Buon appetito: Trombino’s Bistro Italiano still bustling after 45 years

Point: the local restaurant business is struggling. Last year saw a conspicuous number of longstanding favorites close, including Mr. Powdrell’s Barbeque, O’Niell’s Pub in Nob Hill and Monica’s El Portal.

Rising costs, staffing issues and shrinking customer bases were among the reasons cited in the decisions.

Counterpoint: Trombino’s Bistro Italiano, the Italian restaurant located in a strip mall on Academy Road near San Mateo Boulevard NE. At 6:30 on a recent Saturday night, the parking lot was full, the bar area was hopping, and the lobby was crowded with prospective diners waiting hopefully for their names to be called.

It’s both impressive and heartening to see a 45-year-old restaurant still drawing them in.

Buon appetito: Trombino’s Bistro Italiano still bustling after 45 years

The origins of Trombino’s Bistro trace themselves back to Mario Trombino, son of an Italian immigrant from Calabria in southern Italy. After moving to Albuquerque from Chicago in 1966, Mario and his wife Violet opened a successful burger joint. Their son Ray soon joined them, and they launched Trombino’s in 1979.

There have been changes over the years, but the place still looks bright and clean. The facade is tiled in warm colors that reflect the late afternoon sun. Inside, trompe l’oeil paintings of garden scenes and vegetable stands decorate the walls.

We had arrived for an early dinner sans reservation: a mistake, I thought, when I saw the busy parking lot. The bar area to the left of the entry hallway was full, but there were quite a few tables available in the dining room. Still, I’d recommend making reservations online.

A convivial atmosphere prevailed, no doubt influenced by all the drinks being quaffed. Glasses of wine and brightly colored cocktails stood on nearly every table in the dining room. Happy Hour pricing, five nights a week until 6 p.m., includes $4 drafts, $6 wines and $7 cocktails. Even outside of Happy Hour, prices are reasonable.

The wine list consists mostly of bottles from Italy and California. The markups are more reasonable than most fine dining establishments in the city. For instance, a bottle of Placido pinot grigio that will set you back about $12 at a liquor store costs a mere $20 at Trombino’s. Glasses are available in 6- or 9-ounce pours. We tried a 6-ounce glass of the pale yellow Placido ($7). Smooth, dry and tasting of ripe pears, it’s a good choice for an aperitif.

Non-drinkers who feel left out can choose from an inventive selection of mocktails and a variety of Italian cream sodas ($6). The vanilla cream soda arrived bearing a thick layer of whipped cream with a cherry on top. The soda’s carbonation alleviated its dessert-level sweetness.

Shortly after, we ordered a basket of house-baked bread that arrived with a plate of Italian herbs and spices that gets mixed at the table with olive oil. The bread was outstanding, with a craggy and crusty exterior yielding to a soft, stretchy core. I finished half of the small loaf and took the rest home for later.

The food menu kicks off with soups, salads and a selection of antipasti priced between $10 and $15. A bowl of Mama’s Chicken Soup ($7.49) was straightforward, with lots of shredded white-meat chicken in a faintly salty broth crowded with carrots and celery. A bowl of this with the bread provides a filling meal for under $10.

Salads range from house specialties in small sizes to four entrees freighted with proteins like salmon or chicken. The small version of the Brutus Salad ($7.49), Trombino’s version of a Caesar, consisted of romaine lettuce tossed in creamy Parmesan dressing and topped with big, buttery croutons coated in herbs. Very simple, but the romaine was fresh, and its slight bitterness paired well with the pungent dressing. As with the bread, I had to stop eating it to save room for the main courses.

Speaking of which, entrees fill two full pages of the menu. The priciest options are the steaks that land in the $30 to $40 range. Veal and chicken dishes cost a bit less, and many of the pasta dishes come in at under $20.

We tried one of the house favorites: Eggplant Parmigiano ($17.49) with thin spaghetti in marinara. It was served on a big oval plate, the breaded eggplant on one side, the pasta and chunky tomato sauce on the other. Under a thick slab of mozzarella nicely leopard-spotted from the broiler, the eggplant was crisp on the edges and almost pudding-like in the middle. Between the pull of the cheese and the tang of the sauce, it was a hearty, enjoyable dish. Like most of the dishes here, the portion was large.

Trombino’s thoughtfully offers a separate menu for gluten-free diners. The Bolognese ($18.99) was comprised of tubes of penne, a pasta that’s almost inescapable for gluten-free restaurant diners. The pasta was a little on the firm side, but it soaked up the tomato sauce well and the mix of ground veal, pork and beef was juicy and peppery. Great comfort food for a cold night.

The pastry chef whips up Italian favorites like Tiramisu from an open-air kitchen at the corner of the dining room. It may not be as riveting as watching a chef fashion an onion volcano on a hibachi grill, but it’s comforting to see your dishes being prepared and placed on the counter with the words “order up!” Chocolate Mousse ($6.99), one of the gluten-free options, was served in a glass bowl, the mousse topped with whipped cream and a cherry and dusted with cocoa powder. With the whipped cream taking the edge off the intense chocolate flavor of the mousse, it was a good, palate-cleansing finish to the meal.

Service was friendly. Several people checked in on us throughout the meal. The food came out quickly, even if our server occasionally got a bit preoccupied with folding napkins at a side table.

Trombino’s belies the notion that all restaurants must age into oblivion. Forty-five years after opening, it’s still vital and popular and appears poised for continued success.