If you saw the photo of Truffles from when we visited PistachioLand, you might have noticed that her fur was pretty long. As a result, a couple of days after we arrived in Deming we drove over to Las Cruces for her to be groomed.
That gave us a few hours sans pup, so Shae and I decided to go for lunch at the nearby restaurant La Posta de Mesilla. We’d heard about it from Airstream Dog; their Uncle Jim had recommended they eat at La Posta and so we knew we had to try it ourselves seeing as he’d also recommended visiting Chaco Culture National Historical Park which was a fascinating place to visit.
As the name suggests, the restaurant is in Mesilla which is only a few miles from downtown Las Cruces. Mesilla is a cute little town that has a plaza which is a National Historical Landmark and was a key stop on the Butterfield Overland Trail, a stagecoach service which delivered mail from California to Texas.
Mesilla had many famous visitors, one of the most prominent of which was Billy The Kid. In fact, the building which now houses the Billy The Kid Gift Shop was once the Capitol of Arizona and New Mexico and subsequently served as the courthouse where Billy The Kid was tried and sentenced to hang.
On the other side of the road from the Billy The Kid Gift Shop was La Posta de Mesilla.
Seeing as we were visiting during COVID times, Shae and I wanted to eat outdoors in their courtyard rather than inside the restaurant. Due to the limited courtyard seating and the fact that the restaurant is a popular place to dine, we had to wait about 15 minutes. We waited outside for some of that time, but also took a quick wander around the restaurant’s lobby as there was quite a bit to see.
For starters, they have an aviary as well as a fish tank with piranhas in it.
There were also several signs sharing more about both the restaurant’s history and the building it’s in.
By the time we’d checked out everything it was time for us to be seated out in the courtyard. In normal times La Posta de Mesilla is pet-friendly out in the courtyard, but only service dogs were allowed during our visit due to a COVID-related ordinance by New Mexico’s Governor. That didn’t matter for us that day seeing as Truffles was getting groomed at PetSmart, but it’s something to bear in mind if you’re wanting to eat there with your pup in the near future (we ate there in March 2021).
The courtyard itself was lovely and thankfully had some shade from an umbrella over our table as it started getting hot during lunch.
The double-sided menu at La Posta de Mesilla had lots of Mexican and New Mexican meal options.
In addition to a comprehensive cocktail menu…
…they have a tequila menu with something like 100 different types of tequila available. You can even choose one of seven different tequila flights.
Shae ordered her first ever prickly pear margarita and she enjoyed it so much I doubt it’ll be her last!
While we decided what to order, our friendly server Andrea brought over some chips and salsa. The salsa was very tasty – it had a good kick, but wasn’t burn-your-mouth spicy.
A large proportion of the menu items included corn tortillas. I had a bad experience with those in the past and haven’t been able to eat them since, so I went for something that came with a flour tortilla – a green chile chicken burrito plate.
This was very good too and was far more filling than I was anticipating (it doesn’t help that I’d eaten loads of chips and salsa before that).
Shae ordered the enchilada plate which might not look like it’s up to much, but she absolutely loved it.
Despite being so full I managed to finish off my burrito plate, while Shae took half of her enchilada plate to go as there was so much food. With this being our last week in New Mexico though, we decided to order sopaipillas (a fried pastry/bread) for dessert one final time.
We had a great meal at La Posta de Mesilla. The food was delicious, as was Shae’s prickly pear margarita. Our server Andrea was attentive and friendly without hovering and the courtyard where we had lunch was cute. Add in the history of both the restaurant and its building and you’ve got somewhere that’s definitely worth eating at if you’ll be in the Las Cruces area.
Address
La Posta de Mesilla, 2410 Calle De San Albino, Mesilla, NM 88046
Uncle Jim strikes again! I’m so glad you guys had a great experience, what a fantastic write-up!
I think I need him to be our personal tour guide as he definitely seems to know all the best places. Hope you get a chance to eat there in the future 🙂
If you get to Southern California, I can point you to an interesting hike along the Butterfield Trail AND some Kit Carson historical sites.
Plus, since you’re in my old neck of the woods now (Aridzona), if you’re feeling peckish for New Mexican cuisine and near Scottsdale: Carlsbad Tavern is your place. BEST prickly pear margs, great food, finer people. It was THE FlyerTalk hangout in the early days of FT…
Thanks for the recommendations! I’ll add the Butterfield Trail & Kit Carson spots to our CA list.
We’ll be back in Phoenix in a few weeks, so we’ll have to check out Carlsbad Tavern – their menu looks great.
My parents took me there several times when they lived in El Paso. So glad you enjoyed it as much as I. Looks like they haven’t changed it much in 30 years! That’s a good thing.
I hope we have a chance to return in the future 🙂
Hello, I enjoyed your writeup on La Posta. I have fond memories of Katy welcoming my ex husband and I to her restaurant when we visited from California. She always sent enchiladas to Aunt Ash while she was alive and living at the Museum, usually on Fridays. The Gadsden Museum, which is run by relatives, is only short distance from La Posta. Lots of history in that beautiful old Adobe building. Thanks for the memories.
Thanks, I’m glad you liked it 🙂
I lived in Las Cruces until 1979. I ate at La Postal at least twice a week. I’ve been back several times. My husband and I drove 15 hours to go back and eat there for one of our anniversaries. I absolutely love that place. The green enchiladas are the best!!
My favorite restaurant in the whole country. Been going since 1973. Drove 15 hours to spend our anniversary there one year. Well worth the trip!!
I’ve been born and raised in Las Cruces all my life and think it’s crazy that people from out of town think la posta any good. I think it’s a bad example of Mexican food..There are way better in this town