Frontier Restaurant
This is an Albuquerque original! People come from near and far to enjoy a Frontier Burrito or a cinnamon roll. Here you’ll enjoy a great filling breakfast, lunch or dinner. They’re open late too so you’ll always be able to enjoy authentic New Mexican food! Click HERE for the entire review!
2400 Central Ave SE, Albuquerque, NM 87106
OVERALL BITES:
Value: Frontier offers you a pretty good value considering the quality of the food and how much you get. My Frontier Burrito came with a fresh flour tortilla and a packet of honey…kind of like a sopapilla.
Taste: The taste was exactly what I was hoping for! If you’re a NM local then the chile won’t be too hot but if you’re from out of town then you may need some water. It was filled with tasty beef and smothered with green chile which made the burrito that much better!
Presentation: Nothing special when it comes to presentation. You get your meal on a simple restaurant tray and you take it to whatever available seat you can find. It’s what you would expect from your grandma when she insists you need to eat because you’re not eating enough.
Vibe: Frontier Restaurant is always busy. Even when they’re slow they feel busy. Regardless of how packed it is you can always find a seat. The walls are decorated with paintings from local artists so there is always something to look at.
Accessibility: Considering the ART construction it was kind of hard to park but just go to the back of the restaurant and you’ll find additional parking in they alley way (there is a 45 minute parking limit).
Review – Frontier Restaurant
While heading to work I was met with even more ART (Albuquerque Rapid Transit) construction and I couldn’t pull into my store. Since it was lunch time I figured I’d make the short drive, literally just a few blocks, to the Frontier Restaurant. Truth be told, I have never actually driven to the Frontier on my own. I had always gone with family so I wasn’t sure what to expect. I quickly realized that you’ll need to park in the back and you may even have to follow the alley way where there is additional parking but there is a 45 minute time limit. The Frontier Restaurant spans multiple shop spaces that have all become different seating areas so even though the entrance may appear full there is plenty of seating available.
It was roughly 12:30pm when I walked in. As I came around the building, to take a picture, you could smell the cinnamon rolls. There is an ATM that is out of order not to far from the main entrance which had food carts in front of it. There was also a line that spanned almost to the front door. Several cashiers wait at the counter where a green light will tell you when one is available. At the center of the main entrace area you’ll find Coke machines like what you find at the new Wendy’s where you can pick your flavor on an LED touch screen.
As I’m reading the board I’m not exactly sure what I want so I ask the gal for a recommendation. She says the Frontier Burrito is a popular choice so that’s what I order. Unfortunately they didn’t have sweet tea so I opted for a soft drink. The burrito was 8.50 and soft drink was 1.85 so it’s kind of in line with what you would pay other places. Once you place your order you can go find an available table and then you’ll need to keep an eye on the red LED signs throughout the restaurant with numbers that tell you when your food is ready.
Your food comes on a tray to make it easy for you to take to your table. The Frontier Burrito – beef, green chile, beans, smothered with cheese and green chile stew – is served with rice and lettuce as garnish. You’ll also get an extra flour tortilla made on site. As I bit into the burrito it didn’t need salt or pepper. The taste was perfect although it was a little hot! Be careful or will burn your tongue. It was not too cheesy, not too spicy, and the rice wasn’t crunchy or mushy. It all went together well. The rice was good but burrito stole the show. There is a reason the Frontier Restaurant is a local favorite and why people choose to come at all hours of the day for breakfast, lunch or dinner.
At the Frontier you can buy flour tortillas to go as well. They are a little thicker but a perfect size for burritos. Just thought you should know.
Frontier Restaurant gets 4 Bites! The food was excellent and this is why people keep going back. I noticed the silverware stations appeared a little disorganized. The one I used had spills and was running out of napkins. With as many people as they serve that’s bound to happen. I can’t be too hard on them though since everybody appeared to be happy with their meals and the service.
Go experience the Frontier Restaurant for yourself. Give them a like on Facebook and follow them on Instagram.