We’ve often made a food-based speech about the absolute joy of two specific food-ings that go down in our world: The emotional component and the excellence of wanting something RULL bad and then getting that thing.
Let us explain? And let us explain with the understanding that we actually kind of hate “bet you’re wondering how we got here,” kind of writing, but we just want to be clear. We’ll do it in bullet point form:
-In the world, there are meals with which we form emotional bonds that last for fucking ever. Our parent made us this or that when we were sick or on special occasions or whatever, and we still think of this or that anytime we eat it.
-There is, perhaps, no truer joy than craving something to eat then getting exactly that.
Word? Word. Hold onto those concepts for a second while we continue. Hold onto them in your mind’s eye.
So…
We’ve been on all kinds of quests lately (including for fried chicken, as you might recall if you’re a regular reader), and one of those quests is to eat at all the places near our new offices in the Design Center. We’ve already done a bunch of on-campus spots (read about that here), but we also happen to do journalism right near the CHOMP Food Hall at 505 Cerrillos Road (the most puro Santa Fe address you can possibly have). Within that hallowed hall, you’ll find pizza spots like Oshia’s) and the inspired shmer cuisine of Chef Nath) and Santa Fe BBQ and, like a full-ass bar; you’ll also find Picnic NM, the smallest yet somehow fanciest cheese ’n’ charcuterie biz in all the town. Now, full disclosure, Whole Foods and Market Street and whatever other grocery stores likely have a larger selection of cheeses, but Picnic NM is the most considered and thoughtful. There, owners Lauren Stutzman and Matthiew Bilodeau kick out the cheese jamz with fervor and goodness—and they’ve been serving up grilled cheese sandwiches for some time, so we went and got us some.
This is where that stuff from the beginning kicks in. We have an emotional bond to grilled cheese sammies that reminds us of our mom and dad. We also know that they can run the gamut from a slice of American cheese on white bread to the shmanciest cheese in all cheese-dom served betwixt the highest quality bread ever around. Picnic NM’s fall someplace in-between those, though quality is the hallmark alongside tastiness. Further, we’ve wanted one for weeks and we finally made it happen which, as we’ve covered, is just, like, the best feeling. Let’s talk about it.
For now, you’ll find one GCS on the Picnic NM menu, and it’s made with The Stag, a real smooth cheddar from Wisconsin’s Deer Creek Cheese. This cheese is so good, it has a title, and the title has capital letters. Heck. Yes. OK, so it’s a $15 grilled cheese ($4 to add ham), and we get that that might freak some people out, but it’s worth it. See, not only do you get that sweet imported-though-still-American-but-we-don’t-mean-American-cheese cheese, Picnic NM serves it up on bread made right here in Santa Fe at the Wild Leaven Bakery—a company that uses wild yeast in bread to great and delicious effect. The sandwich also featured caramelized onion and a bit of rosemary flavor that might have been in the bread, but we didn’t actually stop scarfing long enough to find out where it was so much as we just at it all fast.
The bottom line? We’ve got a winner. High-quality cheese and bread sourced from small businesses and crafted into a gooey, melty, semi-sweet (because of the caramelized onion, you see) sandwich that was almost too big for one meal. Would we eat this $15 (plus $4 for ham) sandwich regularly? Yes, we think we would, even if we struggle with dairy in our old age (we’d still eat a thing of Kraft singles if we could, though). Long live grilled cheese and long live Picnic NM!
This scene is loosely based on our life.
Also
- If you’ve been worried about New Mexican eatery Café Castro closing, you needn’t be. While SFR will have more details in the print edition of the paper that drops the day after this Fork drops, suffice it to say that someone from the paper spoke to the ownership; it will reopen soon with a new model we think you’re gonna like; everyone will just need to remain patient a bit longer. Trust us. HAVE WE EVER LED YOU ASTRAY?! Actually, don’t answer that…bunch of jabronis. The point is this, our beloved CC has closed in January for a deep clean pretty much every year, and they’ve really only been closed a few extra weeks.
- Didja all get down with Santa Fe Restaurant Week? We hope so, especially since we reminded you about it, like, 50 times. We’ve heard all kinds of anecdotal things about the citywide event—both good and bad—but we’re interested in what you think, dear readers.
- Looks like downtown restaurants Alkemē and Sazón have joined forces once again for the 2nd Fish Sauce & Mole Dinner. There, under the talented talent cheffing of chefs Hue-Chan Karels and Fernando Olea (the first has been shortlisted for a James Beard Beardo a whole slew of times, while the second for sure won one in 2022), diners can partake in a six-course fusion meal that brings fish sauce and mole together into one glorious…uhhh…third thing. We also hear that Red Boat Fish Sauce founder Cuong Pham will be in attendance, so that’s cool. Tickets run $195, which we understand won’t be accessible to everyone. Still, we adore Karels’ cooking (ditto for Alkemē executive chef Erica Tai), so we think if you can scrape up the bucks, it’d be worth it. More info here, little babies.
- By the time you’re reading this, a new food truck will have been on them Santa Fe streets for days. We’re talkin’ about Sonora Kitchen, a new Mexican (not to be confused with New Mexican) food truck that flared into existence last Friday (being Feb. 21). We haven’t been yet as of this writing, but we’re always on the lookout for Mexican spots (not New Mexican, ‘cause we already know where the good stuff comes from). As of now, Sonora Kitchen appears to only have a Facebook page, so we’re sorry if that’s not good enough information for your majesties.
- Santa Fe Wine & Chile Fiesta has announced its dates for 2025, and it’ll run from Sept. 24-28. We tell you this now, in February, because we can’t remember the last year someone didn’t write to us and whine about missing out. So there you have it. What is that, folks who’ve never been just asked from their bespittled lips with chunks of whatever food flying everywhere? Why, it’s that age-old and annual celebration of all things wine and chile and New Mexico. In short, all kinds of restaurants and food folk and wine pros and wine amateurs gather to pair the best chile dishes with the best wines from the best grapes on the best slopes in the best vineyards in the best counties of the best states in what is most definitely not the best country on Earth right now (#FuckMusk and #FuckTrump). If you’d like to learn more or even get info on tickets or whatever, click here to visit the site. Of course, most information won’t be available until June, but you can save the date or whatever.
- While we’ve yet to visit ourselves, we’re hearing good things about new-ish local craft bar ¡Salud! On Marcy Street from the same folks behind Rowley Farmhouse Ales. Looks like they’ve got all kinds of music and parties and the whole bar thing, too, so know that it’s there and check it out if you like. Remember that the space has only been open since late-October, though, so don’t be all weird and give it a chance to become itself, right? Right.
Like you, country singer David Frizzell, is down with winos.
More Tidbits
- Mega-fancy culinary school Escoffier recently releases its list of the states with the best food scenes in the USA list, and spoiler: New Mexico isn’t on that list, even if the stupid other New states are (screw you, New York and New Jersey). Some takeaways? Hawaii apparently has the best restaurant scene going right now, Rhode Island is apparently doing cool stuff even if the state is literally infested with a bunch of RISD fashion losers and Nevada being on the list is not surprising (Las Vegas has about a bazillion killer restaurants, it just does).
- Coca-Cola is gettin’ into the probiotic game with a new line of sodas dubbed Simply Pop. We can apparently expect to see them in stores on the West Coast this month, and elsewhere later this year. Our take? There are so many ways to get probiotics that aren’t from Coca-Cola, and we also think it’s weird when mass-produced garbage drink companies use words like “Simply,” because it implies it’s going to be a simple product, and while we don’t know what’s in there for sure, we wouldn’t be shocked to learn it’s a whole lot of chemicals and such that kind of makes it anything but simple. Marketing is so wild. Anyway, this probiotic soda from Coke exists now (as do others from brands like Poppi), and will likely be available near you at some point.
- This is not strictly food-related, but does feature some grocers and such, and we wanted to give you a link to this recent piece on Time-dot-com that breaks down the US companies ditching DEI (that’s diversity, equity and inclusion for anyone who hates it but doesn’t actually know what it’s all about—and you should Google it) measures under the new Trump administration. Let us be clear that we are staunchly anti-Trump and think Elon Musk is the biggest piece of shit in recent piece of shit memory, so when companies like Walmart and Target and McDonald’s and Amazon (all places from which people get food) kowtow to their deeply racist and oligarchic bullshit, we might want to spend our dollars elsewhere. Which reminds us—if you’re into Trump or Musk, no need to write us or anything, but you can definitely find a different newsletter to read. We’re here for the queers and the people of color and the trans and nonbinary folks, and the women—and that’s not gonna change. Food is political, we’re afraid, as we just don’t have room for people who are OK with the rampant racism, misogyny and homophobia. K? K.
A Totally Scientific Breakdown of The Fork’s Correspondence
In the print edition of this week’s SFR, more info on the Café Castro goings-on that you’re very likely gonna wanna read. Just know that they’re not closing.
Number of Letters Received
3
*We seriously thought we’d gotten it together on this, but we’re still working on it! Our email is thefork@sfreporter.com, and once we figure out how to respond again, we’ll write back like we have for years—promise!
Most Helpful Tip (A Barely Edited Comment From a Reader)
“I think your little thing is really fun!”
*This is from our mom, though, so it doesn’t count.
Actually Helpful Tip
“The Fork has steered us to several eateries that we would have not enjoyed without Fork’s guidance. Thanks for the information and humor.”
*Reader Bob D. not only made our heartstrings zing, he’s right about how super-helpful we are. Dang, Bob, thanks!
Cheesed,
The Fork
