Amuse-bouche Pyramid Café; Feast: Food of the Islamic World
PYRAMID CAFÉ
TOthe recent transplant or the tourist armed with Yelp reviews and travel listicles, the Santa Fe dining scene can seem like it’s made up of just two types of culinary offerings: high-end gustatory experiences and triedand-true New Mexico classics. Those who have had a chance to settle in know that’s a shame.
We relish our own infrequent encounters with the impeccable food and craft at places such as Geronimo, The Compound, and Sazón. And though we each have our own preferences (and neighborhood favorites), we can agree that even the most tourist-friendly restaurants offering New Mexico cuisine are staples for a reason. But Santa Fe is also home to a wealth of dependable restaurants — many of them serving up ethnic cuisine — that steadfastly deliver consistent, crave-worthy meals on china and in takeout boxes to folks who are not so much looking for a “dining destination” as a reliably good plate of food.
Since the mid-’90s, Pyramid Café, which also has an outpost in Los Alamos, has done just that. Pyramid specializes in North African, Mediterranean, and Greek cuisine. That means guests here can get their basic Greek-food fix — think gyros with fries, salad, falafel — or explore North African specialties such as tagines and Tunisian turnovers. Either way you go, Pyramid offers trustworthy, elevated takes on familiar classics, while giving you room to expand your palate with North African and Mediterranean dishes.
Pyramid Café announces itself with the red lettering ubiquitous to the shops in Cordova Road’s El Mercado Plaza, which is helmed by a CVS. Inside, a bank of seats face the windows, which in turn face the parking lot, but these are perfect perches for the horde of solo diners and takeout customers we saw filtering in and out during our visits. These were, clearly, repeat customers (the hosts even knew some orders without needing to be told), who seemed like neighborhood folks looking for a quick, quality meal.
On a quiet Saturday evening, we grabbed a twoseater booth. Diners can build their own appetizer with one, two, or three classics, so we chose the hummus and the baba ghanoush. These came accompanied by a plate of hot, crispy pita wedges that only enhanced the opening course. Guests here can get their basic Greek-food fix — think gyros with fries, salad, falafel — or explore North African specialties such as tagines and Tunisian turnovers.
Anyone who eats hummus frequently — or makes their own, as I do when aspirational living wins out — has their own preferred flavor profile for the dish. (Mine is heavy with the bite of garlic, salt, and lemon.) Pyramid’s hummus is milder, but rich, creamy, and tahini-forward, topped with a welcoming slick of olive oil. I’ll always seek out baba ghanoush at a restaurant rather than try to create it at home, but I prefer a bit more garlic and salt to bring out the earthiness of the roasted eggplant.
The chicken tagine is a specialty of Moroccan cuisine and at Pyramid as well. Here, the slow-cooked chicken melds with white, impossibly tender sweet potatoes in a piping hot, peppery lemon sauce. A few Kalamata olives lent a surprising depth of flavor when juxtaposed with the preserved lemon, a staple in Moroccan cooking. The side of couscous was dry and mildly scented on its own, but complemented the tagine well once infused with the main dish’s sauce.
Tunisian lamb couscous is presented like a deconstructed stew. The meat is married with zucchini, carrots, white and sweet potatoes, and chickpeas with a huge, artfully arranged roasted green pepper on top. The supple couscous made a perfect bed for the mild but flavorful meat. Portions here are more than generous, but don’t resist the chance to order a side of the exceptional spanakopita. Crisp phyllo — not too oily or soggy — encases a creamy, cheesy interior with bright notes of spinach.
Our second visit, for lunch on a weekday, found us switching to more classic Greek staples. Tabbouleh is a dish I’ve long disliked for its aggressive parsley nature, but Pyramid’s version is cool and refreshing, cucumber-forward with a crunch of onions and barley contrasting with soft, deeply flavored tomatoes.
The shawarma sandwich was the star here, served with crisp, salty, perfectly cooked French fries. Its meat is billed as “all natural domestic lamb,” and though I requested sides of both tzatziki and harissa (typically, you choose), this is the kind of meat you almost hate to dress with a sauce. The exceedingly tender lamb carried just the right amount of fat and salt to balance both sauces, including the harissa with its deep, slow heat. (Tip: Dipping fresh fries in tzatziki is one of life’s great joys, and is not to be missed here.)
A final word about drinks: The can’t-miss option here is the Mediterranean lemonade, a cloudy concoction that, our waiter informed, uses the whole lemon, except the seeds, and adds mint and rosewater. The result is a tart, deep flavor with an addictive herbal quality. I’m already dreaming of my next glass.
Simple dishes done well will always draw repeat customers. Pyramid takes things further, paying careful attention to popular Greek items that rival similar competitors in town, while the carefully cooked and plated North African dishes offer novice-friendly introductions to more nuanced understandings of that region’s culinary offerings.
So by all means, splurge on a special meal at one of our city’s world-class fine dining options. And if you’re craving a certain restaurant’s chile, it’s worth it to rub elbows with a few hungry tourists. But when you’re looking for quick, comforting, and reliable, nothing tops something a little off the beaten path.