MediterraneanGrocery Wholesalers in Albuquerque, NM

Sep. 9—OPENINGS

1Slice and Dice Pizzeria, 2225 Wyoming NE, Suite C — FOOD

This pizza and game shop opened a Northeast Heights location at the beginning of August. The New Mexican board game pizzeria serves hot pies, craft beer, and offers a wide selection of board games to play from its board game library. The existing location is on McMahon on the West Side of town.

2Nobody Calls Me Chicken, 2904 Indian School NE — FOOD

Your favorite new sandwich shop could be the very vegan and very delicious Nobody Calls Me Chicken. Brainchild of Vegos (a vegan New Mexican restaurant not too far north from the new shop) owners Elizabeth and Jonathan Bibiano, Nobody Calls Me Chicken has a menu centered on their original tofu sandwich, which has the texture and taste of a classic fried chicken sandwich.

3Urban Hotdog Company, 3507 Central NE — FOOD

The Albuquerque hot dog eatery for the fancy or fanciful hot dog lover, Urban Hotdog opened a location in Nob Hill near the end of August. The original location is on the West Side, and the business has a mobile kitchen on Saturdays at Marble in the Northeast Heights.

4Teriyaki Madness, 11032 Montgomery NE — FOOD

This Seattle-based Teriyaki chain should open doors on the first New Mexico franchise location Sept. 29. Franchise owner Dr. Trang Tran is no stranger to entrepreneurship, having owned her own medical practice in Albuquerque since 2012. There are over 130 Teriyaki Madness franchise locations.

5Slim Chickens, 1909 Wellspring SE, Rio Rancho — FOOD

After a planned opening in July was pushed back, the Rio Rancho Observer reported that Slim Chickens finally opened its doors in Rio Rancho in August to large and enthusiastic crowds. The chicken chain offers tenders, wings and sandwiches.

6Dagmar's Specialties, 2704 Southern SE, Rio Rancho — FOOD

A German bakery in Rio Rancho, Dagmar's Delectables closed in February after the owner's death. The Rio Rancho Observer reported the restaurant reopened in August under new ownership — a close friend of former owner Dagmar Schulze — and a new name, Dagmar's Specialties.

7Two Hands Corn Dogs, 2529 San Mateo NE, Suite 9 — FOOD

The much anticipated Two Hands Corn Dogs franchise location opened in Albuquerque on Sept. 1, to lines out the door. Two Hands offers Korean-style corndogs, with menu items like the potato dog, wrapped in potato cubes with Two Hands dirty sauce, and the Injeolmi dog, with bean powder and sweet sauce. This is the first New Mexico location for the franchise, although there are plenty of locations in California. The chain started in Los Angeles in 2019, and over 20 locations are expected to open soon across the U.S., according to the Two Hands website.

8Pars and Rec, 8212 Menaul NE — RETAIL

PGA professional David Muttitt and his business partners opened a new golf store and social club Aug. 29. The store aims to offer everything a golf enthusiast or amateur can need under one roof, with a retail shop, food and drink, golfing simulators, lessons, and club fittings. The store's grand opening is scheduled for Saturday, Sept. 16.

RELOCATIONS

9Mama's Minerals, 2500 12th Street NW — RETAIL

Mama's Minerals celebrated its new location in Avanyu Plaza with a grand opening on Aug. 25. The rock and mineral store relocated from its 20th Street location. The store is a rockhound haven, with rocks, minerals, crystals, jewels, beading supplies and more.

10The Bagel, 301 Southern, Suite 404 in Country Club Plaza, Rio Rancho — FOOD

Bagel lovers can rejoice. The Rio Rancho Observer reported The Bagel closed after its lease was not renewed at the previous location. The locally owned deli and bakery reopened at the new location on Southern in the first weekend of September.

It was a glorious night for La Cueva soccer on Friday.

The Bears swept the titles of the Albuquerque Metro Championships at the APS Complex, with the boys defeating Rio Rancho and the girls beating Albuquerque Academy.

BOYS: The Bears continued their impressive early surge this season, edging the Rams 2-1 in the final.

Emari Camu staked La Cueva to a lead in the opening 20 minutes, and it stayed that way until a foul call on the Rams — which they vehemently disagreed with, as it occurred right on the edge of the 18-yard box — led to a penalty kick for the Bears.

At the line, it was Gabriel Ramirez-Orona who finished, supplying La Cueva with a 2-0 lead.

Rio Rancho’s goal was just the second given up by La Cueva this season. Bears goalkeeper Mateo Nobrega saved an initial penalty kick against the Rams’ Sean Meserve, but the ball bounced right back to Meserve, who finished the rebound to cut the La Cueva lead to 2-1.

But the Bears preserved the lead and won metros for the first time in six years.

La Cueva coach Easy Jimenez said it was a strong first half that helped carry the night.

“If we can put two halves like that together, we’re gonna be dangerous throughout the whole year,” he said. His team already has high-profile wins over Cleveland, Atrisco Heritage and Albuquerque Academy.

“Our whole entire team played really well and I feel like we can win state this year,” Nobrega said.

This sentiment already had been made public by Jimenez.

“It brings our spirits up and makes us want to win it more,” Nobrega said.

GIRLS: La Cueva’s longtime coach, Amber Ashcraft, laughed a little as she was looking at the giant trophy that goes with winning metros with a 3-1 victory over the Chargers.

After all, she said, it had been 15 years since La Cueva won this tournament. That was the first year of this event.

“(For years),” Ashcraft said, “we really didn’t want to win it, because there was a curse.”

The curse to which she refers — unofficial, of course — was that any girls team that won the metro tournament would not win state.

But Cibola pulled off that double a couple of years ago.

“So we’re OK to win it now,” Ashcraft said.

Senior Tessa Updegraff had a first-half hat trick for the Bears.

“Zero, I think,” she said with a laugh, when asked how many hat tricks she had recorded in a single half. “One now.”

Updegraff said La Cueva was encouraged after taking down Hope Christian on Wednesday in the semifinals.

“We knew that would propel us into today,” she said.

Said Ashcraft, “I think the girls have had a good camaraderie with each other, and we’re trying to promote that as much as possible.”

NOTE: Academy boys coach Laney Kolek collected her 200th career victory on Friday as the Chargers beat Albuquerque High in the consolation bracket.

September 9, 2023 - Pacific Coast League (PCL) - Albuquerque Isotopes News Release

Albuquerque, NM - The Isotopes stole five bases on the night while Daniel Montaño belted a three-run dinger to propel Albuquerque to a 9-6 victory and end the 11-game losing streak against the Aces Friday night at RGCU Field.

Topes Scope: -The Isotopes stole five bags on the night, the seventh time this year the club has swiped at least five in a game (last: Aug. 24 at Oklahoma City, five). All but one has come in the second half (May 18 vs. Tacoma, five).

-On the year, the team has stolen 144 bases, the fourth-most in team history (third-most: 147, 2008).

-It's the club's first win over Reno since a 4-2 victory Aug. 12, 2022, in Albuquerque.

-Albuquerque's season-high six-game error-free streak came to an end after Michael Toglia was charged with an error at first base on a groundball in the top of the third.

-Albuquerque scored nine runs for the first time since Aug. 25 at Oklahoma City.

-The Isotopes registered seven extra-base hits on the night, the 10th time the club has swatted at least seven extra-base knocks (last: Aug. 16 vs. El Paso, seven).

-Albuquerque also tallied 21 total bases. The club has recorded 20-plus total bases in at least two-straight games for the first time since Aug. 23-25 against Oklahoma City.

-In addition, the Isotopes have recorded double-digit hits in three-straight contests since tallying four-straight from Aug. 22-25 at Oklahoma City.

-The Isotopes won their 16th time when being outhit in 76 tries.

-Michael Toglia tallied two hits, including a double, to extend his on-base streak to 29 games, tied for the longest active streak in the Pacific Coast League (also: Kyle Lewis, Reno) and tied for the third-longest active in all of Triple-A (leader: Tanner Morris, Buffalo, 42). During the stretch, he is slashing .280/.416/.561 with six doubles, eight homers, 28 RBI and 27 walks. He also registered his 17th multi-hit effort of the year.

-Jimmy Herron went 1-for-3 with a double, an RBI and two walks to extend his hitting streak to a modest seven games (10x26) with an extra-base hit in five of those contests. He has now reached base in 48 of his last 52 games, compiling a slash line of .343/.457/.569 with 15 doubles, one triple, eight homers, 39 RBI, 35 walks and 22 stolen in 23 attempts.

-Hunter Stovall has a hit in 14 of his last 17 contests. During that span, he is slashing .295/.348/.426 with four doubles, two triples and six RBI. He has three triples on the year (other: July 2 vs. El Paso).

-Daniel Montaño swatted a homer to extend his hit streak to 11 games. During the streak, he is slashing .302/.362/.628 with two doubles, three triples, two homers and eight RBI. Has homered in two-straight games for first time since July 31-Aug. 2, 2022.

-Wynton Bernard has a hit in 11 of last 13 games. He's hitting .281 (16x57) with two doubles, a homer and four RBI.

-Willie MacIver connected on his sixth multi-hit effort of the year and first since Aug. 26 at Oklahoma City.

-In his first game back since being outrighted to Albuquerque, Coco Montes went 1-for-5 with an RBI. He also swiped his first base since July 8 at Oklahoma City.

-Julio Carreras has a hit in each of his first three games with the club after recording a single, RBI and two walks.

On Deck: The Isotopes and Aces meet for game five Saturday at 12:05 pm at RGCU Field. Albuquerque is expected to send Karl Kauffmann to the hill while Reno is slated to start Peter Solomon.

Check out the Albuquerque Isotopes Statistics

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The opinions expressed in this release are those of the organization issuing it, and do not necessarily reflect the thoughts or opinions of OurSports Central or its staff.

Curtis Ray Benally

BLOOMFIELD – Week four of the high school football season looked quite similar to the first three weeks of the season for the defending Class 4A state champion Bloomfield Bobcats, who remained unbeaten Friday night after a 41-0 romp at home over Albuquerque Academy.

Farmington got back on the right track one week after losing for the first time this season, shutting out Cibola in a dominating 39-0 win on the road.

Meantime, Navajo Prep earned its first win of the season, topping Crownpoint in a thriller while Shiprock came up short in a road loss against Monument Valley, Utah.

Here’s a look at the weekend’s prep football scoreboard.

Bloomfield 41, Albuquerque Academy 0

Quarterback Blake Spencer completed 19 of 23 passes for five touchdowns while running for a score – all in the first half – as Bloomfield rolled at home Friday night to beat Albuquerque Academy 41-0.

The victory not only keeps the defending Class 4A state champions with an unblemished record after four games this season, but the team has now won 10 straight games dating to last season.

“I think tonight was an important game for us, because the game plan worked well right from the start,” said Bloomfield head coach Mike Kovacs. “We saw things we wanted to take advantage of on both sides of the ball and we executed a lot of those things the right way.”

Spencer’s five touchdown passes now give him 16 on the season, while maintaining a 60% completion rate through four games this season.

Spencer had his first scoring play of the night on the Bobcats first play from scrimmage, when he connected on a 61-yard strike to Drew Perez.

After both teams traded possessions, Bloomfield took advantage of the first of three Chargers turnovers when Spencer again found Perez for a 36-yard touchdown pass with six minutes remaining in the first quarter.

“He’s worked really hard, and it shows in practice and in games,” said Perez. “He’s just been so awesome to work with this season.”

After a fumble recovery by Eli Snell-Martinez on the Chargers’ next drive, the Bobcats extended the lead to 20-0 when Spencer connected with George Rascon.

Spencer threw his fourth scoring pass of the night late in the first quarter, again finding Rascon, and again taking advantage of a Chargers turnover to make it a 28-0 lead before the end of the first quarter.

Perez caught his third touchdown pass of the game midway through the second quarter, a 30-yard pass and catch in the back of the end zone that made the score 34-0 in a game that was really never in doubt.

Week 4 Prep Football Scores

Navajo Prep 28, Crownpoint 26

Durango 41, Aztec 7

Monument Valley (Utah) 48, Shiprock 42

Bloomfield 41, Albuquerque Academy 0

Eldorado 41, Piedra Vista 19

Montezuma-Cortez 54, Kirtland Central 40

Farmington 39, Cibola 0

The Bobcats closed out the half when Spencer scored on a QB keeper from 3 yards out.

Spencer, who threw for more than 240 yards in the contest, was pulled from the game on the Bobcats’ final possession of the half as the result of the game was never in doubt. The second half was played with a running clock.

Albuquerque Academy was its own worst enemy for much of the first half, committing multiple procedural penalties and earning only two first downs.

Curtis Ray Benally

Chargers quarterback Gage Conway completed four of nine passes in the first half, was intercepted once, lost a fumble and was sacked twice.

“I can’t say enough of the work the defense did tonight,” Kovacs said. “The coaching staff saw what we needed to do, and the kids worked their tails off tonight in executing those plans.”

Bloomfield has now outscored its opponents by a combined margin of 192-27 and will get a week off before going on the road looking to extend its unbeaten season on Friday, Sept. 22 against Valencia.

Farmington 39, Cibola 0

Quarterback Trel Griego scored a pair of rushing touchdowns in the first half while the Farmington High School defense stifled Cibola on its way to a 39-0 win on the road Saturday afternoon at Nusenda Community Stadium.

For the Scorpions, playing outside their home stadium for the first time all season, the win was important, especially coming off a tough loss at home last week against Los Lunas in a battle of two of the top-ranked Class 6A teams in the state.

The Scorpions started the season playing as the designated road team at Hutchison Stadium in its annual crosstown rivalry game against Piedra Vista before beating Durango in week two of the season.

“We needed to go somewhere as a team and learn to come together more,” said Farmington head coach Jeff Dalton. “This was one of the cleanest games we’ve played all season and I think all of it just helped us control the game a bit better.”

Curtis Ray Benally

The Scorpions offense was measured for much of the first half, getting consistent gains on the ground and with a bit more controlled passing game. Griego completed 17 of 32 passes in the first half, but also ran the ball effectively, getting a pair of rushing scores in the second quarter.

Farmington got on the board first with 4:26 left in the first quarter when Waylon Schake took an inside delayed handoff from Griego, broke a pair of tackles and scored from seven yards out. The score was the culmination of a 13-play, 65-yard drive that set the tone for much of the afternoon.

Cibola’s offense, or lack thereof, was evident throughout the first half. The team managed only three first downs in the opening half while quarterback Noah Carroll completed only three of 11 passes in that same time frame.

“That’s a credit to our defense, which has really been our go-to all this season,” Dalton said. “The offense still has a few wrinkles we need to work out, but our defense has given us chances and opportunities all along this season.”

The Scorpions added to the lead late in the third quarter when Cayden Haliburton broke free from his defenders and grabbed a 13-yard strike from Griego to give Farmington a 26-0 advantage.

Farmington added a pair of fourth quarter scores, including Griego’s third rushing touchdown of the day followed by Isaac Foutz scoring a touchdown in the waning moments of the contest.

Farmington improves to 3-1 with the win, and will be home Friday at 7 p.m. to face Albuquerque High. The Cougars loss drops their record to 0-4 on the season and mired in a nine-game losing streak dating back to last season. Cibola will get a week off before traveling to face Piedra Vista on Friday, Sept. 22.

Navajo Prep 28, Crownpoint 26

The Navajo Prep football team earned its first win of the season, and the first coaching win of the season for Storm Tallbull as Navajo Prep held on for a 28-26 win at home Thursday night over Crownpoint.

Joshua Wells ran for a pair of touchdowns, including the game-winner on a 65-yard scamper which gave Navajo Prep the lead with under seven minutes to go in the contest.

The game was tied at 14 at the half as both Navajo Prep and Crownpoint had explosive plays on offense while both teams took advantage on turnovers and penalties.

Navajo Prep struck first when Wells scored the first of his two touchdowns on the night midway early in the opening quarter. After both teams turned the ball over, Crownpoint tied the game early in the second quarter when quarterback Jonathan Antonio ran it over the goal line from a yard out to tie the contest.

That touchdown was set up by a big passing play from Antonio to Tydon Tsosie which put Crownpoint deep inside Navajo Prep territory.

Again, both teams were victimized by turnovers and penalties until later in the quarter when Tsosie scored from 18 yards out to give Crownpoint its first lead of the game inside the final two minutes of the first half.

Navajo Prep struck right back with a touchdown pass with under a minute to go which sent both teams into the locker room tied at 14 each.

Shaun McKinley got Navajo Prep back on top early in the third quarter with a powerful 46-yard run after breaking tackles at the line of scrimmage for the score. The point after attempt was successful when Wells ran it over the goal line from a couple yards out to put Navajo Prep ahead 22-14.

Curtis Ray Benally

Both teams surrendered possession of the ball midway through the period before Crownpoint answered back with another touchdown run from Antonio. The 2-point conversion attempt failed however, leaving Navajo Prep with a 22-20 advantage into the fourth quarter.

Crownpoint got the lead with eight minutes left in the game when Antonio scored his third rushing touchdown of the night, this one from two yards out. Once again, they failed to convert on the 2-point play, leaving them with a 26-22 advantage.

That set the stage for Wells, who ran for more than 200 yards in the contest. His 65-yard run gave Navajo Prep the lead, despite coming up short on the two-point conversion attempt.

Leading 28-26, Navajo Prep stiffened on defense as Crownpoint ran down the clock for what was intended to be a game-winning drive. With Crownpoint inside the Navajo Prep 25-yard line on second down, Antonio threw three straight incomplete passes, turning the ball over to Navajo Prep with less than 90 seconds on the clock.

Navajo Prep (1-3) will go on the road on Friday night to face Hozho Academy (1-2) in Gallup. Crownpoint (3-1) suffered its first loss of the season and will be home Friday night to tackle Newcomb.

Monument Valley (Utah) 48, Shiprock 42

The Monument Valley (Utah) High School football team earned its first win of the season, winning at home over Shiprock by a final of 48-41 in a battle of teams each trying to get the first win of the campaign.

Shiprock head coach Anthony Clah said that despite the loss, which drops the team’s record to 0-4 on the season, he was impressed with how the Chieftains played on the offensive side of the ball.

“We did some great things on offense, but also made some critical errors,” Clah said.

The Chieftains are also battling through injuries to many key players, having to use multiple players in different positions.

“We have a constant carousel of players available as we deal with the injuries,” Clah said. “If we could get all our skill players together for one game, we would look a whole lot better.”

The Chieftains will be home on Thursday at 7 p.m. to tackle Zuni. Monument Valley (1-3) snapped a seven-game losing streak dating back to last season and will be on the road Friday night to face Water Canyon (Utah).

For those who don’t drink in Albuquerque, it can be difficult to find an evening venue that doesn’t revolve around alcohol or, at least, involve it.

Ryan Brown, owner of the newly opened Lost Cultures Tea Bar located at 1761 Bellamah Ave. NW in the Sawmill Area, hopes to give an option to the sober crowd or anyone else who doesn’t want to spend a Friday night on a bar rail.

“There’s nothing else really like this in town that offers communal space that’s open during the evenings, and even into somewhat of a late night,” Brown said. “Everything’s kind of catered toward alcohol, even restaurants."

Lost Cultures, which opened up on Oct. 14, serves a collection of non-alcoholic cocktails, beers and wines. Highlights include the “Functional-Rita” made with mushroom-derived spirit and the “Jade Refresher” featuring house sparkling white and jasmine green tea.

The bar also serves, as the name suggests, a selection of over 20 teas, most imported from Asian countries like Japan. Brown sees this as another way to differentiate his concept.

Many tea houses in the city are English-style, where tea is served alongside light meals made up of scones or small sandwiches. It’s more of a structured affair, where the customer’s attention is supposed to be focused on consuming their tea or socializing with those they came with.

Lost Cultures, according to Brown, is taking a more relaxed approach, in which customers are encouraged to bring laptops or books and use the space for their own needs — all while enjoying a tea. The vibe is more akin to a coffee shop, just without the coffee.

“I was trying to structure this more like a cafe or a bar where you just pop in, grab a table, sit down, no reservation is required,” Brown said. “Really good for studying, or if you're working from home and you want to get out of the house.”

Regardless of whether a customer is looking to grab a non-alcoholic margarita or a cup of tea, Brown said the primary focus behind the business is offering healthier options.

“My focus here is to be like a healthy place to some degree," Brown said. "Tea is very good for you. The whole not drinking aspect, I feel like that’s a healthier take on going out and having an experience at night or having a date night.”

Brown’s emphasis on health makes sense when you learn he started out brewing kombucha, a fermented tea known to carry beneficial probiotics, under his similarly named company Lost Cultures Kombucha.

In fact, Lost Cultures Tea Bar was originally meant to primarily brew and serve kombucha, with a few teas and non-alcoholic drinks as a secondary offering. A last-minute mixup with the health department, however, led to a bigger focus being put on the latter. While he awaits permission to serve his own, Brown is serving other local companies' kombucha.

As for the future, Brown is looking at a few options. He’s weighing adding a cold brew coffee to the menu, as well as potentially offering a limited food menu.

Staff are another consideration. Brown is currently Lost Culture’s only paid staff member, with friends occasionally offering to donate their time. He said he may hire a full staff in the future, but for now he wants to take it slow.

“I know people in the industry that I would like to bring on if possible,” Brown said. “But for now, just play it safe and smart.”

Lost Cultures Tea Bar is currently open 9 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. Monday through Thursday and 9 a.m. to 9 p.m. Friday through Sunday.