La Mama

Oh we love the simplicity of La Mama's environment ! The food is beautiful and delicious.

A worldly, food-savvy friend insisted on taking me to this cafe, and I fell in love with the place instantly. It wasn't on my radar because I'd thought of it as a natural wine bar and had given up alcohol to meet the demands of a strict diet to resolve a long-term health project. In the meantime, I look forward to sampling those wines. La Mama attracts a diverse clientele, and everyone looks interesting... loners, kibbitzers, locals, tourists, families, hipsters, bookish types, fashionistas, outdoorsy folks, and those in between, with a decent range of price points. If you wanted to have a private conversation with a friend, you could do it upstairs in the off-the-beaten-track seating area; the portal is great for people-watching; lively family fun happens in the back patio; and the main room has a communal table plus two and four-tops, also featuring imported gourmet groceries lined up for sale on shelves and in an open-air cooler. On more than one occasion, a luminous manager named Reina has been in attendance. She makes me feel like I'm a guest in her home. In fact, the whole staff has never been less than gracious. The baristas are top-notch, producing a smooth, lush decaf latte with lingering chocolaty notes every single time. No supercilious, strung-out caffeine crabs behind the espresso machine here. My experience with the menu is limited, but the organic eggs over-medium with mushrooms, served with the lightly dressed, super-fresh salad, accompanied by Bread Shop bread and butter, are expertly prepared. How I feel after I eat is at least as important as how much I enjoy the food while consuming it— in other words, clean is QUEEN. If you've worked in the hospitality industry, you know it takes enormous dedication to make something this good feel this easy. Local, independent restaurants nourish us in so many ways; they inspire us to get out of the house, expand our palates, dress up, reconnect, and celebrate ourselves and each other. At La Mama, you can do it all, and do it in style.

Nice place for wine, beer and nibbles. They also have meals if you prefer. The service is attentive and helpful in making recommendations. Great date night place.

I’ve come here 3 days in a row for breakfast and coffee during my visit to Santa Fe. The food and pastries are very tasty, balanced flavors, fresh and skillfully simple and served in a timely manner. I like simple food done well, it’s not easy to do. It reminds me of home cooking if I had a culinary background and had better culinary skills lol. The coffee is also really really smooth - Proud Mary’s out of Australia. Yum. Come here, hang and do a little grocery shopping, too.

Farm to table food that didn’t cost an arm and a leg, in Santa Fe? That was such a pleasant surprise. The spectacularly flavorful food is housed off of The Plaza in a renovated home turned restaurant/provisions space. We were escorted upstairs, with no reservation on a Saturday evening, possibly due to the local fiesta going on, but we were skeptical at first. We got some amazing window seating with a fresh breeze flowing the aromas of the house around, and we were enticed by the unique menu offerings. The focaccia bread we got as a starter was served with a side of creamy ricotta and completed the pillowy carbs perfectly. These were washed down by a perfect balanced cocktail. I was spoiled with some of the creamiest shrimp Mac and cheese that had the perfect hint of lemon to nod to the seafood floating on the risotto waved. My partner excitedly grubbed on a lamb burger that was accented perfectly with the garnish it had, and yes I had a bite too! The chocolate mousse dessert was sprinkled with sea salt and topped with some of the most tart and sweet raspberry jam I’ve had on a dessert, and it was fantastic. Farm to table, elevated, but not overpriced and a thoroughly thought through menu will entice us to try this spot again when we’re in town.