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Lunch at the Compound

We had scheduled a birthday lunch and the weather cooperated. In Santa Fe it usually does and we arrived at our destination, The Compound, on a perfect fall day ready for a long slow lunch. The Compound delivered that to us magnificently.

The restaurant is located almost smack in the middle of Canyon Road and is a pleasant walk their from town. It is always fun to stroll past the galleries and shops and peak in the windows at the fabulous items found within but we had opted to drive we would have found plenty of parking there. The building is tucked in a couple of hundred feet off the road and is much larger than I supposed it would be. The interior is divided into several intimate dining areas and one bar area; I suspect that at one time this was a private home. We were given a choice of dining on the patio or in a larger sunny room next to the patio. We chose the later and were seated at a comfy booth and offered water immediately.

One nice option that The Compound offers in these water conscious times is continuous mineral water service for the reasonable price of $4.50 per person.

To begin with our server explained that in addition to their extensive wine list the restaurant offers an array of bottled wines for each lunch at the phenomenal rate of $10. This day they had a choice of two Chardonnays, one merlot, and a French Sauvignon Blanc. We began with the Sauvignon and loved it. This wine offer is absolutely one of the better deals available in all of Santa Fe dining.

The menu this day had several salads, a couple of sandwich options and a half dozen tempting entrees. Since we are indecisive types we picked two wonderful sounding meals and had them split both for us. This turned out to be a nice way to get to try more of the wonderful choices. So, first we the Jumbo Crab and Lobster Salad, served with mango, red onion, butter lettuce and topped with tangerine vinaigrette. The crab was delightfully fresh and really was from the Chesapeake Bay (as was the birthday girl), wow!

The second selection was Seafood Pan Roast consisting of red snapper, halibut and cockle clams in saffron tomato broth. Again we were enjoying absolutely fresh ingredients with a tantalizing array of tastes. I wasn't even sorry I did not choose to try the Grilled Beef Tenderloin Skewers. I guess I'll have to go back. With this second dish we had a side of The Compound's Parmesan-Parsley Fries, also quite good.

Deserts were the fig-walnut Linzer Torte and the bittersweet Chocolate Torte. After this and the walk home it was naptime. We had succeeded in having a long lazy lunch on a beautiful fall day.

The Compound
653 Canyon Road
505.982.4353
Reservations Recommended
All Credit Cards, no personal checks