Serving Clovis, Portales and the Surrounding Communities
Serving Clovis, Portales and the Surrounding Communities
I saw a picture of Portales’ old La Hacienda Restaurant recently, and it got me to thinking about some of our family’s favorite eating spots that are long gone.
La Hacienda, for those who don’t remember, was originally on North Avenue K in Portales.
When we have birthdays in my family, it’s always been tradition for the birthday person to get to pick the menu and/or eating spot for the main meal.
I picked La Hacienda for my 15th birthday supper, not only to celebrate my arrival on the planet, but — even better — the fact that I was old enough to get my real driver’s license (having miraculously survived our unconventional driver’s education class, a story for another column).
We ate a lot of meals at La Hacienda over the years, often pulling multiple tables together to accommodate a crowd of friends or family members. The chips were freshly made, still warm when they came to the table. The salsa was just right.
The food tasted best on a chilly, rainy day when the place was packed full of happy customers, and big glass windows at the front of the restaurant fogged over on the inside. I can still smell it and taste it (the food … not the fog on the windows … just to be clear).
Another regular spot for our family — as well as every activity bus in Roosevelt County after any sports event — was the Tastee Freez restaurant on West First Street.
During the years it was available, I always had the same thing: the “Mexican combo.”
It was an artery-clogging choice (merrily consumed in blissful ignorance) that included a deep-fried burrito, a deep-fried taquito, a taco (topped with healthy shreds of lettuce and chunks of tomato), and a cherry pepper (vegetable, right?).
Tastee-Freez also offered crushed ice in its drinks — most restaurants didn’t have that at the time. When I was in college, we’d go there to only get cups of ice sometimes. It was that good.
Mel and Millie Hillesheim ran it during the years we frequented it the most, two of the friendliest and kindest people ever.
Alice Notah also cooked there a long time. Behind the counter where the cash registers sat was a window into the kitchen — we loved to look and see if Mrs. Notah was on duty. She’d wave when she saw us and often come out and join us in a booth to chat for a few minutes if she had time.
I have no idea of the timeline, but at some point in its heyday, the Tastee Freez drew a big enough crowd that a back room was added on.
I also don’t know who to credit for this idea, but an upright piano was rolled in, and the restaurant started offering live music on Saturday nights, often pounded out by local musician Wayne Crume, who also brought a guitar and harmonica for his show.
Wayne was a lifelong family friend who had entertained crowds for decades at multiple venues, including the bar at the Clovis Holiday Inn for many years.
He cleaned up his bawdy barroom lyrics and made his show family friendly for the Tastee Freez crowd. I know my then-toddler daughter wasn’t the only little kid who loved to get out and dance as he played old tunes we all knew and loved.
A few years after Tastee Freez closed, La Hacienda moved to that same space. Sadly, it didn’t last nearly long enough at the new location. Various other businesses tried and failed; the building itself has now been gone for a while.
When I drive by though, I sometimes think I catch a whiff of hot oil, and I long for some salsa and chips, a tall Coke over crushed ice, a deep-fried burrito, and a seat by the piano on a Tastee Freez Saturday night.
Come join me. I’ll get a booth and slide over.
We can always squeeze in one more.
Betty Williamson is nostalgic and hungry. Reach her at:
