MADAM’S

Two women, four restaurants

THE LOVE APPLE

restaurants

MARTYRS STEAKHOUSE Women have been cooking meals in their home kitchens forever, but restaurants have long been largely ruled by male chefs and restaurateurs.

Women restaurant owners have always been a rare breed but lately women have been taking culinary skills outside their home kitchens and are using those skills to make major strides in that industry.

Currently, more than half of the restaurants in America have

women as owners or

co-owners.

Two such women not only live in Taos, but own not one but two restaurants each, and not just any old restaurants either, but four of the most popular ones in town.

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WTwo women, four restaurants

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KIMBERLY ARMSTRONG

hen Rene Mettler and Kimberly Armstrong arrived in Taos in 1994, they imagined it was only a quick stop on their way to Sedona. “We met Ron Cooper and he showed us the building in Ranchos de Taos,” Kimberly recalls, “and that was that.”

The couple chose Taos in after deciding to leave the corporate restaurant life which had them coming and going from Europe for years, before moving back to the States.

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They opened the Trading Post Café, a neighborhood bistro where food (mainly Italian), art and the local community all came together. Mettler’s art and that of other locals always hung on the walls. The Trading Post Cafe & Gallery became a Taos institution, a gathering place for locals and visitors alike who appreciated the excellent, discreet service, the fabulous and consistent menu as well as the hospitality Kimberly Armstrong extended to all who walked in the door. When the pandemic hit, Armstrong decided to close the Trading Post and focus on the two eateries she’d bought in town, after her husband passed away. Both Martyrs Steakhouse and the Bent St. Deli were well established by the time Armstrong took over, but she brought her singular flair with her, turning the ordinary into the extraordinary. The Bent St. Deli was on Armstrong’s radar for years prior to purchase. “Rene and I had talked about it for years,” she told me when she first bought it, “so when it came up for sale, I didn’t hesitate.” A couple of years ago Armstrong bought Martyrs and closed the Trading Post soon after. but rest assured, she carried over many of the beloved dishes that had earned the Trading Post its stellar reputation over the years, dishes long prepared by Mettler in that iconic Ranchos kitchen, along with small plates and the juicy ribeyes people have come to expect from the cosy historic house on Martyrs Lane. Armstrong can often be found in both places in and out of the kitchen, nimbly moving between the front and back of the house.

Like Jen Hart, the owner of the Love Apple and Manzanita Market, Armstrong is not afraid of getting her hands dirty. Both women are known to do it all, from bussing tables to hostess duties, they are hands on in their establishments. → 40

Two women, four restaurants

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JEN HART H

art grew up here in Taos and managed the highly acclaimed Joseph’s Table before opening The Love Apple. Informed by her travels to Europe and Paris in particular, Hart’s refined aesthetic and attention to detail, along with her commitment to local organically grown, farm to table produce and excellent wines, has blessed Taos with a world class bistro. A favorite of locals and returning visitors alike, it has become a destination spot for those in the know. The menu changes seasonally and boasts locally grown, organic produce and pasture raised meat and poultry, simply prepared, and beautifully presented.

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Housed in what was once the Placitas Chapel, a little Catholic Church built during the 1800s, the space is intimate, charming and tastefully appointed. However, be advised the room is tiny, especially in winter when the patio is closed, and fills up fast! So do be sure to make reservations, but leave your plastic behind. The Love Apple accepts cash and checks only. Manzanita Market is on the same corner of the Plaza that is home to the World Cup Cafe. With two entries — one from the Plaza side, the other on Juan Largo Lane across from Chokola, Manzanita has become one of the most popular breakfast and lunch spots in Taos. The pristine, white space (Hart’s signature) features a long communal table with a few smaller bistro tables against the walls and not much else besides the counter that conceals a minimal, yet efficient kitchen area. Wire and crystal chandeliers made by artist Marianne Fahrney hang from the old vigas catching the light. Art hangs on the walls, along with a few mirrors, but the space like the food, is simplicity personified. Simple but certainly not ordinary, Manzanita like the Love Apple, focuses on fresh, organic ingredients and serves up tasty salads, sandwiches and bone brothbased soups, daily, along with delectable homemade baked goods and ice cream. Hart avoids the spotlight like the plague, preferring word of mouth to advertising, and truth be told, neither of the women or their respective establishments, require much in the way of publicity; their businesses are already booming, thanks to great work ethics and food that speaks for itself. •