Restaurant list (* = our favorites) SANTA FE -------- (! = Cris and Tracy's current favorites) Note: prices given are for dinner unless otherwise noted. Many of the expensive places have excellent, and reasonably priced, lunch. $$ Amavi. The food varies somewhat, but we have had some excellent meals here. Menu nicely organized, with a mixture of small and large plates from Spain, Italy and France. Shelby St., 1 block from La Fonda. 988-2355. ! $$ Andiamo. Excellent Northern Italian trattoria, ideal for small parties (2-4). Favorites are the linguine with mussels and bacon and the profiteroles, lasagna bolognese, and great cioppino if they have it. Main dishes $15. Guadalupe and Garfield. Dinner only. 995-9595. $ Aztec Cafe. Best espresso in town, free wireless, outdoor seating, decent sandwiches, homemade cakes and quiches, and now cheap wines by the glass. Cris does most of his writing here. Aztec Street. $ Blue Corn Cafe. Decent New Mexican, kid-friendly, a nice sunny room. Upstairs at the corner of Galisteo and Water St. $ Bumblebee's Baja Grill. Very nice fresh, fast Mexican (as opposed to New Mexican) food. Good tacos, including fish, shrimp, and lamb, and a great roast chicken, which along with tortillas and sauces serves two, for $15. Guadalupe and Jefferson, very close to the Convention Center. Lunch and dinner. 820-2862. $ Burrito Company. Howard Barnum says ÒIf you are in a hurry and want pretty good New Mexican food (burritos and enchiladas) near the plaza, this is a good choice.Ó ! $$ Bistro 315. Traditional French with regional ingredients: favorites are the basil-wrapped shrimp with apricots, or the squash blossom beignets. The specials are excellent, and the wine list is one of the best in town, with lots of half bottles for romantic evenings, including white Bourgogne and Pinot Noir. We got engaged here. Main dishes $20-$25. 315 Old Santa Fe Trail, one block from Paseo de Peralta. 986-9190. $ Cafe Dominic. American and New Mexican, with decent breakfast: huevos rancheros with green chile, migas, etc. Animal crackers sometimes come with the coffee. Now with free wireless. Main dishes $5-$10. Guadalupe and Aztec. $ Chicago Dog Express. Great Chicago hot dogs with correct poppy seed buns. Across Paseo de Peralta from Hotel Santa Fe. Lunch only. $ Chocolate Maven. Sunday brunch (until 3 pm on Sundays) and got the Eggs Madison (like Eggs Benedict except with smoked salmon instead of bacon). Avoid the creme brulee French toast, which is a gooey disaster. Main dishes $10. Second Street, in a misleadingly industrial area, but the interior is nice and you get to watch them baking. $ Chow's. Adequate Chinese, not too gloopy. Favorites are the Chairman Mao pot stickers and orange peel beef. Main dishes $12. On St. Mike's near Furr's at St. Francis. They do takeout but not delivery. 471-7120. $ Clafouti's. Excellent French bakery, flakey croissants (instead of the usual American mutation), great pastries, good breakfast. Guadalupe Street near De Vargas Mall. $$$ The Compound. Expensive and very good. A sample: fresh pea soup (emerald green, not murky), oysters on the half-shell with satsuma (a bitter Japanese orange), buttermilk pan-roasted chicken with foie gras gravy, scallops with bacon... their seafood is consistently perfect, crisp on the outside and sushi-grade on the inside. Also very nice mixed drinks at the bar, including a Sazerac for New Orleans fans. Excellent wine list. Main dishes $25 and up. Between Canyon Road and the river. Lunch and dinner. 982-4353. $ Counter Culture. Good breakfasts, pastries, salads and sandwiches for lunch, although the hummus is bland and gloppy. Now open for dinners but haven't tried that. Main dishes $5-$8. Baca Street half a block from Cerrillos. $ Cowgirl Hall of Fame. Decent barbeque, good frozen margaritas, and great outdoor seating. Hangout for young locals, very lively patio in the Summer, and a play area in the back for kids. Lunch and dinner. Main dishes $6-$12. ! $$$ Coyote Cafe. The chef, Eric Distefano, recently moved here from Geronimo. The food is reinvigorated, and it's especially fun to sit at the bar and watch them cook. Also excellent specialty cocktails from the chief mixologist: consider the Del Maguey margarita with a floater of artisanal mezcal. Main dishes $25-35. Desserts also excellent. Water Street between Don Gaspar and Galisteo. 983-1615. $ Coyote Cantina. This is the Coyote Cafe's lower-cost sister restaurant on the roof. Great view and sunsets, good margaritas and tacos. Main dishes $10-$15. Water Street between Galisteo and Don Gaspar. $ Downtown Subscription. A coffeehouse in a lovely walking neighborhood, at the corner of Acequia Madre and Garcia St. (one block from Canyon Road). Good espresso, premade sandwiches. Also next to Garcia Street Books. $$ El Farol. The home of the ÒEl Farol problemÓ of game theory, near the Santa Fe Institute's first location at the convent. Great atmosphere, with both locals and tourists, and good tapas. Rated one of the 50 best Spanish restaurants in the country. Also a great bar with live music on many nights. Eating enough tapas will come to $25/person. Canyon Road. 983-9912. $$ El Meson. Another tapas place, but also with good paella. On Washington Ave., very close to the Convention Center. Dinner only. 983-6756. $$$ Geronimo. Great combination of Southwest and Asian flavors. Wines are marked up quite a bit, and are mostly Californian, but the food is excellent. Main dishes $25-$35. Canyon Road with valet parking (!). 982-1500. $$ Harry's Road House. Great Sunday brunch (oddly, only until 1 p.m.): pecan waffles, fruit pancakes, scrambled eggs with smoked salmon, homemade pastries and rolls, etc. Good dinner with some excellent barbeque, and a lovely back patio. Old Las Vegas Highway. 989-4629. $ Horseman's Haven. Hottest chile in town, fantastic breakfast burrito. On Cerrillos South of Airport/Rodeo, on the left next to a Texaco. 471-5420. $$ Il Piatto. Italian, good main dishes like penne with sausage, ok desserts. Main dishes $12-$16. Marcy Street, one block from the Plaza, very close to the Convention Center. Lunch and dinner. 984-1091. $ Il Vicino. Good wood oven pizzas and their own beer. Cheap and fun. Pizzas $8-$10; our favorites are the Bianca and the Rustica. San Francisco St. near Guadalupe. They don't deliver, but a good place for takeout. 986-8700. $ India Palace. Good Indian food, with the rather annoying and highly interventionist practice of placing the food directly on your plate, and pouring your beer, unless you fend off the waiter. But it tastes good. Main dishes $8-$12. Don Gaspar and Water. $$ Jinja. Asian food, noodles and curries. Cooking not great, but fun pseudo-Pacific decor, with silly tiki cocktails. In De Vargas mall. ! $$ La Boca. Our favorite place for tapas: creative Spanish tapas with some Moroccan accents. Cantimpalitos, salmon crudo, grilled artichokes, Moroccan grilled shrimp, etc. Excellent desserts as well, and good Spanish and South American wines. End with a glass of Pedro Ximenez. Marcy Street between Lincoln and Washington, very close to the Convention Center. Lunch and dinner. Highly recommended. 982-3433. $$$ La Casa Sena. Beautiful courtyard in a historic building. Excellent wine list, some of which are bottled exclusively for the restaurant. Try the Chilean sea bass napoleon with tamarind sauce. Main dishes $25, lunches more affordable, but service can be slow. Also a nice wine bar with some food in the afternoon. On Palace Ave., one block from the Plaza. 988-9232. $ La Casa Sena Cantina. A lower-cost restaurant indoors, with waiters and waitresses who sing Broadway tunes (several of whom have excellent voices, and one who does a great If I Were A Rich Man). Also great mixed drinks Ñ try the Sweeney Todd. Main dishes $10-$15. Palace Ave. one block from the Plaza. $$ La Plazuela. I haven't eaten there, but Howard Barnum says Òsolid, tasty traditional New Mexican food.Ó In the La Fonda hotel. ! $$ Mu Du Noodles. Great pan-Asian cuisine, with a savory green Thai curry, Malaysian laksa, and excellent fish specials like steamed basa with Asian pesto. Among the appetizers, the daikon cakes and lamb martabak are great. Wonderful light desserts as well, like orange blossom custard and mango sorbet. Main dishes $18. A little drive down Cerrillos, on the left near the King's Court hotel, past the Baca and Monterey traffic lights but before Second Street. Dinner only. 983-1411. $$ O'Keeffe Cafe. Named after the artist and next to the O'Keeffe museum downtown. Good cooking, with a new chef from the Alsace. Lately they've had tapas including a scallop napoleon, duck wontons, and endive with ceviche. Main dishes include a beautiful lamb, filet mignon, and fantastic fish specials. Wine is half off on Sundays, but all the bottles I really want are mysteriously out of stock... Main dishes $25. 992-1065. $$ Pasqual's. Wonderful atmosphere, with interiors painted by a local artist. Mexican and South American dishes. Try the Plato Supremo with mole and camarones borrachos (shrimp marinated in tequila), the Thai shrimp, Napo's pupusa, or the Niman Ranch filet. Also great desserts and you can buy their cookbook. Eclectic wine list. Reservations are very helpful and there's often a wait, but ask for the community table where you can hobnob with fellow diners. Main dishes $15-$25. Don Gaspar and Water. Lunch, dinner, weekend brunch. 983-9340. $ Plaza Cafe. A nice hangout for locals and families, right on the Plaza. New Mexican plus gyros. $$ Pranzo's. Northern Italian. Cooking ok, not as good as Andiamo, but a popular place for large parties. Sanbusco Center. $ Railyard Restaurant and Bar. A lower-priced project of the owner of Bistro 315, serving American pub food. In the Railyard. Lunch and dinner. 989-8363. ! $$ Ristra. Creative French, and very nice outdoor dining, perfect for Summer evenings. Expensive, but we've never been disappointed. Last time we had a lobster napoleon, fois gras with peaches, and elk with pears poached in port. The now have a lovely (and fashionable) bar, with an excellentÑand affordableÑbar menu including shrimp flautas, escargot and spinach springrools, and a lamb brochette. Main dishes $25. Agua Fria, two blocks from Guadalupe. Dinner only. 982-8608. $ Rooftop pizzeria. Fancy pizzas with duck, lobster, etc., but you don't have to spend a lot of money. Some nice wines by the glass. Inside (and above) a shopping area with entrances on the Plaza (the San Francisco Street side) and Water Street. $ Sage Bakehouse. Good coffee, bread, sandwiches, cookies, muffins, and croissants. Their blueberry muffins are excellent (and come in two sizes) and many local restaurants use their bread. They are one of two bakeries in town that bake correctly, making small, flaky croissants with lots of butter. Still learning how to make espresso. Across Cerrillos from Hotel Santa Fe. $$ Santacafe. Nouveau Southwest with Asian accents. Good specialties such as red chile shrimp tempura. Lovely outdoor patio for summer, and a stylish bar. Wine markups a little high. Main dishes $25. Washington Avenue two blocks from the Plaza, very close to the Convention Center. Lunch and dinner. 984-1788. $ Saveur. Lunch only, with a very nice buffet and gourmet sandwiches. Run by Dee of local Dee's fame. Great salad bar, sandwiches, and desserts. Corner of Sandoval and Galisteo. $ The Shed. Howard says Òred chile blue corn enchiladas here are a quintessential New Mexico culinary experience. Not for the faint of tongue. Casual.Ó Palace Ave., one block from the Plaza. $$ Shohko Cafe. Best sushi in town, with good seasonal fish specials. Go on Wednesday evenings or Thursdays for lunch and sit at the bar. Guadalupe and Johnson. 982-9708. $$ Teahouse. Some nice sandwiches and salads, and an astonishing range of teas from all over the world. Nice outdoor area. Lunch only, service can be slow. Canyon Road, at the corner with Palace Ave. across from El Farol. $ Tecolote Cafe. Great breakfast with homemade rolls and pastries (get a Bakery Basket) and good chile. Main dishes $4-$7. Cerrillos on the left near Baca/Monterey. $ Tia Sophia's. Howard's favorite New Mexican restaurant in Santa Fe, with hot green chile, and a favorite with the locals. Breakfast and lunch. San Francisco Street, near Collected Works Bookstore. $ Tomasita's. A huge factory that produces New Mexican food for both tourists and locals. Main dishes $5-$8. In the Railyard on Guadalupe. $$$ Trattoria Nostrani. We have had some excellent risottos here, but have been occasionally disappointed, and it's rather expensive. They have a new ÒenotecaÓ small-plate menu that we haven't tried yet. Johnson Street, dinner only. ! $ The Tune-up. Breakfast and lunch, weekend brunch, good New Mexican and Cuban food, with some nice El Salvadoran dishes as well, and now with beer and wine. Lunch only as we write this, but opening soon for dinner. Hickox Street (where Dave's Not Here used to be). 983-7060. $ Zia Diner. ÒDinerÓ is a misnomer (they lack blueberry pancakes, and the waitresses are not named Louise and Flo), and the wait is often longer than it deserves, but the food's decent, including chocolate milkshakes and burgers. Other main dishes $8-$12. Guadalupe between Montezuma and Aztec. $ Upper Crust. Good local pizza, including Greek (with feta) and green chile. Nice whole-wheat crusts. Old Santa Fe Trail. 982-0000, and they deliver. $ Vinaigrette. Good, creative salads for lunch, ranging from $8-$16, and some sandwiches too. A couple of nice wines by the glass, and good desserts, such as peach-strawberry shortcake with basil whipped cream. Also a pleasant patio in back. Enter from Cerrillos Rd. behind La Unica. 820-9205. PARIS ----- * l'Amuse Bouche. In the 14th, just off Avenue du Maine at 186 rue du Ch‰teau. Very friendly hole-in-the-wall with excellent, creative food. I had a fantastic dish of escargot and mushrooms, with a bottle of Savigny-les-Beaune '99 Nuits-St. George. Closed Sunday and Monday. 01 43 35 31 61. * l'Atelier du Joel Robuchon. 45, rue de Babylone, just off rue du Bac near the top end of St. Germain. There is no handle on the door; you have to wait until they open it. Reservations are only taken for the uncivilized hour of 6:30, although we got our revenge by staying until 10:30 --- otherwise you simply wait in line. Many small dishes, most of which are 16-25 Euro --- such as St. Pierre piment doux et chorizo, supreme de pigeon au chou et foie gras, papillote de langoustine croustillant au basilic, ravioli de Langoustine truffe (I ordered another one of these for dessert). The tasting menu was worth 97 Euros and was worth every centime, along with excellent wines by the glass recommended by the waiter. 01 40 62 73 79 (but I recommend stopping by in person). l'Avant Gout. Just off Place d'Italie, 37 rue Bobillot. Marvellous house cocktail with Chartreuse and champagne, creative food, and friendly service. Closed Sunday and Monday. 01 45 81 14 06. Brasserie Balzar. One of the grand old brasseries, on rue des Ecoles in the 5th. Read the piece about this place by Adam Gopnik in Paris to the Moon; it was recently taken over by Group Flo, but I still had a great time there with roast chicken and a good bottle of Bordeaux. * Les Fetes Galantes. In the 5th, just below the Pantheon at 17 rue de l'Ecole Polytechnique (where the university used to be), a tiny place with 8 or so tables. Bibi, the Egyptian chef, cooks French food with some lovely touches --- a veloute du pleurotte with curry, confit de canard with almonds and honey, tarte poire, or profiteroles --- all for only 24 Euro. On one wall is a set of brassieres from happy customers. Open 7 days, except Sunday lunch. 01 43 26 10 40. Reservations helpful since they've been getting good reviews lately. Georges. Ride the habitrail-like escalator to the top of the Pompidou and enjoy the wonderful view in sculptural pods. Expensive, a bit snooty, good food, but the best thing is the desserts; the pastry chef is very well-known, and the raspberry macaron is to die for. Lavinia, 3-5 boulevard de la Madeleine. A 3-story wine store, where you can have any bottle you desire with your lunch, at store prices. We had a lovely Pommard with our sardines after gazing at the four-figure bottles of '85 Petrus in the cellar. 01 42 97 20 27. Ma Salle a Manger. We wanted to sit an enjoy a glass of wine on the Ile St. Louis; they encouraged us to do so, so we stayed for dinner. The high point was a foie gras appetizer with vanilla and apple --- fantastic. Friendly service (tolerating my execrable French) and good wines. Place Dauphine, 01 43 29 52 34. Le Petit Prince de Paris. 12 rue de Lanneau. We ended up here late one night after Les Fetes Galantes was closed; they serve at least to 12 and often later. Food not fantastic, but good, and a very cozy atmosphere. 01 43 54 77 26.