As we round out one of the weirder years along a string of already weird years, we’ve been taking some time to reflect on all the things people send to us via email. Fork readers are dedicated, man. Like, every so often, when someone says we suck, most of our readers write to say that person is nuts, that The Fork is so so so so so for real (and really, nobody keeps it realer). Fact is, we do it for you. As far as we know, The Fork is the most popular of SFR’s newsletters (maybe Morning Word is, actually, depends on how you measure), and we don’t take it for granted. We understand completely that your time is limited, that there are tons of food things out there to read that are probably more “professional” or “together” or “informative” or “good,” and yet you keep coming back to us.
We suspect it’s because of that Gary Oldman “EVERYYYYONNNNEEEE!” video we like to share to accentuate our points, but we also like to think that we offer up a pretty good service now and then. And even if we don’t, it’s free and what the hell else are you doing on Thursdays at noon? Precisely.
But yeah, we’ve been reflecting, and we ultimately came up with some resolutions we’re making come Jan. 1, and we wanted to share them with you. We do this, of course, knowing that most people give up their resolutions early on in the year; by which we mean that we’ll do our best to uphold these ideals we’re about to describe. As always, please keep writing and keeping us accountable and arguing with us. We like engaging, because for a lot of years before we worked for SFR, we were like, “Why won’t those fools engage with us?” As always, we know we can do better and will try to do better. We actually think that anyone who dusts off their hands and thinks, “There. Perfect!” is lying to themselves. Not us, though. We’re gonna be clear with you about how utterly flawed we are.
And so...
We wanna eat more meat this year. Not all the meat, mind you, and not super often, but we’re coming to realize that not eating any meat doesn’t super help anyone, especially the loudmouth carnivores. We’re also doing this because our doctor said we need to introduce some things to our diet. Now, we know there are vegans out there who’ve read articles at totallyrealveganmedicalpoop.biz and that definitely makes them as knowledgeable as doctors, but we trust ours.
We wanna do more history lessons this year. We know some folks think we do them too often, but learning about the origins of food things is fun and we try to make it readable. We also resolve to try to up the actual food info in those editions, though even as we typed that we were whining about how it sounds hard.
We wanna have more contests this year. Holding that contest wherein folks donated to The Food Depot felt awesome, not only because Santa Fe’s favorite food bank got a few bucks, but because it proved again that Fork readers are the best. We’re envisioning sponsorships with local eateries and possibly even special things wherein a pastry chef or someone like that makes something special. Who knows? We like the idea of a reader enjoying a meal or something on us.
We wanna get to the Southside more often. If you read the food column in the print edition of SFR this week, you’ll see our editor said a similar thing, and it’s true that we could do better about this. We definitely fall under the camp that believes just because someone didn’t post about something doesn’t mean it didn’t happen, but we also realize that our whole job is posting about things. That’s a convoluted way of saying that we definitely eat on the Southside, but we could do a better job explaining where and when and what’s up over there. People are always asking us for a more comprehensive food truck guide....maybe this is the year for that.
And you know what? That’s enough. That’s enough stuff. That’s a lot of stuff, honestly. But know that we always wanna hear from you (unless it’s about how we use the word “wanna,” because that’s not stopping.) Tell you what, dear readers, why don’t you hit us up with some of your resolutions and maybe we can talk about how it’s going a couple months down the road? We’re outta here til 2023, but just know it’s been our honor Forking it up with you all year.
Let’s turn over...a new leaf.
Also
-Well, it finally came and went—Felipe’s Tacos is no more. We were there on the final day watching a line of people bring Felipe Martinez gifts, telling him what he meant to them. It was really nice. And we also crammed in one last taco/quesadilla combo. For now, know that the new eatery from chef Rodrigo Rodriguez, El Charrito, should open in the old Felipe’s spot soon, and we fully intend to visit when that time comes.
-You’ll find a new Buffalo’s Express wings joint in Santa Clara Pueblo opened recently which, according to this email we got, is especially notable in that it also served burgers from Fat Burger. This email also tells us that Fat Burger is “Hollywood’s favorite,” though how a city has a favorite anything is a terrifying concept. “The new co-branded location provides guests with a one-stop dining experience for custom, grilled-to-perfection burgers and fresh, never frozen chicken wings bursting with flavor,” reads the email. Maybe we decided to start eating meat again at a smart time?
-Hidden Mountain Brewing Co. announced a brand new beer this week, dubbed El Monstruo. Woah. It’s a barrel-aged oud bruin created in Big Nose Kate whiskey barrels, and it clocks in at 9% ABV. That’s pretty hefty.
-Speaking of Big Nose Kate, did you know Melissa McCarthy and her husband what’s-his-face (just kidding, his name is Ben Falcone) are investors in that Santa Fe brand? Yup. They are. Deal with it, America. You might also hoot at knowing Altar Spirits plays a key role in that particular whiskey brand.
-We hear Tuesday is mariachi night at La Fogata, which is pretty cool because, if you’ll recall, SFR’s restaurant reviewer loved his experience there. Honestly, mariachi music in a restaurant is fun, y’all. And having been to La Fogata ourselves, we didn’t think they could outdo themselves. Guess we were wrong.
Oh, why not?
More Tidbits
-We were saddened to misunderstand the Taco Bell Testing Two New Mexican Pizzas headline from Food & Wine-dot-com, because it turns out they’re testing two new Mexican Pizzas, not New Mexican. Guess Taco Bell has some new twist on its same seven ingredients, and that’s cool, but don’t get our hopes up. Oh, wait...we can just eat New Mexican food whenever? Cool.
-Speaking of headlines, we don’t even care what the Eater-dot-com story The Year We Wanted to Be Fancy Little Bitches is about, we just like it. It’s actually about food trends and such, but we mostly salute them for running it.
-USA Today claims that baking cookies that look like meatballs is something people will like. We say why not make cookies that look like cookies? This seems like the cookie version of thinking you’re gonna take a big ol’ swig of OJ, just to learn it’s grapefruit juice. Grapefruit, get outta here, all bitter and shit.
-You can catch up with the most-read New York Times food stories this year by clicking right here. We don’t know what ours are, but we can only assume that with their larger staff and budget and prestige, theirs might be a little more valuable. We just like talking shit.
-Lastly this year, Delish-dot-com has compiled some of the weirdest special requests from the Uber Eats app, and they’re at least enjoyable to read. People are so weird, man.
A Totally Scientific Breakdown of The Fork’s Correspondence
In the print edition of SFR this week, our boss rips off our review idea and talks about things he did and ate and all that.
Number of Letters Received
25
*Some nice thoughts from nice readers
Most Helpful Tip of the Week (a barely edited letter from a reader)
Not a tip so much as a prompt: “C’mon.”
*No, you c’mon!
Actually Helpful Tip(s)
Not a tip, either, but we wanna shoutout reader Nanci C. for being a sweetie, and she knows what she did.
*Nanci, you rule.
So long, 2022,
The Fork
