off the main square have native crafts and jewelry, usually at better prices than some of the nearby native crafts shops.
ABA Basketball may debut towards the end of the baseball season. Check here to see if there are links to the proposed new team in Santa Fe!
There are art galleries throughout the downtown area, but the best are a walk up Canyon Road.
Several tour operators offer rafting trips down the amazing Rio Grande Gorge between Santa Fe and Taos. Santa Fe Rafting Co. and Kokopelli Rafting Adventures. have trips regularly through baseball season.
Las Cocinas de Santa Fe
Santa Fe has world-famous restaurants, and a few less famous that you should check out. The high end includes Coyote Cafe and Cafe Pasquals. Geronimo and the restaurant at the Inn of the Anasazi also make special nights out in the upscale department. All take reservations other than Pasquals. Make them. The rooftop patio at Coyote Cafe is fun, more casual and a summertime hot spot.
If you think that New Mexican food is the same as Mexican, think again. Chile here is not your vision of brown Texas stuff. It comes in Red and Green, both of which are hot and taste like nothing else you've probably tried. Want to order like a local? Ask for "Christmas", both red and green.
Marias New Mexican Kitchen is a fun place with quirky little rooms and fireplaces. It also boasts the best list of tequilas in the area. Try the tequila sampler (If you're not driving). Tomasitas, in the rail yard, offers great food in a less atmospheric setting. Reservations at both are recommended as they are also local favorites.
Of our favorite joints to grab a bite, on the low end, try the drive out to Bobcat Bite, a tiny joint with the best burgers in the West. Or, if the biker bar scene is your bag, cruise down highway 14 to the Mineshaft Tavern in Madrid (Pronounced MAD-rid by the locals) for a beer. You can check out the J.W. Eaves Movie Ranch (call first for hours), home of many a John Wayne or Jimmy Stewart Western, on the way down highway 14.
Steaks in the Old West are another local specialty. The Bull Ring, which once was part steak joint, brothel and bar, has moved to Washington Avenue to more dignified surroundings that cater to local politicians, businessmen, and tourists. It has the best steaks in the area, hands down. In the fully renovated building where the Bull Ring used to operate, by the capitol building, is Rio Chama Steakhouse. Try the beer-infused fondue appetizer. Food and atmosphere are great but prices on their beef recently were increased into the outer stratosphere. You may want to take a home loan out before dining.
There are few clubs but there are numerous bars in Santa Fe. Swig is probably the hippest cocktail lounge in town where the beautiful people hang. The Dragon Room at the Pink Adobe Restaurant is one of the most famous watering holes, with an odd assortment of cowboys, artists, actors, students and "colorful" locals. The Catamount Bar & Grille has pool tables sports TVs and good atmosphere. If you want more colorful, Evangelos has more freaks per square foot than a circus midway. Cowboy fun can be had at Rodeo Nites, and several of the hotel bars, including the ones at the Eldorado Hotel and Garrett's Desert Inn feature entertainment. Check the Santa Fe Reporter for current listings. The Paramount is the local club that has survived.
If you like great guacamole and great food, the bowl'o green is the specialty of the house at Gabriels, just North of Santa Fe on US285. Made right at your table, sit on the patio get a margarita (on the rocks is Santa Fe style), and enjoy!
For a quick breakfast, you have to try a breakfast burrito. While there are many places that make them, the takeaways at Chicago Dog (Downtown or S. Santa Fe) beat all.
To do some Hollywood-style star gazing, go out to the Tesuque (Teh-SOO-kay) Village Market. Ali McGraw, Val Kilmer, Gene Hackman, Rosanna Arquette, and others often can be seen there, and the food itself at their restaurant is good for breakfast or lunch.
What to See and Do
Santa Fe boasts shopping for Southwestern and Native American crafts, fine art, jewelry, and unique clothing to be seen nowhere else in the world. Canyon Road's galleries are rivaled for unique original works only by New York and Paris.
Outdoors there is sightseeing hiking, fishing, camping, golf and tennis.
Take a walking tour of the historic downtown district. Or catch the Loretto Line, a two hour guided tram tour leaving from the Hotel Loretto.
Fly fishing on the upper Pecos River offers spectacular scenery and a chance to see the rare native cutthroat trout. High Desert Angler and the Reel Life, an endorsed Orvis store, offer equipment, advice, trips, and required licenses.
The Paolo Soleri Amphitheater is a great small venue (seats 2500) to see concerts. Acts like Tracy Chapman, Moby, B.B. King and others that play in much larger barns come here to have a special evening under the stars. For the rare sports fan who also likes opera, the Santa Fe Opera is one of the best in the world.
Depending upon the time of year you book, special events worth catching include the Indian Market and the annual Burning of Zozobra at the beginning of the Fiesta de Santa Fe.
