Restaurant bites, Nov. 7, 2023

Teya Vitu, The Santa Fe New Mexican
·2 min read

Nov. 6—Sassella, 225 Johnson St., will add Sunday dinner service Dec. 3 and offer dinner seven nights a week. "This is something we have always wanted to do ... [and now] we have sufficient staff," co-owner Lawrence Becerra said in a Facebook post.

----Santa Fe Spirits, 308 Read St., just released its first bottled-in-bond whiskey, Colkegan Mesquite Smoked Single Malt. Owner Colin Keegan said this is the first bottled-in-bond release in New Mexico. A bottled-in-bond whiskey must be produced by the same distillery within the same season and be aged for at least four years and bottled at 100 proof. Santa Fe Spirits produced only 1,000 bottles of this release.

----Empire Sushi & Grill Buffet will move into the former Furr's Cafeteria space in the Coronado Center, 522 W. Cordova Road. Owners Qiao and Sophia Zheng have owned Grand Buffet (formerly known as Empire Buffet) in Las Cruces for a number of years. The Furr's Cafeteria on Cordova has been vacant since April 2021. Following a 2020 coronavirus pandemic closure, Furr's operated only briefly from June to fall 2020 before the company declared bankruptcy in April 2021 and closed nearly all locations.

----Trackside at Castañeda will open Wednesday, Nov. 8 at the Hotel Castañeda in Las Vegas, N.M. It replaces Bar Castañeda, which Sean Sinclair had operated since 2019. Trackside will be operated by Sam Coca, who managed Bar Castañeda.

----Uncle DT's Smokehouse, 3134 Rufina St., has expanded hours to 11:30 a.m. to 7:30 p.m. Tuesday to Saturday. It is closed Sunday and Monday.

----San Francisco Street Bar & Grill, 50 E. San Francisco St., reopened Thursday, Nov. 2 with new ownership after being closed since the start of the pandemic in March 2020. Longtime Santa Fe Bar & Grill crew members Carlos Rivas, Sergio Sanchez and Victor Medina are the new owners under the mentorship of Rob Day, founder of both San Francisco Street Bar & Grill and Santa Fe Bar & Grill.

----Eater.com has its new "The 23 Essential Restaurants in Santa Fe" online. The list includes Mine Shaft Tavern and Java Junction in Madrid; Santa Fe Brewing Co.; Arroyo Vino Restaurant and Wine Shop; Second Street Brewery; Rowley Farmhouse Ales; India House; Jambo Cafe; Maria's New Mexico Kitchen; Paper Dosa; Dr. Field Goods Bar & Grill; Dolina Cafe & Bakery; Paloma; Iconik Coffee Roasters — Lupe; Zacatlán; The Wrap; Ji Wang Noodle Shop; Sazón; La Boca; Palacio Restaurant; Kakawa Chocolate House; Rancho de Chimayó; and Geronimo.