Paloma Restaurant — Restaurant in Santa Fe

We had high expectations for dining at Paloma based on the scarcity of reservations available. But our hopes were immediately dashed when we arrived for our 6:00pm reservation into a 2/3 empty dining room and promptly escorted to the worst table in the house... at a chokepoint where the servers get their drinks from a corner of the bar right at the entrance to the kitchen. [There were many empty tables for two adjacent to the table they brought us to.]

The servers were untrained (who walks up to a table and just stands there without saying "Can I take your order?") and clumsy. The bus person told me to keep my dirty fork and placed it on the table so it could be reused for dessert. Why?

Every aspect was disappointing. Soon after cocktails were placed on the table, the starters arrived. Why not give us a chance to enjoy the cocktails for a minute before bringing the food? That's a basic courtesy.

I ordered the pepita salad. The lettuce was fresh, but there was almost no dressing, which was listed on the menu as "creamy", but nothing that could be described as creamy was found on mine. It was basically an unseasoned pile of lettuce with a tiny bit of queso freco and some pepita seeds. The menu mentioned poblano and chives but none were on my flavorless salad.

We also ordered the "beet and melon aguachile" which was also a disappointment. The "golden beets" mentioned on the menu were, instead, a few thin slices of red beets, sandwiched between large thick slices of flavorless watermelon. Another uninteresting dish that sounded good, but was uninspired, and in need of seasoning.

The mushroom sopacitos were quite good, but the portion size was more geared to an appetizer than a main dish. The tuna dish was fine, with a nice presentation, but some promised ingredients were not noticeable.

The service (including bussing and other servers) was quite clumsy.... I didn't expect 4-star service, but even the most basic low-cost diners have better service than we received. It felt like everyone was hired that day, received no training and lacked common sense. Not what is expected for a restaurant at this price point. For example, long after we were done with our meal, we wondered when we would be asked if we wanted dessert. The server eyed our table for several passes, yet didn't stop by to see if we needed anything, enjoyed our food, or wanted dessert. It seems that the expectation is the patron must make the effort to notify the staff when they want something? We eventually gave up and changed our mind about getting an anticipated dessert, not wanting to prolong our disappointing experience.

The space itself is very basic, and little attention paid to providing a nice atmosphere. There is overly harsh lighting in the same room where the opposite side of the room (where the bar is located) has no lighting at all.... no overhead light, no wall sconces, nothing. Those tables are in a very dark space for some unknown reason. Why not put one lighting fixture in that space?

This place seems to be riding on its own success, depending on patrons who go because they heard it was good, rather than working a little harder to provide patrons with a basic level of service expected by a restaurant of this price point.

We really expected to like Paloma, but walked away...

This was my 4th day in Santa Fe and Paloma was by far the worst dining experience I have had, and one of the worst experiences I have ever had at a restaurant. The hostess placed me in what may have been the worst table in the restaurant. I asked if I could have a different table and she was rude and dismissive towards my request. It would have been fine if that is all that was available, but she didn't bother checking, her tone was condescending, and I was made to feel as though my request had inconvenienced her. That pretty much set the stage for the rest of my dining experience.

My server promptly came to my table but her attitude was indifferent and rushed, almost as if she wanted to be anywhere but at work. I thought maybe she was only this way with me, but she treated the couple next to me the same way. She took my order and I didn't see the server again until towards the end of my meal. This was problematic as I needed some help: I ordered an ice tea, which came unsweetened. Had she come by, I would have asked for sweetener or a diet soda. I also ran out of tortillas and was waiting for a while before I was able to ask for more.

I ordered the pollo sopes as an appetizer and the steak fajitas as my entree . The sopes were nice and the fajitas were okay. The steak was medium rare. Medium rare worked for me, but I was never asked how I wanted the steak, which seems like an important question. She brought the check almost as soon as the wait staff cleared the table, never if asking if I wanted dessert or anything else.

I honestly felt as though I didn't matter as a customer and that my presence at the restaurant was an inconvenience.

I spoke to the manager after I paid my bill and he was apologetic. But it was a bit awkward because my waiter and the hostess came by and it was clear they were trying to listen to what...

Was in town for a night and researched the best spots to eat in town and this restaurant was on a majority of the lists I saw. For a Friday night I was able to book a reservation just hours before, but apparently January is not peak tourist season so during peak season you probably want to plan ahead. The restaurant is not large but has a nice homely feel. Dinning alone I had a 2 seater table booth on the back wall and was close enough to the other tables to easily be involved in their conversations. Actually did have a nice conversation and got good bar recommendations for the night where I kater saw that couple. But if you want privacy. Maybe not the place for you. The Paloma cocktail was nice and refreshing. The salsa sampler is a Must!! Served with big tortilla chips. Save a bit of your favorite salsa to add to your dish if you can resist eating them all before. I had the braised short rib with the bean and corn mixture. It was good. The beef was super tender and shredded easily. A different combination with the beans but it was a good blend of texture and flavor profile. Could the portion of short rib have been larger for the price of the dish? I'd say yes. But nothing to complain about except for service felt a little slow. As a single dinner I felt the waitress was not very attentive. My first cocktail was empty for quite some time before she came back and by then I opted to just drink water instead of getting a 2nd cocktail. Prices seemed high for what you get, but this is in a prime location so I understand. From what I observed staff is very friendly and this seems like a place that the locals enjoy coming back to and that means a lot. Worth a try but I'd suggest browsing other photos to help with...