santacafe

tried brunch this morning with friends. very disappointing. service was terrible. a simple breakfast was underwhelming. poached eggs undercooked. bacon loaded with rind and tough to chew. potatoes appeared to be tater tots that had been microwaved. won't be back for brunch.

my wife and i walked to santacafe last evening and we were pleasantly surprised to see a beautiful outdoor courtyard where we were seated. white table cloth tables added to the beautiful and elegant atmosphere. the meal was excellent and the bread was delicious ! she had the salmon and i had the steak. everything was cooked to perfection. we were seated at s table next to robert redford. everyone respected his privacy. i have been coming to santa fe for 50 years and this is the best restaurant i experienced.

my wife and i dined here with another couple recently. we had eaten here before and have always enjoyed the food. we each had various seafood dinners and they were all prepared well. our server was attentive and pleasant. the only complaint would be the aloof hostess who was not all that pleasant.

is there anything as pure and simple as the innocence of a child, especially during the most magical time of the year? when my then six-year-old niece penned a heartfelt letter to santa claus, there was no doubt in her mind that her letter would be delivered and her wish would be granted. after all, she had been extra good all year long and what she wanted for christmas was so reasonable. my niece’s fondest christmas wish was that her family dine at santacafe—not because of its reputation for inspired cuisine, but because she was sure she would meet jolly old saint nick at his restaurant “santa café.”

ok. this place is not cheap but worth every penny in my experience. to start we were promptly seated and attended to with bread and drinks. we ordered some calamari and an order of shrimp dumplings. the dumplings are to die for. really. the calamari was clean and tender. the staff was very attentive as you would expect. for the entree i had the filet with green chilli potatoes and green been with hollindays sauce. the potatoes were creamy and chillis were womderful add. the greenbeans fresh and snapped. the steak cooked to med rare as ordered and seasoned very well. sliced with no effort. just wonderful. this is my new favorite in santa fe. outstanding. if you have some extra time and cash to relax and enjoy a quality meal i would recommend this as a fine choice and i hope you have the same great experience i had!!!

eat here. but don't order the fish. i've been dining at santacafe for about 25 years and over that time, i have watched this once wonderful restaurant slowly deteriorate.

on my last visit, i ordered the fish and a salad. with my salad came a green bug.

the bug wasn't that big a deal. it certainly wasn't a big deal to the waitress, who laughed about it and took the bug off to find a new home.

it was the fish that was a bad deal. it was not fresh, overcooked, chewy and overseasoned. the waitress didn't inquire why i didn't eat the fish. she was too busy admiring the bug that came with my salad.

eat at the santacafe. just don't order the fish and carefully examine your salad.

by the way, if you are in santa fe and you want fish, try the zia diner. the fish is excellent and i've never found a bug in my salad there.

santacafe is a good, classic old school santa fe restaurant. the menu is solid premium dining fare, but lacks creativity. the patio is stunning and the service is always above average & accommodating. we've probably dined there 6-8 times in the last 12 months and the menu always looks same. the wine list is ok, but short and uninspired. put it this way...we go to santacafe with older friends, parents, grandparents, etc. when we are looking for a beautiful setting and a basic premium dining experience.

a fine dining icon of the city of santa fe since 1983, santacafe’ prides itself on its popular american cuisine with a southwestern flair. pleasing locals and tourists alike for the last twenty-nine years shows that this culinary landmark has a strong hold on its place in the community. we enjoyed a couple of glasses of pinot noir before our selected choices from the menu arrived at our table via a generous and friendly server. we dine

good, not great.. there are a lot of very high end restaurants in santa fe in the price range and quality santacafe falls into. while the staff was nothing short of amazing, the location lovely (we ate this weekend outside), and while the quality of the food is top notch, overall, the meal was lacking. mostly in terms of being interesting to the palette. for example, we ordered their signature calamari. as described, it was crispy, tender and well cooked. yet the dipping sauce (no less than 4 chilli's) was rather flavorless. the tarter sauce at whole foods would have elevated this to a superior level. really good calamari should be tasty with no sauce and in this case, it needed a sauce. and the sauce was not up to snuff.

my mother in law had the salmon. it was prefectly cooked, not dried out albeit a bit on the fishy flavor side. again, it needed something in terms of seasoning to make it a success. i had the signature filet mignon. the quality of the meat and how it was cooked could not be faulted. the flavor profile could, it just wasn't very interesting and filet mignon needs some help in this department. my sister in law and the roasted poblano relleno w/ 3 mushroom quinoa & chipotle cream. now we are getting somewhere in terms of the chipotle cream sauce. superb. unfortunately this dish would work better as an appetizer. the first few bites are great but one tires of the dish quickly. it took four of us to help finish half the portion. probably the best dish overall was the pork chop my wife ordered.

the home run was the mouse dessert. here it seems that a different chef is in better control over the flavors presented. no question the quality of the chocolate was tops. it came with a blood orange and i believe raspberry sauce. i like my chocolate unadulterated. however, it was easy to eat both separately and appreciate each. a knock out desert.

if the main courses just 'knocked it up a notch' in terms of creative taste profiles, this restaurant would be a real winner. the ingredients and how they were prepared can't be criticized yet in the end, expect for desert, nothing memorable which is a shame. even the bread they provided at the start of the meal was underwhelming. again i have to point out that the service was wonderful.

my 4th time to this restaurant over the last 8-10 years....food was good as always....service from one of the most arrogant waiters i have ever been exposed to....will likely never return management not interested in fixing the situation....we wanted nothing, simply assumed they would want to know about their wait staff. lnew nothing about the menu....just pitiful

one of the grande dames of santa fe restaurants set in a beautiful old house near the plaza. service is friendly but not obtrusive. the quiche was generous with a flaky crust and golden top covered with a fresh, crisp pico de gallo that had just the right amount of peppery bite. the quiche itself had just a subtle hint of pernod. the salmon was perfectly cooked- still moist and clear without translucency. it came on a bed of fragrent, creamy risotto topped with green, tender leeks. this lady ages well, indeed.

wornout overrated avoid. for years i would automatically make reservations at santcafe for special occasions because of good past experiences. although we noticed the quality of the food had significantly diminished on our last visits, i again reserved a favorite table on a very busy saturday evening for 5:30 when they open. inspite of being absolutely promised when i made the reservation four days earlier that we would get the table we wanted, we hadn't three times before, the power hostess said again we would not get the table; that others who reserved after we did would have our table. we left in tears our evening ruined. santcafe is riding on a reputation that is no longer justified, a mediocre restaurant with a big attitude.

just what you'd hope for. we have been to santacafe twice, once 7 years ago, and again tonight. both times left us with a lingering sense of enjoyment. the assistant to our waitstaff, manuel, was and understated delight. from chihuahua, mexico, he shared his own love for santa fe, still remembering his mother's cooking back in mexico, where he returns frequently. we had a cristo 2008 malbec--smooth and delicious, although maybe all malbecs are. each of us had beef--very nicely done. the coffee bean ice cream was served with a crisp and light filo dough, caramel sauce and just enough cinnamon so that we couldn't figure out what it was--an airy improved santa fe version of baklava. never had a dessert like that. eating outdoors in santa fe is always pleasant, and this was a lovely courtyard experience with native flowers and enough warmth to be cozy. santacafe didn't have the arrogance of some of the other well known local restaurants whose food isn't quite as good as you'd think it should be, and whose service makes you feel a little low. we'll be back to santacafe.

rack of lamb is my favorite tender and delicious the salmon was very moist and had great flavor . service was slower than it should of been.i expect top shelf for those prices

great place for a special meal. a bit pricey tho lunch is very affordable. asian spring rolls will always be a dave. lunch omelettes are fab.