Las Cruces, NM

Anyone been to Las Cruces, NM? I will be visiting soon, and I was just wondering how the town is, and what the eats are like (mostly mexican and new-mexican, i'm presuming).

I'm sending a link to the Visitor's Bureau website. I almost moved to LC for my SO's work, we looked very hard at the area and it does have a lot to offer. There are the beautiful Organ Mountains nearby, a lot of outdoor activities all year around, and a lot of history. You might enjoy Old Mesilla and it's fountained square. La Posa de Mesilla is near there and a great place for New Mexican/Mexican food. Just as a reminder, it's 90 there now and the bright New Mexican sky can really sizzle the skin!

http://www.lascrucescvb.org/html/las_cr ... ining.html

A few years ago, I used to visit El Paso regularly and would find myself wandering around looking for food. State Line Barbeque on the northern edge of ElPaso near the Texas-New Mexico Border was pretty good.

When it comes to chain burgers, I think that What a Burger rates right up there with In N Out. There are plenty of them in the area.

Oh--thanks for the El Paso heads up. I didn't realize it was so close. What's El Paso like as a culinary or cultural city?

I have seen heaven, and it's gate is billed as "Chope's." This is what I wanted to write. Since I arrived here in sunny (read: blisteringly hot) Las Cruces, people have been saying that Chope's, 20 miles from Las Cruces in La Mesa (Spanish for, "The Mesa"), is orgasmically good. Well, I've never been one to soil my pants after a taco (well, at least not the front of my pants), so I went with some newly-acquired friends. Chope's is interesting. It's basically a roadhouse bar (read: Patrick Swayze in "Roadhouse"), wherein you can get a 40 oz. of High Life for a pittance. There is an adjacent restaurant where most of the people sans bikes and tattoo-sleeved arms eat. After downing a few beers, we headed to the restaurant. They are famous for their chile rellenos. I got a combination plate--Chile Verde con Carne (basically pureed green chiles grown in nearby Hatch) with tender chunks of beef or pork--a red enchilada, a chile relleno (again, using a Hatch chile--which are about as big as Poblanos, only more slender), and rice and beans. The food, at first bite, was very very good. But, again, not ridiculously good. The chile had great heat with succulent beef pieces, and the enchilada was a rich sauced wonder. (One great thing about this place, however, is that the kitchen is an actual kitchen, as in, one that you might have in your house--not a restaurant kitchen at all, but one with wooden cabinets and a sink and a regular stove.) Perhaps the food is described as being so good on account of the adjacent bar (both prices and atmosphere). The chile relleno was actually the best I've had, due to the great egg white batter fried to perfection, the spiciness of the chile inside, and the cheese, which, interestingly, was of the yellow persuasion. One thing that I find interesting about this place--no mole anywhere. I guess I need to throw a wedding for that.
As I left Chope's, i realized that the food is of a sort that builds slowly in your memory, that you start to pine for it as soon as you leave, that it bubbles up in your recollections until you must return again. Food that is better always in memory, but is a recurrent memory nonetheless.
As we were seated at the bar, I heard someone in the corner shout "Benny! Benny's back everyone!" And who is Benny? Oh, only a mouse scurrying around the barstools. As the bartender returned from releasing Benny from the confines of the bar, she shouted, "Hey--whoever's got the Lexus needs to move it, as it's blocking Benny's spot." This elicted great laughter--this is not the sort of place to bring a nice car. The owner, indeed, was forced to move it, shamefaced and red at the thought, perhaps, that he had worked his way up the "social ladder" enough to acquire such a car, only to be ridiculed for it on account of a well-received rodent.
Yet another thing--there's a farmers and crafts market every Wednesday and Saturday morning here in Las Cruces--less produce than crafts, but I came upon an old woman who was selling fist-sized bags of what she billed as saffron. Indeed, it looked like saffron, but, i'm not kidding, she was selling them for TWO DOLLARS. um, so, i was a mite unconvinced. When I asked her why it was so cheap, she said she couldn't hear. So, I yelled instead, "Where do you get this?" To which she replied, "We grow it!" Hoping to ascertain this, I said, "From a flower?" She said yes, we pick it from a flower. Then she picked up her paper and abruptly ended the conversation. So, if anyone has thoughts on what this might be, I'd be happy to hear them. Or, if anyone wants me to send them some cheap-ass saffron (maybe it's saffron), let me know and I'll send you some. (of course, for the price of 2 dollars plus shipping, which should amount to about 3 or 4 dollars or so.)
Cheers,
Parker

Re the "saffron," I'd guess Mexican marigold or safflower petals.

I've just accepted a six month work assignment in Las Curces, NM. I will be there for two weeks and then back in Chicago for a week for that period. Anyone with any experience in the area? When I take these type of assignments I usually eat out about 20% and cook for myself the rest of the time.

The last time I was in that area I remember eating at a cafe on an Indian reservation. The food was good but what I really remember was a sign that said "Try our Green Chile - no white man has ever finished a bowl."

It's a good thing you plan on doing your own cooking, Las Cruces' dining scene is pretty slim unless you count the growing inclusion of national chains. One place we have enjoyed over the years is La Posta in Mesilla for Mexican and some New Mexican items. They've been around since the 1930's and the building and area are quite charming. Chope's in LaMesa, just out of town, is well known for it's green chile cheese burgers. There are a number of steakhouses, none which come to mind as being better than another. We seriously considered a job at the University there but after looking into things, were disappointed in the lack of many things we consider important. It's a beautiful area though and we enjoyed visiting the pecan farm, winery and Hatch for chiles.

wesuilmo wrote:I've just accepted a six month work assignment in Las Curces, NM. I will be there for two weeks and then back in Chicago for a week for that period. Anyone with any experience in the area? When I take these type of assignments I usually eat out about 20% and cook for myself the rest of the time.

The last time I was in that area I remember eating at a cafe on an Indian reservation. The food was good but what I really remember was a sign that said "Try our Green Chile - no white man has ever finished a bowl."

If you are expecting Las Cruces to be a GREAT food destination, you will find the selections to be somewhat limiting. However. I have been there four or five times and i have NEVER had difficulty finding a very good meal. Here are some recommendations from a few years ago:

viewtopic.php?f=15&t=8476&hilit=las+cruces

First, there is a great farmer's market in downtown every Saturday morning. There is a lot of great food as well as fresh produce. However, the top item you will find at the market are some of the handmade crafts. One older man makes hand paintings of the various saints.

Second, like many southwestern towns, you can find a number of street vendors in various parking lots selling tacos. Many of them are pretty good.

Third, if you head to Mesilla, there are five or six very good restaurants. Personally, I took my nephew to Andele's, a small family-run restaurant for fajitas and we were very happy with the excellent food, great service and a price that was very reasonable.

Fourth, you are an hour away from El Paso which has any number of good restaurants as well as Cuidad Juarez, a city of two million people.

Like most cities in that region, you will find some very good New Mexican, some pretty decent Mexican food, at least a couple pretty good Chinese places and all the chain places that you would want.

I second the recommendation of heading to Old Mesilla. It's fun because of all the history that passed through the town (you can spend the whole day just reading historic markers), but it's also a great place to dine. Pepper's Cafe and The Double Eagle are in the same building -- a historic edifice that was once the governors mansion (a governor who was, in fact, an Indiana native who later authored "Ben Hur"). Pepper's, which is in the courtyard of the mansion, is great -- all the recipes use Hatch chiles, and I had an outstanding chile relleno. I didn't dine at Double Eagle, but I wandered through, and it was gorgeous. It is said to have the only dedicated beef aging room in New Mexico.

Most of the restaurants in town have interesting histories, so there's that bonus.

On my "next time" list is La Posta de Mesilla, said to be world renowned, and also said to have the largest tequila collection in the Southwest.

I have friends I visit regularly in Alamogordo (not much more than an hour drive from Las Cruces, and very much worth visiting, if only for the astonishing White Sands dune field, though the outlet stores for pistachio and pecan orchards are another draw), and so Las Cruces/Old Mesilla is just a day trip for us, and I've never eaten outside of the Old Mesilla part of town. But have eaten very well in that part of town.

Once you get to Old Mesilla, just walk around the main square in the historic district, and you'll find a good restaurant in every block.

Hmmm. I think it's about time to plan another trip to Alamogordo.

Cynthia wrote:I have friends I visit regularly in Alamogordo (not much more than an hour drive from Las Cruces, and very much worth visiting, if only for the astonishing White Sands dune field, though the outlet stores for pistachio and pecan orchards are another draw), and so Las Cruces/Old Mesilla is just a day trip for us, and I've never eaten outside of the Old Mesilla part of town. But have eaten very well in that part of town.

The ride between Las Cruces and El Paso has the pecan orchards which are fun to visit. Stahmann Farms has a great gift shop and serves somem of the best ice cream in the area,

http://www.stahmanns.com/pages.aspx?id=&docid=93

There are also a couple of wineries in the area,

Luna Rossa Winery · (575) 526-2484
1750 Calle De Mercado ·
Las Cruces

Saint Clair Winery & Bistro · (575) 524-0390
1800 Avenida De Mesilla # B
· Las Cruces ·


If all else fails, there are several restaurant in Hatch, NM. I did not have time to eat there as we hit it around 3 pm.

Here is another interesting link:

http://www.city-data.com/forum/las-cruc ... rants.html