A Favorite on Route 66

If you drive on I-40 across the southwest, your pretty much driving the old Route 66. It criss-crosses the interstate over and over, even merges and shares the pavement with it for stretches.

In New Mexico, you can exit the interstate in Moriarty and drive through town on US66, just as you can in many small towns along the way. We have not seen much of Moriarty, just that little snippet that's right off the interstate and around the truck stop that's there.

A couple years ago we stopped there at the TA for fuel and a meal. As is usual for us, we weren't overly enthused about our options at the truck stop, so after fueling, Malcolm headed towards town. We'd only gone a few blocks when we spotted the El Comedor. Malcolm has a weakness for Mexican food, and I'm pretty fond of it myself. Malcolm is also an expert at getting the truck in and out of unusual parking situations, so we get to go places many other truckers probably avoid. In the case of the El Comedor, though, there was a grocery store next door and next to that, an area of gravel along the side road that was just big enough for a truck to turn around in and park. And thus, a tradition was started, and we now have our self-designated truck parking spot, and stop at the El Comedor whenever we're passing Moriarty, NM and have time to stop.

Its a cozy place, kind of a cowboy/southwest motif. We tend to be in there early between the breakfast and lunch crowds, and so we get to visit and joke with the staff, and enjoy the quiet.

Don't be fooled by the picture into thinking its not a popular place. We've been here when they were busy bees, and they are apparently rather popular with the stars. They have a whole wall of photos of local and national celebrities that have made it a point to stop in.

If you can catch it on a Sunday they have a great breakfast/brunch buffett for a reasonable price. On every other occasion that you might get to stop there, their menu features New Mexico favorites, and for the non-border food consumer, they also have some "normal" restaurant selections, such as hamburgers.

Malcolm and I used to eat at Mexican restaurants when we lived in Tennessee and Georgia and enjoyed the meals greatly. But when we started trucking through the southwest and California, we quickly realized we had not been eating real Mexican food. And in truth, we may still not be. I'm sure what is served this side of the border is probably changed up a little to appeal to the American taste buds. But what we get in the southwest is far different from what is served in other areas. Its the same menu items, but SO much better, and often totally different in appearance from what we had been served previously!

Malcolm has his favorites and so do I. At the El Comedor, he has discovered they have the best Chile Rellenos. These are peppers stuffed with cheese, battered, and deep fried. I'm not a huge fan, but these looked better than any I've seen before and I may have to order them next time we're through there for a try.

For me, it changes. I love the tacos at certain places in California, but I like to try different things in other places. On this occasion I opted for the burrito with Carne Adavado with the green chili sauce.

Both meals came with a Sopapilla, which is a piece of fried bread. This is served at many establishments, but it seems to always be different. Some places its flat, where as here it was very puffy. Some places drizzle them with chocolate syrup or honey, and top it with whipped cream. Here it comes to you un-garnished, but there is a bottle of honey syrup on every table. Yummy!

Its worth the stop. For contact info, directions, and more visit their web site here.