- Restaurants |
- Nightlife |
- Shopping |
- Movies |
- All
The Matador
Rating Details »
- Price Range:
-
$
- Accepts Credit Cards:
- No
- Parking:
- Street
- Good for Groups:
- No
- Wheelchair Accessible:
- No
- Outdoor Seating:
- No
- Music:
- Juke Box, Music Videos
- Best Nights:
- Wed, Fri, Sat
- Happy Hour:
- No
- Alcohol:
- Full Bar
- Smoking:
- Outdoor Area/ Patio Only
- Coat Check:
- No
18 reviews for The Matador
HEART. HEART. HEART.
Yes, some people might consider this place a dive bar, but I call it a hipster bar. Cool people, cool bartender, cool place.
The walls are decorated with local art...everything from an oil painting to local drawings people have done on paper to even local flyers for events around town. Not much seating, very close knit and dark. I was on sensory overload...people with pink hair, people coming from a wedding, people clearly in town for the holiday weekend....oh man. I didnt know where to look first.
Note: If you're not looking for this place you WILL miss it. It's underground, about 1100 SF and serve Pabst. They also have a FULL bar and a cooler at the end that shows all their beers. The bar tender does not have time to go over all the beers with you, so look in the cooler. (That's one cool thing about dives/hipsters...bar tenders doing really give a s*it about you).
Thanks Matador. You rock.
Walking up, the man in a white button down loudly said to his lady friend "They have to be from the east." Yes, sir. I am. And, while I am not Boston-crazy, I don't appreciate the look of disgust when I say that I came from there. Even worse than Boston, apparently, is Texas, where my friend is from. That got downright derision. Nonetheless, we live here for now, were with a long-term resident, and are not tourists.
So, it's not Matador's fault they have a loud jerk hanging around outside. And he clearly wasn't representative of the bar staff, who look very rockabilly and pretty tough. The bartender was everything I would want in a bartender.
Actually, a lot of people here looked tough or rough or both. Everyone seemed generally older than I expected. And the crowd was weird. WEIRD. The young punky looking girl with the old hippy. The nerds and the guys with slicked back hair and tattoos. Us.
Overall, a fine bar. Not as comfortably dive-y as Gooski's in Pittsburgh, or the old BBQ Bar in Orlando, but probably the only straight up bar in Santa Fe that is legitimately interesting. Although my non-Texan friend's vodka RedBull seemed a bit steep at $10.
As I descended the stairs from the street to the Matador's basement lair, I could almost hear the captain in one of those WWII submarine movies shouting, "Dive! Dive! Dive!" The Matador is definitely not for the faint of heart, nor for those who want the typical Santa Fe tourist experience. This is a local's hideout in every sense of the word.
Dank, dirty, and disheveled is about the best way to describe it, and for some locals, that's just the way they like it. Vaguely rockabilly themed, the last time I was there they were showing Jim Jarmusch's "Mystery Train" on their wide-screen TV. It was even cooler to watch it with Spanish subtitles.
If you're in Santa Fe as a tourist, the Matador is a great place to check out if you're mildly adventurous. It provides a glimpse of Santa Fe life that you rarely get to see from a tourist's perspective. Bear in mind, it's easy to miss the Matador's signage, even though you may be standing right in front of it. Probably the best way to find the Matador is to look for a stairway on Galisteo that leads from street level to the depths below.
This is an OK bar, but nothing outstanding. The locals like it for the great music and the movies that are played on the Hi-Def TV Screen, but the drinks are spotty, and you can't pay with a credit card unless you use their ATM machine which charges an extre $2.50.
Caesar, the primary owner is awesome, but unless he's tending the bar, a large percent of would be regulars decline to go to the bar because it simply isn't a friendly atmosphere with the other bartenders.
I doubt most tourists who come to Santa Fe would make a overly positive reccomendation on this bar, but it does have a homey locals feel to it if you go there on an off night.
Forget about getting a cheap beer here either. This bar, like the rest of downtown Santa Fe exists because their rent is high, and they have to charge triple the amount for a drink than anywhere else in the country.
6
40
This was 28 minutes of my life on my last venture to Santa fe.. Dirty, skanky basement bar. Loud, smelly, not sexy.
Was not here last time i checked.
My friend and i sat in a room with what seemed to be 2 couples and a few friends. Somewhere i missed the love connection, He got some guys digits and i had horrifying drunk deja vu 2 nights later.
Good Tequila, its always good. And seemingly good place to find an encounter.
i am from Denver and am used to dive bars with lower priced drinks and cool people... this place was rad. Caeser, i think was the owner, was super personable, bought us drinks, and was very entertaining. Santa fe kind of sucked, there weren't any cool bars besides this one unless you wanted to pay $6 for a budweiser (not in a strip club) and this place made me feel at home. I loved it here. If you are into food and not afraid to spend some money, go eat at the Compound, i had one of the best meals of my life there and Mark Kiffin is one of the best chefs around...
Three bucks for a PBR and four for a good pour of well whiskey isn't bad for Santa Fe, especially right off the plaza. Entertained by exploitation horror on the TV at the bar. Some good classic show posters on the wall, interspersed with framed examples of the results of a google image search for "pop." Tiny basement location provides decent atmosphere.
Around eleven thirty on a saturday night the well-dressed dinner crowd shuffles off and is replaced by a fairly decent late twenties, early thirties crowd. There's no good spot to gain access to the bar - you'll have to elbow some people out of the way to get the bartender's attention.
If you want a real working class dive bar in Santa Fe, go to Rocky's and listen to terrible karaoke. For what it is, the Matador is cool little spot.
When I bought my Santa Fe sundress at Vive La Femme in Chicago, Stephanie was psyched that I would be spending 6 weeks in Santa Fe. "You have to go to The Matador," she said, and even wrote it down for me on a card. So I came to The Matador with very high expectations. I ended up going on a Monday night, since it was my cousin's birthday. I think I was surprised by how small it was, and that it faintly smelled like incense or bathroom cleaner, which was better than the stink bomb some kid threw in later that night. I was disappointed by the small beer selections, and surprised by the $5 I paid for one Negro Modelo. But then again, this is Santa Fe.
However, by the end of the evening, I could see why The Matador is a new fave among the younger crowd in Santa Fe. The old concert posters, the music playing from the bartender's I-Tunes library, the movie in the background. The Matador has a grungy, dive bar feel that does not otherwise exist in downtown Santa Fe. Sitting in the nifty little room off to the side on rather comfy benches, I felt like I was in Chicago around Augusta and Western or someplace in Rogers Park. And everyone deserves that low-key hip bar, don't they?
This is a place of a different breed in Santa Fe. The Matador has a funky, scummy, slightly stanky appeal. Though very small, it would probably be an interesting venue for an intimate show. They only accept cash which is a bit of an inconvenience but do provide an ATM. They have seemingly over-priced cocktails but the bartender made me one hell of a martini. Though adobe is a huge part of what makes Santa Fe so cozy and beautiful, its a nice change from the western style nightlife pervading Santa Fe.
What a great little find in Santa Fe! Definitely a dive bar, but clean and very friendly. I think the bartender was the nicest bartender by whom I've ever been served! Very sweet and appreciative, our service was great all night.
The music most of the night was punk and rock, and they were showing American Hardcore on the flat screen TV. Mostly stool seating, there is a small alcove with benches.
There's a great cross-section of folks at this bar - gay, straight, and all different races. This is the kind of place I like to frequent, and I'm happy that there is a bar like this in Santa Fe. Will definitely be back on future visits!
PSEUDO dive bar alert. No authentic dive bar would charge $14 for a Patron Margarita. They would just spit in your face and tell you to get a shot of Jack or get out. I am disappointed to say the least.
Cool because it's not Santa Fe... It's more like home. Punk/ film/mariachi. The Graduate was playing on a flat screen TV. Had a good conversation with the owner (the nicest person I met in Santa Fe). Expensive for a dive bar, but worth the escape from the "Land of Enchantment."
great bar. if the gate is closed and the red light is off then they are closed-seems like they open late some nights.
the nights i was there they were playing scarface and then dr strangelove. man i love that part where peter sellers cant control himself from sieg heiling. scarface is neither here nor there for me. it is such an iconic gangster movie that its kinda a turnoff and the violence is a little excessive no? i really enjoyed watching the movies in a bar setting.
the bartender was great the darts were great i could definetely see myself getting drunk here singing along w the punk tunes on a wednesday! cash only folks!
The only punk rock bar in SF. Order whiskey, not beer. You'll thank me. I swear.
everyone was telling me about this new bar in town called matador, saying it was just like a small manhattan dive bar.
but its just a regular pure dive bar. it's downstairs in this basement with no windows, an all cash bar, and a crappy tv. no real attractions/reasons to go to the bar. the drinks were middle of the road but in an all cash bar thats hurting. and there are tons of other nice bars right around there (excluding evangelos).
so maybe go to see what it's about, but you prob won't see me there.
This is our favorite bar in Santa Fe. The music is great, and the bartenders are skilled and very nice. It reminds me of San Francisco, which is a good thing.
i love the matador it is the only interesting place to go other than cowgirl in santa fe. whenever i come back home i am definitely a regular at this place. they drinks they mix are really strong and the bartenders and bouncers are nice guys. reminds me a lot of delilah's in chicago.
Visiting from southern california, this was a nice reminder of home amongst all the country/santa fe decor found throughout the city. It was refreshing to see that not everything was all cowboys and indians and new mexican tschotcke - and not that i don't like that stuff but it brought out the city spirit in me. There were movie posters from the 60s and 70s and framed band flyers, etc. It looked like the owners own personal collection of rock and cult nostalgia. Drinks were strong - wine was served in generous pouring and cocktails came in fun vintage looking highball glasses. The bartenders were friendly and attentive and the music pretty much ruled. Punk, reggae, indie rock - I felt like I was in a punk bar. It's pretty tiny and it gets crowded with the most eclectic of late night drinkers. Bring your cash or hit up the ATM machine. I would've stayed all night but alas my group of girlfriends got antsy and made me leave.
