Santa Fe is a huge foodie’s mecca. Droves come for the New Mexican cuisine. The green and red chiles seem to have a siren call most can’t resist. I guess we are immune because we didn’t go to a single New Mexican or Mexican restaurant.

Even so, there are plenty of other cuisines to satisfy any foodie.

Here is a comprehensive list of all of our favorite places. I’ve included how frequently we visited each place as an indication of how much we enjoyed it.

I also don’t have photos for a lot of these places because I get hangry and can’t think about anything but food. Mea culpa. I will try to do better along the way.

Fine Dining

There are endless options for white-cloth fine dining in Santa Fe. It’s kind of an expensive town, so be prepared to drop some monies. Even during our month-long stay, we didn’t get a chance to visit all the fine dining restaurants on our list. Mainly because it was difficult to get a reservation at these other ones. Sazon, Geronimo, and The Compound are on our list for the next visit.

1. Palace Prime (Visited 2x)

We visited Palace Prime twice, our first night and our last night. It just seemed appropriate. Sterlin was craving a hearty, protein-filled meal and a nice pre-prohibition Old Fashioned to wash it down. We were lucky enough to snag a reservation at Palace Prime. That’s one thing about Santa Fe – it’s preferred to make reservations at restaurants.

I’m not a food blogger so you might see some half-eaten food photos. I only snapped photos during our second visit because I was too hangry during our first.

2. Arroyo Vino (Visited 2x)

We fell in love with Arroyo Vino immediately. Formidable wine and cocktail list and artfully crafted entrees are what you’ll find there. Our first visit was for Sterlin’s birthday. The staff made an incredible effort to make our celebration one to remember.

3. Santacafe (visited 3x)

We loved Santacafe so much, we had to visit 3 times. I had Maggie’s Pasta each time and it’s a dish I think about regularly. The red chile ravioli plumply stuffed with sweetened ricotta was pasta heaven.

4. Market Steer (visited 1x)
We came here after we were completely famished from a hike. I don’t remember what we ate because I was probably in a fugue state lol. I do remember it was pretty good, though. Sterlin concurs. No photos because hungry.

Casual Dining

1. Sweetwater Harvest Kitchen (visited 3x)
Sweetwater is a great spot for the health-conscious. From their site, “We consciously source + prepare clean label ingredients including organic eggs + chicken, Farmer’s Market produce + products local to New Mexico. Our vegetarian, vegan, paleo + gluten-free dishes ensure that all members of our diverse community feel welcome and nourished.”

We always came here after the gym so I don’t have any food photos due to my post-workout ravenous state. I liked the Matcha Green Smoothie Bowl and Japchae Korean Glass Noodle Stir Fry w/NM Bison. Sterlin always ordered the Paleo Burrito.

2. Crackin’ Crab (visited 2x)
I was pleasantly surprised to find really tasty seafood in landlocked Santa Fe. Their marinade is actually soaked through the meat so you’re not just getting weak surface flavor. That’s always a pet peeve of mine. When the flavor doesn’t penetrate the entire soul and being of the sea morsel. Like they just dunked the clams in a sauce bucket for 4 seconds. No bueno. Crackin’ Crab knows what they’re doing, even better than seafood bakes I’ve had in Louisiana.

3.Thai on Canyon (visited 3x)
Thai on Canyon is nestled on Canyon road which is home to a ton of art galleries. There are a lot of different takes on Pad Thai, but I prefer a more tamarind-nutty flavor profile. I found the best Pad Thai I’ve had in eons at Thai on Canyon, although I can tell they cater to the American palate since it is a tad sweeter. Still really good! Sorry, no photos for this one either.

4. Beer Creek Brewing (visited 1x)
We wanted to visit this place more than once, but it just didn’t happen. Sterlin is on a no fun, super-health kick so he was excited to learn their wings are baked and not fried. He was a fan of all 3 sauces (buffalo, garlic herb, and BBQ). I ordered a kid’s pizza because I’m 12. It was like one of the pizzas from the movies where the cheese pulls when you pick it up. Que bella.

Sushi

Sushi gets its own category because it is my FAVORITE. I have to get sushi wherever we go. My go-to sushi spot East Land Sushi closed down :(, but I found two other places to sate my sushi palate. I don’t love either one more than the other, but we did visit Izmi more often because it was located in Santa Fe Plaza.

Fun tidbit: We saw the actor that plays Freddy Krueger at Izmi.

1. Izmi

2. Kai