Steaksmith at El Gancho Restaurant in Santa Fe

How good is Steaksmith? It's so good that on a recent two-week visit to Santa Fe, my wife and I squeezed in 10 terrific dinners at the Steaksmith at El Gancho Restaurant in Santa Fe, NM.

Why?

Because I like a variety of dishes, from steaks, to seafood, to pasta, to veggies, and I like them fresh, elegantly prepared, and cooked just as long as necessary, but not longer. Rare needs to be pink-red; vegetables crisp; pasta al dente. Steaksmith never missed! Oh, and the drinks were hearty, and the table wines actually satisfying.

But the harder one to please in my family is my wife. Although she's even more of a foodhound than me, life cast her a dirty turn when she developed interstitial cystitis, generally described as a bladder condition, which severely limits her choice of food. No spices, no citrus, no tomatoes, no alcohol, no sauces, etc. Finding a restaurant with fresh, individually prepared, tasty servings for a limited palate is a major challenge!

At Steaksmith, manager Tupper Schoen, and on his day off, partner Tom Vimont, made it seem, well, like a piece of cake. He and the courteous and attentive wait staff, most of whom have been with Steaksmith for years, made sure my wife's food was separately prepared in the kitchen and served up just as she likes/needs it, and attractively, too. As her official taster, I can vouch for the fact that Steaksmith can make the plainest foods look and taste delicious!

Steaksmith is 10 or 15 minutes out of town, where they were initially located and flourished as an elegant, downtown steak and seafood restaurant. The move, about 20 years ago, to El Gancho, proved a wise business decision. The atmosphere is still inviting and cozy, the food still superb, but the prices, compared to restaurants in the heart of Santa Fe, are downright inexpensive.

The only thing wrong with Steaksmith is that we couldn't take it home with us.

Check out the menu and amenities on their website: http://www.santafesteaksmith.com/

And be sure to make a reservation. The locals love this place.

Cutting the Library Budget Makes the Community Bleed

If you haven't been to your library recently, you probably don't know it's not just about books.

Sure, libraries still have books, magazines, and periodicals as in the "old days," but they also have large collections of music on CD, books on CD (maybe still some on tape), and movies on DVD. Most also serve downloads of audio books and eBooks from their websites. And all it takes is a library card to borrow any of these items!

Libraries have more than kept up with the changing times. Librarians today still direct folks to printed material for research, but more often to Internet resources. And they don't just use computers, they also teach folks to use them for searching, email, word processing, etc.

And did I mention that most libraries, besides providing free wireless access for those who bring their laptops, also provide dozens of well-maintained, modern, Internet-connected computers for people to use free?

Now that was just about resources. Then there's programs. Libraries have always sponsored speeches, poetry readings, book groups, concerts, movie screenings and other events. But they also run employment workshops, provide homework help, have fun activities for children, teach English as a second language classes, etc.

But don't take my word for it. Visit the website of your local library to see what's there.  Here's the website of mine, the White Plains Library: http://www.wppl.lib.ny.us/

Oh, and if you're planning to visit the library in person, maybe you'd better call ahead. With budget cuts taking effect nationwide, you may not find them open or providing the service you want when you need it.

Strong libraries build strong communities. Cutting the library budget drains the community's lifeblood. In difficult times, we can do without water in the fountain, but not without library services.