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    Home » United States » BL Food Road Trip: Alamogordo to Santa Fe, NM

    LAST UPDATED: May 16, 2020 • FIRST PUBLISHED: March 28, 2011 By Toni Dash 12 Comments

    BL Food Road Trip: Alamogordo to Santa Fe, NM

    This post may include affiliate links. As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.

    The drive from Santa Fe to Roswell felt like a genetics experiment to tease out any recessive genes I might carry for narcolepsy (a sleeping condition causing daytime unplanned sleep ‘attacks’). No amount of crappy coffee could hold me steady after the days of driving and the wide open spaces. I changed my return course to Santa Fe which offered more food excursions and diversions.

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    Driving north through Artesia, and west to Alamogordo we wound through the mountains, through horse ranches, smelling the pine in the chilled air letting us know we’d crept up in altitude. With places to be, our pace was ‘brisk’. Alamogordo has a strong military presence with an Air Force Base being just to the south. It was the testing site for the first Atomic Bomb. Store marquees seem to be the ‘bumper stickers’ of town opinion, with political messages and Zen reflections strewn throughout.

    Before hitting our first food excursion for the day we headed south 20 minutes to White Sands National Park. It is the largest of its kind in the world and is made up of pulverized gypsum (the same stuff that is in drywall in homes). As snow runoff comes down from the mountains, it picks up minerals and when reaching the valley floor has nowhere to go. There it stays and evaporates leaving selenite crystals to form, whack against each other in the wind forming a fine powdery ‘sand’. It is an extraordinary sight though with high winds we opted against renting sleds at the Visitor Center for sledding the dunes!

    White Sands National Monument dunes
     
    white sand dunes at Alamogordo NM
    This yucca plant would be rooted in the soil below, leaving it to grow under the sand to reach the air, about 30 feet tall!
    white sand dunes
     
    pistachio orchard
    One would not expect to find pistachio farms and vineyards here but there are. And you won’t miss them with oversize pistachios marking their entrance. I wanted to visit Eagle Ranch (that sells under the name ‘The Heart of the Desert’ due to a name conflict with Eagle brand snacks) who grows wonderful pistachios. They do farm tours daily (twice daily in the summer) where you can see the pistachio grove and learn more about their harvesting. The headquarters includes a selection of pistachios of natural and different flavors, a wide array of pistachio chocolate products, and gift items. They also serve pistachio ice cream.
    bowl of spicy pistachio nuts
     
    You might think ‘all pistachios are created equal’. Not so. I was shocked at the flavor difference. These are much richer, less dry, more appropriately salted with a much broader range of flavor than those I’ve picked up at a supermarket. I was also intrigued (admittedly with low expectations) of the flavored nuts. I purchased Red Chile and Lemon & Lime. I was thrilled when tasting them. I expected artificial ‘essence of’ flavors but these were deep and well rounded. I would absolutely order more online and they come in these totally cool burlap bags (sold also at the Santa Fe School of Cooking, a worthy endorsement).
    different types of pistachios 

    The surprise was the wine. The same family has a vineyard down the road and produces wine. Honestly? I was dubious. A very knowledgeable woman offered that I could do a tasting. I was pleasantly surprised….not Russian River Valley California surprised but it was pretty good. I did buy a couple bottles of straight up varietals (no blends) though could not take the ‘Pistachio Rose’, which contained pistachio extract sporting a ‘cream soda finish’ (fortunately this was the only cross over between the two crops).

    A blue plate, with Pistachio candy
    Heart of the Desert Pistachio Toffee
     

    Eagle Ranch Pistachio Groves: 7288 Hwy 54/70, Alamogordo NM 88310. 800.432.0999  Website: HeartoftheDesert.com

     
    waving Pistachio sign
    ‘Peppy Pistachio’ the mascot of Eagle Ranch

    The Shed – Santa Fe

    All I have heard about when researching dining options in Santa Fe was ‘The Shed’. I knew I could not depart Santa Fe without experiencing it. It’s incredibly popular so without reservations one can expect a significant wait. The trip from southern New Mexico (6-7 hours) threatened our coveted dinner reservation. I’d spoken to The Shed during the lunch service to learn they were fully booked for the night though was told to call back at 5 and they’d help me. I did and they put me on the waitlist saying as soon as we arrived we’d be given a table.

    We arrived at 7, the place was buzzing with walk in’s being told the wait was 1 hour 15 minutes. The Shed held good on their word and we were seated immediately. Whew! The restaurant feels happy, festive, adorned with hip, vibrant art. This is a celebratory place.

    cocktail in Santa Fe NM
     

    I opened with a house margarita that was very well made. We had also ordered their chips, salsa and guacamole though it did not arrive. The entrees showed up promptly after ordering reminding us of the volume they are turning during a dinner service. It’s a well oiled machine.

    The plates were abundant and we requested a small plate on which to place an overflowing bowl of salsa, which also did not arrive until making two requests. I think this was a function of busy state of the restaurant and our serving assistant not writing anything down. That being said, these were small issues compared to the enormous benefit of the flexibility on our reservation time. I can eat chips and salsa at home.

    The Shed is known for their red chile which unfortunately has flour (as does their green chile) so I was unable to try that. I instead ordered the Pollo Abodo, tender pieces of chicken roasted in a Shed red adobo marinade with garlic and oregano. Served with a red chile blue corn cheese and onion enchilada and pinto beans. The chicken was succulent with the rich smokiness of a finely made adobo sauce.

    Another entree at our table was the Chicken Enchilada Plate which were also flavorful featuring signature New Mexican seasonings (fresh baked chicken, cheddar cheese and onion rolled into two blue corn tortillas and baked with choice or red or green chile. Served with pinto beans and posole). We ended with outrageous hot fudge sundaes for the table that were made with high quality ingredients leaving us sated and happy.

    The Shed is definitely a great place to feel the verve of Santa Fe and taste quality ingredient Mexican food. It would not be a place to propose, have a private dialog you don’t want to yell over others or if you have laryngitis. The place is loud, no two ways about it. It is also ‘intimately spaced’. We were sitting next to a four person table of 5 self-appointed house margarita taste testers that encroached on our physical space and shared more intimate details of their lives than they’d probably choose to under more lucid circumstances, but I took that as part of the experience. I definitely would go back but want to relate the ambiance accurately. I never felt rushed but they are turning tables briskly so it is not a place to plan to languish for the evening.

    The Shed: 113 ½ East Palace Ave., Santa Fe NM 87501. 505.982.9030

     
    « BL Food Road Trip: Carlsbad, NM
    BL Food Road Trip: Santa Fe, NM (Last Day) »

    Reader Interactions

    Comments

    1. Beth Michelle says

      March 29, 2011 at 12:35 pm

      What amazing photos! Just beautiful

      Reply
    2. Lizzy says

      March 29, 2011 at 12:42 am

      I love traveling with you, Toni…gorgeous photos as always!

      Reply
    3. My Kitchen in the Rockies says

      March 28, 2011 at 10:12 pm

      The Shed is our favorite and my husband eats their red chili sauce EVERY DAY for lunch. We brought some with us and his mom sends him more whenever they go. They don't live to far away.
      The pisrachios were delicious. Lucky me I got to try some. Congratulations to you as well. Our pictures are the best on the food gawker's page.

      Reply
    4. visda says

      March 29, 2011 at 12:13 am

      Those pictures of the White Sand NP are amazing. I have been to mono lake here and Milos (in Greece) where I saw amazing white landscapes but your pictures are more moon like. Sure you are on the earth?;-)
      Thanks for sharing the amazing pictures. We also have pistachios in Iran near desert but the sand is not white there.

      Reply
    5. Chef Dennis says

      March 29, 2011 at 12:08 am

      hi Toni

      I need to do some traveling out that way, I would eat myself into oblivion! Everything sounds so good, and I do love pistachio's they look a little different than I have ever seen them.
      Thanks for taking us along with you
      Cheers
      Dennis

      Reply
    6. Intuitive Eggplant says

      March 28, 2011 at 11:58 pm

      Thanks for another great installment on your road trip. The Shed and those pistachios sound fabulous, but I was most captivated by your spectacular sand photos. And the thought of sledding in sand – who knew?

      Reply
    7. Barbara | VinoLuciStyle says

      March 28, 2011 at 4:19 pm

      I enjoyed your road trip, salivating too often at the foods you were eating but now, today…I'm a lucky girl. I have those pistachios…those VERY pistachios and you are so right…they are perfectly delicious. Thank you for sharing your journey and your nuts with me…and for making our get together Saturday morning…cause I know that trek you made from Boulder to here is a bit like road tripping itself!

      Reply
    8. Dee says

      March 28, 2011 at 2:45 pm

      I am loving your pictures! I feel like I'm on the road trip with you 🙂

      Reply
    9. Eugene @ Food and Scent says

      March 28, 2011 at 2:17 pm

      white sands is so beautiful! great photographs and I really like the sack of pistachios. I wish they sell them in sacks here too.

      Reply
    10. authorjaneward says

      March 28, 2011 at 11:12 am

      I've really been enjoying your road trip. We're making a first time trip to Santa Fe at the end of July/beginning of August, and I am saving all your ideas and recommendations in our travel folder. Wonderful!

      Reply
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    Welcome! I’m Toni Dash. I’m a Certified Nutrition Coach and the professional writer/blogger, photographer, recipe developer and creator of Boulder Locavore®. I’m so glad you are here!

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