FABLE MARKET & RESTAURANT, ELDORADO
In just over a year, Fable has quickly become one of northern New Mexico’s more unexpected dining destinations—a short drive off US 285 in the Eldorado Agora Shopping Center. Co-owners Jessica and Paul Wireman and Calvin Lazo play by their own rules with a modern American menu that roams freely: chicken marsala, red chile beef brisket, house-made crab cakes, fresh oysters, and even a baby kale and green chile Caesar. “We cook whatever the f— we want,” says Paul, the executive chef. Regulars appreciate the lack of boundaries. The marketplace’s take-and-bake items, such as mac and cheese, pulled pork, chicken pot pies, and empanadas, are gaining cult status. Behind the bar, Jessica nudges familiar palates in new directions. “We’ve turned chardonnay-only ladies on to skin-contact wines,” she says. “Now, that’s all they order.” The Pink Pony Club cocktail (gin, hibiscus, cardamom, makrut lime) is reason enough to make the drive. Now there’s even more motivation, with weekday lunches and early happy hours. —Lanee Lee
7 Avenida Vista Grande, Suite 6B, Santa Fe; 505-428-0994, fablesantafe.com
In 2024, Hanmin Kim was a graduate student at the University of New Mexico when he decided to sell gimbap at the college’s annual International Food Festival. Realizing how hungry Albuquerque was for the South Korean street food delicacy, Kim soon turned the idea into Seoul Gimbap, now one of the city’s most-shared lunch obsessions. Gimbap is a classic grab-and-go dish of seasoned rice and savory fillings—buldak chicken, bulgogi beef, Korean BBQ pork, or spicy tuna mayo—wrapped in seaweed. Kim serves a triangular version designed for easy eating. “As a student, I kept thinking about something healthier, portable, and under $10,” Kim says. “That’s what gimbap is for me.”
The South Korea–born entrepreneur leaned heavily into Instagram and TikTok, posting preorder drops and vlog-style clips of life at his tiny startup kitchen. One early video topped 400,000 views. “Social media was a lifesaver,” he says. “We couldn’t afford ads, so we just tried to relate to people.” As Seoul Gimbap prepares to open a dedicated storefront in the Northeast Heights, check for weekly pop-up info at seoulgimbap.com or on Instagram @seoulgimbap.abq. —Candolin Cook
At Ozu, chef and co-owner Jeffrey Ozawa offers a personal take on Japanese cuisine in Santa Fe. “A lot of Japanese restaurants in the U.S. are sushi or ramen,” he says. “The concepts are very category based.” At the Lena Street lunch spot, Ozawa instead draws from the comforting staples he learned from his Japanese father, like onigiri and dashi rice porridge. “I’m almost just trying to catalog the dishes that I grew up with,” he says. “They need to be kept alive by the next generation.” That sensibility shines in the signature Sake Bento: marinated salmon, hiyashi salad, pickled vegetables, and rice, served on a plain white plate, per Ozawa family tradition. With new Friday night dinners, expanding access to Japanese ingredients—including fresh fish from Tokyo—and a philosophy rooted in simplicity, Ozu stands out as one of New Mexico’s most quietly soulful restaurants. —Candolin Cook
1708 Lena St. Suite 101, Santa Fe; ozusantafe.com
A new speakeasy brings vintage glamour to the Railyard.
If Jay Gatsby sauntered into this swanky speakeasy, he’d likely call it the cat’s meow. Glittering chandeliers suspended from a soaring ceiling and backlit shelves of gleaming liquor bottles towering behind the bar lend Art Deco glamour to Gatsby’s.
Steeped in the spirit of the Roaring Twenties, the restaurant and cocktail lounge—located on the second floor of a modern Santa Fe Railyard building with an outdoor balcony and mountain views—draws inspiration from the lavish parties in F. Scott Fitzgerald’s classic novel. “Everyone was welcome to the parties at his mansion,” says Pawan Dhindsa, who co-owns Gatsby’s with his brother, Amrik. “We want everyone to feel welcome here.” (Hence, no password is required at the faux barbershop entrance.)
Ritzy cocktails such as the Old Sport, a luxe old-fashioned, complement the upscale fusion menu, which features high-quality steaks and seafood as well as a late-night menu that includes lamb lollipops. “We wanted to give Santa Fe an elegant, upscale experience that’s about feeling good and celebrating the moment,” Dhindsa says. Here’s to a job well done, old sports. —Lynn Cline
1607 Alcaldesa St., Suite 201, Santa Fe; 505-365-2748, gatsbysnm.com