Route 66 Diners in Albuquerque: Burgers and Pie

Route 66 diners in Albuquerque line Central Avenue, where retro diners serve green chile burgers with hand-spun milkshakes and homemade pie, and a Barelas coffee house serves classic New Mexican plates. Choose one for a burger, one for breakfast and rate what you order.

This page covers the retro diners, the Barelas coffee house tradition, milkshakes and pie, and a simple plan for a Route 66 food day along Central Avenue.

Where are the Route 66 diners in Albuquerque?

Start on Central Avenue. Retro diners with a jukebox and a soda fountain serve classic cheeseburgers, green chile burgers, hand-spun milkshakes and homemade pies, and some kitchens put green chile into apple pie. Walk the avenue and choose by the menu in the window.

Come hungry, since a burger, a shake and pie is a full meal. Share a slice of pie if you want to taste more. A diner counter is the best seat if you are alone, since you can watch the grill and chat with the staff, and a booth is better for a family or a group. Note the seat you chose in your rating, because it shapes the whole experience.

What is a Central Avenue diner like?

A diner on Central Avenue is part of the road's history, so the setting matters as much as the plate. Look for neon, a counter and a jukebox, and expect a mix of locals, students and travelers. Weekends fill up, so go at off-peak hours if you want a booth.

Note in your rating whether the room felt like a throwback and whether the staff were friendly. Those notes help a traveler choose a stop.

What is a Barelas coffee house?

Barelas is a neighborhood just south of downtown that the original Route 66 route passed through. A coffee house there is a breakfast and lunch stop serving classic New Mexican plates, so plan for the morning, and ask about huevos rancheros with red or green chile.

Order a plate with red or green chile, and ask for tortillas on the side. Rate the chile and the eggs. A neighborhood coffee house is also a good place to talk to regulars about what is worth ordering, and a short chat often gets you a better plate than the menu alone.

Where can you get Albuquerque milkshakes and pie?

A milkshake and a slice of pie is a Route 66 tradition. Diners here list hand-spun milkshakes, root beer floats and homemade pies, and a few kitchens add green chile to apple pie. It is a good choice for dessert even if you ate elsewhere.

Rate the shake on thickness and the pie on crust and filling. If the pie of the day is a surprise, ask what is baked in house, and take a slice to go if you are too full, since a pie travels better than a shake does. Fruit pies and cream pies suit different moods, so mix one of each if you are sharing.

What about Albuquerque pie and old-school burgers?

Family-owned burger stands along Central Avenue serve green chile cheeseburgers and burgers with ranchero-style toppings, and many are counter-service only. Check the days a small stand is open before you go.

Burgers and pie are easy to compare across places. Order the same burger at two stops and note which was juicier, which had more heat and which bun held up.

How do you plan a Route 66 day in Albuquerque?

Drive Central Avenue from west to east or the reverse, with a stop for breakfast, a stop for lunch and a stop for pie. Check opening days before you go, because small places close on different days. A day with three stops is plenty, and a fourth is a stretch.

Pick the order by appetite: a big breakfast plate first, a burger at midday and pie as the finish is a natural arc, and sharing at each stop keeps you going. Leave time for the neon at dusk. The avenue is at its best when the signs come on, and a late slice of pie is a good way to end the day. If you are photographing the signs, take care crossing a busy road, and keep an eye on the clock because small diners close earlier than you might expect. A printed note of each stop's closing day keeps the plan realistic.

How do you keep track of Route 66 food with Mosey?

Rate each dish by name. Mosey needs only the place and stars; then you can name the dish, such as a burger or a slice of pie, add tags such as Great Value or Family Friendly, and add a photo. A rating that says "green chile burger, hot, shake on the side" helps a traveler.

Make a list called Route 66 Albuquerque with one place per stop and a note on what to order, and invite a friend by link so a road-trip group can add its own stops and ratings. Follow friends to see what they rated and saved, and use the map's Friends' picks layer to see where they have been. The lists page explains sharing.

What else should you read?

For more of the city, the red and green chile guide covers the state's signature dish, the green chile cheeseburger guide goes deeper on burgers and the Old Town guide covers the historic district. See the Albuquerque page, the New Mexico page and the US food guides.

Before you hit the road, get the Mosey app, rate every plate by the dish and keep the best stops in a list.