For a town of its size, Taos has a surprisingly broad selection of restaurants, including several splurge-worthy options; few vacationers will have the budget to sample all of them, but it’s a treat to have a choice.

If you’re in town during a holiday or peak ski season, you might want to make reservations, but otherwise they’re not necessary, and the whole Taos dining scene is exceptionally casual, with waiters often inquiring about your day skiing along with your preference for red or white wine.

For less spendy meals, as with hotels, you’ll find many options along Paseo del Pueblo Sur, but you won’t be priced out of the center of town either.

At one of the New Mexican places, be sure to try some posole—it’s more common here than in Albuquerque or Santa Fe, often substituted for rice as a side dish alongside pinto beans. Also, the breakfast burrito—a combo of scrambled eggs, green chile, hash browns, and bacon or sausage wrapped in a flour tortilla—is commonly wrapped up in foil and served to go, perfect if you want an early start hiking or skiing.

Note that more so than in Santa Fe, this is a cash economy—many smaller places don’t take plastic.