I also enjoy gardunos! The margaritas are amazing, the service is consistently good, and the food is tasty. I love getting the combination plate to enjoy a bit of everything. The papitas were crispy and delicious. The chile had good flavor without being too spicy. The sopapillas came out hot and fresh. I love their seasonal margaritas- I went with a mezcal one this time and it had that smokey flavor I love. I do feel like the prices are a bit high but hey, at least you know its always going to be good New Mexican food. read more

Garduno's - Combination plate - New Mexican Cuisine Near Me - Albuquerque, New Mexico

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Normally I don't leave bad reviews, but this experience was not the best. Came here hungry after long drive. Service was bad, waitress seemed like she was on drugs. Food was fine at best, nothing special. Vibe was decent. read more

The atmosphere and decor of Garduno's is amazing. The walls, arches, floor, tables, and basically everything is aged and rustic. So much to look at. We had the best server, Daniella, who was amazingly personable and helpful. I'd request her when coming back. We tried one of the many margarita options. The coconut was recommended and I loved it, complete with toasted coconut on the rim. We had some pozole to start that had just the right amount of heat and the meat was so tender. We were between meals so we only wanted an appetizer and ordered their nachos with asada. Ok, people, these were killer nachos. It was layered with ingredients on every chip. No naked chips here. And I love to be In NM where you are going to get green chilies on everything, including your nachos. read more

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Do not waste your time unless your a regular. We went in and sat at the bar and the bartender completely ignored us, even after looking at us a few times. A regular customer asked if she was still working and she stated she was about to leave and said she would still make them another round while ignoring the new customers that sat down. This is the third time the same bartender had provided horrible service. To top it off the manager also witnessed the horrible service and didn't do anything to correct the problem. The few times we ate there the food is a notch above Taco Bell with a Ruth Christ price tag. The restaurant doesn't look like it has been cleaned in years and should be inspected to see if the food is even edible. read more

Solid meal and great service. We were quickly welcomed and sat on a Thursday night. There was ample seating. The server was prompt with initial drinks and we were able to order right away. The chips and salsa were good; the salsa was just spicy enough to know it was there but not so spicy kids wouldn't be able to eat it. Our food came out quickly and it was fresh. The chile replenished were the stand out on both plates. The stuffed sopapilla was also delicious. The adovada was good but the portion seemed really small. For sides, the posole was a really nice option and the ranchero beans were really flavorful. The interior is in need of some love. It could use a refresh since it seems like it's been years since it's really been refreshed. The addition of the games at the interior looks misplaced. The women's bathroom is downright ick. Dirty doors on the stalls, broken countertop for the sink and dark; who knows what else you can't really see. read more

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Food was excellent! Nice decor. Service was top notch! Renee was polite, attentive, and handled our large group without missing a beat! read more

Renee is the best! Amazing server. She definitely deserves to win $100. Her service was great.

Having moved away from New Mexico a very long time ago to a state that has no New Mexican restaurants. I am back in Albuquerque and have been trying out all My favorite restaurants. I stopped in here tonight and of course, if you saw my other reviews, I had the stuffed sopapilla. I had a shredded chicken sopapilla with green chile and a ground beef sopapilla with red chile. Both were amazing and had great flavor. The red chile was slightly hotter than the green. However, both were spectacular. Salsa was not the best the rice I did not care for at all. The beans were as usual a little dry for me. The sopapillas that came with the meal were excellent. I had the silver margarita which was perfect addition to all the food. I have enjoyed eating our here before and this time did not disappoint either. read more

Garduno's - Stuffed sopapilla - New Mexican Cuisine Near Me - Albuquerque, New Mexico

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Garduños is usually great but my latest experience was not. Michelle was our server and more than half of the things we asked for we did not receive. Two rude snarky comments were made. I paid $64 for awful service. read more

Started with the nachos. Nice and warm~ and crispy chips. We went with ground beef, it was a decent sized order for nachos. It just doesn't stand out. It's good. It was definitely entertaining with the jalapeños. One bite of jalapeño would be mild, the next would be Diablo levels of hot. My green chile stew was phenomenal! So many vegetables. The tortillas were delightful as well. My lunch partner said the Super Bowl soup was great. Good steak slices in it. But the favorite was the corn bread, not bread round blob on the tortilla chip (check the picture). Our server was great, she double checked an onion allergy for us. (Raw vs cooked) read more

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I used to go to Gardunos when I was young. I loved it and had so many good memories. The new experience is so depressing. The food was so bland, AND so expensive. We asked for more salsa twice, because the initial portion was too small for three people (it came in these tiny tacky plastic things... so small!) and found out we had been charged $2.50 for each! Little tiny plastic containers! I would advise anybody going to this restaurant to really watch your orders. We didn't drink, but I bet they screw you on those too! My girlfriend only had one soda and it was $3.00 (lord knows if she had asked for a refill!) I know the restaurant industry is hard, but $2.50 for a teeny tiny plastic container of salsa! COME ON!!!!! Go to another New Mexican restaurant that is not so stingy... You know the ones! read more

We had not been to GARDUÑO'S COTTONWOOD in years although it used to be a favorite. Not quite sure why. Apparently, it is now the only one that uses the original recipes. Decided to go today for lunch. The food had the same taste and smell that I remember from decades ago. The guacamole and the chile con queso were spot on. The posole and green chile stew were so tasty. Both the red and green chile were so flavorful. The green chile enchiladas, tamales, and chile rellenos all had sauces that were flavorful, but not heavy. The service was great as well. Oh, and the classic margaritas with salted rim were perfect! If you are craving traditional food from years past in Albuquerque, you need to cruise over to the west side to GARDUÑO'S Cottonwood on Coors! read more

Renee at the westside location gave our group exceptional service going above and beyond. She actually remembered us from our last meeting. Thanks Renee read more

We held our board meeting at Garduno's and had a table for 8. Renee was our server and was very attentive and friedly. This was the second time we held a meeting here and the food was good as well. Thanks for hosting us ! read more

I had not been here in a long time. I was pleasantly surprised that the chili had a kick and flavor. The service was not that great; we were ignored much of the time we were there for other larger tables. The food came out and was hot from the kitchen. The drinks were okay, not that strong. Not some place I will go out of my way to go. read more

Ordered the traditional Carne asada tacos with rice beans . I'm from California, this is one of the fee spots out here that has great food all thw time , first time I tried them was in the early 90s .they still got it going on . read more

I have to say, stay away from this location. I used to go to the Garduno's over by windrock mall, it was great. I never use bad words but I could I would say this place is a blank hole. Staff was nice enough to see my family quickly, which was good, but our waitress took a while to take our order took forever to bring the drinks. She finally did take our order and bring the drinks. We ran out of the lemonade and Dr Pepper. She never came by to check on us. We ran out of chips and salsa. She never came by to check on us. I had to go find a manager, who by the way the way is very sloppy and does not look like a manager. Take pride in your position. I informed him we had not been checked on. We had no refills. We had no chips and salsa and we had been waiting for over 30 minutes for our food. He stated oh I'll take care of that sir waited another 15 minutes and still nothing. So I went back and found him again and asked him are you the manager? He said yes and I said well you are a bad manager you don't know how to do your job. I told him in front of other guests that is is not taking care of a customer and neither is the waitress. 10 minutes after that, finally shows up with chips and then leaves for another five minutes to go get refills so all in all we waited closer to an hour before we even got our food . Nothing bad to say about the food. It was excellent. I really enjoyed the food. The service here is the worst. Please go someplace else. This place is not where you go if you really want to have a good family time and good food. The manager when he brought the chips made a statement, you know we charge extra for chips, but as a manager, I'm not going to charge you, kiss my you know what! That is the worst thing for manager to say when they're doing crappy service. As the manager, he's needs to tuck in his shirt and look professional. He does not look professional at all. Just stay away from this gardunos. read more

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Temperature of the restaurant is set too low. It must be 66 degrees in that place. Like eating in walk in fridge. I saw multiple people in their jackets. Your food will get cold fast. Otherwise food is excellent. read more

Waited 1 hour to get seated another 45 minutes for food and food ice cold and completely messed up and wrong ended up leaving and getting fast food. Not to mention that when on the third time of food coming out to the table I told the staff forgot I herd the waiter state "oh this mother f&@$er so yeah real professional staff you got there! read more

We have been frequent diners at Gardunos Cottonwood restaurant for years. Their selections used to be very pleasant, but quality and service have sunk recently. On February 22, I picked up food from carryout. The chips were burned. The sopapillas were OK, not the best. When I talked with the manager by phone, he seemed pleasant, but all he could say was "sorry". No offer was made to refund the order or provide a replacement. This is the second recent incident where food quality suffered and service was very "off-hand". I hope their approach will change. We will not be back for a while. read more

Honestly I was excited to try something new especially living here all my life I've never tried this place before we got there and they didn't let us sit in a booth because we had a baby and a stroller and on top of that we ordered our food and almost took 30 minutes and the bowl of fajitas was literally 80% lettuce if I wanted a salad I would of asked for that or just made that at home the vibes were fucked and my whole vibe was ruined only thing that made up for it was the coconut margarita I'm not a picky person and I've always been very nice especially since I work in a restaurant and I know customer service but this place needs help. Plus this was my only day off and experienced this shit fucked my whole day up. read more

service was terrible, manager and server both had horrible attitudes. It took a very long time to get waited on. employees must have walked by us at least 10 times before even acknowledging us. We sat there for 25 minutes before anyone even acknowledged us. then sat there for another 20 minutes waiting for our order to be taken. Then another half hour for our food to come out. I would not recommend this place. waitress snatched my credit card out of my hand and told me they shouldn't have sat us there because she had a big party. that was literally almost done. the manager told me they were so busy and I'm looking around like where are you busy? place is a joke and so is the management. Honestly that lady has no business being in management!! read more

Food was good but prices are too high. Waiters are very friendly . No dinner specials

Ordered takeout and didn't leave a tip since it was pickup. Later saw a $5 tip added on my credit card without consent. Called the restaurant--manager was rude and said she was too busy to help. Another employee took my info and promised a call back, but no one followed up. Disappointed by the lack of transparency and customer service. read more

We had the strawberry margarita and prickly pear margarita and chips and salsa. $21. On a hot day of motorcycling we stopped in for something to cool is off. The Rita's were just the right thing. What made our visit extra special was how often or waiter came by with more chips or more salsa or more chips and salsa. We left feeling refreshed and very happy. read more

Garduno's - Margarita page from the menu - New Mexican Cuisine Near Me - Albuquerque, New Mexico

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Service was exceptional! Food wasn't as good as it used to be. Ground beef wasn't good and chips didn't taste as good as they used to. Fried ice cream was amazing! Used to be our #1 Albuquerque pick but don't know if we'll go back again. read more

Garduno's - Fried ice cream - New Mexican Cuisine Near Me - Albuquerque, New Mexico

Recently went to this restaurant and was APPALLED. The service was absolutely terrible, almost like they didn't want me there. They were rushed, sloppy, and didn't care at all about food complaints. It was outrageously loud as well, I get a restaurant won't be dead silent, but I could barely hear my family members. We didn't finish, and left early. 10/10 would NOT recommend. Come here with people you hate. read more

We recently visited Gardunos on the west side near Cottonwood Mall. I don't remember the last time I had been to a Gardunos, but I left feeling pretty satisfied. The interior of the restaurant is very warm and welcoming. The restaurant was pretty packed for Sunday brunch. Also, kudos to the staff. They were pretty busy, but it didn't affect their hospitality and ability to host each table. I saw quite a few tables order the fajitas platter and as I was about to order one, I ended up changing my mind to a carne asada chimichanga. It was perfectly golden and crispy on the outside and the carne asada on the inside was tender and well seasoned and marinated. For dessert, we chose the flan. I'm not usually a fan of flan, but this one had a velvety consistency and the caramel sauce was delicious. I definitely will keep Gardunos in mind next time I'm on the west side. Great food and staff will definitely bring me back. read more

Garduno's - Carne Asada Chimichanga - New Mexican Cuisine Near Me - Albuquerque, New Mexico

Last week I ate here with my my family and I got root beer, now when I come they don't have it the waiter says!! And the waiter treats me like a child even though I am 12 years old!!!!! Last time I felt way more relaxable. read more

Worst Mexican food ever. This is not what Mexican food should be...flavorless, bland and they should ashamed of themselves to call this Mexican food. The taco was a shell that was pre- made, like something you would buy at the supermarket, why not freshly made? The ground beef had no flavor and no sauce. The enchilada was dry - meat rolled up on a tortilla with no melted cheese or sauce inside. Honestly I left most of my meal and surprisingly the waitress didn't seem to care when I told her how bad the meal was. read more

Great friendly staff that is always welcoming. Food is fresh and delicious with exceptional flavor and presentation.

this was the worst service i've had in a really long time and that's saying a lot with how bad customer service has got just in general anywhere you go. overpriced microwave food. manager was rude. waitress was OK still kinda rude. Margarita was extremely salty and service took forever waited over 30 minutes for the food just for it to be MIDDDD. would rate 0 if i could don't waste your hard earned money here read more

My Fiancé and I came for lunch. She asked for no onions on her dish. It came smothered in them we asked for it to be taken back. The server promptly took it back and then the manager confronted my Fiancé in a very hostile manner asking her if she was allergic to onions and she said no I just prefer not to eat them. The manager then made it a point to let us know that everything here has onion. Even after my Fiancé had tried to select something else she knew she liked. The manager was extremely rude and stood over her while she tried to look at the menu. She was so upset she didn't eat. I ate my food quickly. There was no kindness or compassion And zero customer service skills! We won't be coming back! read more

We've been to this Garduno's twice in the last 30 days. The first time we ate outside on their covered tent and yesterday we ate inside! (During these trying COVID times, being able to eat inside is a huge treat!) We have a family of six, but we found a way to eat well, and comparatively inexpensively, at this Garduno's. One item I highly recommend is getting their Los Favoritos appetizer. That's a huge appetizer that everyone had a chance to enjoy. We also had Pollo and Machaca Enchiladas. Finishing off with six sopas. The sopas were fresh and hot. They were delivered with six small containers of honey - appropriate for today's dealing with Coronavirus. Everyone had a fun time. I'm sure that we'll return again, soon. read more

Garduno's - Social distancing dining - New Mexican Cuisine Near Me - Albuquerque, New Mexico

Best ambiance and incredible New Mexican food. Their flautas are awesome and their guacamole may be the best in the state. This place is due for a comeback. read more

Garduno's - Guacamole! - New Mexican Cuisine Near Me - Albuquerque, New Mexico

Irmalisa the owner is fantastic! I have had fabulous service at her restaurant as well as her catering services. We have hired Gardunos for several events and her and her staff are very professional. If you are looking for great food, amazing service and catering services, look no further than Gardunos. Speak to Irmalisa. read more

We have been here twice during the COVID 19 shutdown. We ate outdoors on the front covered patio. There also was a large white tent set up in the parking lot to serve patrons. The wait on a Friday night was short. They called our phone when the table was available. Nick was our waiter. He was cordial, prompt and efficient. The shrimp fajitas were plentiful and delicious. The Chile rellenos were good, not the best that I have ever eaten, but fine. The beans were flavorful and covered with melted cheddar. The rice was good too. It was just good to get out of the house and enjoy a quiet night out. This fit our needs perfectly. read more

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Very disappointed with the bar draft beer (all brands) tap not working. Host very friendly, however out server very COLD food was good

So we ordered pickup and it was a fairly large order. Remember the average price for a meal is $20. With that said I would go somewhere else as the food wasn't bad, but also wasn't great. I think you could get much better food somewhere else for half the price. We ordered extra chips and the bag it came in was covered in grease, they made me feel bad. The Gauc we ordered wasn't great, no one ate it. The salsa was okay though. The Chicken strips and fries sat uneated. The other meals were average at best, rice, beans and an Enchilada or Burritto. They order was very mixed up, didn't receive the right meal for one and then received a meal we didn't order. I suppose if you want to order drinks and it's a date night maybe it's different. Would we go there again? Absolutely not. Seems like they could do so much better. read more

Gardunos has always been my favorite Mexican Restaurant. I will no longer be going to Gardunos any Mexican restaurant that needs to nickle and dime customers for chips and salsa is ridiculous! Specially, when a 1/2 filled basket of chips is brought out to begin with. The chips are from a bag and stale! So sad. read more