L is for Left at Albuquerque

I love this place. One of my all time Fav. From the days of Paso to now. i used to travel from SF down to SB on the weekends just to hang with Jen, Nizar, Tami, Cris, and the rest of the old-school Lefty's crew. Then the days of 50c Short killing the downtown music scene. Always starting the night at Lefty's.................... Man i miss it living in AZ now.

How is this different from advertising? Since it is not a review of the food or service--how does the restaurant get this type of free exposure?

Has this reviewer actually BEEN to Left at Albuquerque?

This review read like a total press release ...

The last time I visited this restaurant, the staff was indifferent at best, the food mediocre at best ... the complete definition of a State Street tourist trap.

I expect more from the Independent than inane cheerleading like this ... please provide some real restaurant reviews based on actual facts, please.

bmcfadden hit the nail on the head, when i read this i thought "wow, i was just there and the service was horrible and they messed up my order first bringing me a burger drenched in mayo (when i asked for NO MAYO) then they bring me out a second version only to find out its the same burger patty with the mayo scraped off. L @ Albuquerque is one of the crappiest tex mex joints in the SB Goleta area. i would much rather eat at Chilis or even Taco Bell then to go back there.

the reporter probably knows the owner or the staff.

JustSayin... The customer buys some advertisments and part of that deal includes a plug like this one. If it was a real review with real critics half of the eateries in SB would never want to advertise in the supress or the dependent.

bmcfadden... Yes but probably only for the interview. The customer usually gets to describe the food and the paper simply puts the plug together. Although I am sure they occasionally do eat at all the places due to the meal credits (part of the deal). Its just business and not to be taken literally.

However...having grown up in and living in New Mexico (including Albuquerque) for half of my adult life I can say that the New Mexico flavor is unique.

Lepht at Albuquarkie!!! ...is NOT the place to find it. Nor is the Zia Cafe on lower State.

I have found one place in Santa Barbara. Lazy Acres has (in hispanic section) an enchilada sauce appropiately named... "HATCH".

The little town of Hatch NM by the Rio Grand river is the center of all southwestern flavors.

Albuquerque is about two and a half hours north. Once you taste the flavor you will understand what the southwest rave is about. The families who grow on the river have been doing so since the Spanish colonized the area late 1500's. Maybe practice makes perfect.

I just hope it doesnt take hundreds of years for a southwestern restaurant in SB to get it right.
Just My Opinion.

So Randy, if this is not a review (which it surely does not seem to be), would you explain how it is different from advertising? I'm curious about how this works. I know the NP does it too, and have also wondered about that.

Thank you for enlightening us.

sorry Matt but this story looks made up and made to look like a plug since no one seems to agree that restaurant is any good.

Jhern, hatch chiles arent that hot or good. ive had better growing up in El Paso. hatch is merely about a half hour drive and i really didnt know anyone going out of their way to drive there for food or pods. California people are obsessed with hatch pods for some reason, maybe cause there is not real mexican food around here.

Wow, there certainly a lot of panties in a bunch here!

I've read restaurant reviews before, an this certainly doesn't appear to be one -- but then no one had to tell me.

And I don't take it as a moral failing that The Independent would write a descriptive article highlighting an establishment in our community.

I'll take it as a sign of Mr. Kettmann's good manners that he ignores the passive-aggressive "sorry I'm calling you a liar" from "IVconcerned."

By the way, as a life long resident of this area, I don't know from 'authentic' Southwest cuisine, but I can report having many tasty dinners at Left At Albuquerque, frosty microbrews, and eyefulls of beautiful peoples® since they first opened (when was that?).

if you've lived here all your life then you should no, i wasnt calling Mr. Kettmann but i AM calling you one stinky binky!! hahaha

damn what's with all the fighting over this? The food is ok. I went because of the people i was friends with that worked at Lefty's. I still miss the place. Besides we all went for the beer, friends and nachos. So lets all get along and go get a Fat Tire at Lefty's