Dining alone rarely warrants the $30-50 a plate that one can easily drop in Santa Fe. And while the Restaurant at the Anasazi has been a favorite lunch spot - the wait was 45 for dinner and I was too tired to wait.
So - I meandered out the door took a right and stopped in at the new Hotel Chimayo (recently & well done remodel of Hotel Real by Heritage Hotels); meandered thru the bar and to the upstairs restaurant. Quaint. A handful of tables and an attractive staff who promptly greeted me. On a Saturday night at 7 pm...seats for one can be elusive...but the manager escorted me to "her favorite spot" tucked away from the main dining in an alcove that flanks the upstairs veranda overlooking Washington St.. Perfect. A bench seat overloaded with cozy pillows (could have been 4 inches deeper - but hey) set in solitude and rustic designer accents.
I ordered the pork chops laid in a bed of red chili. Lets get to the point...the best red chili I have had in Santa Fe. I am not a red chili fan...usually order green...but -
Tia's Cocina just altered my view.
Chef Estevan Garcia has something going on in a city where the competition is fierce for recognition and there is little more to add to the vast culinary array. This truly tasted as if someone had been simmering for hours...or days. Really. And forget about Papas frites and the calabacitas...yum....who would have thought of that combo.
Ok...I will force myself to go back - and not order the same thing - just to try other items and be sure it is what I thought it was. For a cozy authentic dining experience I have to give it a thumbs up.
