Lorenzo's Italian ~ Las Cruces, New Mexico

First visit: May 2023

The RJG has been pretty much everywhere in the United States, but never the southern part of New Mexico. Once we drove south of Albuquerque, it was all new to me, including the aforementioned Socorro. Many years ago, way back in early 1988, I had traveled to El Paso with my dad not long after graduating from college (and still looking for work). And honestly Las Cruces is like a smaller version of El Paso. If you go to Google Images, the mountainous backdrop is quite stunning. Even on this day in May, the temperatures were already soaring into the 90s. I do not miss the heat of Texas for even one second. Nice to get my second reminder in the same month (the Austin trip being the other). Also New Mexico State is located here, keeping the town young and vibrant.

We stayed at the Best Western Mission Inn, which was a blast from the past. My dad loved places like these with "down and out" rooms where he could bring all his stuff inside including his infamous "boozy woozy" bag. The room was predictably dark when you pull the drapes closed. Drapes! The room rate is the cheapest I've paid since the 1990s. And the grounds are well kept. Great for a one or two night stay, though not practical for longer.

For dinner we opted for something different than Mexican, though that seems to be about 80% of the restaurants available to us. On that trip to El Paso so long ago, Dad and I went for a great Italian meal (he didn't like Mexican anyway...), and so I thought that would be a good thing to do here in Las Cruces as well. There's a few choices in town surprisingly, and Lorenzo's looked like the winner, so we gave it a whirl.

It's a newer restaurant, so it's not really old school, though the menu kind of is. I stuck with my tried and true Chicken Parm that comes with an opening salad. Fairly basic with an oily vinaigrette that was surprisingly low on vinegar. Good not great. I was happy with the chicken, though once again not a stellar example. The penne was well cooked, and the overall dish was very saucy. I quite like their "Sugo" sauce, which is fairly sweet. Mrs. RJG also knew to stay basic, and she had the spaghetti and meatballs. The pasta was a bit thick for her (though cooked properly) and she wasn't as fond of the sauce (too sweet). The two meatballs were really weird as they mix in raisins, so once again it comes out very sweet. Seems the food is geared for children almost, though it most certainly isn't. A nice diversion and certainly a good option, though if we return to Las Cruces (not planning on it, but you never know), we'll most assuredly try something else.

6/1/23 (new entry)