{"id":1024,"date":"2013-09-25T22:12:42","date_gmt":"2013-09-26T04:12:42","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.nmgastronome.com\/?p=1024"},"modified":"2026-04-05T20:42:38","modified_gmt":"2026-04-06T02:42:38","slug":"a-taste-of-haven-rio-rancho-new-mexico-closed","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.nmgastronome.com\/?p=1024","title":{"rendered":"Horseman&#8217;s Haven &#8211; Santa Fe, New Mexico"},"content":{"rendered":"<div style=\"text-align: justify;\">\n<figure id=\"attachment_27681\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-27681\" style=\"width: 501px\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><a href=\"https:\/\/b4385483.smushcdn.com\/4385483\/wp-content\/uploads\/2007\/03\/HorsemansHaven01.gif?lossy=2&strip=1&webp=1\"><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-27681 lazyload\" style=\"--smush-placeholder-width: 501px; --smush-placeholder-aspect-ratio: 501\/262;border: 4px solid black; margin: 3px;\" data-src=\"https:\/\/b4385483.smushcdn.com\/4385483\/wp-content\/uploads\/2007\/03\/HorsemansHaven01.gif?lossy=2&strip=1&webp=1\" alt=\"Horseman's Haven in Santa Fe\" width=\"501\" height=\"262\" data-srcset=\"https:\/\/b4385483.smushcdn.com\/4385483\/wp-content\/uploads\/2007\/03\/HorsemansHaven01.gif?lossy=2&amp;strip=1&amp;webp=1 501w, https:\/\/b4385483.smushcdn.com\/4385483\/wp-content\/uploads\/2007\/03\/HorsemansHaven01.gif?size=128x67&amp;lossy=2&amp;strip=1&amp;webp=1 128w, https:\/\/b4385483.smushcdn.com\/4385483\/wp-content\/uploads\/2007\/03\/HorsemansHaven01.gif?size=256x134&amp;lossy=2&amp;strip=1&amp;webp=1 256w, https:\/\/b4385483.smushcdn.com\/4385483\/wp-content\/uploads\/2007\/03\/HorsemansHaven01.gif?size=384x201&amp;lossy=2&amp;strip=1&amp;webp=1 384w\" data-sizes=\"(max-width: 501px) 100vw, 501px\" src=\"data:image\/svg+xml;base64,PHN2ZyB3aWR0aD0iMSIgaGVpZ2h0PSIxIiB4bWxucz0iaHR0cDovL3d3dy53My5vcmcvMjAwMC9zdmciPjwvc3ZnPg==\" \/><\/a><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-27681\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Horseman&#8217;s Haven in Santa Fe<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p><span style=\"font-size: small; font-family: Verdana;\">I know several native New Mexicans who have accepted the dumbing down of political office in America as a consequence of living in these times and who have shrugged apathetically at the attenuation of educational standards. These same individuals, however, become as agitated and vociferous as scalded cats when served chile that has been &#8220;Anglicized&#8221;&#8211;that is, chile which doesn&#8217;t bring sweat to their brows, tears to their eyes and blisters to their tongues. Pepper spray has nothing on chile for these capsaicin addicted masochistic diehards.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-size: small; font-family: Verdana;\">I spoke with one of these chileheads several days after the January, 2006 airing of the Food Network\u2019s \u201cThe Secret Life of Fiery Foods.\u201d He was still laughing at the segment in which host Jim O\u2019Connor thought he was man enough to try the green chile burrito locals call \u201cthe devil\u201d at the world famous Horseman\u2019s Haven in Santa Fe. One bite had O\u2019Connor red faced and sputtering, an experience shared by many people, including many locals weaned on incendiary chile.<\/span><\/p>\n<figure id=\"attachment_27683\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-27683\" style=\"width: 494px\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><a href=\"https:\/\/b4385483.smushcdn.com\/4385483\/wp-content\/uploads\/2007\/03\/HorsemansHaven02.gif?lossy=2&strip=1&webp=1\"><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-27683 lazyload\" style=\"--smush-placeholder-width: 494px; --smush-placeholder-aspect-ratio: 494\/331;border: 4px solid black; margin: 3px;\" data-src=\"https:\/\/b4385483.smushcdn.com\/4385483\/wp-content\/uploads\/2007\/03\/HorsemansHaven02.gif?lossy=2&strip=1&webp=1\" alt=\"The Horseman's Haven dining room\" width=\"494\" height=\"331\" data-srcset=\"https:\/\/b4385483.smushcdn.com\/4385483\/wp-content\/uploads\/2007\/03\/HorsemansHaven02.gif?lossy=2&amp;strip=1&amp;webp=1 494w, https:\/\/b4385483.smushcdn.com\/4385483\/wp-content\/uploads\/2007\/03\/HorsemansHaven02.gif?size=128x86&amp;lossy=2&amp;strip=1&amp;webp=1 128w, https:\/\/b4385483.smushcdn.com\/4385483\/wp-content\/uploads\/2007\/03\/HorsemansHaven02.gif?size=256x172&amp;lossy=2&amp;strip=1&amp;webp=1 256w, https:\/\/b4385483.smushcdn.com\/4385483\/wp-content\/uploads\/2007\/03\/HorsemansHaven02.gif?size=384x257&amp;lossy=2&amp;strip=1&amp;webp=1 384w\" data-sizes=\"(max-width: 494px) 100vw, 494px\" src=\"data:image\/svg+xml;base64,PHN2ZyB3aWR0aD0iMSIgaGVpZ2h0PSIxIiB4bWxucz0iaHR0cDovL3d3dy53My5vcmcvMjAwMC9zdmciPjwvc3ZnPg==\" \/><\/a><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-27683\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">The Horseman&#8217;s Haven dining room<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p><span style=\"font-size: small; font-family: Verdana;\">According to O\u2019Connor, the \u201cdevil\u201d is the hottest burrito in the world with a chile that rivals the habanero, a pepper at the extreme level of the Scoville scale. For New Mexicans frustrated with the \u201ckinder and gentler\u201d preparation of our beloved chile, the Horseman\u2019s Haven is the standard bearer for how chile should be served. It is the measuring stick of manhood. It is what separates the men from the boys. (Before you accuse me of being sexist, let me say that women\u2014being, by far, the smarter and more mature gender&#8211;need no such validation of their adulthood or femininity.) Native New Mexicans who show weakness may as well be Texans, as deprecatory an insult as a New Mexican can hurl at anyone (if you\u2019ve ever experienced insipid, cumin-laden Texas chili, you\u2019ll understand why).<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-size: small; font-family: Verdana;\">The Horseman\u2019s Haven has been a Santa Fe legend since debuting its high octane chile in 1981 in a smallish dining room adjacent to an old gas station. It has since moved to a larger, stand-alone complex sharing a parking lot with a more modern service station. True to its name, the Horseman\u2019s Haven celebrates the horse with walls and shelves teeming with paintings, plaques and statuettes of equine nobility and their human companions\u2013from the Mexican charros to American legend John Wayne.<\/span><\/p>\n<figure id=\"attachment_27685\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-27685\" style=\"width: 492px\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><a href=\"https:\/\/b4385483.smushcdn.com\/4385483\/wp-content\/uploads\/2007\/03\/HorsemansHaven03.gif?lossy=2&strip=1&webp=1\"><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-27685 lazyload\" style=\"--smush-placeholder-width: 492px; --smush-placeholder-aspect-ratio: 492\/329;border: 4px solid black; margin: 3px;\" data-src=\"https:\/\/b4385483.smushcdn.com\/4385483\/wp-content\/uploads\/2007\/03\/HorsemansHaven03.gif?lossy=2&strip=1&webp=1\" alt=\"The counter with a view to the dining room\" width=\"492\" height=\"329\" data-srcset=\"https:\/\/b4385483.smushcdn.com\/4385483\/wp-content\/uploads\/2007\/03\/HorsemansHaven03.gif?lossy=2&amp;strip=1&amp;webp=1 492w, https:\/\/b4385483.smushcdn.com\/4385483\/wp-content\/uploads\/2007\/03\/HorsemansHaven03.gif?size=128x86&amp;lossy=2&amp;strip=1&amp;webp=1 128w, https:\/\/b4385483.smushcdn.com\/4385483\/wp-content\/uploads\/2007\/03\/HorsemansHaven03.gif?size=256x171&amp;lossy=2&amp;strip=1&amp;webp=1 256w, https:\/\/b4385483.smushcdn.com\/4385483\/wp-content\/uploads\/2007\/03\/HorsemansHaven03.gif?size=384x257&amp;lossy=2&amp;strip=1&amp;webp=1 384w\" data-sizes=\"(max-width: 492px) 100vw, 492px\" src=\"data:image\/svg+xml;base64,PHN2ZyB3aWR0aD0iMSIgaGVpZ2h0PSIxIiB4bWxucz0iaHR0cDovL3d3dy53My5vcmcvMjAwMC9zdmciPjwvc3ZnPg==\" \/><\/a><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-27685\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">The counter with a view to the dining room<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p><span style=\"font-size: small; font-family: Verdana;\">It\u2019s conceivable some patrons won\u2019t even be able to see and appreciate the art on the walls because of free-flowing tears and noses running like Usain Bolt, all courtesy of a chile which kicks sand in the face of the wimpy stuff too many so-called New Mexican restaurants serve. The Romero family, proprietors of this Santa Fe institution from day one, own the hybrid seed from which their famous green chile is grown by seven different farmers in Hatch, New Mexico. <\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-size: small; font-family: Verdana;\">That chile is a weapon of mass deliciousness, the favorite of blue- and white-collar workers who arrive at the Horseman\u2019s Haven for breakfast when they need the chile\u2019s eye-awakening properties to get them going. The regulars tend to sit on the bar where they have a view of the semi-open kitchen. The tinkling of ceramic coffee mugs blends with the whistling sound from a pressure cooker blowing off steam as beans are being prepared. It\u2019s a good coffee served steaming hot and it heightens the bite of the chile even more. Amateurs, tourists and Texans shouldn\u2019t pair hot coffee with the Haven\u2019s comburent chile without a net. <\/span><\/p>\n<figure id=\"attachment_27687\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-27687\" style=\"width: 487px\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><a href=\"https:\/\/b4385483.smushcdn.com\/4385483\/wp-content\/uploads\/2007\/03\/HorsemansHaven04.gif?lossy=2&strip=1&webp=1\"><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-27687 lazyload\" style=\"--smush-placeholder-width: 487px; --smush-placeholder-aspect-ratio: 487\/232;border: 4px solid black; margin: 3px;\" data-src=\"https:\/\/b4385483.smushcdn.com\/4385483\/wp-content\/uploads\/2007\/03\/HorsemansHaven04.gif?lossy=2&strip=1&webp=1\" alt=\"Salsa and Chips\" width=\"487\" height=\"232\" data-srcset=\"https:\/\/b4385483.smushcdn.com\/4385483\/wp-content\/uploads\/2007\/03\/HorsemansHaven04.gif?lossy=2&amp;strip=1&amp;webp=1 487w, https:\/\/b4385483.smushcdn.com\/4385483\/wp-content\/uploads\/2007\/03\/HorsemansHaven04.gif?size=128x61&amp;lossy=2&amp;strip=1&amp;webp=1 128w, https:\/\/b4385483.smushcdn.com\/4385483\/wp-content\/uploads\/2007\/03\/HorsemansHaven04.gif?size=256x122&amp;lossy=2&amp;strip=1&amp;webp=1 256w, https:\/\/b4385483.smushcdn.com\/4385483\/wp-content\/uploads\/2007\/03\/HorsemansHaven04.gif?size=384x183&amp;lossy=2&amp;strip=1&amp;webp=1 384w\" data-sizes=\"(max-width: 487px) 100vw, 487px\" src=\"data:image\/svg+xml;base64,PHN2ZyB3aWR0aD0iMSIgaGVpZ2h0PSIxIiB4bWxucz0iaHR0cDovL3d3dy53My5vcmcvMjAwMC9zdmciPjwvc3ZnPg==\" \/><\/a><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-27687\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Salsa and Chips<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p><span style=\"font-size: small; font-family: Verdana;\">The Haven\u2019s chile will bring diners to their knees, but for New Mexicans with asbestos-lined taste buds who consider pain to be a flavor, that means we\u2019re on our knees in prayerful gratitude for chile with both piquancy and flavor. Those qualities come across very well in the restaurant\u2019s breakfast burritos: fluffy scrambled eggs and crispy bacon wrapped in a tortilla then covered with chile the color of glowing kryptonite. The aroma of the chile is intoxicating, an incomparably fragrant bouquet. This breakfast burrito is exciting and invigorating, a capsaicin high way to start off the morning. <\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-size: small; font-family: Verdana;\">Chile aficionados know that one of the best ways to \u201ccut\u201d the taste of piquant chile is with sopaipillas and honey. Since none are to be found on the menu, you might try ordering a side of pancakes, two light and fluffy golden orbs just begging for butter and soliciting for syrup. At the risk of braggadocio, I\u2019ve never touched the pancakes until having consumed the entire chile-slathered burrito. <\/span><\/p>\n<figure id=\"attachment_27689\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-27689\" style=\"width: 494px\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><a href=\"https:\/\/b4385483.smushcdn.com\/4385483\/wp-content\/uploads\/2007\/03\/HorsemansHaven05.gif?lossy=2&strip=1&webp=1\"><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-27689 lazyload\" style=\"--smush-placeholder-width: 494px; --smush-placeholder-aspect-ratio: 494\/331;border: 4px solid black; margin: 3px;\" data-src=\"https:\/\/b4385483.smushcdn.com\/4385483\/wp-content\/uploads\/2007\/03\/HorsemansHaven05.gif?lossy=2&strip=1&webp=1\" alt=\"The Mucho Burger smothered with green chile and cheese; served with home fries\" width=\"494\" height=\"331\" data-sizes=\"(max-width: 494px) 100vw, 494px\" src=\"data:image\/svg+xml;base64,PHN2ZyB3aWR0aD0iMSIgaGVpZ2h0PSIxIiB4bWxucz0iaHR0cDovL3d3dy53My5vcmcvMjAwMC9zdmciPjwvc3ZnPg==\" \/><\/a><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-27689\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">The Mucho Burger smothered with green chile and cheese; served with home fries<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p><span style=\"font-size: small; font-family: Verdana;\">What I will brag about, however, is having survived (relatively) unscathed a side of \u201clevel-two\u201d green chile. You won\u2019t see it on the menu, but chileheads in the know swear level-two is chile with the heat turned up to the hottest level in Dante\u2019s inferno. Others, perhaps ashamed at their mere mortality, claim level two is an urban myth. It most certainly is NOT an urban myth. My friend and fellow chile masochist Bill Resnik and I shared a bowl of level-two chile which we slathered on the Haven\u2019s blue-corn tacos. With a liberal dousing of level-two chile, those tacos were painfully good. <\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-size: small; font-family: Verdana;\">Not only is there a level two chile, the Horseman&#8217;s Haven now offers chile and levels three to five for Navy Seals, superheroes and diners with a death wish. While filming &#8220;Parts Unknown&#8221; for CNN celebrity glitterati Anthony Bourdain had a spoonful of the level three green chile. It instantly brought sweat to his brow, tears to his eyes and more impressively, shut the gregarious one&#8217;s mouth for a moment or two. Rather than seeing the host suffer ignominiously, cameras quickly panned to another segment. <\/span><\/p>\n<figure id=\"attachment_27691\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-27691\" style=\"width: 484px\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><a href=\"https:\/\/b4385483.smushcdn.com\/4385483\/wp-content\/uploads\/2007\/03\/HorsemansHaven06.gif?lossy=2&strip=1&webp=1\"><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-27691 lazyload\" style=\"--smush-placeholder-width: 484px; --smush-placeholder-aspect-ratio: 484\/296;border: 4px solid black; margin: 3px;\" data-src=\"https:\/\/b4385483.smushcdn.com\/4385483\/wp-content\/uploads\/2007\/03\/HorsemansHaven06.gif?lossy=2&strip=1&webp=1\" alt=\"Apple Pie Ala Mode\" width=\"484\" height=\"296\" data-srcset=\"https:\/\/b4385483.smushcdn.com\/4385483\/wp-content\/uploads\/2007\/03\/HorsemansHaven06.gif?lossy=2&amp;strip=1&amp;webp=1 484w, https:\/\/b4385483.smushcdn.com\/4385483\/wp-content\/uploads\/2007\/03\/HorsemansHaven06.gif?size=128x78&amp;lossy=2&amp;strip=1&amp;webp=1 128w, https:\/\/b4385483.smushcdn.com\/4385483\/wp-content\/uploads\/2007\/03\/HorsemansHaven06.gif?size=256x157&amp;lossy=2&amp;strip=1&amp;webp=1 256w, https:\/\/b4385483.smushcdn.com\/4385483\/wp-content\/uploads\/2007\/03\/HorsemansHaven06.gif?size=384x235&amp;lossy=2&amp;strip=1&amp;webp=1 384w\" data-sizes=\"(max-width: 484px) 100vw, 484px\" src=\"data:image\/svg+xml;base64,PHN2ZyB3aWR0aD0iMSIgaGVpZ2h0PSIxIiB4bWxucz0iaHR0cDovL3d3dy53My5vcmcvMjAwMC9zdmciPjwvc3ZnPg==\" \/><\/a><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-27691\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Apple Pie Ala Mode<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p><span style=\"font-size: small; font-family: Verdana;\">Larry McGoldrick, the professor with the perspicacious palate and a bona fide flame fanatic swears by the Haven\u2019s mucho burger, a half-pound of fresh ground sirloin grilled to order and served with home fries, lettuce, tomatoes and onions. Because you\u2019re in Santa Fe, it\u2019s almost compulsory to have it green chile cheeseburger style. At the Haven, this means the burger is smothered and the cheese is shredded. It does not mean hand-held unless you don\u2019t mind risking a sunburn-like heat running down your arms. This is a fantastic green chile cheeseburger, emphasis on the chile. If you\u2019re tired of green chile not making an impression on too many local burgers, this is the burger for you. <\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-size: small; font-family: Verdana;\">Interestingly the salsa is not quite on the same level of piquancy as the green chile. At most New Mexican restaurants, salsa is usually the most piquant item on the menu\u2026.sometimes the only piquant item on the menu. It\u2019s a very good salsa with the flavor of freshness. The chips are low in salt, crisp and thick enough for Gil-sized scoops of salsa though with the Haven\u2019s salsa, most will prefer dipping their chips instead of dredging them. <\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-size: small; font-family: Verdana;\">If your tongue and lips are still burning, you can quell the flames with the Haven\u2019s apple pie ala mode. It\u2019s not made on the premises, but it\u2019s made especially for the Haven. A thick, flaky crust and plenty of pectin enhanced sliced apples with vanilla ice cream should do the trick for most diners. By the time they\u2019re done eating the pie, most new diners regain at least part of their sense of taste and will discern that this is a good apple pie. Cinnamon rolls are also available.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-size: small; font-family: Verdana;\">In February, 2006, the Horseman\u2019s Haven launched A Taste of Haven in Rio Rancho. The celebration among Duke City area fire-eaters was short-lived because the restaurant closed within a year after launching. Perhaps there really is only enough room in this world for one restaurant serving the world\u2019s most dangerously delicious chile.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-size: small; font-family: Verdana;\"><span style=\"color: #ff0000;\"><strong>Horseman\u2019s Haven<\/strong><\/span><br \/>\n4354 Cerrillos Road<br \/>\n<strong>Santa Fe, New Mexico<\/strong><br \/>\n(505) 471-5420<br \/>\n<strong>LATEST VISIT<\/strong>: 25 September 2013<br \/>\n<strong># OF VISITS<\/strong>: 3<br \/>\n<strong>RATING<\/strong>: <strong><span style=\"color: #ff0000;\">Very Good<\/span>\u00a0<\/strong>\u2013\u00a0Good to very good food; generally solid; delivers consistent quality, strong technique, and a comfortable, enjoyable dining experience<br \/>\n<strong>COST<\/strong>: $$<br \/>\n<strong>BEST BET<\/strong>: Breakfast Burrito, Green Chile Cheeseburger, Pancakes, Tacos, Salsa and Chips <\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>I know several native New Mexicans who have accepted the dumbing down of political office in America as a consequence of living in these times and who have shrugged apathetically at the attenuation of educational standards. These same individuals, however, become as agitated and vociferous as scalded cats when served chile that has been &#8220;Anglicized&#8221;&#8211;that is, chile which doesn&#8217;t bring sweat to their brows, tears to their eyes and blisters to their tongues. Pepper spray has nothing on chile for these capsaicin addicted masochistic diehards. I spoke with one of these chileheads several days after the January, 2006 airing of the Food Network\u2019s \u201cThe Secret Life of Fiery Foods.\u201d He was still laughing at the segment in which host Jim&hellip;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":27689,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"video","meta":{"_exactmetrics_skip_tracking":false,"_exactmetrics_sitenote_active":false,"_exactmetrics_sitenote_note":"","_exactmetrics_sitenote_category":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[544,112,141,5631,142,546],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-1024","post","type-post","status-publish","format-video","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-food-network-eats-new-mexico","category-new-mexican","category-new-mexico","category-very-good","category-santa-fe","category-the-secret-life-of","post_format-post-format-video"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v27.4 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>Horseman&#039;s Haven - Santa Fe, New Mexico - Gil&#039;s Thrilling (And Filling) Blog<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.nmgastronome.com\/?p=1024\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Horseman&#039;s Haven - Santa Fe, New Mexico - Gil&#039;s Thrilling (And Filling) Blog\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"I know several native New Mexicans who have accepted the dumbing down of political office in America as a consequence of living in these times and who have shrugged apathetically at the attenuation of educational standards. These same individuals, however, become as agitated and vociferous as scalded cats when served chile that has been &#8220;Anglicized&#8221;&#8211;that is, chile which doesn&#8217;t bring sweat to their brows, tears to their eyes and blisters to their tongues. Pepper spray has nothing on chile for these capsaicin addicted masochistic diehards. 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