“Light and airy, reminiscent of European markets.” That’s how the Corrales Comment described Fancies Bakery and Modern Market. New Mexico Magazine waxed: “Fancies Bakery, Market & Cafe is a hive of activity. People pop into the airy Corrales café for a fresh-baked pain au chocolat, Cubano sandwich, or other delectable fare. Others browse the European-style market, picking up tinned sardines from Portugal, French jams, and ceramics made in Latvia.” Perhaps only if you’ve lived in Europe is clarification helpful. For my Kim and I, “fancies” has come to represent French Fancies, iconic, bite-sized sponge cakes topped with a dome of buttercream and covered in colorful, glossy fondant icing. We must have devoured a truckload of fancies during our time in England.
Recent restaurant visits have been akin to returning to our English home from 1984 through 1987. During those three years, my Kim and I celebrated our cotton, paper and leather anniversaries (and we’re still going strong some 37 years later). As much as possible, we lived “on the economy,” a military term for integrating into the local commercial and housing market instead of relying solely on the military bubble. It meant buying food at local markets because it was organic and fresher than we could find at the better stocked commissary. It didn’t take us long to determine we liked European-style markets more than the sprawling American stores that sold everything under one roof.
In May, 2026, I discovered Little Europe, an 1,100 square-foot space inside Sawmill Market. Little Europe is so well organized and attractive that comparisons to European markets were inevitable. Moreover, it features an assortment of curated comestibles you’ll generally find only in the old world. Visiting Fancies Bakery and Modern Market inspired a similar nostalgic longing for those idealized times at European markets. Why we waited more than three years to visit is inexplicable, perhaps attributable to not liking to drive through Corrales where motorists typically drive ten to fifteen miles below the speed limit (you’d think they were driving the trecherous curvy cliffsides of Sardinia and were being chased by a James Bond villain).
Fancies opened its doors in February, 2023. It’s situated in a space that previously housed a number of short-lived eateries, among them: Waffology, C3’s Bistro, Las Ristras, and The Spot Cafe. Already, Fancies has more longevity than severl of its predecessors. Perhaps that’s because there’s a recognition that Correleños are well-traveled and acquainted with European markets. Located at 4940 Corrales Road, this bakery and market offers the type of international gourmet goods and pastries travelers enjoy so much when crossing the pond to “the continent.” In addition to operating as a modern market, Fancies wins over savvy diners with a cafe. Enjoying breakfast and lunch in market surroundings is so European.
Fancies operates alongside the restaurant “Forty Nine Forty,” which opened in April 2023. Where once, the yawning expanse was cavernous and bleak (making apparent the lack of traffic to each previous occupant), the space is now bisected into two distinct areas. Fancies operates only during breakfast and lunch hours while Forty Nine Forty is an elevated evening experience. Each restaurant has its own entrance on the building’s north side, but you can also enter through the Fancies entrance pictured above. Weather-permitting, al fresco dining is an attractive option, particularly when New Mexico’s incomparable evening skies are showing off their celestial twilight palettes. For sheer ambiance, both Forty Nine Forty and Fancies are so inviting you almost won’t mind driving through Corrales.
You defintely won’t mind being surrounded by the curated esculants, woven baskets, black and earthen clay pottery and libations. Fancies has only a few tables with much of its traffic being of the take-our variety. It’s almost unfair that you’ll have to walk past vitrines displaying some of the most delectable confections this side of the pond. Our inaugural visit was a scant thirty-minutes before Fancies’ closing time of 2PM so we didn’t get a full picture of what Viennoiserie and Pâtisserie had been available earlier. Nor were we able to avail ourselves of the muffuletta, a substantial sandwich with which we fell in love in New Orleans. Fortunately, temptations abounded in the form of artisan sandwiches, salads and more.
Java junkies can get their fix at Fancies, too. A specialty coffee menu includes rotating seasonal specialties including such fan-favorites as banana bread chai latte and sticky bun latte. Americanos and espressos made with rich beans are available as are match and teas, iced or hot. In Mississippi, my group admin Bobbye Marie Barlow made keeping my weight within Air Force standards a challenge by baking the most addicting and gooey baking sticky buns. In her honor, I had to order the sticky bun latte. It’s everything you love about a warm, gooey sticky bun, but in a cup. Rich, caramel notes counterbalance the strong coffee.
With the muffaletta no longer an option, I praised the Hatch gods because the fancy burger (eight-ounce dry-aged patty, green chile, cheese, lettuce, tomato, housemade pickles, onion) served with housemade potato chips was still available. The fancy burger is the antithesis of the smash burgers in vogue. The eight-ounce, dry-aged beef patty is thick and moist (my preferred degree of doneness is medium-rare) with juices a plenty. It’s a very well seasoned beef patty with steak-like qualities. The green chile isn’t especially piquant, but ocasionally it does make its presence felt. All other ingredients (even the tomato) are fresh. A toasted bun was an excellent canvas to keep the burger intact despite an onslaugh of moistness. The housemade potato chips are an excellent companion to an excellent burger.
Ever in the mood for fried chicken, my Kim ordered the little gem salad (Romain, crispy chickpeas, fresh herbs, Caesar dressing; add grilled or fried buttermilk chicken) with the fried buttermilk chicken. Even though (gasp) my dear wife scraped off much of the chicken’s resplendent breading (a mortal sin), the chicken shone. The buttermilk brine infused the chicken with moistness and adds a pleasant and mild tang. I absconded with the discarded breading and couldn’t believe anyone (much less a paramour of poultry) could scrape off such goodness. It was terrific.
Perhaps the very best reason for visiting Fancies early in the day is what may well be the best chocolate cake you’ll ever have. It’s made with Dutch process cocoa powder which has been treated with an alkali that neutralizes its natural acides. The result is a darker color, smoother texture and milder, less bitter flavor. It features intense chocolate flavor and is layered and frosted with smooth, glossy chocolate ganache.
We were very well taken care of by Jaz and Gentry, Fancies’ pulchritudinous hostesses whose entertaining antics are showcased in Fancies’ Instagram page. Their customer-orientation was superior to what we experienced at some French markets. It’s just part of the holistic European market experience available in beautiful downtown Corrales.
Fancies Bakery and Modern Grocery
4940 Corrales Road, Suite 400
Corrales, New Mexico
(505) 554-3850
Website | Facebook Page
LATEST VISIT: 5 June 2026
# OF VISITS: 1
COST: $$$
BEST BET: Little Gem Salad, Chocolate Cake, Banana Pudding, Fancies Burger, Housemade Potato Cips, Sticky Bun Latte
REVIEW #1525