ulterior epicure

Nope, the price of the meal has been lowered, most recently from $450, to $400. I'm not sure the baseline price was ever at $500, though the hostess seemed to be under that impression.

D'oh!

Al-Habashi had a big bag a month or two ago, you might be a bit late in the year though now, no? ← Wow, I'm shocked! Great to know in the future though! Thanks Aaron! Thank goodness for friends in California. A friend is sending me some of her windfall of green walnuts overnight; she threw in a rack of lamb for the heck of it!

Anybody got dirt on where I can get some green walnuts? I'm itching to make some nocino.

How's The Compound?

I think right now, I'm pretty set on having lunch at The Shed and Cafe Pasqual's. But I need one more lunch. I'm debating between The Cantina at Coyote Cafe or perhaps lunch in Taos at The Apple Tree. Dinners at Geronimo and another. And then an early dinner before the opera.

What ever happened to Mark Miller? Also, my colleague recommended Rancdo de Chimayo, which seems closed at present.

Two other recommendations came to me today from a colleague who visits Santa Fe a lot. He agreed that Cafe Pasqual's is better for lunch/breakfast. He said the Geronimo was nice. He highly recommended The Apple Tree in Taos. The Pink Adobe was also cited as a very good restaurant. I had not heard of the latter two. I thought I'd vet it with some folks here whose dining acumen might be sharper than my acquaintance's.

Yeah, I know. You are an imp, sitting on my shoulder, whispering in my ear, "what about those cheese plates in Vegas, Carrie????" ← Yeah, so what about them cheese plates?? I'm curious: did DB Brasserie ever fill up in the dining room? Or, were they just playing hard to seat?

If Alex is open, definitely try it (it's my favorite restauarant in LV). I wasn't particularly thrilled with The Mansion. I dined there the night after Alex, and it couldn't hold a candle to Alex. I did love Le Cirque at the Bellagio (even though I'm not a big fan of the NYC version of Le Cirque). ← What was deficient about The Mansion?

Oh good. Finally. I've been waiting for your reportage to commence.

Right. I was a wee high schooler then. I've been sitting on the benches watching it all go up, up, and up since. I look forward to getting reacquainted with Las Vegas, though I'm sure I would not recognize it today.

Which is why I have no desire to visit places like Bouchon, l'AdJR, and other "outposts" in Las Vegas. The last time I was in Las Vegas, they were still building the Luxor. This, I like.

nibor: Yes, it helps a great deal. Thank you. So, I gather that Trattoria Nostrani is not formal dress?

Alright, I just mapped out most of these restaurants on Google Maps and - my gosh - Santa Fe ain't that big, is it? It looks like I can walk to almost every restaurant from my hotel! The only outliers seem to be La Choza and Geronimo. On the list so far: Cafe Pasqual's (for brunch) Geronimo (dinner) La Choza (lunch) Trattoria Nostrani The Shed Coyote Cafe La Boca I assume that doing both La Choza and The Shed would be redundant? Any others? Maria's sounds like it's more for the alcohol than the food.

Also, I'm considering on spending part of the day at the O'Keefe house. Is the cafe there any good for lunch?

Thanks, I'll keep that in mind when I go to Phoenix. Sadly, it won't help for this trip.

I prefer La Choza over most places in town for New Mexican food. The margaritas are good and I like both their green and red chile. I think cafe pasquals is a good choice for breakfast/brunch... but that it's overpriced and overrated for dinner. Their chorizo burrito is probably my favourite breakfast burrito in town. ← Besides the price, hat's the difference between the food at La Choza and the food at The Shed? Okay, so Cafe Pasqual's was a candidate for brunch. I gather that it's not a broken idea.

Yes, yes you did, Raji. Not that I didn't believe you, but I just wanted to experience masa. I'm glad I went. But I'll be happier going to Japan next time. Yeah, our servers were definitely *fullyclothedthankgoodness.* Yes, and that no-holds bar authenticity is what I value the most in a cultural eating experience. You definitely don't get it at masa or Yasuda. Cultural approximations, cultural approximations.

Any traditional New Mexico place worth its salt will give you a choice of red, green, or Christmas (1/2 red and 1/2 green). The Shed actually has several dishes that are red only (i.e. their enchiladas). I actually also think the Shed's green is just ok, but their red is great. I have not been, but many people recommend La Choza a sister of the Shed, for NM food. It is on my list the next time I am in town. ← Thanks bobag87. It looks like it's our own little party on this thread. Have you heard of Mucho Gusto in the Paseo de Paralto shopping strip? A friend highly recommends it.

Also, it seems fairly obvious that no one really has much enthusiasm for any of the Santa Fe "biggies," that is Cafe Coyote and Cafe Pasquale's. Should I just axe them from my itinerary?

First, bobag87, thanks for that great summary of your meal at Trattoria Nostrani. Second, to all who are on this thread and care to respond, bobag87 made me realize that I've been neglecting a big must in Santa Fe: the green vs. red chile experience. Where can I get a good version of each? Preferably, if I can taste both at the same meal (i.e. a restaurant that offers both), that would be ideal.

Being around half your age, I find this way of thinking about restaurants interesting. I guess, when it comes to cuisine and restaurants, I'm not ageist. I may notice that the average age in the dining room might be higher, or not. Food, however, is where my main focus is. I have been to neither La Folie nor Fleur de Lys, but I know what they are like in comparison to Danko. Classical preparations and presentations don't bother me in the least. In fact, if they're done well, they're sure to please and, quite possibly, impress me. More modern food, however, though it may be prepared and presented well, may not not - and often do not.

If, by that statement, Patterson means what I think he means, then that makes no sense to me whatsoever. @ sadistick: Take my opinion of coi with a grain of salt. Few things thrill me. Some of the restaurants that thrill me the most don't go over so well with others. And restaurants that often thrill others, don't really move me (alinea, wd~50, TFL, and per se, just to name a few). I'm a strange bird. If you haven't already, can you give us a better sense of what kinds of restaurants/cuisines you like might help us give you better direction. I understand that there are too many choices when it comes to the Bay Area dining. But at some point, there is such a thing as paralysis of analysis and you have just got to make the best decision that you can. If it makes you feel any better, I have come to a point in my "dining career" (how cheesy is that?) to accept the fact that there will be disappointments - often, very expensive ones. But I've learned take something important away from each one. No night out is a night wasted, no matter how bad the meal. I'm a true believer that there is something to be learned from even the most vexing plate of food. Does this mean I get to be called an optimist?

The entire summary of my meal at masa in May can be found at the ulterior epicure.