This was possibly the worst Mexican and definitely the worst New Mexican food I have ever had. I am a New Mexico native who was looking for a place to get my fix a little closer to home. I usually go to Si Señor in Chandler - it is fantastic, but a 50 minute drive for me.
At the Carlsbad Tavern, I tried the Enchanted Platter - a sampling of their offerings and the Green Chile Macaroni and Cheese.
- Black Beans instead of Refried Pintos? - only in highfalutin Santa Fe
- Heavily breaded Rellenos?- yuck - not only was there too much breading (breading! not traditional light egg/flour batter) the breading just plain tasted bad
- The Green chile may have been Hatch, but just scooped out of can on top of enchiladas not the wonderful "Green Chile sauce" found in NM.
-Sopapillas were served with your dinner plate! Right on top of the rice so they got very cold while you ate your meal. Not at all the nice hot puffy fried dough that should come at the end of the meal (see Si Senor!)
- The only thing that was edible was the green chile macaroni and cheese- not exactly a traditional NM dish, but it was the only good tasting item we had here
- Both the Red and Green Chile were flavorless - really did a disservice to people who want to get aquainted with New Mexican Food
Bottom Line: If you are looking for traditional Southern New Mexico cuisine, skip Carlsbad Tavern & go to Si Señor in Chandler - that's what I'm gonna do!