Nestled 7,000 feet high at the base of the Rocky Mountains, Santa Fe is known for its expansive turquoise sky, summer and winter mountain sports, art galleries, Pueblo-style architecture, and nationally recognized restaurants. Boasting the oldest church in the country (built by Spanish Conquistadors in the 1600s), this is also one of the earliest wine regions in the United States due to the import of European grapevines to make wine for Mass.
Nowadays, thirsty travelers can also enjoy the area’s recent explosion of surrounding craft breweries, cideries, and distilleries. This small town of about 80,000 people even celebrates imbibing with two annual festivals sandwiching the popular summer tourist season: NM Cocktails & Culture Culinary Festival returns May 31-June 2, and Santa Fe Wine & Chile Fiesta is in September.

[Bell Tower Santa Fe]
All visits to Santa Fe should start at the plaza. The best overlook to the city’s bustling heartbeat is the second-floor balcony of the Draft Station, which features local beers on tap (try the Marble Red) and order-in gourmet pies from Rooftop Pizzeria, where green chile is a must add-on ingredient.
From there, a short jaunt toward the majestic St. Francis Basilica delivers the Hotel La Fonda on the Plaza, a famed Fred Harvey hotel, and the swanky craft cocktail lobby bar Fiesta Lounge. Atop the hotel, Bell Tower offers a bird’s eye view of Santa Fe’s famous sunsets. While there, sip on a Daizy, made with the bar’s own barrel of Patron Añejo tequila (selected in Jalisco, Mexico, for La Fonda), mixed with orange and elderflower liqueurs.

[Eloisa Santa Fe]
Downtown Santa Fe is dotted with more fine restaurants than a small town has a right to. Sazon presents Mexican-born Chef Fernando Olea’s impeccable upscale south-of-the-border cuisine with sumptuous cocktail offerings such as the Diego Rivera (tequila, mezcal, coconut and lychee liqueur, passion fruit purée, and an edible orchid) from its cozy Santa-Fe style bar.

[Anasazi Restaurant]
Spanish influence is everywhere in Santa Fe, so paella and sangria at El Meson’s bar on Washington Street go down easy while taking in a tableside flamenco show. Tapas at La Boca, on the opposite block, has a beautifully curated selection of sherries, Spanish wines, and live guitar, sometimes played by chef/owner James Caruso himself.
Visitors wanting a more immersive dinner-and-flamenco experience can drive five minutes down Canyon Road to rustic-yet-modern El Farol. Afterwards, pop into the atmospheric bar at Geronimo and ask barman Shaun Adams for his creation of the day. Oenophiles will regale at the wine list at yet another James Beard-honored chef, Mark Kiffin’s Compound, a few steps from there.

[Compound Bar Santa Fe]

[Coyote Café and Cantina]

[Tonic Santa Fe]
Railyard
The Santa Fe railroad helped shape the American West. Today, after years of being relatively undeveloped, the neighborhood surrounding the historic train stop has sprung to life with gastropubs, shopping, second-hand stores, and theaters. The decades-old, once-shuttered, single-screen Jean Cocteau Cinema is open again thanks to new owner, author George R.R. Martin. Before taking in an indie flick, enjoy a drink from the adorable, closet-sized bar (maybe try a cocktail honoring his Game of Thrones characters, or buy an autographed book).

[Jean Cocteau Cinema]
A short diagonal walk brings you to Agua Fria Street and Joseph’s Culinary Pub, a homey spot with an emphasis on locally sourced dishes and a robust selection of interesting wines, beers, and house-made kombucha.
If cider tickles your fancy, New Mexico Hard Cider is a hop-skip-and-jump across Paseo de Peralta Street on lower Cerrillos Road. Owner Craig Moya is a former firefighter whose family’s apple orchard in nearby Española inspired his brewing. Get the $10 Pint & Dog special (the sour cherry cider with red chile dog is highly recommended). Not far on, Social at the Sage Inn pours generous cocktails and fresh fare from the Farmer’s Market just across the street, in the core of the Railyard district.

[Social Santa Fe]
Midtown
Welcome to hipsterville! A 10-minute drive south on Agua Fria drops you at Tumbleroot Brewery and Distillery. Not only are its craft beers and spirits made just a few miles away from the multi-purpose taproom (dance space, large patio, indoor bar), but the food comes from the creator of the immensely popular Bang Bite food truck.

[Tumbleroot Brewery & Distillery]
If you’d rather skip the razzle-dazzle of on-trend hotspots, settle on to a barstool or dog-friendly patio at Rowley Farmhouse Ales. This down-to-earth brewery and gastropub focuses on national award-winning farmhouse and sour ales with comfort food such as poutine and chicken and waffles. (Bonus: These guys raise money for various dog rescues.)

[Paloma Santa Fe]
Southside
This area of Santa Fe doesn’t get much love from tourists—and the locals kind of like it that way.

[Float Cafe at Meow Wolf’s House of Eternal Return]
Tesuque
Tesuque is its own village located just outside Santa Fe city limits, but the tree-lined, two-lane Bishop’s Lodge backroad beckons. Start out early, because brunch at Tesuque Village Market (inside a ramshackle, wooden house) fills up quickly—but pastries, provisions, and booze bottles are sold to go.
El Nido is another old-made-new-again restaurant that was popular in the 1980s with then-resident celebrities such as Sam Shepard, Jessica Lange, and Shirley MacLaine. After its own facelift and revamped menu, El Nido offers Italian country fare and full bar.

[Terra Santa Fe]