So last time I left off with us NOT getting lunch on Museum Hill, and heading back to the Plaza. There, we got a seat at what has recently become our go-to restaurant in downtown--The Plaza Cafe.(1) This time, everything went fine for us. The service was pleasant, the food was good, and the pricing wasn’t terrible. What else could you ask from a restaurant?
I have, actually, gotten some heat from Santa Feans for my liking of the Plaza Cafe. I’m told that it is “all touristy.” To which I reply, with a smile and a nod, and a twinkle in my eye, “Oh, Fugue Off!” You see, I like the food, I like the place (has great indoor seating, and recently added some terrific outdoor seating as well. I’ll post some pictures), and, besides, give me a freaking break. I am a tourist. Why should I worry about the cafe being “touristy?”
Anyway, we ate and had a good time.
About the photos: Three today. First, two shots of the Plaza Cafe. An interior. And an exterior.
Next, and having nothing to do with the story (but I like the picture), a photo of Martha in the Pan Am Neighborhood Park in downtown Austin. It’s noted for its colorful murals.
Then, after that, we walked around the Plaza a bit and did some window shopping. We don’t buy much in the fancy shops of Santa Fe as a rule, mostly because, well, of the cost of everything. Martha gets nervous just looking at the price tags. (You can take the girl out of Scotland, but you can’t take the Scot out of the girl. Och aye!)
After that, we realized we were very tired, so we headed back to the hotel and crashed for the evening.
The next morning...this would be Thursday...did not begin well. We got out early for breakfast and, unfortunately, picked a place that proved a bit of a disaster. I won’t name it on the grounds that I don’t want to give them publicity, not even bad publicity, but suffice it was a new breakfast bakery and cafe that is highly recommended by Those Who Know Best.
We arrived at the place and found that there was no parking anywhere. We finally found a tiny spot behind the restaurant which was almost inaccessible. Then we went inside and were, promptly, ignored by the staff. (Again?!) Finally, after I hunted down the seater (she was looking at her phone), we were conducted with a considerable amount of adolescent sullenness to a table.
Which was when the fun part started. We were ignored by the staff until we were just about to leave and then a waitress appeared. She was pleasant enough but never quite got our order right. Several of items were “sold out” and it took two tries for us to get our coffees.
When the food finally came, we found that it was okay...not terrific, but okay. It was also different from what we’d thought we were ordered. I had asked for scrambled eggs and a croissant. When my breakfast came, I discovered that it was a sandwich. The croissant was big, not flaky, and very much like a piece of white bread. It had been cut in half and eggs shoveled inside. I checked again, and nowhere on the menu did it say that it was a sandwich.
We ate, finally, and paid (way too much), and we were on our way.(2)
It was back to the Plaza after that. We spent the rest of the day there. And, unlike breakfast, things went well. We hit a couple of the museums -- The Georgia O’Keeffe Museum (3) and the New Mexico Museum of Art (4). Then we walked along in front of the Palace Of The Governors, which is the ancient site of government here, when this was all part of the Spanish Empire. Today, it is another museum, and out in front (mostly) Native American artisans offer their wares, mostly jewelry and some pottery. I always try to get Martha to let me buy her something there. I succeed. Once. Just once. But once.
After that, we had a bit of lunch. We had wanted to eat at the bar at the Hotel St. Francis, at which we’ve stayed at exactly once, as a treat.(5) It’s an amazing hotel, really. In fact, I even wanted to use it aa a location in a novel I started one time. But, perhaps fortunately, nothing ever came of it. (6)
But, it turned out the bar didn’t serve food until later, but the very pleasant man behind the counter suggested we try Del Charro (“Santa Fe’s Watering Hole”), which was just down the street.(7) We did and it turned out just fine. We had an excellent “Lupper.” (8)
After that, it was back to the hotel.
And that was to be our final day in Santa Fe on this particular trip. But there was a still a little revelation ahead of us.
More to come.
Footnotes:
1. Specifically, we went to the Plaza Cafe Downtown, which is the original version of the restaurant. It’s website is here: https://www.plazacafedowntown.com/
2. At the Hill, the problem had been, I think, Class. Here, I suspect, the issue was age. We were out of place for being a little too old to be cool. Which is interesting because I wasn’t cool when I was young, either. Is there a state of posthumous coolness? Maybe my only hope for suavity yet.
3. The Georgia O’Keeffe Museum’s website is here: https://okeeffemuseum.org/
4. The New Mexico Museum of Art’s website is here:www.nmartmuseum.org/
5. The Hotel St. Francis website is here: https://www.hotelstfrancis.com/
6. It was...er, ah...sort of a horror novel. In it, the rather dim-witted hero meets a beautiful woman at the bar there, and she turns out to be a werewolf. I never got around to finishing it. Probably for the best. Although, who knows, maybe one of these days I’ll get inspired again. Or, if we’re all lucky, I won’t.
7. Del Charro’s webpage is here: https://delcharro.com/
8. No. Really. It’s a word. Lunch-Supper. I swear. Go here: https://www.urbandictionary.com/define.php?term=lupper
Copyright©2024 Michael Jay Tucker
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