After visiting El Santuario de Chimayo we headed onward to Taos. I had made reservations for two nights at the Historic Taos Inn, which is located right in the center of this charming town of 6,500.
We had arrived a bit early and our room wasn't ready yet. But we were instructed to park in the rear parking lot and take a walk around.
It was May and things weren't too busy in town. We were immediately charmed by the quaint, artsy-funky-outdoorsy friendliness of the town.
The air was crisp and clean, the sky so bright. Charming adobe structures lined the streets.
No wonder folks like Georgia O'Keefe, DH Lawrence, and Kit Carson were drawn here.
We were only spending two nights in Taos and the Missus wanted to go hiking during our one full day, so we weren't able to visit places I had on my "list" like the Taos Pueblo.
We were sent a text when our room was ready; which was in one of the buildings in back of the Inn, it was comfortable and quieter than the rooms up front.
We had reservations for the restaurant in the Taos Inn; Doc Martin's. The Taos Inn was originally the home and businesses of Thomas "Doc" Martin and his namesake restaurant is where the his offices were located. Upon Doc Martin's death, his widow turned the building into a hotel.
We were given the choice of a table in the dining room or one on the back patio area.
It was such a lovely day that we decided dining al fresco would be nice.
The Missus really enjoyed the Gruet Brut and also the Gruet Chardonnay with dinner. Gruet is a winery based in New Mexico. We'd end up getting a bottle for the Missus from one of the shops in Taos the next day.
As to what we ordered; well, we wanted to try New Mexican Chile sauces again; so we went with the Pork Tamale Plate "Christmas style" ($24), that is with both green and red sauce. And I noticed "El Pastor" (Al Pastor) tacos ($20) as a special, which our Server also recommended.
This time around, the Tamale was much better than what we'd had at the Shed, good moist hints of hominy, though the pork was on the dry side and kind of bland. The red and green chile was much better as well.
The green chile had an acidic-pungent heat, not very strong. The red chile was smoky and had more heft and richness to it. The sofrito rice was bland and very mushy and the beans were on the harder side of the scale with regards to texture, also a bit on the blander side as well.
The "El" Pastor Tacos looked pretty good.
The pork was nicely charred. In terms of flavor; it had some sweetness and a bit of spice…..the nice crispy bits were pretty good. The tortillas were almost crisp and brittle without much flavor. The sofrito rice and beans I covered above.
This was an okay meal, much better than what we'd had earlier in Santa Fe. Service was wonderful and the Missus enjoyed the local wine.
Doc Martin's
125 Paseo Del Pueblo Norte
Taos, NM 87571
After dinner, we decided to take another walk around Taos. We really loved the vibe of this town.
It was loaded with meat. The beef rib, their version of Xí Quách Suon Bò had also been seared a bit before service. The sliced "short rib" (as defined in the menu) was cut too thick, super tough, and lacked flavor. Strangely, what is usually not my favorite item in a bowl of pho, the squeaky meatballs was the item I enjoyed the most. Of course, there was no option for tendon or tripe. The rib meat came off the bone cleanly, was decently tender, but seemed to have had all the beefiness cooked out of it. Yes, it was a large portion of meat.
The huge clump of noodles were mushy and over cooked. The broth was super bland….I do complain a bit about how pho broth in San Diego seems to be on the sweeter side of the scale….well, you know what, I would have gladly accepted that here! Much like the Niu Rou Mian broth at 
In case you haven't heard of this, Good News was created back in the 70's. I believe that Good News is mainly sold back in the Islands these days. This was my late Mom's favorite guilty pleasure. She would get me to walk to Kaimuki Sundries or Lau Market to get one for her every once in a while. Every time I see it within the confines of a small neighborhood store or market, I can't help but think of my walks (she never did learn to drive and we had no car) around the corner to get one for her.
And yes, more pineapple cake to carry back with us. 
Since I arrived before 11, I took a stroll around the strip mall. It was quite interesting. Back in 
This was a fairly straight-forward bowl. The broth had a decent beefiness, hints of five spice, and was not as spicy as it looked. The broth was not very rich either.
Man, this as a mistake. The pork, which seemed like strips of super lean, pounded pork chop were really tough, almost hard and dry. The batter was on the chewy side as well. The strips were lightly seasoned and not particularly spicy. I ended up using the dried chilies and a big splash of chili oil to help me consume this. I had a ton of it left over.
In retrospect, the egg was also a mistake, it was ice cold, the yolk severely overcooked and dry.
I don't know if they went easy on me, but this wasn't particularly spicy…I mean, it did have some heat, I actually enjoyed the funk induced broth, which was lightly permeated with the flavor of the "fat intestine". The broth edged on the salty side but was by far my favorite of the three visits. I enjoyed the offal-ly, funky, earthy pork bung. Yes, it was a bit chewy, but in a pleasant way.
