Blake's Lotaburger ~ regional chain : Albuquerque, New Mexico

Last visit: Nov 2024 (Menaul @ Rhode Island)

First visit: May 1994 (Menaul @ Rhode Island)

Locations: 70 locations in New Mexico (-1); 3 in Tucson, AZ; 2 in El Paso, TX

And we celebrate the 30th year of the RJG visiting Blake's, with our first lunch in Albuquerque. Not that we always go here, and we missed out last year as well. Lately Mrs. RJG has been in the mood for New Mexico Green Chile Cheeseburgers, and since that's the specialty of the house, we ordered two of them. Out came two giant double cheeseburgers, large fries and a large drink. Uh-oh, Mrs. RJG isn't going to go for this! After keeping my head down for some moments enjoying the heck out of mine, I dared looked upwards and I was watching my wife devour it with glee. Again I ask - who is this woman who joined me on this trip? I have to say, even though the burgers are large, they aren't heavy, and that's a huge plus. And they loaded ours with chile, and they were spicy on this visit. Yahoo! Fries were of a hot temperature, which also made us both happy. Even the drink was excellent, and because it was large, we had it with us for the remainder of the day. And it still had flavor until the end. Anyway, it appears Blake's may find itself into the RJG rotation, a major accomplishment for non Colorado Springs restaurants. Mrs. RJG was still talking how great it was on our drive home two days later (she noted how peppery it was in addition to the green chiles). So there you have it.

I think this may have been the first location the RJG went to, but I couldn't tell you with any kind of accuracy which ones I've been to outside of the store two years ago and the one we've been to in Santa Fe. The reason I say this is because Charley's Records is across the street, and I've been going there since 1992 (a few years before Mrs. RJG was in the picture). I'll claim it for the database, but it's not certain. It's a more typical fast food restaurant setup than the one reviewed below. Order at the counter with plenty of seating + a drive thru.

---original 4/15/22 review (Coors NW - Albuquerque)

Blake's Lotaburger is an iconic burger chain that proliferates throughout New Mexico. If you've watched Breaking Bad, then most assuredly you've seen the Union Jack emblem on cups and bags. In effect, Blake's is to New Mexico what Whataburger is to Texas and In-N-Out is to California, the only difference being that Blake's has not expanded as rapidly out of state as the others. Or at least they haven't to date. As far as regional burger chains go, Blake's stacks up well against the competition. The one aspect of Blake's that separates them is the green chile cheeseburger, which definitely puts a New Mexican stamp on it. And it is very good. I'm sure locations vary in quality. This particular one was very busy on the day we visited which resulted in kitchen confusion. But our meal came out as ordered. There is no uniform look to a Blake's. This one has a small dining area made up of barstools around the window, or you can sit out on the patio tables outside, which is what we did. No drive-thru here, but many do have that feature. If we have extended stays in New Mexico, we try for one visit, just to mix up the diet a bit.

5/1/94; 9/1/97; 9/11/06; 9/17/13; 4/15/22 (new entry); 11/15/24