TAOS Foodie Tour

New Mexican fare is so delicious!

We LOVE New Mexican food! It's a little different style of Mexican food, just like all regions have a different spin on their cuisine. The beans are not mashed up and they serve hominy (I really like hominy - must be my southern roots) but call it pozole and it's amazing! Any hoo, we really did it up right with the Foodie Tour during the week we stayed in Taos. I will list by each experience.

First night was at a tap house called The Burger Stand. Doug works here a couple days a week and the four of us - five if you count Dexter - had great burgers and beers.

The Burger Stand; Doug's retirement job.

Saturday morning, Mike and I (with Dexter - always think "with Dexter" unless otherwise stated - lol), and drove down to Santa Fe for a couple hours. Mike was looking for some specific hiking boots that Doug had told him about. Also, we wanted to go to the Plaza, of course, and check things out. I had not been to Santa Fe since 1992 so it was fun to see how things had or had not changed. Any hoo, back to the food. We decided to go through Carson, NM to get to Santa Fe. We came around a hill and saw a quaint little cafe and decided to stop. I'll tell you now that I had the BEST chai latte I have ever had! They also served breakfast pitas that were amazing. Carson is known around the area as home to a group called "Veterans Off the Grid". Super funky little place and I felt right at home with modern Hippies all around.

Carson sits on the edge of the Mesa. It's located at the entrance to Carson National Park. This was the view from the porch as we ate at the Carson Cafe in Carson, NM. Gorgeous!

Orlandos is a favorite to both of us. Mike and friends took me here the first time I visited and we always come back!

Orlandos, like many of the restaurants we ate at, is a small, family-owned business. Doug & Mary Lane have been in Taos for 28 years, so they know everybody and all the good stuff!!!

We all had breakfast one morning at Gutiz. Gutiz was featured on Diners, Drive-ins, & Dives! The food is amazing!

Me & Mary Lane Leslie posing underneath the "Guy ate here" sign. Yes, I know my hat is big. It protects me against the dang skin cancer!!! LOL

I did not hold out much expectation for an Italian restaurant in Taos, NM, but Doug & ML swore by it, so off we all went one evening. WOW!!! Stellas in Taos is amazing! Their chef is from back east and is Italian. ML & Doug entertained us with stories of him as he moved to Taos and built up his reputation as a chef. Super good.

OK, true confessions now. We went here at least twice. This is literally an ice cream stand that sits beside a babbling little brook. Not only is the setting amazing, wait until you try the ice cream! I had to have the Carmel piñon nut one every time. It is just outside of Taos in Arroyo Seco as you drive up the mountain to the ski resort.

I have to write about our last night in Taos and the gorgeous restaurant Doug & Mary Lane took us to; Love Apple. This is a very special place that begins with the building, which is an old adobe church built in the early 1800's, to the James Beard award-winning chef Jenni Ford. When you walk into the Love Apple, you enter a little foyer where you give your seating requirements. From there, a curtain is drawn back you you pass through the kitchen where the chef and staff welcoming you. Next, another curtain (I think), and you enter the old sanctuary. This is where the tables are set up. It's not very big and everything about the place is original (the pews are gone) and the atmosphere is almost mystical. The staff are amazing and they serve farm-to-table fare grown locally. What a wonderful gift from Doug & Mary Lane to take us here!