Off to Santa Fe

Sunday before dawn (what was I thinking?) we leave for Santa Fe. While we're gone our contractor will be here painting . . .

Anyway, I watched Rachel Ray's $40 a day show last week when she visited Santa Fe and I've gotten some recco's:

1 vote for Coyote Cafe, 1 against
Ls Case Sena for the fish in clay
breakfast in the dining room of La Fona Hotel
Pasqual's (reco from friend and Rachel loved it to)
and advice to avoid the Pink Adobe Geronimo.

Your thoughts?

Those are all great places. You should also head out to Rancho de Chimayo
http://www.ranchodechimayo.com The Pink Adobe was also great when I was there.

Will

From a friend who lives there for part of the year:

Senor Lucky's on Palace
Bert's La Taqueria, on St. Michael's for taquito plates
a terrific brunch place, El Tesoro, in the SanBusco Center

Coyote Cafe's moment in the sun has come and gone but the prices are still sky high.

If you're going to make it out to Chimayo, do check out Leona's, which is across the parking lot from the Sanctuario de Chimayo. Haven't been in several years, but it used to be a roadside-like hut that churned out homemade tortillas, tamales and posole. Authentic, reasonably priced and delicious.

We were there in December and had a great breakfast at the Plaza Cafe. More like a diner than a cafe right on the Plaza. We also like Coyote Cafe, but I have to say every place could work on the service. Just and FYI - we took a great cooking class at the Santa Fe School of Cooking. We stayed at La Fonda and had dinner there one night, the dinner was fine, not great, but the tres leches dessert was to die for.

First day here, Sunday we enjoyed brunch at Pasqual's. Huevos Rancheros for me with a spicy red chilie sauce and a breakfast quesadilla for hubby. Unfortunately for me, altitude sickness grabbed onto my head, gave me the worst headache this side of a true migrane, and I spent the rest of the evening in bed. By Monday I was acclimated, and after enjoying the O'Keefe museum, we had dinner at La Fonda.

We decided to sample several small dishes rather than one big entree. So we had a guacamole prepared tableside with great flair, and a snapper seviche with blackbeans and ground pumpkin seeds. Both were fab, fresh and devoured completely. Then I had a smoked tomato soup with a heart shaped swirl of creme fraiche and hubby had the tortilla soup. Unfortunately his soup was so salty that he couldn't eat it. boo. However, my soup was one of the top ten best foods I've had. Ever. Truly.

We finished with the tres leches cake and an espresso bean laced chocolate mousse.

Raspberry tea, which seems to be the choice out here and a diet coke completed the meal. Food, tax and tip, $70.

Off on another food adventure this evening!

If anyone wants to keep track, you should add The Shed to your dining options for SantaFe. Beard House award winner, very reasonably priced, especially for SantaFe, attractive place and very good food.

Also Los Mayas. Taste of SantaFe award winner, reasonably priced, excellent food, mediocre service. Offered free dessert for paying cash. Seemed a little dodgy, but free dessert is free dessert.

Senor Luckys closed suddenly in February. As in the employees showed up for work to find the doors locked and a few days later the sherrif took away the furniture. At least that's the story.

Details! What'd you eat?!

Lunch at The Shed was cheese enchiladas smothered in red chilie for me, but hubby may have had the winner. He had a green salad with bleu cheese and walnuts, looked good, and a bowl of posole. Mostly similar to our hominey, cooked with pork and chilies, served in a broth of some sort. Looked good, but since I don't eat meat, I have no idea what it actually tasted like. There was a good bit of it being served in the dining room, so I have to conclude that it is popular!

Dinner at Los Mayas was green chilie and cheese tamales for me with fresh guacamole and sour cream, accompanied by black beans and rice. This was absolutely the hottest thing I've eaten in a while. The first bite of the green sauce made my lower lip numb. I swear I'm no wimp, and generally order things really hot. I do love a good tamale and I have never found one in Louisville. The combo of creamy but firm masa around whatver the center is is delightful. Hubby also had the combination plate and he chose an enchilada and something else, all covered with red chilie, which at this restaurant carried significantly less heat than the green. Beans, rice, sour cream and guac on the side.

We finished with the free flan, which was . .well . . .a little strange. I would have thought it was bread pudding given its texture. It had likely been baked at too high a temp which gave it the rough texture.