Color: Impressed

Fashion Outlets of Santa Fe's new restaurant offering is mole-licious

What is it about the restaurant space at the Fashion Outlets of Santa Fe that has seen so many tenants come and go over the past few years? From the recent Desert Rose Restaurant and its predecessor, the beloved Café Vingt Cinq, to a Cajun joint and a few others I'm sure I'm forgetting, there hasn't been much luck keeping the spot flush in good, reliable eats.

Foot traffic at the outlets during the week is so slow that it's hard to imagine anyone wanting to take the risk of opening a restaurant there. However, some local chefs continue to stare down the historic odds and say, "Hell, let's give it a shot." Such is the case with the family-operated Tres Colores (Santa Fe Fashion Outlets, 8380 Cerrillos Road, 919-7181), which opened in the space in June. The kitchen, which is overseen by chef Arturo Sena, is staffed with some familiar pros from the local restaurant scene, including his brother, chef Hugo Sena, with whom I cooked in Santa Fe more than 14 years ago. Decorated in bright blues, oranges and strands of papel picado, the dining room is bright and airy, thanks in part to a domed skylight in the center of the space. Toward the back, a display case offers chips, sodas and freshly prepared fruit salads to purchase on the fly—as well as mouth-watering pastries from Angel's Bakery & Café on Water Street.

Billed as a blend of European, African and Indigenous influences, the large menu offers limited breakfast items—six, including huevos rancheros ($9.50), omelets ($9.50) and a breakfast burrito ($8)—and expansive lunch selections that range from tortas, soups and salads to burgers and southern Mexican dishes. There's also a kids menu, something shopping families may appreciate. A daily agua fresca and horchata are always on offer, as are Mexican hot chocolate and standard fountain beverages. A cantaloupe agua fresca ($2.50) is a bit sweet but refreshing, nonetheless.

As a longtime fan of Hugo's Mexican cooking, I take a gamble that the other apple (Arturo) didn't fall far from him while descending from the familial culinary tree. It pays off. A trio of house-marinated carne asada soft tacos ($10.99) come topped with a creamy-chunky guacamole and pico de gallo, while an included side of spicy tomatillo salsa lets diners add (generous) heat at their whim. The meat is well seasoned but a tad dry. A bowl of well-cooked frijoles charros swimming in broth contains bacon, which is pretty standard, but it's still a blow to the pinto-bean-loving vegetarian community. Your best bet here is to ask what contains meat before ordering.

The rolled mole enchiladas with ground beef ($11.99, also available with either free-range chicken or vegetables) are the real reason to bust doors down to get here. A 33-ingredient Veracruz-style mole sweetened with dried fruit and deepened by bananas, cinnamon and sesame seeds is smooth and complex, but not overbearing in the bitter-chile department. The ground beef can use some simple seasoning (salt mainly), as could the included side of white rice. A sprinkle of queso fresco brightens up the sauce considerably. Housemade tamales ($2.50 each) are available in chicken mole, green chile-vegetable, green chile-chicken and red-chile pork varieties, but some types seem to skimp on the filling. It’s a good thing, then, that the corn masa is heavenly (it almost reminds me of sautéed polenta). The pork is tender, and the red chile sauce, which is prepared a la Veracruzana with a little tomato, should be sold by the quart. Angel’s pastries are delicious, but do ask your server what the kitchen has whipped up in-house for postre. If it’s the El Niño, a blueberry, peach and strawberry strudel, do not pass it up. Did I mention these folks deliver?

There were a few hiccups while trying to review Tres Colores. On a recent Tuesday, the restaurant's doors were open (they lead to the outlet's public restrooms, too), but the business itself was inexplicably closed. On another occasion, there was no mole available. It's small inconsistencies like this that can, over time, spell ruin for a business, but from experience, I know the Sena clan can easily up its game.

At a Glance
Open:
9 am-6:30 pm Monday-Saturday,
10 am-6 pm Sunday
Best Bet:
Mole enchiladas
Can't Miss:
Pork tamal
Heads Up: They deliver!

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