the rest of new mexico = mostly disappointing meals

We had a reservation at Cafe Pasquale's but wound up canceling it. I just wasn't in the mood to spend that much money. The prices seemed a little outrageous to me - a plate of garlic fries for $11, a filet mignon for $39. The cheapest option is a veggie Thai green curry for $21. So we headed to The Famous Plaza Cafe, which is basically a diner with a Southwestern twist. We stared with chips and a trio of salsas and the three bean house salad, which also came with carrots, beets and jicama.

Salsa verde, salsa rojas and pico de gallo.

Dan's steak and enchiladas. I think he liked the enchiladas ok, but the steak was pretty terrible. It was tough and chewy and mostly inedible.

My carnitas platon with chile slathered on Christmas-style. Also underwhelming. The pork tasted like it was marinated in ketchup. Our entrees came out moments after our starters and we were seated by an a/c vent so our food cooled off before we knew it.

These sopapillas were really good though. Hot fried dough rarely disappoints. Squirt bottles of honey were available at all tables and made for a great accompaniment.

On our way to Texas, we stopped at Pete's Cafe in Belen, NM. We had high, high hopes for this institution which turned out to be a big dud. Dan's chicken enchilada's were dry and lacking in flavor.

My queso was even worse. It tasted like Play-Doh. What a shame. Honestly, it might have been the worst I've ever had. It mostly went untouched and I never ever leave even a drop of queso behind.

After sliding down sand dunes at the White Sands Monument, we settled in at the very comfortable and charming Hacienda De Mi Madre bed and breakfast in Tularosa. Tularosa is one sleepy town and a place where the restaurants shut down at 8pm. This made for very limited dinner options. I won't even say where we ate, but it was a chain and one we've eaten at on an entirely different continent. The next morning, we had a big breakfast waiting for us: eggs, bacon, fresh fruit salad, apple pancakes and homemade biscuits. Yum. If you're ever in the area, this is a recommended place to stay. We had an ensuite room, with the biggest bathroom ever. No tv or internet, but it was only for a night. There was a small pot of homemade strawberry spice jam waiting for us on the nightstand and upon checkout, we got some kettle corn courtesy of the gift shop down the street.

After eating, we sat outside for a bit and saw a ton of hummingbirds. I couldn't stop staring at them. The B&B also had a fig tree in the backyard, this one I found especially cute.