Central Bodega — Restaurant in Albuquerque

I will preface this review by stating that I have not tried Central Bodegas main or normal menu/service. I am leaving this review for a "chefs table" event I attended this past Wednesday that was suppose to be a 3 course meal curated by Chef Seth Beecher x Chef Xavier Montano which if I'm not mistaken are the chefs at Central Bodega. This event was set up by "New Nuevo" some people that consider themselves "magic makers" however for the price of near $300 this experience was far from magical.. the evening started with me and my girlfriend arriving to Central Bodega and going upstairs to the event, where we were faced with two large tables Thanksgiving style in a small room..we wanted to try something new, a new experience we looked forward to for some time; so 30 strangers being stuffed into this small room was something we could have looked past if the food was good or interesting...it was not.

The bacon wrapped dates that were passed around as an appetizer was one of the tastiest things we ate during the entire meal, and it was not even on the menu. First course was a garlic soup, I can only describe this soup as a bowl of garlicy oil with chunks of soggy bread soaking inside and one shrimp tempura hanging on the edge of the bowl. Second course (main course) was "paella" I put this in parenthesis because it was a small pile of soggy over cooked Spanish rice with some chunks of chorizo and chicken, 4 mussels and a couple dollops of garlic aioli on top. Third course was basically creme brulee with a couple candied citrus bits dressing the top.

All of these courses were paired with wine of some sort all of which were decent but were specifically described as wines that "would not break the bank". This experience was extremely over priced and did not meet our expectations in the slightest we paid alot of money for an experience we expected to be amazing but felt like we stumbled into a couple normal people's kitchen faced with feeding the family potluck the cheapest meal possible to feed as many people as possible.

If this was mainly centered around meeting new people and making new friends tasting new wines and food from different cultures it should not have cost an...

My sweetheart (she's gooder than chocolate cake) & I dropped in one night last week, spur of the moment. The place was packed, but we got lucky with a two-topper upstairs. First let me say it was bittersweet being in what used to be Hey Johnny. Bitter, 'cause, hey, HJ was all style in a town sorely in need of style. Sweet, because the new place is filling that sorely needed need. The look of the place & its vibe is high style!

The fabulous whipped feta is a tell--it's a tip that there's a culinary vision at work. Paired with a tumbler of olives, a classic Old Fashion (hers) and a perfectly balanced Negroni (mine), the small bite play was perfect. With the beautiful interior design (she loves the chandeliers) and stylish appetizers (I loved them), we were off to great start.

As this was my first visit, I wanted to start with a baseline, & so I settled on the Bucatini All'Amatriciana, with a Rocket on the side. The arugula plate was generous, and the pickled red onion & champagne vinaigrette were worth dying for (well, sorta, as death is such a big deal). The pasta was spot on--just a bit over al dente, and the saucing was spot on. It is a strange law of the kitchen that the simplest dishes can be the hardest to get just right. Last week the bucatini was perfectly executed. It served by purpose in testing the baseline. I'm now looking forward to returning & giving another main dish a try.

The booze offering is short & sweet & hits all the right notes. Our two classic cocktails were well made. The beer selection covers the front. There's a saki list, but I stayed away on this first visit--I'll save that adventure for another day.

Central Bodega, in short, shows a ton of promise, and will deliver, if it stays true to what we experienced last week, 20 days or so after the restaurant's launch. The greeters downstairs were gracious. The waitstaff were professional--just the right amount of energy & enthusiasm for the menu, knowledgeable, etc., a bunch of true pros.

Here's to many more...

I ate upstairs with a friend tonight for an 8:30 reservation and left hungry. The restaurant lost out on a minimum of $150 worth of food and cocktail purchases. Our server was a nice guy, but personality doesn't make up for inattentiveness. It took 15 mins for him to ask if I wanted a drink after sitting down. 35 minutes and he finally asked us about appetizers. I had to flag him down after 70 mins to request a second cocktail. The two appetizers were staggered for so long, we finished the first course at 9:30. Had to flag the bartender down to request an entree and were told the kitchen wasn't doing dinner anymore. Our server mentioned none of this, and hadn't bothered to ask if we wanted to order an entree. So, we went out to eat and didn't even have dinner. Kind of appalling. In addition, the place is insanely loud. I could barely have a conversation. The food and drinks are nothing to write home about, but the small portion sizes and high prices are. Wouldn't be surprised if the owner was a Cali transplant, gentrifying this "neighborhood spot" with $17 cocktails including custom ice cubes large enough to displace two-thirds of your alcohol. Needless to say, we will be spending our...