The Grove Cafe & Market
600 Central Ave SE, Ste A, Albuquerque, NM 87102
505-248-9800
Open:
Tuesday -Saturday 7:00 am – 3:00 pm
Sundays 8:00 am – 3:00 pm
Mondays Closed
As you walk into this busy restaurant, you’re greeted with friendly smiles at the walk up counter. The counter is surrounded by the restaurant favorites for purchase, which also flows into the dining areas with more shelves of books and selected items. The location has indoor and semi outdoor seating that are very clean, warm, and perfect for either a quick sit down meal or time spent working/reading with a snack and delicious drink.
We arrived at 10:30 am on a Friday morning. We’d heard there’s usually a line, but we were pleasantly surprised that there wasn’t a huge line and what line there was, moved very quickly. There are large boards filled with the food offerings that included breakfast, lunch, salads and soups, and specialty drinks. In the middle of the counter there was also a cold section with plenty of sweet selections to pick from as well. Once we ordered, we selected a seat and the remainder of our order was brought out quickly.
I ordered the Grove Pancakes, a side of bacon, and a Chai Latte. Autumn picked the burrito. We also selected two macarons to try out; lemon lavender and coconut lime.
The pancakes aren’t traditional pancakes. They were a French style pancake, which was more crepe like, but overall delicious. The pancakes came with fresh fruit, creme fraiche, local honey, and maple syrup on the side. The bacon was uncured and very flavorful. The chai tea was
The burrito was loaded with scrambled eggs, local sausage, goat cheese, green chile, and tomato jalapeño salsa was on the side. It was very different from a burrito we’ve had before, specifically with their local sausage and the goat cheese. Overall, it had great flavor and the heat from the chile and salsa were a perfect addition to the burrito.
Macarons are a very finicky treat. I selected these treats knowing quite a bit about macarons because I bake them as a hobby baker and appreciate the process and must try them whenever I come across them at a new location. These macarons were colorful and had great flavor. However, they lacked the lift and soft, chewing interior you would expect from a macaron. The filling wasn’t visible until you bit into the macaron due to them being very flat, but they were both vibrant in color and not too overpowering in flavor. Currently here in New Mexico, it’s monsoon season, so that will play a big role in the development of these treats, so I will have to come back another time to try them again. Flavor and filling wise, they were good and I would try them again.
The Grove was a pleasant experience that didn’t disappoint. We’ll be back to continue to try their different offerings
