My Santa Fe weekend: Christmas-style enchiladas, adobe chapels around the Plaza, galleries on Canyon Road, Meow Wolf, and a soak at Ten Thousand Waves. These are the spots I send every friend heading to the City Different.
Map
I start every Santa Fe trip on the Plaza, people-watching from a bench under the cottonwoods with the adobe skyline all around.
Santa Fe Plaza
I browse the Native artisans' jewelry under the Palace of the Governors portal, buying straight from the makers.
Palace of the Governors at New Mexico History Museum
The New Mexico Museum of Art's Pueblo Revival building is as beautiful as the Southwestern art inside it.
New Mexico Museum of Art
I never skip the Georgia O'Keeffe Museum, because seeing her desert paintings here makes the landscape outside click.
Georgia O'Keeffe Museum
The New Mexico History Museum is where I get the 400-year backstory of Santa Fe in one easy afternoon.
New Mexico History Museum
I pop into Loretto Chapel to see the 'miraculous' spiral staircase with no visible means of support.
Loretto Chapel Museum
The Cathedral Basilica's golden stone facade at the end of San Francisco Street is my favorite photo in town.
The Cathedral Basilica of St. Francis of Assisi
San Miguel Chapel is often called the oldest church in the U.S., and I love its simple adobe walls and old altar screen.
San Miguel Chapel
I head up to La Fonda's Bell Tower Bar for a margarita and a sunset over the rooftops of downtown.
La Fonda on the Plaza
I climb the short path to the Cross of the Martyrs for the best free view over Santa Fe and the mountains.
Cross of the Martyrs
I spend a slow afternoon wandering Canyon Road's half-mile of galleries, sculpture gardens, and adobe courtyards.
Canyon Road District
Geronimo in its 1756 adobe on Canyon Road is my special-occasion dinner, and the elk tenderloin is worth it.
Geronimo
Meow Wolf's House of Eternal Return blew my mind, with secret passages through a fridge and a fireplace into neon worlds.
Meow Wolf Santa Fe's House of Eternal Return
Saturday mornings I hit the Santa Fe Farmers' Market for roasting green chile, breakfast burritos, and local honey.
Santa Fe Farmers Market
SITE Santa Fe is my contemporary art fix, with big, strange exhibitions in a sleek Railyard building.
SITE SANTA FE
The Museum of International Folk Art's Girard Wing, with thousands of tiny toys and dioramas, is pure joy for me.
Museum of International Folk Art
I learn the most about Pueblo pottery and Native history at the Museum of Indian Arts and Culture on Museum Hill.
Museum of Indian Arts & Culture
I stroll the Santa Fe Botanical Garden's high-desert plantings after a morning on Museum Hill.
Santa Fe Botanical Garden
Ten Thousand Waves' Japanese-style outdoor hot tubs in the pines are my favorite way to end a cold Santa Fe day.
Ten Thousand Waves
The Shed's red chile enchiladas and garlic bread in a 1692 hacienda are my first meal in Santa Fe every time.
The Shed
La Choza is The Shed's locals' sister spot, where I go for blue corn enchiladas Christmas-style without the Plaza crowds.
La Choza Restaurant
Cafe Pasqual's colorful little dining room is where I get huevos motuleños and wait happily for a table.
Cafe Pasqual's
Tia Sophia's claims the first breakfast burrito on a menu, and I order mine smothered in green chile.
Tia Sophia's
The Plaza Cafe has served diner classics on the Plaza for 80 years, and I go for the blue corn pancakes and pie.
Plaza Cafe Downtown
Tomasita's in the old train depot is my go-to for chile rellenos, sopaipillas with honey, and a strong margarita.
Tomasita's Santa Fe New Mexican Restaurant
The Pink Adobe's Steak Dunigan smothered in green chile is an old-school Santa Fe dinner I love.
The Pink Adobe
Atrisco is where locals take me for carne adovada and posole that tastes like a New Mexican grandma's kitchen.
Atrisco Cafe & Bar
Harry's Roadhouse on the edge of town is my laid-back breakfast stop for huevos rancheros and a slice of pie.
Harry's Roadhouse
Sazón's mole tasting menu is the best Mexican fine dining I've had in Santa Fe, and the mural room is stunning.
Sazón
Kakawa's historic drinking chocolates, spiced like the Aztecs and Mayans made them, are my afternoon treat.
Kakawa Chocolate House
Iconik on Lena Street is my coffee stop before Meow Wolf, with great espresso and a big breakfast menu.
Iconik Coffee Roasters, Lena
I drink a Happy Camper IPA at Santa Fe Brewing, New Mexico's oldest craft brewery, and stay for the patio music.
Santa Fe Brewing Company (Beer Hall at HQ)
Collected Works is my favorite indie bookstore in town for Southwest history, local authors, and a coffee in the corner.
Collected Works Bookstore & Coffeehouse
El Rancho de las Golondrinas' living-history ranch south of town shows me Spanish colonial New Mexico come to life.
El Rancho de las Golondrinas
I walk the Railyard's park and galleries and catch the Rail Runner train heading toward Albuquerque.
