La Ristra New Mexican Kitchen, a new concept from some members of the family behind iconic Los Dos Molinos, will have a soft opening Saturday in Gilbert. It’s the first restaurant venture for John Gabaldon, whose great-aunt opened the Valley’s original Los Dos in Mesa three decades ago.
Gabaldon, though, is quick to play down any association with his family’s well-known brand. “La Ristra is a different kind of thing,” he says. A lot of Gabaldon’s inspiration came from Spain, his mother’s homeland and the country where he was born. He also has lived in Japan, Germany, and Australia.
The former Bank of America vice-president decided to get into the restaurant business two years ago. He and his wife, Andrea, have spent the past three months renovating the former Chuy’s Mesquite Broiler on Warner Road, just west of Lindsay Road (map).
The 5,000-square-foot building is divided into two sides. The bar, which is the half that opens Saturday, has a 12-seat bar, high tables, and a banquette. At the back, a lounge area, which will have plush sofas and chairs, temporarily is being used for additional dining tables.
The other half, the dining room and a private party room, is scheduled to open at the end of August, when La Ristra officially will hold its grand opening. There also is a sidewalk patio with 10 umbrella-shaded tables and misters.
The large menu leans heavily on Hatch chiles, which Gabaldon’s family harvests in New Mexico’s Hatch Valley every August and roasts themselves. Last year, they roasted more than 15,000 pounds. (Ristra, which means “string,” commonly refers to a string of dried chiles.)
La Ristra also imports blue corn meal from New Mexico to make its chips, which come with a trio of salsas (red, green, and a rotating specialty), and its enchiladas. Tacos and burros are made with corn and wheat tortillas, respectively, also made in-house.
In the New Mexican tradition, though, most meals are accompanied by sopapillas (puffy fried pastries) instead of tortillas. Sopapillas stuffed with your choice of adovada pork, chicken, steak, or ground beef also are available as an entree ($12.99, pictured above).
Carne adovada ribs ($15.99) – tender pork ribs marinated in a red chile sauce – are a house specialty, although the preparation is different  from Los Dos Molinos’ popular version. Another is a pork shank slow-cooked in an oven while marinating in garlic ($15.99).
Spanish influences on the menu include papas brava (red-chile potatoes, $5.99) and pinchos (grilled meat skewers, $11.99). A housemade “Chaco-Taco” (a chocolate-covered taco shell filled with ice cream, $6.99, shown below) is among the desserts.
The bar boasts more than 100 different tequilas. You can order flights based on type (four different reposados, for example) or by family (one specific label’s resposado, añejo, extra añejo, etc.).
Margaritas also are available in flights of four six-ounce samplers ($14.99, pictured above), and the tequilas are spotlighted in numerous cocktails. “We want to show tequila can be used for more than shots and margaritas,” Gabaldon says.
The bar has eight beers on tap – focusing on Arizona breweries like SanTan and Grand Canyon. There also is bottled beer, including Estrella Damn, an easy-drinking pilsner brewed in Barcelona, Spain.
Happy hour, which is 2 to 6 p.m. weekdays, will feature half-price appetizers and two-for-one drinks. Live music, mostly flamenco, will be performed Friday and Saturday nights.
La Ristra, 638 E. Warner in Gilbert, will be open for lunch and dinner daily.
