Santa Fe Restaurants - Tried & Not Tried

Santa Fe Area Restaurants

NOTE:  Some have not been tried personally but have had good word-of-mouth or good reviews

IMPORTANT:  For brief information on prices and cuisine of selected restaurants be

go to my page, Santa Fe Picks

Good Places for Breakfast

(Most, but not all, have been tried)

[Last Revised: March 24, 2023]

•      Aldana's Restaurant (south side, Cerillos Road, great review in the Santa Fe Reporter, February 2010)

•      Angel's Bakery and Café (downtown location)

•      Beestro, The (Good review in Pasatiempo, 01/17/2014; bright, sunny)

•      Bodega Prime (Getting lots of great reviews in late 2016)

•      Boultawn's Bakery (SF Reporter 06/21/2017; downtown location, mostly positive review)

•      Café Fina (out on old Las Vegas Highway)

•      Café Mamou

•      Café Pasqual

•      Café Phenix

•      Cafecito (In the Baca Railyard)

•      Caffe Greco (near the beginning of Canyon Road; knowledgeable use of chile)

•      Casa Sena, La (reputed to have an excellent Sunday brunch)

•      Chocolate Maven

•      Clafoutis (very traditional French; excellent breakfast pastries; as of March 2017, new location at Cordova Rd. and Don Diego)

•      Counter Culture Café

•      Dolina (excellent morning pastries)

•      Dulce Capital, (great pastries, cookies, and breakfasts))

•      El Palacio (New Mexico breakfasts)

•      El Parasol (best breakfast burritos in Santa Fe, according to many)

•      Flying Tortilla (4252 Cerrillos Rd - reasonable and very good quality)

•      Guadalupe Café (in the former location of The Pink Adobe)

•      Harry’s Roadhouse

•      Madame Matisse (owner is French and makes excellent morning pastries0

•      Modern General (try, in particular, the "modcakes" - the restaurant's innovative take on pancakes)

•     New York on Catron

•     Opuntia (simple but creative cooking - breakfast and lunch only)

•      Pantry, The (several locations)

•     R amblin'cafe (1420 2nd St., off-beat but interesting, well-prepared breakfasts)

•      San Marcos Café

•      Sagche's Coffee House (St. Michael's, Pasatiempo 11/08/2019, great espresso and Latin American coffees, excellent American & Guatamalan food))

•      Santacafé  (began serving breakfast in late 2016, Monday - Friday)

•      Saveur

•      Sweet Lily's Bakery (Opens at 8:00 a.m. weekdays, 9:00 a.m. on weekends; serves lunch also)

•      Sweetwater Harvest Restaurant (Pacheco Street design area; grind small amounts of interesting flours daily for baked items)

•      Swiss Bakery Pastries & Bistro

•      Tia Sophia (an old time downtown classic New Mexican food)

•      Tune-up Café

Santa Fe Area Restaurants

Tried

 [Last Revised:  January 2, 2024]

•           Andiamo (a good bargain at lunch, and excellent pastas and soups)        

•           Arroyo Vino (wine bar, restaurant at Las Campanas - tcreative dishes, expensive, especially the wines)

•          Atrisco Café & Bar

•          Back Street Bistro (lunch only)

•          Bert’s Taqueria

•          Blue Heron Restaurant at Ojo Caliente Resort

•          Bobcat Bite

•          Bumble Bee Baja Grill

•          Café Fina (Excellently prepared food in bright, contemporary setting)

•          Clafoutis (classic French atmosphere and French preparations)

•           Cleopatra Café

•           Counter Culture Café

•           Cowgirl Hall of Fame

•           Dr. Field Good's Kitchen

•           El Farol (full meals can be expensive, but light snacks are excellent and reasonable)        

•           El Nido (Tesuque; resurrected legendary restaurant; enlarged but handsomely, excellent cooking)

•          Fire and Hops  (upscale "gastropub" carrying numerous beers on tap and in the bottle, plus interesting food)

•          Guadalupe Café

•          Harry’s Roadhouse

•           Il Vicino

•           Izanami (new in 2013 - authentic and innovative Japanese at Ten Thousand Waves)

•          Jambo Café (East African - try the big stew plus all the bread you can eat)

•           Jinja (great atmosphere, great prices, good Asian fusion food)  

•           Joe’s Dinner

•           Joseph's (Chef Joseph Wrede - very good but quite expensive)

•           Kakawa (handmade dark chocolates and hot chocolate from historical recipes)

•           Kohnami (beautiful Japanese-style outdoor pagoda garden with fountain)

•          Los Amigos

•          Los Potrillos

•          Loyal Hound (730 St. Michael's Dr.; terrific "gastropub" food; where the former Hidden Chicken was, reasonably priced)

•           Luminaria (in the Inn of Loretto - always reliable)

•           Midtown Bistro (chic industrial look; chef came from Santacafé)

•          Modern General (breakfast, lunch, late afternoon snacks)

•          Museum Hill Café

•          El Nido, Tesuque (Resurrection of a fabled restaurant; very good reviews - Pasatiempo, Feb. 3, 2017)

•          Pantry, The

•          Paper Dosa (Cooking of Tamil Nadu, India; moved here from San Francisco, where it won plaudits = Superb quality, interesting dishes)

•           Piccolino

•           Plaza Restaurant

•           Pranzo (bar menu only / Monday night special)

•           Pyramid Café     

•           Radish and Rye (excellent, creative cooking, a topnotch bar with very good products)

•          Ranch House, The (Focus is on barbecue; 2571 Cristos Rd, across from the Auto Park and Kohl's - good quality)

•         Restaurant Martin (reasonable for lunch)

•         Rooftop Pizzeria

•         San Francisco Bar & Grill

•         San Marcos Café

•         Santa Fe Bite (downtown successor of Bobcat Bite - terrific burgers; always crowded at lunchtime)

•         Santa Fe Brewing

•         Saveur

•         Sazòn (Chef Fernando Olea's latest venture - at 221 Shelby, former location of Tanti Luce; very expensive)

•         Upper Crust Pizza (considered the best in town but did not find it fantastic - a bit grubby and wine is served in plastic cups)

•        Vinaigrette

Note;  Most of the pubs, bars and happy hours below have not been tried but reports are good.

• Excellent Tapas (at all hours):

  • El Farol

  • La Boca

  • Taberna la Boca

• Brew Pubs & Beer Bars:

• Chili Line Brewing Company (only available at Pizzeria da Lino Restaurant)

• Desert Dogs Brewery and Cidery Taproom

• Draft Station (on the Plaza)

• Duel Belgian Brewing (1228 Parkway Drive) 

• Marble Brewery

• Paloma (mainly a restaurant, but with a bar menu)

• Rowley Farmhouse Ales

• Santa Fe Brewing Company (note its most recent establishment, the Beer Hall at HQ off I-25)

• Second Street Brewery (several locations) but note particularly the Rufina Taproom

• Tumbleroot Brewery and Distillery

• Watering Holes (Good bars)

• Tonic (excellent barman, creative drinks, limited menu of bar food)

• Bar Alto (Drury Plaza Hotel - rooftop terrace)

• Santa Fe Spirits Tasting Room (at the Railyard)

• Anasazi Bar and Lounge (Inn of the Anasazi)

• Bell Tower Bar (Hotel LaFonda - Rooftop bar with excellent sunset views)

• La Reina @ The El Rey Motel (very classy and excellent drinks)

• Upscale:Happy Hours (including reduced prices on both a good glass of wine, or in some cases, other drinks, and topnotch appetizers or tapas)

• 315 Restaurant & Wine Bar (Daily / 5:00 - 7:00 p.m.; 1/2-price oysters and selected wines, beers, drinks)

• Anasazi Restaurant, Inn of the Anasazi (Su-Th / 3:00 - 5:00 p.m.)

• Eldorado Hotel - Agave Lounge (Mo-Fr / 4:00 - 7:00 p.m.; excellent low prices on wine, beer, margarita, sangrias, and $4 bar food)

• La Boca (Daily / 5:00 - 6:00 p.m.)

• Santacafé (Daily  / 2:30 - 5:00 p.m.) - fairly pricey for Happy Hour

• Taberna La Boca (Daily / 5:00 - 6:00 p.m.)

• Terracotta (Mo-Th  / 4:00 - 6:00 p.m.)

• Food purveyors

  • • Bread bakers

      • Bread Shop

      • Sage Bakery (long-established baker)

Santa Fe Area Restaurants

Not Tried (but good reports have been received)

[Last Revised:  January 2, 2024]

•          Aldana's Restaurant (south side, Cerillos Road, great review in the Santa Fe Reporter, February 2010)

•         Alfanoose Middle Eastern Cafe

•         Antojito’s Maria (Authentic Mexican home-cooking, 3686 Cerillos Rd., next to the Holiday Inn)

•          Bang Bite (Topnotch, interestingly conceived burgers, truck dining at Old Santa Fe Trail and Paseo de Peralta;  NOTE:  Food truck - seasonal)

•         Beestro, The (Lunch only, Good review in Pasatiempo, 01/17/2014; simple well-prepared foods - soups, salads, sandwiches)

•         Bodega Prime (breakfast, lunch, take-out foods)

•         Burrito Spot

•         Café Castro

•          Café Grazie (sophisticated food at reasonable prices)

•         Café Olé (excellent review in Pasatiempo, 02/25/2011)

•         Café Sonder (good early reviews; located in the old Zia Diner location)

•         Cafecito (Baca Railyard; focus is Argentian cuisine) 

•         Castro’s Restaurante Comidas Nativas

•         Chapin y Mex (6417 Airport Road, Suite 100, very authentic feeling - Guatamalan & Mexican cuisine)

•         Chocolate Maven (breakfast, lunch, bakery)

•         Cocina de Doña Clara, La (4350 Airport Rd., open daily, all 3 meals - classic Zacatecas food, e.g., gorditas; 11/24/2010 in SF Reporter)

•          Cuba Fe Home Cooking (Miami-style Cuban cooking; noteworthy Cubano sandwich)

•         Dolina (lunch and breakfast only) 

•         Duel Belgian Style Brewery and Taproom (1228 Parkway Dr., off Rufina St.)

•        El Parasol (best tacos, best breakfast burritos in Santa Fe, according to many)

•        Felipe's Tacos  (has a very loyal following - simple food of the Mexican heartland)

•         Flying Tortilla (4252 Cerrillos Rd; classic New Mexico dishes of very good quality at affordable prices)

•         Hollar, The (in Madrid, excellent reviews)

•         Istalif Cuisine (Afghan food, well-reviewed in the SF Reporter, Nov. 14, 2012; moderately-priced, i.e., not cheap)

•         La Fiesta Lounge, La Fonda Hotel (a local hangout, good music and the feel of Santa Fe of decades ago)

•         Late Night Burgers (terrific, very large burgers)

•         Los Amigos (hearty fare, including breakfast)

•         Milad Persian Bistro (on Canyon Road just above Camino de Monte Sol; rice-based tahdig, vegetarian dishes, appetizers are the stars)

•         Mampuku Ramen (authentic well-prepared classic ramen main courses)

•         Oasis Café at La Tienda, Eldorado (Cubano sandwich is said to be outstanding)

•         Opuntia (in the Baca Street Railyard area - simple but creative cooking - breakfast and lunch only)

•         Patsy’s New York Pizza (best, most authentic pizza in Santa Fe)

•         Pizza Centro (Design Center)

•         Plancha, La (Salvadoran, located in Eldorado;  reviewed in Pasatiempo on Oct. 22, 2010)

•         Posa's El Merendero (most highly regarded for the homemade tamales with its terrific masa; two locations: try Rodeo Rd location)

•         Red Enchilada, The (good review in Pasatiemp, 02/12/2010, particularly good for Central American specialities)

•         Risa, La (in Ribera, San Miguel County; closed M-W, and from late November to mid-March)

•         Sabor Peruano (authentic Peruvian recipes; located in DeVargas Mall)

•         Santa Luna Restaurant

•         Sazón (Very upscale Mexico City cooking)

•         Shake Foundation (Brian Knox's latest venture - high quality hamburgers, fries, and shakes)

•         Street Food Institute

•         Sushiland EAST (on Water St., simple, attractive Japanese noodle bar, highly recommended by Tim of Touching Stone)

•         Sweetwater Harvest Kitchen (1512 Pacheco St., Bldg. B - consistently good reviews for breakfast and dinner, particularly Asian-themed)

•         Taberna La Boca (Tapas bar and restaurant under the same ownership as La Boca Restaurant)

  •      Taqueria Adelitas (3565 Cerrillos Rd - reputed to have the best tacos and roast chicken in Santa Fe)

  •     Thai Café (very reasonably priced lunches)

  •     Theo Gio's Mac & Cheese (Not surprisingly, mainly, but not exclusively, a variety of macaroni & cheese dishes)

  •     Trattoria a Mano (part of a mini-empire that includes Bouche, Maize, and Santa Fe Bite)

•         Tune-up Café (where Dave’s Not Here used to be - persistently popular and terrific reviews)

  •    Yamas Greek Rotisserie (2411 Cerrillos Road, Greek, owned by the same family as the Plaza Restaurant)