Restaurant Review, St. Clair’s Winery and Bistro, Mesilla, NM

I haven’t done a review for a while, at least since we moved tro NM, so I thought I would do one now. I am going to talk about the St. Clair’s Winery and Bistro in Mesilla.

Mrsfabp and I went out with a couple of friends for my birthday and after debating for awhile (favorite restaurant vs. something new) we opted to try the St. Clair’s Winery and Bistro. They had just opened within a couple of weeks and we thought it would be fun.

We arrived without reservations and found the place very, very busy. We were told we probably could not be seated as they had a number of reservations. It was not below my dignity level to “mention” it was my birthday. A call was made, someone else arrived and we were seated! A real plus for a review. Our seat was overlooking their covered patio, which will be opening in about a month.

Our waitress was very friendly, very knowledgeable about the food and wine, and offered us a sample of one of the wines made by St. Clair’s. It was a very good sweet red wine with some fruit flavors added. Mentally I made a note to pick up a bottle when we left.

Wine and beer was delivered in a snap and we set about to study the menu. We ordered an appetizer, the Spinach and Artichoke Dip. It was delivered quickly, it was hot and delicious, served with hearty, crisp tortilla chips. There was a lot of vegetable in it, better than a lot of filler.

For the main course, we all ordered different things. A Southwest Burger, Chicken Pot Pie, a Wine Steak and Pasta New Mexico. For the next 20 minutes or so, there was very little chatting going on as we really savored each and every bite. All four meals were prepared correctly with the steak and Burger grilled to perfection. We were all satisfied.

When our waitress returned at the end of the meal, she made a big deal about my birthday and offered a dessert on the house. I took the Chocolate Port Brownie, served with a topping of ice cream. I reluctantly shared with the others at the table but kept a close eye on them to make sure they didn’t take too much. As with everything else, delicious

Overall I was very impressed with the night out. The décor is understated but very comfortable. The staff, friendly and knowledgeable. Maybe the best part was the discovery of some good New Mexican wine at affordable prices. I had been to other wineries and a good bottle of something I like was about $15. At St. Clair’s the equivalent bottle was $7, a price good enough to by several bottles.

Overall, for the dining experience, I give it 4 Penguins…