When The Fork stepped outside a few mornings ago at 2 am (don't ask, we won't tell), we couldn't help but notice that it had snowed again in Santa Fe. This has become heartbreaking at this point—to us, anyway—and we longed for something to dull the pain. The solution hit us this morning when we were getting dressed: Beer!
Now, setting aside how we're joking about drinking to solve your problems, we did go out into the world and get some tips from people we know who drink a lot of beer. Here's what they recommend for these trying times:
The Bearded Nerd
Quoth our bearded nerd friend, "I'm into stouts this time of year." And though he says it's more about style that a specific version, he does recommend Tractor Brewing's Oatmeal Stout. They're in Albuquerque, so you can feel good about keeping it regional. Apparently (The Fork doesn't drink that much, so what do we know?), higher alcohol content (and/or heavier beers) make the cold less dreadful.
The Touring Musician
It's a well-known fact that musicians worth a damn take their show on the road, and with great road-showings come great amounts of beer responsibility. What does our bud do when they're touring in places like Canada, where it never gets warm? "You wouldn't expect it, but lighter beers … so I can drink more of them. Is that awful?" First off, yes, it's awful, but secondly, we get it. We totally get it. As for light beers, we've said it before and we'll say it again—go for Second Street Brewery's Kolsch (though they have lots of others) or Santa Fe Brewing's Freestyle Pilsner. Score for you.
The Teamster
This other person we know who totally knows the long haul and can build a house faster than you like tells us that he also loves Santa Fe Brewing, specifically the Java Stout. He's down with the creaminess.
The Metalhead
Rather than get into the labyrinth of beer, our favorite metalhead answered the question with "Ummmm … whiskey?" Word. Says our pal, there are standbys like Jameson, but if you ever happen across Hibiki Harmony (which is apparently quite hard to find many places), you should spend the extra couple bucks for it.
The Punk Bassist
Musicians are just more responsive to questions, OK? Anyway, our friend in the Bay Area who plays freelance bass in punk bands says, "Who cares? If it tastes good, why are you trying to make it about a season?" Fair enough. Fair enough.
The Actual Beer Creator
Our bud David Ahern-Seronde (the only one we feel comfortable naming) works for Santa fe Brewing Co., and let us in on a little secret about an upcoming beer. "We have an imperial stout with red chile and chocolate coming out in our Think Tank Series," he says. "Diplomatic Immunity." Great name, great-sounding beer, maybe winter won't be so bad? Keep an eye on SFBC for more info soon!
How about you, drinkers? Do you have any wintertime standbys?
Also
-If you're looking to get into the spirit of Restaurant Week, La Casa Sena is running a special $45 prix fixe menu during dinner from Feb. 22-March 3. If words like "steamed black mussles" and "pork osso buco" work for you, this is the place to be.
-We're on the lookout for something called lemon loaf (or similar) … like a lemon bar, but more in sweet bread form. This is for our new best friend/reader Sue, so let's help 'em out, huh?
-We're going to remind everyone, just because we've been asked a number of times, that chef Paddy Rawal's Raaga IS back, only it's now a takeout joint known as Raaga Go. Find it at 410 Old Santa Fe Trail betwixt Rio Chama and The Pink Adobe. Call 983-5555 for more info or to order.
-The saga of HB 31 (the one that raises minimum wage for tipped workers and does away with a tip credit for restaurants, thereby making smaller tips very likely, and servers hate it because their livelihoods depend on those tips) continues with the amended but still reportedly irritating bill having made its way through the house. If your'e at all interested in hearing about the issue from the people it would affect, check out this Facebook group.
–Food & Wine has compiled its list for the best breakfast in every state, and Santa Fe makes the list with Tecolote and The Pantry. The interesting thing about that, to us anyway, is how many arguments we've had about one of those places versus the other place.
-Santa Fe's Margarita Trail—a literal trail of margaritas you can undertake—announced this week that 17 new locations will be added to its list of, um, places you … can go … to, ummmm … drink margaritas. Here's the full list (without links, because what, are we just, like, gonna link 17 things?):
Blue Corn Brewery
Boxcar
Dinner for Two
El Farol
El Nido
Gabriel's
Harry's Roadhouse
La Cantina at La Casa Sena
La Reina in El Rey Court
Float Bar at Meow Wolf
Rio Chama
The Compound
The Ranch House
Thunderbird Bar & Grill
Cottonwood Kitchen in Tesuque Casino
Dragon Room at the Pink Adobe
Tortilla Flats
So how does it work? Easy: Pick up a Margarita Passport from Tourism Santa Fe visitor centers (there's one on the Plaza connected to the bank). They run $3. Or, download the app from your phone's store ($3.99), then start visiting the places. You might win a T-shirt, or the greatest prize of all—having drunk 47 margaritas.
More Tidbits
-Did you know the folks at USA Today have a monthly feature wherein they break down food deals from around the country? Some of these are for chains and such that are nearby you. It's updated a lot (or so they say). Find deals!
-Over at tastecooking.com, we can all learn a thing or two about spaetzle, a sort of pasta, sort of dumpling thing that's super-easy to make at home. According to Taste, this thing is beloved in Germany, the Czech Republic and Austria, among other places. Score one for planet Earth!
-Did you hear the one about Bill Metzger, the co-founder of Brewing News who used his sizable platform to go on a sexist/misogynist rant, then later claimed it was satire, then stepped down from his position, then probably realized what a major piece of shit he was and how screaming outdated and untrue-in-the-first-place nonsense is never a good way to conduct one's self at work? Here's the punchline: There isn't one, this is America, old misogynistic dudes like this exist and it sucks.
-Celebrated out-of-style hairdo Guy Fieri has a new chicken restaurant INSIDE Disney World. You know what that means—the seventh seal is broken, and darkness reigns as the age of man makes way for our new demon overlords.
-For people who really hate using the stove like humans, delish.com has tips on how to hard boil eggs in the microwave. Word? Seems weird and unnecessary, but whatevs.
-For some reason, it's news in the UK that Gordon Ramsay's wife Tana went to some London fashion show with Posh Spice and someone else we already forgot. Yikes. Word is, Ramsay is about to have the couple's fifth kid. Do you think when a Ramsay kid misbehaves, Gordon screams "You're rotten!!!!" at them? Anyway, that was soooooo peripherally related to food, but now you know.
-Meanwhile, on eater.com, we learn of Twitter's reaction to "President" Trump heading for Mar-a-Lago immediately after declaring a nonsense state o' emergency over his proposed border wall. Seems Trump's first order of business was to get in line at the omelet bar. Jesus.
Finally
In the print edition of SFR, Zibby Wilder gives us the lowdown on chunk-water, also known as soup.
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A Totally Scientific Breakdown of The Fork’s Correspondence
Number of Letters Received
37
*Better, but we want a million!
Most Helpful Tip of the Week
“You can’t say that!”
*We did, though …
Actually Helpful Tip
*Nobody helped us with anything this week! Again! Get on the case of the lemon loaf!
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So long, nerds!
The Fork
