The Shed — Restaurant in Santa Fe

We have been touring the state of New Mexico for the past month enjoying some of the best Mexican and Southwest fare ever, even from roadside stands. We were excited to eat here on our last night in the state. Long story short - typical tourist trap of a restaurant. Has the location, the look, decent service, but ghastly horrible food.

We started by waiting for a table about an hour in the bar area and had 2 decent margaritas along with some run of the mill chips, guacamole and salsa. The average quality of these items began to raise some flags.

For an appetizer we shared the grilled shrimp entree which was the highlight of the meal, nothing special, hardly seasoned in any way but enjoyable. Was disappointed that grilled shrimp was served with a side of cocktail sauce instead of something more appropriate and made onsite, a sauce with chillies perhaps? Weird and not creative. Another oddity that accompanied the entree,all entrees on the menu apparently , was a side of garlic bread. Just unusual and off the mark. The rice and calbacitas veg medley were done well and along with the shrimp was the most cohesive dish we had, aside from the cocktail sauce and garlic bread.

For our main course my GF got adobo chicken and I had the chicken enchilada and taco plate. These were both piles of boiled chicken slop on a plate. My taco had assorbed water from the beans and posole it was served with which turned it into mush and made it indistinguishable from the enchilada. The enchilada was the same combo of boiled chicken chunks, low grade pregrated packaged cheese and a watery enchilada sauce that the taco was. The beans and posole were both a type of bean so the plate had 2 very similar items on it, again another strange pairing. The song "white people taco night" on tik tok began playing in my head as I took a 2nd bite of the ugliest least appetizing plate of Mexican food I have ever been served. The adobo chicken had basically the same bland unseasoned white meat boiled chicken chunks and watery red sauce that my dish had but not wrapped in a straight from the box taco/ enchilada shell. I would have preferred a night at taco bell. Any Mexican chain restaurant such as South of the Border, etc absolutely blows this place away. Huge disappointment. I dig a little deeper than my GF when choosing a joint to eat this one was her call and she seemed excited by the reviews. I usually go right for the 1 star reviews and see if there is alignment about poor food quality. Do yourself a favor and take a good look at the pictures of the Mexican entrees in the 5 star reviews before deciding...

My review from 2022:

Very mixed feelings about The Shed. Service and atmosphere were very special, and I can see how this is a tourist favorite. I overheard many shop keepers in the Plaza recommend this place to visitors, which I could have interpreted as either a good thing or a warning. (It was both.) The bar service and selection was excellent, but ultimately the food fell flat.

GOOD: There's something very magical about the Shed, and the ambience alone is worth the hype. Walking into the courtyard feels like a trip back in time to old Santa Fe. My wife and I were especially impressed with the bar service and menu. I love all the varieties of margarita, and the one I ordered was above average. My wife had an excellent Mexican brandy that we would have been hard pressed to find elsewhere.

Service was also very good at the Shed, and it's another good reason to come here at least once. We were especially appreciative that our dog was not only welcomed, but treated as a guest. We didn't even have to request a bowl of water for her.

MEH: The menu is classic New Mexican, but the execution was atrocious. My enchiladas looked and smelled the part, and were certainly spicy enough. But the kitchen appeared to have taken some shortcuts. Even with the spicy green chili sauce, we could taste that absolutely no salt was used. As no salt was on the table, I had to eat a dish that was both spicy and bland at the same time. My wife's hamburger was ordered medium-rare but arrived as an overcooked hockey puck that I wish she had sent back.

The side dishes on each of our plates were OK, and our desert sorbet was pleasant.

SUMMARY: Come here for the experience (might be good for young children or older parents) and for the excellent bar menu. Side dishes are nice. But I would recommend against ordering entrees here unless you are elderly enough to not require basic seasoning.

This is a classic example of a famous restaurant losing its edge after years of traveler appeal. It's an existential danger in a tourist town like Santa Fe. Get your restaurant recommendations from friends and trusted guides, not from those involved in the...

We had a great dinner here while visiting Santa Fe! It’s hard to get a table here, but read on, and I will tell you how to get a table. It is an authentic local southwestern restaurant that is very popular with locals and tourists alike for it’s great menu, delicious appetizers and entrees, and it’s local vibe. We had the green chile burrito entree and the Pablano plate, and both were very well prepared and tasty. Fair warning… the green chile is authentic and very spicy, the red chile is less spicy. If you are not very tolerant of spicy food, be sure to ask them to put the sauce on the side. They will give you both red and green chile sauce, if you ask. The prices are very reasonable, also, in comparison to other local restaurants. It is VERY popular, so it’s pretty hard to get a table here. They do take reservations, but are usually booked out months in advance! I can tell you how to get a table, though! Every night they do keep a certain number of tables open for a waiting list. They start taking names for their dinner waiting list at 4 PM daily…not before. You can call the restaurant at 4 PM to ask to be added to their list, but you will likely only get a busy signal and will just get frustrated as many people are calling at that same time. Follow their recommendation, and just go to the restaurant entrance at about 3:45 PM and get in line to be added to the list. We arrived at 3:45 and there were already several other people waiting. By 4 PM, there were about 15 or 20 people in line!! So, get there early…. We were able to get added to their list for a table for 2 at 6:30 PM, and they texted us when our table was ready. Be sure to answer the text, and get to the restaurant within 10 or 15 minutes after they text you, or you will lose your table! One more thing… their kitchen closes at 9 PM sharp, so be sure to get your full order in with your waiter in time if you have a later...