sushi with Conrad

How about this to ease into a few days ahead of weekend but also of blogging:  sushi with Conrad when he got home on Tuesday evening.  He had been in Michigan, visiting his family, and he managed to get home without overall delays, happily.  So, by 7:00 or so, we were over at Mama M, sitting in for a dinner rather than taking away.  Amaebi, for sure - those shrimp heads were hot and crispy from the fryer. 

But we also opted for an oyster and sashimi platter for a change, and that was a great choice. 

The good people at Mama M gave us some shishito peppers, which we loved. 

Alas, I found the hot ones - a few in a row!  That left my mouth burning for a while.

Conrad and I shared a bottle of wine and caught up,

and all was good in the world for one night.  A lovely time of it. 

Dining in New Mexico

When I think of New Mexico, I think of chiles.  Green Hatch chiles, New Mexico reds.  It would have been wild for me, for us, to spend a handful of days in the state and NOT have a taste of chiles.  Ah, readers, have no fear.  Eat them we did, though not in huge quantities.

So let's dive into the food we had whilst dining out during the New Mexico trip...

 

Corner Office.  Taos.  Friday night.  I wish I hadn't been so bloody on that Friday.  I spent most of the day recovering, and it was only by dinner time that I had any appetite.  I didn't drink at all that night, which was a shame given that we were at a place that had an extensive wine list and a nice little selection of cocktails.  We ordered a bunch of things to share, then a bunch more things, and I have to admit, I liked the first round more than the second.  The turnips with turnip greens in a chicken foot broth and with housemade chorizo was a successful dish. 

The grilled mortadella sandwich, however, was a bit too salty/greasy and was a curious thing to split. 

I liked the place, though our end of the table could not hear the other, and so Conrad, Courtney, and I mostly talked amongst ourselves.  Service was good, attentive.

 

Bent Street Grille.  Taos.  Saturday lunchtime.  The lunch special was green chile stew,

apparently the first of their season.  I have never had green chile stew, so I was a little surprised it was so red from tomato.  It was tasty, but it was also a lot of potato when I wished for a little more meat.

 

 

Love Apple.  Taos.  Saturday night.  Cash only, which was interesting.  We had to prepare for that one.  Interesting enough menu on paper, but the food didn't quite live up to it.  Not that the food was bad, but it wasn't as interesting set before us as it was to contemplate.  A nice little wine list, a lovely space in an old church or chapel.  Service was alright - I felt there were gaps of time when someone could have checked in with us.  Worse, the appetizers were coursed out oddly.  Conrad and I had each ordered an appetizer then a salad to share.  He got his appetizer (a cold one) and we got the salad at the same time, then my appetizer came in a second round that was most (but not all) of the hot appetizers.  Michael's quesadilla appetizer (I ordered that as well)

failed to turn up, and the waiter didn't address it beyond saying it would be right out.  Translation:  he probably forgot to submit the order.  Mistakes happen, but own them, people.  I liked the place, but I understand it has a great reputation in Taos, but I thought it was only fine.  The cornbread was nice enough,

the trout grilled on corn husk

was good but cooked a bit too hard.

  

The Stakeout.  Rancho de Taos.  Sunday night.  An event space that does Sunday dinners.  An excellent little bar, nicely stocked and with knowledgeable bartenders and owner.  I would have had everything on that menu, and I enjoyed what we did have.  Conrad wanted the burrata, of course. 

I liked the mezcal negroni! 

Plus, the patio and the views at sunset were fantastic. 

My favourite of the trip.

 

Orlando's New Mexican Cafe.  Taos.  Monday lunchtime.  Should we call this a diner?  A modest place with a menu featuring a lot of familiar Mexican fare.  Practically everything came with the question green, red, or Christmas, and while everyone else having sauce on their food opted for Christmas, I went green.  I love green chiles, so why not?  I had a combo, a chile relleno and a pork-filled tamale. 

I really enjoyed that it came with a side of posole!

 

DWTNR Cocktail Bar & Lounge.  Albuquerque.  Monday afternoon.  The dining space at a hipster hotel in downtown Albuquerque,

we thought it was supposed to have all-day breakfast and some lunch offerings.  Alas, when we got there, it was happy hour menu only.  Still, that meant a pretty good smashburger

(a trend I dislike - I want a thick patty!) and good fries.  Plus cocktails! 

The Big Bad John was a nice choice to finish the trip.

That was dining in New Mexico.  Nothing too fancy, but some good dishes and some perfectly fine ones. 

Rio Grande Gorge

Alright, let's ease into the Taos blogging with the least complicated entry (of three planned entries, that is) and show you some landscape photos.

I'll comment a little more on the town of Taos in another entry, I think, but it was not what I expected.  Sitting in the shadow of Taos Mountain, spread out on the broad mesa below that complex of peaks, it wasn't the lush little river valley or something that I had sort of expected it to be.  From where we stayed outside of the town, we could see down to the mesa and the sweep of it, larger and flatter-seeming than I would have guessed.  Slashed through that flat expanse, though, was the Rio Grande Gorge.

Yes, that Rio Grande.  The same river that is the border between Texas and Mexico, its source lies north of that, in the mountains of Colorado.  From there it flows south through New Mexico, and as it exits the mountainous area in the north of the state, it gashes the earth deeply.  More deeply than you might imagine - at its greatest depth, it is some 800 feet deep.  There, at the bottom, at this time of year, at least, is a slight ribbon of a river. 

It really does give you pause.

The six of us remaining that afternoon made the drive west of Taos, crossing the gorge

on a bridge

on which it is now forbidden to stop or to walk because of suicides in recent times.  That's sad, and I hope the efforts prevent other such deaths.  Once across, we stopped in a rest area and took a few photos before following the gorge south and then driving down into it. 

We got down to river level, more or less,

crossed back over it,

and continued on to a picnic site.  There, in the afternoon sun, we toasted our day

with a New Mexico sparkling wine,

enjoyed a very good picnic, and took some photos by the river. 

Golden autumn leaves in the sun around us,

but the surprise of some yellow flowers in bloom on a branch as well. 

It was a lovely afternoon.

We packed up the picnic, climbed in the vehicles, and climbed up out of the gorge, heading to a - yes, truly - early dinner.  How cool, though, to have seen the gorge and the very famous river. 

foggy mornings

I wish I could say that we were experiencing autumn here, but temperatures last week got into the 80s.  Still, there is the welcome return of the morning marine layer.  It’s made for foggy walks in recent days.  And that has been a nice relief.

I’m not a Halloween person at all, but it was fun to see some decorations at one house yesterday as well.  

The fog was burning off by then.

Oh, and coyote in the mist!

as is so often the case…

… I am behind.  I have New Mexico to blog about, and now a week has passed.  I’ll get to it.

How about a nice picture of City Hall in the meantime?

Soon!

New Mexico wildlife

Checking in on a beautiful day where we are getting out a doing things, happily.  And what do we spy?  The local wildlife!

in New Mexico

I’ll blog more after the weekend, but I’m outside of Taos right now.  Not really doing much or seeing much, to be honest, but ah well.

More to come!