On the first day of my New Mexico vacation, I continued to Santa Fe after lunch #2 at Dog House Drive-In.
https://www.chowhound.com/post/dog-ho...
Our plan was to have dinner at Paloma https://palomasantafe.com/ . Since it's walk-in only and doesn't take reservations for small parties, we headed over early. Our punctuality was not rewarded . . . a sign on the door said the restaurant was closed unexpectedly for maintenance.
Back up dinner plan was to another newcomer, Fiesta Oaxaca. Best dish was Chile en nogada, a battered version, filled with pork and beef combined with nuts and fruits, and less sweet than others I've tried. My plate of pork en mole amarillo had dryish meat and bland sauce. John liked his chicken en mole tamarindo. The handmade tortillas reeked of odoriferous epazote, overpowering and unpleasant enough to render them inedible. The tres leches cake was made with artificial whipped topping and added a layer of cajeta. The flavor tasted like some coffee may have been added, accounting for the dark hue.
Cute place decorated with colorful papel picado, not so excited about this food. However, the local reviewers all seem highly positive about the offerings so your mileage may vary. That said, prices were quite reasonable and the presentation was attractive. The chile en nogada's worth a second visit . . . perhaps chowhounds will uncover some other gems on the menu.
Fiesta Oaxaca
135 West Palace Avenue
Santa Fe, New Mexico 87501
505 982 9525
Too bad you missed Paloma. It's good. So is Epazote, but I think that's been closed for maintenance, too. Santa Fe restaurants seem to have a lot of mishaps.
Would you please say more about Paloma when you have a chance? Now that a second friend has relocated to Santa Fe, I suspect that I'll be visiting pretty regularly now.
I just posted that our plans were upended when we learned that Sazon had suffered a fire. It's still closed now.
https://www.chowhound.com/post/enchan...
Oops, Sazón is what I meant. Epazote was Fernando Olea’s last lovely restaurant that didn’t fare well. Hoping he can resurrect Sazón, but it’s been closed a long time for a non-kitchen fire.
It’s funny, although many people from Mexico live here, real Mexican food in NM is generally not that good. Paloma is therefore very good for NM, but I don’t know how special it would seem to a Californian. It’s a bit expensive (by NM standards) for what it is, but everything I’ve had there was delicious (all the tacos, lamb barbacoa, snapper Veracruz), and the chef is really committed to fresh, local produce and real whole Mexican ingredients.
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