Hi. I am taking a trip to Santa Fe in the fall and
am looking for low-key places to eat that serve great
fresh food. I'm expecially interested in finding good
BBQ and cheap taco stands. Anyone have any
suggestions?
Thanks!
Don't miss Horseman's Haven Cafe, located on the
outskirts of Santa Fe adjoining a Texaco station. It's
a funky, bordering on dumpy, place with terrific New
Mexican food, especially the green chile, which is the
best I've tasted on my trips to Santa Fe and Northern
New Mexico, and the carne adovada. Cafe Pasqual's, in
the center of town, is extremely popular and usually
involves a long wait to get a table. Put your name on
the list, and do some shopping while you wait.
Pasqual's green chile is also first rate, as is its
carne asada. The specials, like the citrus gazpacho I
had on my most recent visit, can be very tasty rifs on
traditional New Mexican cuisine. Tortilla Flats is
another good place for tasty, inexpensive New Mexican
cooking.
Hey Tom, thanks for the recommendations. One of my
friends swears by the Horseman's Haven Cafe. I just
dropped into a bookstore on my lunchbreak and read
about a truckstand on Washington & Palace called Roques
Carnitas. Ever hear anything about that?
I'm not familiar with the Roques Carnitas stand, at
least not by name. Washington & Palace is adjacent to
the central town square, and I recall some vendors
selling food from stands in that general area, but
those that I observed didn't look all that tempting.
Check it out and let us know what you find.
One further note on Horseman's Haven: If you are into
blisteringly hot stuff, you can ask for a bowl of
"level two." I don't remember seeing it on the menu,
and gather that it's sort of an insider thing. (I
heard about it from a waiter at Geronimo, an excellent
high-end restaurant on Canyon Road.) Level two is your
basic bowl of green chile, but with the heat turned up
to a stratospheric level. On my recent visit to
Horseman's, not knowing quite what to expect, I asked
for a bowl of "level two." A guy in the booth across
from my table, overhearing my order, asked with more
than a note of incredulity, "You're ordering the level
two?" I nodded yes, to which he responded, "Good luck,
it's been nice knowing you." My waitress delivered the
bowl of level two (which looked the same as the regular
bowl of green chile) with a serious look and the
warning to "just take little dips." Against her
advice, and because I have a very heat tolerant palate,
I tried a spoonful---my first and last spoonful. "How
is it," asked my dining companions. I think I made
some type of hand gesture, since talking was out of the
question at the moment. I don't really recommend the
level two, since I don't see the value in numbingly hot
food (and I do mean numbingly), but since it is part of
the Horseman's Haven culture, thought I'd pass it on.
Haven't been to Roques Carnitas, but I know the Sterns absolutely swear by it, which is usually a pretty high recommendation.
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