A Walk Up Canyon Road...

My sister Susan and I took a walk up Canyon Road in Santa Fe, New Mexico this past Saturday afternoon, and had a really nice time.  The weather was warm and sunny, and the art galleries that lined the road were as fascinating as ever.  And everyone we met was outgoing and friendly, especially since we had Susan's dogs Tutu and Blackberry with us.  Tutu is a tiny little Yorkie (seen in the photo on the left being held by Susan), while Blackberry is a black cairn terrier that greets everyone as if they were long lost friends she hasn't seen in years.

By the time we reached El Farol, a pretty well-known restaurant in Santa Fe, Susan announced she needed a wine break, and found that the restaurant happy hour was from 3 to 5 (perfect!) and the front patio was dog friendly (damn lucky).  The building housing El Farol has been in existence since 1835, back when the first art galleries and restaurants opened up on Canyon Road to serve early Spanish colonialist hipsters.  El Farol, by the way, has been called by none other than the New York Times "one of the Best Bars on Earth,"  which you have to admit is pretty high praise.  I have to say, they do serve a pretty mean IPA - La Cumbre Elevated IPA, which I have never tried before and which they do not sell for some reason here in Colorado.  I can recommend it highly, especially after a long walk uphill trying to persuade someone they do not need to purchase $500 knickknacks. I wonder if the New York Times writer had a few of these before writing his article?

It all made for a very pleasant end to the walk.  Plus, Susan treated.  Talk about win-win. Thank God I was able to stop Susan from making any pricey purchases, which might have ended with me picking up the bar tab.  Which to be truthful, since it was happy hour, was not all that much.  However, if you do happen to come to Santa Fe and want to have dinner here, I suspect it might be a bit pricey.  I am, of course, a notorious cheapskate, and decided to check the restaurant's website when I got home.  They have a Flamingo Dinner Show on Saturday nights, which I am sure is wonderful, but they do not put their prices on the online menus.  And if you have to ask...