A PERFECT V-DAY SPOT?
Couple-owned Dinner for T offers romantic atmospher
At Santa Fe’s Dinner for Two, romance rules. Staff prepare Caesar salad, chateaubriand and bananas Foster tableside. Sweet touches abound, from sumptuous fabrics and furnishings to carefully crafted and curated wines and cocktails.
“It’s based on making the experience unique as well as either incorporating a memory or making a new one,” co-owner Crystal VeirsBarnes said of the restaurant’s tableside service and other personal touches. “It’s often not only romantic, but it makes the evening more special because what we do is tailored to the mood you’re in or what your occasion is.”
But perhaps the most romantic aspect of Dinner for Two is the story of its owners: a married couple who have infused the family restaurant with reflections of their journeys together.
Andy Barnes opened Dinner for Two in 2001 with his parents, Pam and Gregory Barnes, as the restaurant’s chef and co-owner after graduating from culinary school. The steak and seafood restaurant built a reputation for its romantic atmosphere and customer service.
Andy, 39, and Crystal, 41, met at a barbecue in 2012 and eventually began dating. Their first impressions: “I just loved his presence,” said Crystal, who is an American Sign Language interpreter originally from west Texas. “I thought she was intelligent, beautiful,” said Andy, a lifelong Santa Fean.
They married in 2014, and in January 2018, the couple took over the family business.
They temporarily closed Dinner for Two in April to launch a series of renovations: overhauling everything from the flooring to the paint, the lighting and seating. They moved the building’s entrance to the side fronting Guadalupe Street, providing guests with an immediate glimpse of both the new bar and the updated restaurant space. The former entryway — where diners were once greeted by Andy’s dad’s pie cases — now houses plush lounge seating for chatting, sipping a drink or waiting for a table.
They also obtained a liquor license in June, allowing them to add cocktails to their wine and beer offerings. The most popular drink so far: the eponymous Crystal’s Pear Martini, made with Grey Goose pear vodka, St. Germain elderflower liqueur and lemon juice.
“While we were closed for the renovations, we both worked on perfecting that recipe as well as seeing a few sunsets together before we embarked on this journey,” Crystal said.
Personal touches can be found in everything from the décor to the menu. The couple have traveled extensively and gleaned inspiration for their restaurant from places such as London, Amsterdam, Paris and New Orleans. You’ll find etched glassware and water bottles on the table, and beignets, shrimp toast and the Vieux Carré cocktail on the menu.
The couple’s garden and orchard also play a featured role in the restaurant, providing the kitchen with local squash blossoms, cherries, apples, plums, peaches and other produce.
The menu has been refined over the years, with current chef Rony Gutierez adding his own dishes and flair. With Andy out of the kitchen, the couple can focus on greeting guests and making visits memorable.
“It always surprises me how many people have traveled from far or come from near and have a memory associated with this place,” Crystal said.
Andy’s goal, he said, is to continue to boost Dinner for Two’s reputation as a destination restaurant. And the restaurant, he notes, is not just for romantic partners.
“A lot of people take the name very literally,” Andy said with a laugh. “It’s the sense that it’s a romantic restaurant to eat at, a place you want to come for your birthday, anniversary. You can bring all your friends if you want! We just go the extra mile to make your dining experience more pleasurable.”
IF YOU GO
What: Dinner for Two When: The restaurant is open from 4 to 10 p.m. seven days a week. Happy hour runs from 4 to 6:30 p.m. and 8:30 to 10 p.m. There’s a $20.95 prime rib special on Thursdays and a three-course offering for $24.95 on Sundays, and a themed prix fixe dinner on the third Friday of every month. Where: 106 N. Guadalupe St. More information: Call 505-820-2075 or visit dinnerfortwonm.com.