Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
292
From I-25, go 1 block southeast on US 84, and then half a mile southwest on Frontage
Road (also called Sheridan Rd.).
WHERE TO DINE IN LAS VEGAS
Blackjack's Grill
SEAFOOD/STEAKS Set in the Inn on the Santa Fe Trail,
this restaurant serves tasty food with a bit of flair. The main dining room is small and
cozy, done in bright colors with moody lighting. In the warmer months, diners can sit
on a patio under white cloth umbrellas. As befits the area, it's a fairly informal restaurant
that does fill up, so try to make reservations. Each night the chef serves some special
dishes. Most are fairly traditional. I've enjoyed beef medallions in wine sauce served with
garlic mashed potatoes. The pasta dishes, such as fettuccine Alfredo, can also be good.
Most meals come with bread, a choice of salad or soup, and a vegetable. A variety of
dessert specials are available. Beer and wine are served.
At the Inn on the Santa Fe Trail (see above), 1133 Grand Ave.
&
888/448-8438
or 505/425-6791. Reser-
vations recommended. Main courses $15-$22. AE, MC, V. Daily 5:30-9pm.
Plaza Hotel's Landmark Grill
Finds
AMERICAN/NEW MEXICAN Lately
this has become my favorite place to dine while looking out upon the graceful Las Vegas
plaza, with its towering elm trees. The restaurant, set in the historic 1882 Plaza Hotel,
has good food, especially the New Mexican and the grilled dishes. It has a sunny dining
room, with tables well spaced, adorned by the original 19th-century stenciling along the
walls. Service is good. At breakfast you might have egg and pancake dishes, and on Sun-
day for brunch, eggs Florentine (poached eggs, spinach, grilled tomato, and hollandaise
sauce on an English muffin), served with hash browns. Lunch brings salads, sandwiches,
burgers, pasta, and New Mexican food. I've enjoyed a grilled turkey with Swiss cheese
and green chile on rye. At dinner, you might enjoy a filet with bleu-cheese mushroom
sauce, or grilled pecan crusted trout with pecan butter, each served with salad, vegetable,
and choice of starch. Beer and wine accompany the menu. Byron T's 19th-century saloon
next door offers food daily from 2 to 5pm.
230 Plaza.
&
800/328-1882
or 505/425-3591. www.plazahotel-nm.com. Reservations recommended on
Fri-Sat nights. Main courses breakfast/brunch and lunch $5-$15; dinner $8-$25. AE, DC, DISC, MC, V.
Daily 7am-2pm and 5-9pm.
10
8
CIMARRON & RATON: ON THE SANTA FE
TRAIL
Cimarron: 35 miles E of Taos; 23 miles NE of Las Vegas; 76 miles NE of Santa Fe. Raton: 67 miles NE of Taos;
93 miles NE of Las Vegas; 111 miles NE of Santa Fe
CIMARRON
Few towns in the American West have as much lore or legend attached to them as Cimar-
ron, 41 miles southwest of Raton on US 64. Nestled against the eastern slope of the
Sangre de Cristo Mountains, the town (its name is Spanish for “wild” or “untamed”)
achieved its greatest fame as a wild and woolly outpost on the Santa Fe Trail from the
1850s to 1880s. It was a gathering place for area ranchers, traders, gamblers, gunslingers,
and other characters. Frontier personalities, such as Kit Carson and Wyatt Earp, Buffalo
Bill Cody and Annie Oakley, Bat Masterson and Doc Holliday, Butch Cassidy and Jesse
