Cowgirl Restaurant: A Santa Fe Gem with a Touch of Nostalgia

It was one of those Santa Fe evenings that come and go but stay with you. The sun was low enough to catch your eyes, soft enough not to bother you. I was on the patio at Cowgirl with Dena and Stephanie. We’d ordered. We were talking. I must’ve drifted. The patio sits in an odd spot—between the stoop and the host stand—so people weave through the tables to get inside. Not ideal. But not a problem.

Cowgirl reminds me of a place from my childhood in the Texas Hill Country. Same kind of menu. Same kind of atmosphere. Southern food with a little roughness around the edges. Warm. Familiar. One of my favorite spots in Santa Fe. Not fancy. Not expensive. Just good.

I was scanning the tables when I saw a silhouette on the stoop. “That looks like Ed Harris,” I said, not fully serious. They turned. He walked past our table. It was him. Ed Harris. You know the films: Apollo 13, The Truman Show, A History of Violence, The Abyss, The Right Stuff. Never quite the lead, always the anchor. I didn’t expect to see him. Later, I’d learn he lives in Santa Fe. A lot of actors and authors do. I was surprised, but not really.

Cowgirl has a bar, a patio, and live music most nights. On one of my early visits, I sat at the bar and noticed a sticker on the margarita machine, half hidden among dozens of others. “Born Here All My Life,” I asked the bartender what it meant. She laughed. “You’re not from here,” she said. I shook my head. “It’s a Santa Fe thing,” she told me. “Locals say it when they’ve lived here forever.” I’d never heard it before.

On Fridays, I’d go early, while the band was setting up. I’d have dinner, close my tab, open another at the bar, order a drink, and join the small crowd on the dance floor. Americana most nights. My favorite thing to dance to. Especially the band Broomdust Caravan.

Cowgirl may not be the best restaurant in town. But it’s one of the most fun. A place that holds memory and music and a kind of comfort that doesn’t need to be explained. If you’re in Santa Fe, go. Sit on the patio. Watch the sun drop. Some places don’t just serve food. They serve feeling.