Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
336
Avoid the dry rellenos and the soggy tacos. The tostadas (tortilla cups filled with beans
and topped with chile and cheese) are a house specialty. There's a full-service bar.
2410 Calle de San Albino (southeast corner of Old Mesilla Plaza).
&
575/524-3524.
Reservations recom-
mended. Main courses $6-$17. AE, DC, DISC, MC, V. Sun and Tues-Thurs 11am-9pm; Fri-Sat 11am-
9:30pm.
Lorenzo's Restaurante Italiano de Old Mesilla
SICILIAN In a spirited
building with lots of brick and with murals depicting rural scenes on the walls, the res-
taurant offers the feel of a Sicilian village cafe, a good indication of the quality of the food
here. Rather than fancy Italian food like you find in many cities, this restaurant serves
traditional Sicilian meals, with lots of red sauces and homemade pasta. It's big with locals,
and it fills up, so you may want to make reservations. The atmosphere is jovial and the
service is good, though it can be a bit slow because the food is cooked in-house. You can't
go wrong with standards such as spaghetti marinara or lasagna; for something more
adventurous, try the linguini and clams. Meals are served with bread and a salad of
freshly tossed greens. Wash it down with a carafe of Chianti or your favorite beer.
1750 Calle de Mercado #4 (Onate Plaza, a block from Old Mesilla Plaza).
&
575/525-3174.
Reservations
recommended. Main courses $8-$16. AE, DISC, MC, V. Mon-Thurs 11am-9pm; Fri-Sat 11am-9:30pm; Sun
11-8:30pm.
12
DEMING & LORDSBURG
11
Deming: 44 miles SE of Silver City, 52 miles W of Las Cruces, 193 miles SW of Albuquerque; Lordsburg: 52
miles W of Deming, 36 miles SW of Silver City
New Mexico's least populated corner is this one, which includes the “boot heel” of the
Gadsden Purchase, poking 40 miles down toward Mexico (a great place for backpack-
ing). These two railroad towns, an hour apart on I-10, see a lot of traffic; but whereas
Deming
(pop. 14,500) is thriving as a ranching and retirement center,
Lordsburg
has
had a steady population of about 3,379 for years. This is a popular area for rockhounds,
aficionados of ghost towns, and history buffs.
Columbus,
32 miles south of Deming,
was attacked by the Mexican bandit-revolutionary Pancho Villa in 1916. The U.S. mili-
tary retaliated by sending 10,000 troops into Mexico to find him, to no avail.
ESSENTIALS
GETTING THERE
From Las Cruces, take I-10 west (1 hr. to Deming, 2 hr. to Lords-
burg). From Tucson, Arizona, take I-10 east (3 hr. to Lordsburg, 4 hr. to Deming).
Great Lakes Airlines
(
&
575/388-4115
) flies daily to
Grant County
Airport
(
&
575/
388-4554
), 15 miles south of Silver City, near Hurley. The
Las Cruces Shuttle Service,
P.O. Box 3172, Las Cruces, NM 88003 (
&
800/288-1784
or 575/525-1784; www.
lascrucesshuttle.com), runs several times daily between Deming and the El Paso airport
by way of Las Cruces.
VISITOR INFORMATION
The
Deming-Luna County Chamber of Commerce
is at
800 E. Pine St., Deming (
&
800/848-4955
or 575/546-2674; www.demingchamber.
com). The
Greater Hidalgo Area Chamber of Commerce
is at 117 E. 2nd St., Lords-
burg, NM 88045 (
&
575/542-9864
).
