On a hectic, hot July night, our weekend guests asked to take us to a restaurant that met the following criteria: cozy, patio if possible, not too stuffy and excellent food. There are only a handful of restaurants in Santa Fe that would satisfy but one stood out in my mind as ideal: 315 Restaurant & Wine Bar.
Situated on the one of the most famous streets in Santa Fe, Old Santa Fe Trail, the patio for 315 Restaurant & Wine Bar is in front of the restaurant, right on the street. Not that you would ever notice, with all the lovely flowers, vines, umbrellas and general bistro mayhem going on. Waiters and sommeliers rushing flawless plates to table, menu boards flying. Hectic, yes, but well worth it.
There is a standard menu and a few wonderful seasonal specials every night, some of which are so popular they might just become old standards, such as the squash blossom beignets with goat cheese fondue and tomato coulis. This is a must. So we ordered two. My husband had his favorite, the Country Paté. Because our guests are not wine drinkers, we elected to order wine by the glass. (I ordered the Peach Kir-one of my secret pleasures.) Louis Moskow, chef-owner of 315 Restaurant & Wine Bar, was very patient and helpfully guided my husband in the direction of a great glass of red.
One of the entrée specials that night was soft-shell crab. As I am originally from Annapolis Maryland (as was one of our guests) this had to be ordered. The dish came with frogs’ legs, a fennel risotto in a green chile garlic broth. The chef kindly made this for me without the frogs’ legs. It was official. All the Annapolitans resident at our table declared the soft shell genuine blue crab and perfectly cooked in a light tempura. Surprisingly, it was the rich broth that held the whole dish together for me.
Our guests, who had rafted the Taos Box that day, were understandably ravenous and ordered possibly the most filling and satisfying plates on the regular menu, the steak frites (served au poivre with a choice of béarnaise or herb butter) and the enormous veal chop with morel sauce (served with sautéed sugar snap peas). Hunger may be the best sauce, but a day on the Taos Box must be the sauce supreme. Everything was polished off before I could raise my fork a second time.
My husband ordered his favorite, the duck breast with dried cherries. His verdict: the skin was perfect, meat moist and tender, as usual. The duck is served with a duck confit potato galette and ribbon vegetables. We were also celebrating a birthday that evening and after leaning back with sighs of contentment, the flourless chocolate cake with whipped cream and raspberry sauce was delivered to our table complete with candle. The perfect finale to an unforgettable Santa Fe summer day.
