Bobcat Bite - Santa Fe, NM

Posted By Michael Stern on October 4, 2010 9:28 PM

Bobcat Bite is one of the friendliest little restaurants we know. And we do mean little! The 2010 Roadfood Tour of New Mexico -- a relatively small group at 26 people -- filled the place to capacity when we arrived for breakfast of green chile cheeseburgers at 10:15 on a Friday morning. By the time we were vacating the place, about 11, a substantial lunch crowd was beginning to form, putting their names on the sign-up board in anticipation of getting one of the tables or counter seats.

Once you get inside, the staff couldn’t be nicer. Since it opened a half-century ago, through a series of owners and now in the capable hands of Bonnie and John Eckre, Bobcat Bite has maintained a country coziness that makes newcomers and old friends always feel at home. For us, the experience of eating here has a strong nostalgic air, like we’ve somehow stepped into a ship-shape roadside diner in the mid-1950s. In its modest way, it is a beautiful place with clean varnished wood tables and counter and pictures of bobcats and other wildlife on the walls.

The menu is basic. Certainly the best-known specialty is the green chile cheeseburger, a magnificent 10-ounce patty made from daily-ground chuck, cooked to your specs and smothered with vibrant green chilies and melted cheese. The rib-eye steak, cut from prime beef, is spectacularly juicy and flavorful. Although unspectacular, the grilled cheese sandwich, or better yet, the grilled cheese and ham sandwich, is flawless. Among the side dishes is an excellent dish of porky baked beans (summer only) and a fabulous grilled jalapeno pepper with firm, muscular walls and roundhouse chile flavor.

According to the little history on the back of the menu the restaurant’s unusual name comes from a time many years ago when bobcats came down from the hills and were given snacks at the back door.

Note the limited hours of operation: Wednesday through Saturday from 11am to exactly 7:50pm. (And Tuesday in the summer.) What the 7:50 closing time means is that if you get your name on the sign-up board in the vestibule by 7:50, you will eat, even if that means you might wait an hour or so to do so.

Overall Rating

Green Chile Cheeseburger

Rib-Eye Steak

Skillet Baked Beans

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Posted By Skip Becker on September 22, 2010 12:20 AM

I believe when I heard the Roadfood group was going to Santa Fe and had all the places selected in town that I said you must visit one of my top burger places in the US. And I told anyone/everyone to try the green chile cheeseburger.

I am thrilled that you all got to go and that they opened early to accomodate you all. My only negative comment in my rating of great burgers is a -5 for the bun.

I have worked with 100s of restaurants and if you order a burger less than medium (like medium rare) if you cut the bun down the middle you will be doing a disservice to the entire sandwich. Looking at the photo and the beautiful medium rare meat you can see that the top half of the bun makes up 80% and the bottom half is now 'shrunk'/depressed to about 15% to 20%. The reason is the juices 'melt' the bun.

To get a perfect shape the restaurant owners must cut the bun about 1/3 for the top and 2/3 for the bottom. then when the meat juices soak down the bottom will still hold the burger and the top won't be all bread. A perfect shape between bun and meat.

I still believe it is in my top 10 of the US. but a -5 for bun quality.

Overall Rating

Green Chile Cheeseburger

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Posted By Sue Huot on July 31, 2009 4:09 PM

The person who said they waited an hour and the staff didn't care AND they lived there six months out of the year... they aren't really Santa Feans. Anyone that lives in Santa Fe knows to do carryout or wait. It's worth any wait.

I have a friend who missed his flight because of a Bobcat Bite burger. If the people from Food Network and other food groups say it's the best burger in the US then it must be worth the wait. Sure it's small and there's no atmosphere, but the food makes up for that. Too many people visiting Santa Fe are five-star white tablecloth kinda folks, but that's not the REAL Santa Fe. Bobcat Bite is, and it's worth every minute you wait. We moved from Santa Fe about a year ago and can't wait to get back for a visit.

Overall Rating

Green Chile Cheeseburger

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Posted By Peter Small on March 13, 2008 4:06 PM

The Bobcat Bite looks pretty nondescript. In fact, I must have driven past it 12 times before I realized it was a restaurant. When I finally went there to eat, I was not disappointed and I have never been disappointed.

They grind the meat daily for their delicious burgers and they sell home fries, not deep-fried french fries. The burgers are some of the best I have ever tasted. It's the meat that makes them, by far.

The atmosphere is crowded, yet homey. It could have been my grandmother's kitchen. An old-style road restaurant. It is well worth the wait. So pull in, put your name on the board (don't forget to do this, or you will wait longer), enjoy the loneliness of the location and prepare for a VERY satisfying burger.

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Posted By Craig Bowman on January 4, 2008 11:12 PM

Took a while to find Bobcat Bite, but it was definitely worth it. Our map just wasn't real clear about how or where Old Pecos Trail turns into Old Las Vegas Highway, but it does.

Best green chile cheeseburger ever. It is very moist and cooked correctly. They use sirloin and chuck and form the burgers by hand. They come on a paper plate with chips or, for an extra fee, home fries are available. I did not see anyone eating anything else, although there are other choices on the menu.

Very nice folks. The restaurant has been there since the road out front was called Route 66, which is to say a very long time. Expect to wait at dinner; we stood outside for 20 minutes and met some nice people. Also bought a great t-shirt in pink (it wasn't for me). We'll definitely go back when we are next in Santa Fe.

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Posted By Jim Arnold on September 28, 2007 10:09 PM

We had an extremely poor experience at Bobcat Bite recently on a Friday at noon. We live half the year in Santa Fe and this was our first time at this restaurant, having heard good things about the food. When you arrive you put your name on a board and wait to be seated in turn. There was one name ahead of ours and that party was called. A waitress then skipped us (three adults and a three-year-old) and seated a man whose party had not yet arrived. When we said something the waitress tried to get the man to leave the table but he would not, even though the people he was waiting for were not yet there. The waitress did not seem to care. We waited another 10 minutes for a table (the place is very small) and then one hour for the food to arrive. This has to be the very worst service in Santa Fe.

The burgers were very good but certainly not worth almost an hour and a half wait. The wait would have been bad even if we did not have our three year old grandson with us. You are much better off going to Harry's Roadhouse which is two miles away and closer to town. The food and atmosphere is better and the place is friendlier. We will never go back to Bobcat Bite.

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