On any given Saturday Farmers’ Market at the Railyard, shoppers might spot one of Santa Fe’s outstanding chefs. None is more beloved than Executive Chef Estevan Garcia, a native son and chef-owner of estevan restaurante.

Raised in Santa Fe, Chef Estevan is a graduate of St. Michael’s High School and attended the College of Santa Fe, after a four-year retreat at a monastery in Indiana.

Chef Paulraj Karuppasamy and his wife and business partner, Nellie Tischler, own and operate Paper Dosa, a restaurant specializing in South Indian Cuisine. Located at 551 West Cordova Road, the menu offers dishes with lamb and chicken as ingredients, but this Santa Fe favorite is especially popular with vegetarian diners. During our interview, the proprietors wanted to encourage Institute readers to “diversify your produce! We are inspired by what goes into our salads, soups, uttapams, chutneys, sambars, and curries.”

American culinary expert James Beard is quoted as saying, “Good bread is the most fundamentally satisfying of all foods; and good bread with fresh butter, the greatest of feasts.” Sage Bakehouse owner/baker Andrée Falls agrees. She offers 14 delicious varieties of bread at her artisan bread bakery and complements them with excellent, fresh ingredients to create delicious tartines, panini, soups, and salads at her café (535 Cerrillos Road in Santa Fe). She says, “We’re a bit food-obsessed, not about fussy presentations.”