By Jim Hammond
El Farol Restaurant in Santa Fe
Flamenco, paella dishes, and Spanish Rioja wines are inextricably combined in my mind since experiencing them in a cantina above the Costa del Sol. Rioja Reservas and Gran Reservas are the ultimate expressions of the Tempranillo grape in Spain. Paella is a national dish of innumerable variations, and flamenco, its heart and soul. The intimate cantina located in the cliff-topped town of Mijas high above Malaga added to the magic.
Tapas dining right here at home
Rather than return to España for this triumvirate of wine, food, and dance, I searched locally for the experience. El Farol, billed as Santa Fe’s oldest restaurant and cantina, is a rambling structure of zigzagging dining rooms on Canyon Road that offers all three. Alas, this Saturday there was no flamenco dancing and no Spanish guitar piped in for ambience. Missing that, I focused on the food and wine.
El Farol offers many enticing tapas dishes and could classify as a tapas restaurant. Why is it that whenever I mention a tapas restaurant to a friend, he looks at me like I just said topless restaurant? But I digress. The tapas were quite tasty, including the two delivered to our table, compliments of the chef, a nice compliment, indeed. The Salazars, owners of El Farol, claim they first brought tapas dining to Santa Fe, and offer a cookbook of 100 tapas recipes.
Vino bravísimo!
I was happiest with the wine selections, however. I don’t believe a tapas restaurant is complete unless it has a full menu of Spanish wines. Here I found numerous Rioja Reservas and Gran Reservas, the wines of Albariño, and those of Ribera del Duero among others. I didn’t find an Amontillado among the sherries, however.
In Spain, as in Europe in general, a reserve wine is a wine crafted from the best grapes, handled with greater care, and aged longer. It is not a marketing ploy, as is the case of many domestic wines. A Gran Reserva spends two years in oak and three years in bottle before release, assuring a well-developed wine.
The 2001 Marqués de Cáceres Rioja Gran Reserva I chose brought me back to Mijas with the first sip. The earthy nose held smoky cherry wrapped in cedar and tobacco, lots of red fruit and vanilla on the palate, and a lovely finish of dusky satin tannins. The markup was also quite modest. Bravo!
Magilla paella
The Gambas Parrilladas of shrimp in spicy cream sauce started things right. My main course was the Parillado Misto of prawns, chorizo, and lamb chops in a chimichurri sauce. My companions shared the paella for one. Eyeing the pan overflowing with clams, shrimp, rice, and mussels, I was sure they meant paella for one gorilla.
The food was well prepared, imaginative, and had a great companion in the wine list. The staff was friendly, and the intimacy of many of the dining rooms kept the background noise level down. I’ll definitely be back for the staccato tap of shoe and swirling skirts of flamenco, while sipping another Rioja. Ole!
Recipe: Gambas Parrilladas
Cream sauce ingredients:
1 cup mango puree
1 cup heavy cream
1 tablespoon chipotle pepper
Dash of salt and pepper
Combine ingredients in pot, bring to boil, remove from heat immediately.
In skillet, cook ½ lb. of shelled, deveined shrimp in small amount of oil or butter.
Pour sauce over shrimp and serve.
El Farol Flamenco
808 Canyon Road
Santa Fe, NM 87501-2726
(505) 983-9912
—Jim Hammond is a contributing editor for albuquerqueARTS.
Jim Hammond, the Wine Guy
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