Frontier Restaurant in Albuquerque on Route 66

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If you’re traveling the Mother Road in Albuquerque, consider stopping for a bite to eat at Frontier Restaurant. Opening in 1971, this isn’t one of those places that have been there from the beginning; it seems to have sprung up as a college student haven for those attending the University of New Mexico right across the street.

However, as more people discover the nostalgic adventure of driving Route 66, the Frontier Restaurant is just as likely to serve up its New Mexican cuisine or American favorites to travelers as to locals.

When planning our road trips, I’m also on the lookout for something unusual for us to experience along the highway. When I discovered I could sample some New Mexican fare while my pickier travel companions could have something familiar, I knew this was a place for us.

After settling in at our home for the night at El Vado Motel-ABQ, we were ready for something to eat. We easily found the Frontier Restaurant, and we found parking about a block away. There is also a small parking lot behind the restaurant.

This looked like the kind of laid back place we’d enjoy after a day of driving. As we approached the restaurant, we got a glimpse of the University of New Mexico campus.

This place isn’t fancy, but on a road trip, you usually aren’t looking for fancy. To order, you simply walk up to the counter. As you can see, the rather extensive menu is posted.

We made our selections and waited for our food to be prepared. While you wait, you can catch the tortilla machine cranking out the fresh tortillas. This was quite interesting for these Midwesterners.

The dining areas are enormous. Just when you think you’ve seen all of the seating choices…

…you discover more.

The decor is fun. The frontier theme is present throughout. If you have a John Wayne fan in your party, this is the place for you. I thought it was a fun vibe.

Soon, our order was ready and we brought our tray to the table. I ordered the Mexican Combo plate, with the chiles served up Christmas-style. If you’re not familiar, like I wasn’t, Christmas means half red chiles and half green chiles. The red side had a tad more heat than I would normally enjoy, but in the spirit of diving into New Mexican culture, I’m glad I gave it a try.

Jeff was able to order his a plain hamburger and fries, one of his frequent orders. It’s great when places offer a variety for parties with people who have diverse tastes.

Kristin opted to eat something later in the hotel, but she did help me eat one of their famous, enormous cinnamon rolls, Yum!

The food was great, and I’d definitely stop again if we’re ever in town. Even the neighborhood is fun with its street art. It adds a little something on the walk to and from the car. I can certainly see why this is a student and local favorite!