporary American cuisine with diverse global influences. The restaurant's award-winning wine list is over 200 labels long. Around 50 wines are available by the glass. Artistic small plates, such as beer-batted squash blossom rellenos with a lobster and shrimp filling, share space on the menu with full-sized entrees. A signature cedar-plank salmon with miso glaze, fermented lemon sticky rice and togarashi asparagus is a highlight.

At the moment, there's no online availability within 2.5 hours of your request. Do you have another time in mind?

Rancher's Club of New Mexico

$$$$

Steakhouse

Albuquerque

4.4

1380 reviews

Rancher’s Club of New Mexico has maintained a reputation as one of the best restaurants in Albuquerque since its opening back in 1985. Its space inside the Crowne Plaza Hotel takes inspiration from an old west-style ranch house. Notice the saddles, lassos, taxidermy and a striking steer-horn chandelier among the paraphernalia on display. The restaurant is just as proud of its uncommon wood-fired gridiron and ovens fueled by mesquite and hickory. These tools imbue generous cuts of top-quality meats, game and seafood with a smoky, savory sear. Along with big steaks and a slow-roasted prime rib are unusual cuts like the antelope chop and bacon-wrapped bison tenderloin. Old-school touches include Caesar salad and bananas Foster prepared table-side.

At the moment, there's no online availability within 2.5 hours of your request. Do you have another time in mind?

High Noon

$$$$

Steakhouse

Albuquerque

4.7

775 reviews

High Noon, a circa-1785 adobe home in Old Town, has welcomed a crowd evenly split between tourists and locals since 1974. Its lengthy menus include authentic New Mexican cuisine and steakhouse classics. Sandwiches, burgers, tacos, pasta dishes and salads feature as well. This something-for-everyone approach proves popular. Indecisive diners are wise to look to signature dishes like beef tenderloin over wild mushroom enchiladas. Margaritas are another specialty. Those sitting at the copper-topped bar in the Spanish heritage-inspired Santo room can check out the extensive tequila collection. Hopi, Navajo and Acoma handicrafts adorn the kiva room with its thick adobe walls.

At the moment, there's no online availability within 2.5 hours of your request. Do you have another time in mind?

Takeout available

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Savoy Bar and Grill Albuquerque

$$$$

Californian

Albuquerque

4.5

1103 reviews

Savoy Bar and Grill opened in 2006 to immediate acclaim. It is a third feather in the cap of the same twin-brother team behind Albuquerque’s Seasons Rotisserie & Grill and Zinc Wine Bar & Bistro. This fine-dining venue is unusually spacious at 10,000 square feet. Distinct spaces within include a vine-draped atrium and a patio with mountain views. The light-filled main dining room looks into an exhibition kitchen. Emerging from an oak-fired oven are house breads (available by the loaf to take home), pizzas, prime rib and Idaho ruby trout.

At the moment, there's no online availability within 2.5 hours of your request. Do you have another time in mind?

Vernon's Speakeasy

$$$$

Steak

Albuquerque

4.7

4457 reviews

Vernon’s Speakeasy, one of the best restaurants in Albuquerque for special occasion dining, leans into its prohibition-era inspiration. The signage-free venue, with its light-blocking curtains, black diamond walls and live pianist, hides behind a heavy steel door with sliding peephole. Those who discover the “hidden” spot find the food – think upscale, creative steakhouse cuisine – even more enticing than the novelty atmosphere. Critics agree, with Albuquerque the Magazine and others calling Vernon’s Speakeasy the best steakhouse in the city. Seven classic steaks, among them a prime rib and 20-ounce bone-in rib-eye, come with a choice of side, vegetable of the day and savory steak butter. Also appealing is the restaurant’s commitment to using locally and sustainably sourced ingredients.

At the moment, there's no online availability within 2.5 hours of your request. Do you have another time in mind?

MÁS Tapas y Vino

$$$$

Tapas / Small Plates

Albuquerque

4.5

1198 reviews

MÁS Tapas y Vino is a traditional Spanish restaurant and tapas bar inside the Hotel Andaluz. The hotel is a stunning property dating to 1939 that’s listed on the National Register of Historic Places. The restaurant brings together classic Spanish cuisine with high-quality local and organic ingredients. Its menu comprises signature tapas, small and large-format plates. Some stand-out tapas include salt and pepper octopus with fried chickpeas, garlic shrimp with Spanish chorizo, and honey bacon wrapped dates with a melted goat cheese dip. The award-winning New Mexico-spiced duck fat fried oysters are a small-plate highlight.

At the moment, there's no online availability within 2.5 hours of your request. Do you have another time in mind?

Experiences available

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Vintage 423

$$$$

American

Albuquerque

4.3

909 reviews

Vintage 423’s signature is USDA prime steaks seared to order on a 1200-degree infrared broiler. It also claims one of the largest wine collections in Albuquerque. The major enticement to this sleek, modern space is its eclectic menu blending global flavors with American classics. Expect fancy fare like the chilled seafood tower for two and grade A foie gras with sourdough French toast appetizers. Entrees are substantial. Among them are a six-hour braised short rib and a double bone-in pork chop. Meanwhile the house-made red chile-infused ravioli presents an interesting local-global fusion approach. Portions are reportedly large, so arrive hungry.

At the moment, there's no online availability within 2.5 hours of your request. Do you have another time in mind?

Bravo Italian Kitchen - Albuquerque - Uptown

$$$$

Italian

Albuquerque

4.3

756 reviews

Fluted columns resembling Roman ruins, soft lighting and white tablecloths give Albuquerque’s BRAVA Cucina Italiana an old-school family restaurant vibe. The local outlet of a popular national chain presents a thorough array of Italian favorites. Expect brick-oven pizzas, house-made pastas and grilled steaks, chops and seafood. Consider the authentic Imbriolo family recipes from the brand’s culinary leader. These include spaghetti pomodoro, cacio e pepe and Bolognese. Another highlight is the pecorino cheese dip melted in the brick-fired oven. Look for great deals during weekday happy hour.

At the moment, there's no online availability within 2.5 hours of your request. Do you have another time in mind?

El Pinto

$$$$

Mexican / Southwestern

Albuquerque

4.3

5914 reviews

El Pinto is a genuine Albuquerque institution, a favorite of locals since 1962 and now in its second generation of family ownership. The restaurant seats as many as 1200 diners in its 12-acre indoor-outdoor hacienda complex. The space include five patios, three indoor dining rooms and cantina. Also on site is a salsa plant where El Pinto bottles its own roasted chile salsas, and a free-range hen habitat, the source of eggs used in the kitchen. The lunch and dinner menus cover all the classics of New Mexican cuisine. A few stand-out items are the red chile ribs (Food Network ranked them the No. 3 ribs in America), the nachos (the best in America per the Wall Street Journal) and the El Pinto chile con queso, which the White House once featured on its cinco de mayo menu.

At the moment, there's no online availability within 2.5 hours of your request. Do you have another time in mind?

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