Dining in Santa Fe, New Mexico was superb

On my last road trip with Len, we dined at some old familiar places and a few new ones.

Our first evening in town, we had an exceptional dinner at the Coyote Cafe.  This restaurant has been around for 38 years and is always consistent.  Everything about the evening was great. 

 

The hostess accommodated my request to a nicer table (a round booth in the center of the restaurant), the servers were pleasant, informative and willing to work with any dietary needs that we might have. 

We were first served savory corn bread with flavored butters: Cilantro lime, Red pepper flake and Honey roasted garlic.  Liked the last one the best.

Len had the Chilean Sea Bass: Blood Orange arbol chilie glaze, roasted squash, Tamarind black garlic buttered rice and cilantro pesto. 

I ordered the Seared Diver Scallops: Mascarpone Aborio Risotto, mushrooms and leeks, Calabrian Chilie and a Passion Fruit sauce. I want to replicate this some night.  Not only were both entrees outstanding, they were very ample.

On the way out, Len complimented the manager on his staff, our meal, etc..  He was so touched that he gave us a jar of their Coyote Cafe Salsa as a huge thank you for our kind words. Oh, the scoop of Turkish Coffee ice cream at the end was perfect.

The next night we had another exceptional dinner at Geronimo on Canyon Road.   Note, they have valet parking which makes it so much easier in Santa Fe.

 

We sat in the cozy bar room at a 4 top, next to each other.  Our server was delightful, named Nancy. She told us her mother was a huge fan of Nancy Drew growing up, hence her name.

Pan Seared Foie Gras: banana cake, Mission fig-orange relish and duck Demi.  Decadent.

 

Complimentary Amushe-Bouche, a cup of Porchini Bisque. I can hardly wait to replicate it at home.  

 

New Mexico Four Corners Grilled Rack of Lamb: fresh pea puree, Parmesan-yellow corn polenta, roasted leeks and Merlot lamb reduction.  Ample servings, left overs will be part of a picnic lunch when back on the road.

  

Orange Cardamon Creme Brûlée: Feuilletine tuile, Bourbon-Maple coulis and mango sorbet.

 

 

I was so impressed with the hand-painted wall under the bar counter. It’s not tile. My brain was racing… how can I design something like this and implement it at my home. Not the same colors, maybe somewhere outside…. Very cool.

A new restaurant that we will definitely put on our list is Joseph's Culinary Pub.

 

Chef Joseph Wrede is a Food & Wine Best New Chef, the winner of several AAA Four Diamond Awards, several DiRoNA Awards and has received both Wine Spectator and Wine Enthusiast distinctions.

 A funky, eclectic interior and it seemed to be full of locals verses tourist.

 The window next to our table had a painted lacy curtain on it.  Very clever. 

We were served freshly made potato chips and olives in a garlic marinade. 

We shared a crispy tamale filled with chicken and green chile plated on top of tomatillo salsa.  I loved the idea of taking the tamale out of the corn husk and frying it to make the exposed masa crispy. 

 

Len had one of the specials that evening;  Pan Seared Herb Crusted Halibut with rice, English pea puree, broccolini and lemon caper beurre blanc sauce.  Delicious.

I ordered the Duck Confit Pad Thai Style;  Hoisin glazed duck, egg, rice noodles, peanuts, cilantro and charred cabbage.  Great intense flavors.  I would definitely order this again.

FYI, Joseph's is only open for dinner Wednesday thru Sunday.  It is minutes from the center of town and they have their own parking lot!

 

We also had lunch at The Shed, a block from the main plaza.  Even though it is very touristy, its worth a visit for lunch.  The margaritas were pretty good, but not like mine!

The pulled pork sliders were very tasty.  Even though it was an appetizer, it was very filling.  It did give me an idea to do sliders when I roast my next goat leg served with a variety of salsas and toppings.

We did have one bomb...  Tried another new place for lunch, Dr. Field Good Kitchen, that Len had seen on Guy Fieri's TV series, Diners, Drive-ins and Dives.  We ordered the bad ass BLT burger that was featured on one episode.  Did not like it at all.  No need to go back.  You never know, unless you try it!

The month of May was a great time to go, not over run with tourists and the weather was great.  I do recommend reservations at the most of the restaurants. 

 

 

 

 

A morning at the Georgia O'Keefe Museum in Santa Fe

Calla Lily ~ 1923

Called the "Mother of American modernism", Georgia O'Keeffe (1887 - 1986) gained international recognition for her paintings of natural forms, particularly flowers and desert-inspired landscapes, which were often drawn from and related to places and environments in which she lived.

The Barns, Lake George ~ 1926 

Having been raised on a farm in Wisconsin, O'Keefe saw the barns and building as a connection to the land and nature.  The grey structures and sky reflect the somber mood she often felt at Lake George.

Georgia O'Keefe and Alfred Stieglitz ~ 1938

O'Keefe spent summers and falls in the Adirondacks at the Stieglitz family home on Lake George, an area that gave her inspirations in portraying nature in a realistic and abstract form.  She married photographer Alfred Stieglitz in 1926.

 

 Black Cross with Red Sky ~ 1929

 

It was in 1929 when she made her first major visit to New Mexico, during a time when her relationship with Stieglitz was strained.  She was drained creatively and emotionally, especially after Stieglitz's long-term affair with her friend and fellow photographer Dorothy Norman.  She ended up spending the summer in Taos as the guest of Mabel Dodge Luhan, a well known patron of the arts in New Mexico.

 

 

 Cross with Red Heart ~ 1932

 

She was attracted to the Catholic Crosses that appeared on the New Mexico landscape.  She wrote: "In New Mexico, the crosses interest me because they represent what the Spanish felt about Catholicism - dark , somber - and I painted them that way ... On the Gaspe', the cross was Catholicism as the French saw it - gay, witty."

 

In the Patio VIII ~ 1950

I am particularly drawn to this piece, the colors, composition, the shadows.

O'Keefe was an independent, adventurous individual, often taking long treks alone, which she called "rambles" in the countryside.

Black Mesa Landscape ~ 1930

 

Having spent a few days in Utah and New Mexico, I clearly can see where she found such inspiration.  I shot this on the way to Bullfrog, Lake Powell, Utah.

And this was shot from our balcony at the Defiance House Lodge in Bullfrog where we had a wonderful picnic dinner.  What magnificent colors and mountains.

On the River I Canyon Country III ~ 1965

She often explored the Southwest on camping trips and other outdoor excursions.  This painting was inspired by a rafting trip down the Colorado River at the age of 73.  The inspiration came from the pink/reddish soaring cliffs in Glen Canyon.

Similar to the image I captured above in Lost Eden Canyon on Lake Powell where Len and I scattered my parents ashes, and a place where we had scattered my brother Carter's ashes ten years ago.

Black Place III ~ 1944

Having spent time in New Mexico over the last two decades, she moved here permanently in 1949, a few years after the death of Stieglitz.  She made several trips, 150 miles from her Ghost Ranch where she found inspiration.

Part of the Cliff ~ 1946

The view from behind O'Keefe's Ghost Ranch house of a cliff with its tall, dry waterfall.  She wrote: "Badlands roll away from my door, hill after hill... All the earth's colors of the painter's palette are out there in the many miles.  The light Naples yellow through ochres - orange and red and purple earth - even the soft earth greens."

Another image I captured in Lost Eden Canyon, Lake Powell.  A place I could photograph all day long.

Pedernal ~ 1941 - 1942

Her view of Cerro Pedernal (Flint Mountain) from Ghost Ranch House.  A sacred site to the Indigenous and Hispanic communities for thousands of years and one that she developed immense love and respect for.

My photo of Mount Hillers in Utah.  Named for J. K. Hillers, photographer with the 1871 John Wesley Powell Colorado River Survey Party.  This peak, one of five in the Henry Mountains Range, rises 10,723 feet above sea level.  Winters snow high on these peaks feed springs and streams, providing water for recreation, livestock, wildlife, including a free roaming bison herd.

 

Untitled ~ 1970

Painted when the artist was ninety, she returned to some of the forms found in her earlier charcoals, highlighting vibrant blues and reds in her watercolors.   She wrote: "I get this shape in my head and sometimes I know what it comes from and sometimes I don't... And I think... there are a few shapes I have repeated a number of times during my life and I haven't known I was repeating them until after I had done it."

 

The Georgia O'Keefe Museum located right in the historic center of Santa Fe is not a huge museum and does not have an overwhelming amount of her works but if you have traveled thru Arizona, Utah and New Mexico, one will appreciate her love of the countryside and how she captured its essence so beautifully. 

 

 

The Georgia O'Keefe Museum

217 Johnson Street

Santa Fe, New Mexico

 

okeefemuseum.org

 

 

 

Le Colonial - Restaurant - Bar - Vietnamien - in Cherry Creek

Lately Len and I have tried a few new restaurants and overall we have not been very impressed.  One being a French restaurant in the Highlands (food was marginal if that, the service was not good and the place was noisy) and a highly-touted Mexican restaurant that just recently received a Michelin star.  But one of our new favorites is Le Colonial in Cherry Creek. 

 The interior of the restaurant is striking and certainly an elegant addition to the dining scene in Denver.

An area just off the bar.  I love the orange.

The larger of the dining rooms, also tastefully done.

The porch area is very pleasant and on a nice day, the exterior glass doors are opened letting the fresh air in.  I love the flooring, reminds me of the various old tile floors I encounter in the churches and old homes in Mexico.

My favorite item on the menu is the Ha Gio, a crispy shrimp and pork roll (Jumbo Shrimp, Heritage Pork, Asian Mushrooms, Mint, Cilantro and Chili Lime Sauce).

Also the Ca Song, spicy yellowfin tuna tartare (Hass Avocado, Sweet Chili, Rocky Mountain Cucumber, Soy Caviar, Ginger Soy, Cilantro and a Rice Crisp).

 

Ca Kho Tieu, Braised Black Cod (Ginger Marinated Black Cod, Fiber of Man’s Shiitake Mushrooms, Rocky Mountain Tomatoes, Herbs, Jalapeño) was very flavorful but a bit over sauced. 

Not everything is worth ordering, for example, the chicken dumplings.  The chicken was like pulverized, a mushy consistency that was not that good.   Once you have identified what you do like on the menu, its a gorgeous space to meet friends for lunch.  

Le Colonial

255 Fillmore Street

Cherry Creek

The photography at the Post Office in Oaxaca is very interesting!

 

The massive post office just of the zocalo in Oaxaca is extremely interesting.  Grand photos of Oaxacan women, marble floors,

an old flatbed railroad cart, 

old fashion mail slots for the city, all of Mexico, the United States and Europe...  But what is really striking are these large photographs of Oaxacan ladies dressed in their regional attire.  

Not much is known of the photographer except for the name above and the address of the studio in Mexico City.   I would guess these photos were shot around 1930.

There is a dance celebration every July in Oaxaca called The Guelaguetza which represents the eight regions of Oaxaca: Valles Centrales, Sierra Norte, La Cañada, Papaloapam, La Mixteca, La Costa, Sierra Sur and Istmo de Tehuantepec.  The Guelaguetza features traditional costumed dancing and each costume, or traje, and dance usually has a local indigenous historical and cultural meaning.

This lady is representing the Valles Central.  Also known as the Chinas Oaxaqueñas, she is “a working woman", typically found in the city’s markets, of a deep Catholic faith, who honors the Virgin or a particular saint with floral offerings and their dance.

They are also known for their jewelry and their long braids.  They carry a cross that represents their religion. And a small charm holding a portrait which may be of a loved one or the image of a saint or the Virgin de la Soledad, a patron of Oaxaca.

In the Sierra Norte region, the huipils are commonly woven from wool and cotton using back-strap looms.  The costumes of this region are characterized by being more sober in color but very rich in texture, adapting to a cooler climate.

From the  Istmo region, the traditional dress of the Tehuanas was known nationwide to be the symbol of the most independent and proud indigenous women in all of Mexico with their opulent huipils and velvet skirts embroidered with local flowers.  Frida Kahlo adapted this style of dress from her mother who was from this region.  Their hair is a crown of braids, although what stands out most is the silk bun and the flowers.  There is the resplandor, a headdress unique to the women of the Tehuantepec Isthmus which consists of starched white lace and can be worn two different ways.  One is on the top of a woman’s head for festivals and the Guelaguetza and the other, at religious events, where it is positioned so that it frames the face.

After my group and I took in all the photographs, we wandered over to the zocalo and low and behold there were a group of ladies in their traditional dress representing the various regions!

Oaxaca has maintained its artistic identity.  The culture, folk art, contemporary art, murals, native dress, cuisine.  

A traditional Mexican proverb proclaims,

 "What you don't see, the heart can't feel."   How true in Oaxaca!