All across America, you’ll find an incredible range of comfort foods, from the traditional Amish dessert in Pennsylvania known as funeral pie — flaky double crust filled with custard and raisins — to the Minnesota Bundt cake. In the Midwest, the hot dish is a comfort food staple, a casserole of chicken or tuna, canned soup, tater tots or pasta, and peas or corn.
Down South, they feast on fried chicken, deviled eggs, and potato and Jell-O salads and in New Orleans, it’s often jambalaya. In the South Carolina Lowcountry, they turn to frogmore stew, a popular seafood boil. In Utah, solace is found in funeral potatoes, a gooey panful of cheddar cheese, crispy hash browns and cream of mushroom soup topped with potato chips crumbles and sour cream.
Hawaiian comfort food includes chow mein noodles and laulau, a traditional take on finger sandwiches made with pork or chicken wrapped in taro leaves then steamed on a stove.
We have our own version in New Mexico that includes enchiladas, green chile stew, tamales and sopapillas sopped in honey.
Best Places to Get Comfort Food in Santa Fe
If the state of the world has you in need of food that feeds your soul as well as your stomach, here are some of my favorite comfort foods served up in Santa Fe restaurants. This is a short list, as there are so many freat options around town and I’m sure you have your favorites, too. I’d love to hear what those are (you can add them to the comments below), as we can also use a little comfort food these days.
Eloisa
At the Drury Hotel’s Eloisa, John Rivera Sedlar offers down-to-earth fare inspired by the foods his grandmother, Eloise Rivera, taught him to make. His take on corn chowder is an elixir for the soul. The silky soup, garnished with roasted corn fresh off the cob, smoky pancetta and a black bean puree garnish, is manna from the Gods, and will restore your faith in humankind. And his exquisitely tender pork and red-chile tamale is another balm for the spirit, wrapped in a fragrant banana leaf and served with fresh salsa. A few bites of this dish will transport you to
Shake Foundation
We already know that a green chile cheeseburger can work wonders. But the one served up at Shake Foundation is a miracle worker, indeed. Add a heap of shoestring fries and one of the best milk shakes in town, and you’ve got a meal that will soothe your soul. One of my favorite dishes in town is Shake’s Fried Oyster Sandwich, as it reminds me of the oyster rolls I can’t wait to devour on Cape Cod, where my family has spent summer vacations for years. This version is the real deal. The fried oysters are crunchy on the outside and juicy on the inside, tucked into a soft bun along with lettuce and tomato, and topped with a red chile mayo that’s just fantastic. One bit of this gem and I can almost smell the salty breeze by the ocean.
Loyal Hound
The Loyal Hound is all about comfort food, so just about every dish on the menu will make you feel good. But one of my favorites is the Mac & Cheese, a gooey concoction featuring cavatappi pasta enveloped by a sauce made with Tucumcari cheddar and Gruyère. You can enhance the comfort factor by adding green chile, applewood smoked bacon, roasted mushrooms or grilled free-range chicken…or be utterly decadent and add them all. Another over-the-top option here is Pork and Waffles, a creative pairing of an herbed Belgian waffle drizzled with maple syrup and covered with braised Kyzer Farms pork in a housemade spicy BBQ sauce. The whole thing is then topped with green chile slaw, and one bite will have you feeling great.
This article was posted by Jesse Williams
