{"id":130,"date":"2024-04-05T00:28:48","date_gmt":"2024-04-05T06:28:48","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.nmgastronome.com\/?p=130"},"modified":"2026-04-05T14:45:08","modified_gmt":"2026-04-05T20:45:08","slug":"buckhorn-saloon-pinos-altos-new-mexico","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.nmgastronome.com\/?p=130","title":{"rendered":"Buckhorn Saloon – Pinos Altos, New Mexico"},"content":{"rendered":"
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The Unique Buckhorn Saloon in Pinos Altos<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

In 1859, 49ers returning home from California discovered gold among the tall pines (Pinos Altos) north of Silver City. Word spread like wildfire. \u00a0In short order, there were more than 700 men prospecting in the area. As with other boom towns, rampant lawlessness made prospectors lives exciting to say the least. \u00a0Miners faced an anything goes attitude in the pursuit of gold punctuated by frequent raids by marauding Apaches. \u00a0In the “Apache War” of 1861, Cochise joined his father-in-law Mangas Coloradas<\/strong><\/a> (an Apache war leader who towered at 6’7″) and some 400 Apache warriors to drive away miners from their traditional homeland.<\/p>\n

In its early days Pinos Altos saw a veritable who’s who of fame and infamy. \u00a0 In the 1860s, Old West legend Roy Bean operated a mercantile in Pinos Altos before moving to West Texas to gain fame as Judge Roy Bean<\/strong><\/a> “The Law West of the Pecos<\/em>.” Henry McCarty (William Bonney was just an alias), the infamous Billy the Kid, began his life of crime in the area. \u00a0As the area’s gold began to deplete, families turned to ranching. \u00a0Some of the largest ranches in the country once were located just outside of town.\u00a0 Evidence of ranching still abounds: windmills, stock tanks, corral and cattle. \u00a0Cowboys aren’t always visible to motorists \u00a0They often work far from the highways and byways. If you’re fortunate enough to see a cowboy, you’re seeing someone with one foot in the past, one foot \u00a0in the present. \u00a0Cowboys remain completely steeped in the traditions that helped settle the West.<\/p>\n

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The Bar Area<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Historic Pinos Altos was the first county seat of Grant County. The town is located along the Continental Divide at an elevation of 7,000 feet. \u00a0It’s situated in the southern end of the Pinos Altos Mountains of the Gila National Forest. Today, Pinos Altos has a charming main street that could pass for an old western movie set. Many of the old buildings date back to the 1800s and have been restored with original memorabilia and artifacts. Pinos Altos has a population of 300 and is about nine miles north of Silver City. While in town, visitors can walk literally through the pages of downtown history. \u00a0They can enjoy historical sites and museum tours; enjoy great food and entertainment; try their hand at gold panning; or simply delight in the beautiful mountain views of the Gila National Forest.<\/p>\n

Traveling on horseback rather than on horsepower-driven automotive conveyances seems more appropriate in the area. \u00a0You almost expect horses tethered to a hitching post in front of the mountaintop bar known as the Buckhorn Saloon which first opened in the 1860s. Time has moved much more quickly in the Grant County area. \u00a0 During its 160-plus years, the Buckhorn remains virtually unchanged. \u00a0From the outside it it resembles an unkempt, ramshackle facade in dire need of a paint job . One thing has remained constant: It\u2019s a welcoming gathering spot for anyone in search of a cold drink or a bite to eat.<\/p>\n

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One of Buckhorn Saloons Dining Rooms<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

There are three different facets to the recently-renovated interior space. First is the saloon, which features a thick oak bar, brick walls, a wood-beamed ceiling, and regular live music and open mic nights. \u00a0Dim lighting and raucous crowds enjoying live music lend to the thematic (Old West) ambiance. \u00a0Knock down, drag out brawls aren’t a frequent occurrence as they may have been in the 1860s, but with a little imagine you can picture Big John Canyon and his brother Buck clearing the bar. \u00a0The sit-down and slightly more upscale dining areas are more tranquil though when music is playing, conversations at hushed tone are difficult.<\/p>\n

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Another must-stop at Pinos Altos is the opera house, a performance venue in the vein of a frontier theater with a stage, box seats, and a full bar. The opera house frequently hosts live performances (some bawdy and replete with double-entendre) and other events. Throughout the entire space, you\u2019ll find old paintings, historic photographs, funky mannequins, animal heads, and other artifacts. \u00a0I first took my Kim to the Buckhorn Saloon in 2004 just after Rusty, the first of four wonderful dachshund souls passed away. \u00a0The performance didn’t take away our pain, but it helped us deal with it.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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In its Halcyon Days, A Lovely Maiden Would have Pleased Patrons at the Opera House With Her Pulchritude and Singing Voice<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

17 April 2024<\/strong>: The cuisine is the creation of executive chef and owner Thomas Bock. \u00a0The restaurant menu is contemporary, featuring seafood, USDA choice steaks and salads, soups and homemade desserts. Libations include Sioux City sarsaparilla<\/em><\/strong>, one of the creamiest root beer drinks available anywhere. To remain consistent with our Old West surroundings, Kim and I both had steaks. The Porterhouse steak<\/em><\/strong> is easily an inch and a half thick and prepared with salt, pepper and garlic. It was juicy and succulent with just a hint of pink when ordered medium.<\/p>\n

Order your salad with the ranch dressing<\/em><\/strong> and you’ll be asking the wait staff why they haven’t bottled and sold it. It’s rich, creamy and tastier (by far) than commercial offerings. Also quite good is the chicken noodle soup<\/em><\/strong> which is made with thick egg noodles and white chicken with a broth so savory, it would be criminal to add crackers. \u00a0It was the soup-of-the day during our inaugural visit. \u00a0Friday’s soup is clam chowder and Saturday’s is French onion soup. There are a number of \u00a0“usual suspect appetizers such as chips and salsa, house-cut French fries and green chile chicken fries.<\/p>\n

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The Mediterranean Plate<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

5 April 2024<\/strong>: \u00a0We were delighted advanced geriatric progression hadn’t diminished our memories of the \u00a0Buckhorn Saloon. \u00a0It was like revisiting an old friend. \u00a0Service reflects my contention that Silver City just may be the most friendly city in New Mexico. \u00a0Tandem service was on the spot, friendly and ambassadorial. \u00a0Every server that visited our table was friendly and kind with savvy recommendations and drink refills as we needed them. \u00a0Even if you don’t imbibe adult beverages, drink options include the usual Coke products as well as a number of juices.<\/p>\n

Sure, Silver City is situated in the scenic Chihuahuan desert, but our appetizer seemed more appropriate for a Middle Eastern desert region. \u00a0We were happy to find a Mediterranean Plate<\/strong><\/em> (hummus, pita, Kalamata olives, cucumber, red onion, feta cheese and tomatoes) among the appetizers. \u00a0Happy turned to elated when we discovered just how warm and pliable the soft pita was. \u00a0The pita was a perfect canvas for tiny “sandwiches” created by heaping on some of the other ingredients. \u00a0The Kalamata olives were pitted and perfectly briny. \u00a0Our Dude enjoyed most (if not all) of the feta.<\/p>\n

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Ribeye Steak With Six Scampi and a Baked Potato<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

5 April 2024<\/strong>: \u00a0Make no mistake about it. \u00a0The Buckhorn is a carnivore’s paradise, a showcase of brawny beef. \u00a0In other words, it’s my Kim’s type of restaurant. \u00a0Listed on the “USDA Prime & Choice Steaks” section of the menu are a New York strip, Prime filet mignon, ribeye, cowboy-cut ribeye and prime rib (Friday and Saturday only). \u00a0Among the “Specialties of the House” are \u00a0other pulchritudinous proteins such as a bone-in center cut pork chop, shrimp scampi on a bed of linguine, Asian glazed salmon, coconut curry mahi mahi and grilled jumbo prawns.<\/p>\n

The special-of-the-day when we visited was a ribeye steak with six scampi<\/strong><\/em> and your choice of potato (baked or French fried) and the vegetable of the day (zucchini). \u00a0 \u00a0Our server didn’t have to ask twice. \u00a0Porterhouse may be my Kim’s favorite cut of meat, but she won’t ever pass over a good ribeye, especially at a bargain price. \u00a0An eight-ounce cut was splayed on her plate with the six scampi (which she gifted to me) atop of the meat. \u00a0Though there was somewhat more fat on her steak than she would have wanted, my Kim enjoyed her steak. \u00a0It’s moist and juicy at a medium degree of doneness. \u00a0She wasn’t able to finish it but later learned it’s just as flavorful cold. \u00a0The baked potato was about the size of the steak and is served with butter and sour cream. \u00a0Forgive me if you’ve heard this before–American restaurants do NOT know how to prepare baked potatoes. \u00a0Despite slathering the potato with butter and sour cream, it didn’t help much. \u00a0American restaurants should visit Mexican restaurants to learn how it’s done.<\/p>\n

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The Ultimate Burger<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

5 April 2024<\/strong>: \u00a0Every time we visit a steak restaurant and I scour the menu for alternatives to meat, my Kim threatens to take my man card. \u00a0It’s reminiscent of the Seinfeld<\/strong><\/a> episode titled \u201cThe Wink\u201d (Season 7, Episode 4) in which Jerry worries about his masculinity when he orders \u201cjust a salad\u201d in front of his carnivorous, pork chop-cooking girlfriend. \u00a0At least I’m more masculine than Seinfeld. \u00a0I’ll order a burger instead of steak. \u00a0The Buckhorn offfers six distinct burgers. \u00a0I assumed the Ultimate burger \u00a0\u00a0<\/strong><\/em> (basil aioli , goat cheese, roasted red peppers, grilled onions) would be the biggest and best of them all. \u00a0It certainly wasn’t sizable…and a wonderful as all the ingredients might be, there just wasn’t enough of them (particularly goat cheese). \u00a0Now, the ultimate burger was good, but it’s not nearly the ultimate.<\/p>\n

5 April 2024<\/strong>: \u00a0One menu item worthy of the label “ultimate” is the Old-Fashioned Chocolate Cake<\/strong><\/em> (three layers of chocolate filled with whipped ganache and surrounded by more creamy chocolate). \u00a0If this dessert had been available during New Mexico’s frontier days, cowboys would have become caloric overachievers too corpulent to \u00a0be able to mount their horses. \u00a0This is one of the largest chocolate cakes you’ll ever have, a veritable chocolate skyscraper. \u00a0Big applies to flavor, too. \u00a0 The chocolate is an adult chocolate, not a cloying milk chocolate that rots your teeth. \u00a0We were able to share an entire slice of this behemoth, a feat the equivalent of swimming the English channel.<\/p>\n

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Chocolate Cake<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

When done with your meal, stagger on over to the adjacent Old Opera Melodrama playhouse for a raucous evening of revelry and fun. The Opera’s Western plays are bawdy and bodacious with just enough double-entendre to make them more appropriate for adults than children. Pinos Altos has other attractions which make it a must stop in the Land of Enchantment’s wild and history laden Southwest quadrant.<\/p>\n

Buckhorn Saloon<\/strong>
\nMain Street
\nPinos Altos, New Mexico<\/strong>
\n(575) 538-9911
\nLATEST VISIT<\/strong>: 5 April 2024
\n1st VISIT<\/strong>: 17 April 2004
\n# OF VISITS<\/strong>: 2
\nRATING<\/strong>: Very Good<\/span>\u00a0<\/strong>\u2013\u00a0Good to very good food; generally solid; delivers consistent quality, strong technique, and a comfortable, enjoyable dining experience
\nCOST<\/strong>: $$$ – $$$$
\nBEST BET<\/strong>: Porterhouse Steak, New York Steak, Sarsaparilla, Ribeye Steak, Mediterranean Plate, Old-Fashioned Chocolate Cake<\/p>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

In 1859, 49ers returning home from California discovered gold among the tall pines (Pinos Altos) north of Silver City. Word spread like wildfire. \u00a0In short order, there were more than 700 men prospecting in the area. As with other boom towns, rampant lawlessness made prospectors lives exciting to say the least. \u00a0Miners faced an anything goes attitude in the pursuit of gold punctuated by frequent raids by marauding Apaches. \u00a0In the “Apache War” of 1861, Cochise joined his father-in-law Mangas Coloradas (an Apache war leader who towered at 6’7″) and some 400 Apache warriors to drive away miners from their traditional homeland. In its early days Pinos Altos saw a veritable who’s who of fame and infamy. \u00a0 In the…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":66233,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_exactmetrics_skip_tracking":false,"_exactmetrics_sitenote_active":false,"_exactmetrics_sitenote_note":"","_exactmetrics_sitenote_category":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[21,141,581,5631,79],"tags":[3822,3824,852,771,3817,3818,3819,3816,3773,3823,3821,3820,2657,3815,3814,3825],"class_list":["post-130","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-american","category-new-mexico","category-new-mexico-culinary-treasures","category-very-good","category-steak","tag-7000-feet","tag-chef-thomas-bock","tag-chocolate-cake","tag-fine-dining","tag-historic-bar","tag-live-entertainment","tag-main-street","tag-mediterranean-plate","tag-new-york-steak","tag-opened-in-1860s","tag-opera-house","tag-pinos-altos","tag-porterhouse-steak","tag-ribeye-steak","tag-sarsaparilla","tag-ultimate-burger"],"yoast_head":"\nBuckhorn Saloon - Pinos Altos, New Mexico - Gil'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=130\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Buckhorn Saloon - Pinos Altos, New Mexico - Gil's Thrilling (And Filling) Blog\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"In 1859, 49ers returning home from California discovered gold among the tall pines (Pinos Altos) north of Silver City. 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Word spread like wildfire. \u00a0In short order, there were more than 700 men prospecting in the area. As with other boom towns, rampant lawlessness made prospectors lives exciting to say the least. \u00a0Miners faced an anything goes attitude in the pursuit of gold punctuated by frequent raids by marauding Apaches. \u00a0In the “Apache War” of 1861, Cochise joined his father-in-law Mangas Coloradas (an Apache war leader who towered at 6’7″) and some 400 Apache warriors to drive away miners from their traditional homeland. 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