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Rio Chama, Santa Fe, NM

Rio Chama

3.7
3.7
451 Reviews
$31 to $50
Steakhouse
414 Old Santa Fe Trl, Santa Fe, NM 87501-2770

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2 people
SunMonTueWedThuFriSat
7:00 PM
Booked 1 time today

About this restaurant

  • Charming
  • Good for special occasions
  • Good for business meals
Rio Chama in Santa Fe, New Mexico is located not far from the Santa Fe Plaza, next to the state capitol. Since 2001, the restaurant has developed a reputation for simple, elegant dishes made with high-quality ingredients. You'll find a relaxing atmosphere offering a mix of intimate dining rooms, inviting patios and one of Santa Fe's most popular bars. It is a long standing Santa Fe institution, where Executive Chef Joel Hernandez features modern American cuisine serving the best prime rib, steaks and seafood. We serve the Edible Magazine 2023 People's Choice for best green chile cheeseburger. Excellent food, wine, and spirits with great hospitality and service make Rio Chama perfect for any occasion.

We take reservations for the dining room only. Our bar and Doug Montgomery @ The President’s room is first come first serve basis.


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Dining areas

Additional information

  • Dining style
    Fine Dining
  • Price
    $31 to $50
  • Cuisines
    Steakhouse, American, Seafood
  • Hours of operation
    Happy Hour Mon, Thu, Fri 4:00 pm–6:00 pm Sat, Sun 3:00 pm–6:00 pm Dinner Mon, Thu–Sun 5:00 pm–9:00 pm
  • Phone number
  • Payment options
    AMEX, Discover, Mastercard, Visa
  • Dress code
    Casual Dress

What 451 people are saying

Rio Chama reviews from people who’ve dined at this restaurant. Based on recent rating.

Overall ratings and reviews

Reviews can only be made by diners who have eaten at this restaurant

3.7
3.7 based on recent ratings
  • 3.9Food
  • 3.6Service
  • 3.9Ambience
  • 3.5Value

NoiseModerate

Loved For

  • New Mexico

    Hot spot

  • Santa Fe / Mountains

    Good for groups

  • Santa Fe / Mountains

    Hot spot

Review summary

AI-generated from verified diner reviews
Rio Chama offers a charming dining experience with standout dishes like the "elk tenderloin with blue cheese bacon crust" and "prime rib." Guests appreciate the "cozy ambiance" and "attentive service." While there are occasional service delays, the restaurant remains a favorite for its "good steaks" and "delicious desserts."
451 Reviews
  1. Lisa

    Atlanta1 review

    5.0

    Dined on March 31, 2025

    1. Overall 5
    2. Food 4
    3. Service 5
    4. Ambience 5
    It's an excellent place for a quiet dinner; the food is always delicious.

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  2. mona

    Houston5 reviews

    4.0

    Dined on March 25, 2025

    1. Overall 4
    2. Food 3
    3. Service 3
    4. Ambience 5
    Food served was warm should’ve been served hot. The primary cut was a good size. However, the au jus seem like it was premade type was thick. The asparagus was done perfectly. the potatoes were a blah. Our guest ordered a Mexican dish which she said came out very good. The horseradish was a cream style would’ve preferred that it was spicy. It was not. Which leads me to believe that it was not fresh. That would’ve made the prime rib even better. My cut was very good, but my husband‘s cut was tough. Our server forgot to serve our wine, it took a long time to get some drinks. Was a quiet night in the restaurant. The Caesar salad was excellent. 

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  3. OpenTable Diner

    New Orleans1 review

    2.0

    Dined on March 21, 2025

    1. Overall 2
    2. Food 3
    3. Service 3
    4. Ambience 2
    Steaks were overcooked. Lettuce in the salad was browned and old.

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  4. Lisa VIP

    Los Angeles8 reviews

    2.0

    Dined on March 16, 2025

    1. Overall 2
    2. Food 1
    3. Service 1
    4. Ambience 3
    A disappointing experience from start to finish. We had requested a quiet table as we were celebrating our anniversary, but the hostess made it sound like the request was an inconvenience and said they were quite busy so that may be hard. OK, no problem. She led us in, and the area was empty but for 2 occupied tables. We waited more than 10 minutes for our server to show up and offer us water and take our drink order (remember: there were only two other occupied tables). Service overall was notably slow. The appetizer and salad were good but we came for the steak. Sadly, we were greatly disappointed. Both the prime rib and the filet mignon were ordered medium but arrived medium well/well done. The baked potato was lukewarm. Why didn’t we raise this with the server? Because he disappeared. Gone. We waited for many minutes for him to return but he didn’t. So we ate about half the overcooked steak (not juicy, not tender, not properly prepared). When he finally returned and saw the food was half eaten, he didn’t ask if there was a problem. He did ask if we wanted more wine or wanted our water refilled. A very disappointing experience. Not worth the time or money.

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  5. Lela

    Philadelphia24 reviews

    5.0

    Dined on March 11, 2025

    1. Overall 5
    2. Food 5
    3. Service 4
    4. Ambience 4
    Lovely restaurant great waitress but was working short of staff almost solo. Food was very good.

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  6. DAVID VIP

    San Francisco82 reviews

    3.0

    Dined on March 2, 2025

    1. Overall 3
    2. Food 3
    3. Service 3
    4. Ambience 3
    Food just wasn’t good enough to go back. Interesting on a Saturday evening no restaurant we check with had tables except this one. Hmm, wonder why?

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  7. janell

    New York City3 reviews

    3.0

    Dined on February 15, 2025

    1. Overall 3
    2. Food 3
    3. Service 2
    4. Ambience 4
    Husbands food can out early before salad, my food came 20 Minutes later. Such a bad experience for valentines bar

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  8. Mike VIP

    Dallas3 reviews

    2.0

    Dined on February 9, 2025

    1. Overall 2
    2. Food 2
    3. Service 2
    4. Ambience 3
    Even though the restaurant wasn’t busy the service was very slow. My wife ordered elk which was good. The ribeye was not. They offered an upgrade on the steak with crusted blue cheese and bacon. It was just gobs of blue cheese and bacon just dumped on top. The cut of meat not good. The sides were not good

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  9. Mike

    New Mexico1 review

    5.0

    Dined on February 7, 2025

    1. Overall 5
    2. Food 5
    3. Service 5
    4. Ambience 5
    Great time, great food. Quiet had a nice evening.

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  10. Ernesto

    Las Vegas6 reviews

    3.0

    Dined on January 31, 2025

    1. Overall 3
    2. Food 4
    3. Service 2
    4. Ambience 4
    Manager was very accommodating but server was not very responsive. We waited over 15 mins post being seated for water to be brought. Drinks from bar took another 15 minutes. As we waited manager had to go check on our food was brought out by another server We were atleast almost done with our food and server finally came to check on us. Manager came and asked us if we wanted desert. We had already finished and server came and asked I want desert we had to inform her we had already been served. I totally overtipped but it is what it is KUDOS TO CHEF! We enjoyed the sandwiches!!

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FAQs

Rio Chama offers takeout which you can order by calling the restaurant at (505) 955-0765.

Rio Chama is rated 3.7 stars by 451 OpenTable diners.

Yes, you can generally book this restaurant by choosing the date, time and party size on OpenTable.

  1. Home
  2. United States
  3. New Mexico
  4. Santa Fe / Mountains
  5. Santa Fe

Make a reservation


Booked 1 time today
Google Map for Rio Chama

414 Old Santa Fe Trl, Santa Fe, NM 87501-2770

Dining areas

Additional information

  • Neighborhood
    Santa Fe
  • Hours of operation
    Happy Hour Mon, Thu, Fri 4:00 pm–6:00 pm Sat, Sun 3:00 pm–6:00 pm Dinner Mon, Thu–Sun 5:00 pm–9:00 pm
  • Price
    $31 to $50
  • Cuisines
    Steakhouse, American, Seafood
  • Dining style
    Fine Dining
  • Dress code
    Casual Dress
  • Parking details
    Private Lot
  • Payment options
    AMEX, Discover, Mastercard, Visa
  • Additional
    Bar/Lounge, Full Bar, Non-Smoking, Patio/Outdoor Dining, Takeout, Weekend Brunch, Wheelchair Access
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