Tomasita’s marks 50 years as Albuquerque-founded New Mexican icon

Tomasita’s, a New Mexican restaurant founded in Albuquerque, is marking 50 years in business. The restaurant’s origins trace to founder Georgia Maryol’s childhood in Albuquerque, where her mother ran a restaurant on West Central in the Atrisco barrio.

“My mother ran a restaurant on West Central. It was in the Atrisco barrio. And the food in the Atrisco barrio was original New Mexican food,” Maryol said.

Maryol purchased the original Tomasita’s on Hickox Street after befriending the restaurant’s cook, also named Tomasita. Tomasita manned the kitchen at that location for five more years before the restaurant moved.

“I really was fond of her, and then, I found out it was for sale,” Maryol said.

The restaurant relocated to a red brick building on South Guadalupe Street in Santa Fe, where it has remained for 45 years. Tomasita continued to run the kitchen there for about a decade.

“She passed away about 10 years after we moved here. In fact, I was with her when she passed away. But she was great. She was a real professional,” Maryol said.

Maryol’s youngest son, George Gundrey, now oversees the restaurant. He said the red chile recipe has stayed consistent across generations.

“One thing, the red chile pods, they come from a southern town called Salem, and she bought those pods from the old man, and the daughter took over the farm, and I get them from the daughter now,” Gundrey said. “We’re multi-generational, and those chile pods are multi-generational too.”

Gundrey attributed the restaurant’s longevity to straightforward cooking.

“One of the things with our food is it’s very simple. It’s probably 12 ingredients put together in different ways,” Gundrey said. “It’s the ingredients. We don’t mess with the chile. It’s very simple recipes, but focusing on getting the best ingredients you can and putting them together simply.”

Maryol pointed to equal treatment of employees as a guiding principle.

“First of all, I believe in treating all employees equally. They are all important. The dishwasher to the manager. Everybody is important,” Maryol said.

Reflecting on the milestone, Maryol said she is ready to hand the business to the next generation.

“It’s been a lot of fun. I enjoyed it a lot. But it’s time to turn it over to the younger generation,” Maryol said.