In one’s quest to eat healthier, there will be obstacles. This goes double for Santa Fe, where much of our dining options are all about bread, cheese and chile. Don’t get me wrong, I love all those things, but the older I get and the more I think about things like fiber and protein intake and, like, roughage and how ingredients get sourced, the more I find myself leaning toward eating fresh foods crafted by people who care about quality and how foods affect our bodies. Thus, when presiding over the what’s-for-dinner choice one recent night, I only needed to think for about two seconds before practically screaming, “Vinaigrette! It won’t make me feel gross!”
Ah, Vinaigrette, that constantly killer temple to all things salad built by proprietor Erin Wade (she also owns Modern General) where the salads and sandwiches are so good that the menu has barely changed since it first opened in 2008. Wade also wrote a badass letter slamming food delivery apps in 2020, right when the pandemic was forcing most restaurants into a weird form of subserviency that barely benefitted them if it did at all; and then there’s the whole thing where she grows a lot of the food used in the restaurant at a farm in Nambé. Actually? Vinaigrette is awesome.
And so we went, a companion and I, to sit in the light and breezy adobe house that contains Wade’s eatery. And it was good. So good. Actually, it was great, and I think a lot of that was in trying menu items we’d never had before. If I’m honest, I love the Omega salad at Vinaigrette so much that it’s my go-to. Oh, sure, I’ve had the Cuban sandwich before, and I could write a poem about the chocolate cake I once sampled for a writing assignment. But as I delve further into eating…not well, but better, I’m finding it imperative to embrace variety. With that in mind, I promised myself I’d try something I’d never had before, and I’m glad I did.
First, however, my companion ordered a seasonal special—the 7-layer salad with various items like romaine and avocado and pinto beans and cheese and tortilla chips and…well, suffice it to say we were rather sad to learn that the item is only available for a short time more. A very nice worker on the phone couldn’t say when it would leave the menu, so if you’re jonesing for a 7-layer anything since Taco Bell removed what was easily their best burrito from the menu some years ago, this is how to do it, and for a mere $16.50. That last part is particularly wild, since the dish was served in a massive and massively tall bowl. Talk about value!
Alex De Vore
Meanwhile, I managed to fight my Omega salad craving long enough to order the Cherry Tart salad, a glorious combination of arugula, chilied pecans, tart/sweet dried cherries and feta cheese for a mere $16. I added lemon-herb chicken for $8 extra, which was more than worth it, especially because of the cherries. The tender, savory chicken would have been tasty enough thanks to the bright zing of the lemon-herb treatment, but the chewy texture and subtly sweet kick of the cherries took it up a notch. Even better, Vinaigrette understood the assignment when it came to using feta cheese. How often have diners ordered something with feta only to be faced with a huge pile of the stuff plopped haphazardly atop some dish? The Cherry Tart salad at Vinaigrette does indeed come with feta, but it has been carefully mixed within the melange of veggies, and the almost citrusy champagne vinaigrette dressing neutralized the salty cheese without stripping it of its desired flavor. I had enough left over for lunch the following day, too, as is the case with most of Vinaigrette’s salads.
The whole time I kept thinking that I’d maybe been taking Wade’s spot for granted. Sometimes I think we can relegate certain standbys to the “been there, done that,” pile, though when considering how there’s nothing else quite like Vinaigrette in town, I’m not so sure I want to do that anymore. When trying to avoid fast food or the same old burgers, one fears they might feel underfed or less energetic, but with carefully considered veggie and fruit medleys alongside numerous protein options—and soups and sandwiches for larger appetites, Vinaigrette is for everyone, be they newly healthy, vegetarian or more of a burly must-have-meat type. The takeout situation is quick and easy, too.
So while I sit here trying to find anything negative to say about the experience, I currently have no notes. The service was quick and friendly, the ambiance is clean and upscale, though not so upscale as to make one feel they should have learned to tie a bowtie. This, dear readers, is the very epitome of a neighborhood joint—but a neighborhood joint where nothing comes fried, and you still leave feeling completely sated.
