Review of Carlos' Gospel Cafe in Santa Fe New Mexico

Now in the Design Center space formerly occupied by Gator Alley and Pastability, Carlos' Gospel Café is already bustling with devoted patrons of the old location. While the space is smaller, White still finds room to create his old favorites without skipping a beat. You can drop the nostalgia and jump right back into half a Miles Standish sandwich with a side of hangover stew. Turkey, cream cheese, and cranberry sauce on sourdough bread seem the perfect suitor for a bubbling stew of green chile, potato, and corn. Hangover or not, this is the local lunch your momma warned you about, and once you leave the nest, you're hooked for life.

Did I mention that I went on opening day, and the place was operating like a well-oiled machine? On another visit, I tried the cheese-steak sandwich with melted white cheddar and peppers on grilled sourdough and found a new favorite. With a smear of Dijon mustard on the bread and a delicate sauté of mostly green bell peppers, Carlos' version of this classic left me wondering why so many local eateries make theirs so oily and bland. Hauled from the restaurant to my office via automobile, this bad boy didn't leak a drop of grease, and the bread remained crispy to boot. The accompanying potato salad was fresh and kissed with sweet pickle relish, the portion much too generous for the price.

Desserts are still touch-and-go at the new Gospel Cafe. Given the reduction of prep space, they purposefully left the sweets off the preliminary takeout menus. It was pure luck that, on my second visit, I spied a few meringue-topped beauties on the back prep table. But after eating the cheese steak, I had no room for dessert. I took the coconut-cream pie home after work and shared it with a friend. We agreed that this pie is a keeper: not too sweet, not too eggy; just enough flake in the crust to warrant an overnight stay in the icebox and just the right amount of flaked coconut. I hope this pie will bein regular rotation on the menu soon.

It's inspiring to see this local restaurant endure a change in venue with almost seamless grace. Too often, we read the obituaries of eateries that could not weather the competition within Santa Fe's evolving restaurant industry, which lately seems to cater more to the tastes of its visitors than its everyday taxpayers. The eateries I covet most- the little guys - appear to be getting the short straw in the service of redevelopment. The reopening of this restaurant gives me hope that Santa Fe will embrace its local culinary treasures, and, in return, the sandwiches will flow freely in the face of adversity - even if we have to walk a few extra blocks for the privilege. Carlos' Gospel Café is located at 418 Cerrillos Road, 983-1841 (in the Design Center.)