Last Updated on May 14, 2023
My husband Ronnie and I have eaten at amazing, down-home Albuquerque breakfast restaurants over the years when visiting his family in Rio Rancho, north of the city. If the locals hang out there, you know it’s the best Albuquerque breakfast.
We consider these breakfast spots in Albuquerque our family secrets, and I’m not sure we want to share, but we will – because the food is so good, and after all, family is family.
Albuquerque Best Breakfast
Lily and Liam Bistro
James and Megan Garrigan opened Lily and Liam Bistro, named after their children, in October 2019 in Rio Rancho as a healthy, made-from-scratch restaurant.
You can watch this cooking video to see how to make The Bistro’s Dutch Baby Pancakes, the basis for most breakfast dishes. It is a family affair, as Chef Dad and the kids demonstrate the process.
A friendly and attentive staff with a dedicated passion for delicious cuisine led by Megan is happy to answer your questions about the menu. There are so many creative selections that it may take longer to decide what to order than it will take delivering your breakfast to the table.
The fluffy pancake ‘Dutch Babies’ are prepared either light and sweet or rich and savory. The sweet variety is made with fresh fruit, whipped cream, and powdered sugar. My favorite is the tasty New Mexican Baby, filled with short ribs, eggs, muenster cheese, avocado, and green chiles!
Is this the best Albuquerque breakfast? You’ll have to decide for yourself.
The Madame Hatch, receiving rave reviews, comes with grilled ham and Swiss, muenster, basted egg, mornay green chile, avocado, and roasted potatoes.
The hearty Steak & Eggs Yorkies include two eggs, mini-Yorkshire puddings, grilled onions, and mushrooms.
This breakfast restaurant in Albuquerque serves all-day breakfast, plus a full menu from 7AM to 3PM daily, available for dining in, take-out, and delivery. They specialize in catering and parties with an extensive menu, including brunch, breakfast and lunch boxes, lunches, and dinners that include appetizers, salads, and main courses.
Accolades include Best of The City and Best New Restaurant Rio Rancho 2020.
With a 72-hour notice, you can special order house-made bread, eight-inch cakes, cheesecakes, chocolate tarts, brioche burger buns, butter brioche loaf, butter rolls, sourdough loaf, and more from the bakery.
Breakfast Restaurant in Albuquerque
Hannah and Nate’s Market Cafe
Also named for the owners’ children, this breakfast restaurant in Albuquerque was started in 2002 by parents Phil, he café’s chef, and Beth, who runs the front waiting tables.
Over the years, Hannah and Nate’s has developed into a true local favorite with a location in Albuquerque and one in the charming town of Corrales.
Ronnie’s go-to here is the breakfast enchiladas – three stacked enchiladas stuffed with cheddar cheese and onion, topped with red or green chile, and two eggs, served with hash browns and tortillas like Mama used to make.
My favorite is the Eggs Benedict de Nuevo Mexico – two poached eggs on an English muffin smothered in carne adovada, melted cheddar with diced red potatoes. I call it Eggs Benedict with a New Mexico twist – so tasty!
Other popular choices are the Huevos Rancheros or the New Mexican Breakfast Bagel, perfect for a quick grab-and-go.
Another top choice is the Breakfast Tacos – three soft corn tortillas stuffed with scrambled eggs, hash browns, and cheddar cheese, served with bacon, sausage, ham, and a side of red or green chile or salsa.
Sometimes we’ll alternate between quesadillas, breakfast sandwiches, quiche of the day, French toast, omelets, or burritos.
At the Corrales location, we pair our breakfast with specialty coffees like mocha with Ghirardelli Chocolate, cappuccino, or latte.
Vic’s Daily Café
Vic’s Daily Café has been family owned and operated since 1998, serving breakfast and lunch daily. We were wise to make a reservation. It’s busy indicating the locals think Vic’s serves the best Albuquerque breakfast.
The Café is located on the north side of town, about a half-mile west of I-25, in an industrial, commercial area.
Another contender for the best Albuquerque breakfast is Vic’s famous Vaqueros Breakfast Chicken Fried Steak and Two Eggs with chili and hash browns or pinto beans that absolutely fill the plate.
I chose the Navajo Breakfast Special, eggs, green and red chili sauce (called Christmas), pinto beans, and melted cheese on Navajo bread, which also overlapped the plate. I barely put a dent in it and asked for a big to-go container.
Omelets are a hit, either vegetarian, with choices of zucchini, corn, spinach, onions, tomatoes, bell pepper, and mushrooms, or the Athenean, with fresh spinach, tomatoes, kalamata olives, and feta cheese – my favorite.
Hot off the grill, go for the buttermilk pancakes, French toast, pecan French toast, or Belgian waffle. And hot from the oven, order the buttermilk biscuits or a gigantic homemade cinnamon roll that’s utterly irresistible!
Vic’s breakfast restaurant in Albuquerque uses the freshest ingredients with the staff providing excellent service.
Campo
Campo, the restaurant at the picturesque Los Poblanos Inn and Organic Farm, is open for brunch from 8:30 am to 1 pm by reservation only. Forget the best Albuquerque breakfast, Campo was voted best breakfast in New Mexico by Food & Wine!
Head Chef Chris Bethoney and Sous Chef Jubilee James create unforgettable breakfast and brunch dishes.
We like to start with a Los Poblanos Lavender Latte, a lavender-peach Arnold Palmer, or a Lavender Lemonade and a house-made assorted breadbasket with whipped butter.
My favorite chilaquiles come with corn tortillas, red chile, jack and cheddar, onion, crispy potatoes, herbs, scrambled eggs, and meat, and I chose ham. It just bursts with flavor.
For a twist on a classic, the Eggs Benedict on a house-made English muffin with poached eggs, seasonal vegetables, ham, hollandaise, and crispy potatoes with herbs, hits the spot.
LP Hominy Grits with grilled house-made sausage, wood-fired mushrooms, grilled seasonal veggies and sunny quail eggs is another don’t-miss dish.
Ronnie likes the smoked brisket empanada with cheddar, jack cheeses, beans, onions, red chile sauce and fresh cabbage slaw.
Sip a mimosa, bellini, Bloody Mary, or a mocktail, like the Last One Standing, made of minticello, pomegranate, pistachio, spices, and lemon, and relax for the rest of the morning.
Golden Crown Panaderia
A father and son owned business, Golden Crown Panaderia has been a neighborhood bakery in Old Town since 1972. We like picking up a loaf of the original New Mexico Green Chile bread and making buttered toast at home for a do-it-yourself Albuquerque best breakfast.
A dozen New Mexican Empanadas – a pocket of pastry stuffed with tasty fruit like raspberry, blueberry, apple, lemon or cherry – is another of our tasty buys.
Golden Crown Panaderia offers a diverse selection of homemade bread, pastries, cookies, fruit smoothies, milk shakes, local tea, gourmet coffees, local beers on tap, custom stainless-steel keg wines and hard ciders.
We get a mixed berry, mango-coconut smoothie and a coffee from the expresso bar.
This bakery has supplied bread and pastries to many of the city’s finest restaurants and hotels for over 25 years meaning there’s a chance your favorite breakfast restaurant in Albuquerque serves meals originating here.
XO Waffle at Sawmill Market
We absolutely love the authentic Belgium Liège waffles created with brioche dough infused with imported Belgium Pearl Sugar made in-house at XO Waffle at the trendy Sawmill Market food hall.
They’ve got the process down. Heavy-duty, top-of-the-line Belgium waffle irons thoroughly cook the dough, melting the pearl sugar and forming a caramelized coating that creates a crispness on the outside with the fluffiness of brioche dough on the inside.
Eat it plain or with creative toppings like Waffle of my Life, fresh egg topped with ham, red or white XO sauce, cheese, and green onions.
I like the waffle with scrambled egg, red or white XO sauce, cheese, and avocado slices.
The delightful Peaches in the Air comes with whipped cream, vanilla bean ice cream, topped with diced peaches, candied walnuts, and caramel sauce. Oh, my!
My husband’s sisters rave about Chicken Met Waffle, breaded chicken with XO sauce or spicy maple syrup, topped with green onions. This has their vote as the best Albuquerque breakfast.
Church Street Café
On weekends, we like to eat breakfast at Church Street Café in Old Town. The historic House of Ruiz dates to the 1700s and is one of the oldest buildings in Albuquerque and is definitely one of the best Albuquerque breakfast restaurants as well.
The patio provides a lovely setting with its cool breezes, shady tables, and flowers everywhere.
The Huevos Rancheros are first on the list – two fried eggs served on frijoles and blue corn tortillas and papitas (fried potatoes), smothered in melted cheese and red or green chile sauce. (If you want both sauces, ask for ‘Christmas’).
Ronnie likes the El Gringo, a fundamental American breakfast with two eggs, a choice of bacon, sausage, chorizo, and papitas.
Our sisters gravitate to the Carnitas Con Huevos, two eggs with sauteed strips of sirloin, a side of papitas, and Christmas sauce – red and green chiles – or two eggs with oven-cooked pork marinated in red chile, served with flour tortillas.
Albuquerque Breakfast Restaurants
What do you consider the Albuquerque best breakfast? If I missed your favorite, drop it in the comments and I’ll be sure to stop in during my next visit.
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