Pepperhead

This restaurant was recommended by a local so we tried it. First we ordered three different kinds of margaritas… all were great, but the best, and the favorite of our waitress,
Deidre, was the honey margie… different, but really good, with the essence of ghost chile pepper! The salsa was very flavorful and obviously home made. For dinner, everything we ate was delicious… the steak, the rellenos, the tacos, the mole… I would say excellent, and beautifully plated. I can compare with some fairly upscale fusion mexican restaurants in California, and I was really delighted to find this treasure in Cortez! Our experience was complemented by Deidre for sure. She gave us some history of the restaurant, and, upon our asking, chatted awhile about her personal feelings about Cortez and the surrounding area. We thoroughly enjoyed our dinner experience, and we left feeling like we had made a friend.

Really enjoyed our meal here when visiting Cortez for the recent birding festival. Delicious margaritas, tasty chips and salsa, and spicy and flavorful entrees. Pleasant service and atmosphere. Definitely a place to revisit.

We were in Cortez for only 1 night. After a day of driving from Arizona, and visiting the Mesa Verde National Park, we were starving and tired. When we checked into our hotel around 8:15 p.m. we asked where a good place to eat was in town that didn’t cost a fortune and was still open.
What a gem this is! It was close to closing and the host didn’t even blink an eye to seat us. So nice. We had a wonderful waitress, and we asked her recommendations. Everything was so fresh and delicious. The flavors of all of our dishes were amazing and the use of whatever kind of chilies they use was clever.
I have to say this is one of the best Margarita’s I’ve ever had. Even traveling in Mexico I haven’t had such great Margarita’s. Can’t just have one of these! We were told they have there own mix they use. Wow!

Mehhhh. Not a fan. Not awful but not great. I’ll give em another chance and update. Slow service. Mediocre food. Only been there once though.

Love love love the margarita’s! I highly recommend the Mole and Carnitas. The salsa is really good. They give you an endless supply. The green chile sauce is also my particular favorite. I love this place and it is a local gem. Really good wait staff as well.

We have been in several times and is always fantastic. The food is slightly different sometimes so you know they are cooking it, not just warming it up.

Not sure what locals find is so great about this restaurant. Margaritas are not good, red and green sauce is not authentic and service is slow!

Fantastic food! We’re here enjoying Mesa Verde! Salsa and sauces are all fresh and homemade! Flavors were clever and the food wasn’t drown in cheese and lard! Ambiance and service were excellent!

Amazing food in an amazing town! You can’t go wrong… fresh salsa and they roast their own peppers. Verde is amazing and they have quite a fee vegetarian choices!

Excellent food. Had a wonderful spicy Mole dish, sauce done right. Inviting atmosphere and bar.

This place was great. We walked to it from our hotel, they let us look at a menu before we decided to eat there. They seated us right away, were very friendly, and recommended a great dish. The food was fantastic, and bountiful. There was too much for me to finish, and I eat a lot. The peach margarita was delicious.

We were here last night and again tonight. The food is good and simple. It’s not pricey and the positions are just right. And the staff are very friendly.

I ordered two chile rellenos and an enchilada. Very tasty and quite spicy. Very filling. I ordered a Margarita, boy, half way through and you can really feel it. Very tasty and strong.
My wife has some food allergies and the waitress was very accommodating. She went back and forth to the kitchen making sure they can prepare it the way my wife needed it to be.
The restaurant has a nice atmosphere and it was full of people.
If you are coming through Cortez, be sure to stop at this restaurant, I am sure you are going to enjoy. By the way, be sure to leave room for dessert. :)

Yet another tasty meal from Pepperhead, ate here last season and loved the concept and take on tex mex. Good Margarita. Thanks again Tess, loved the food, keep doing what your doing

Mmm the salsa is perfectly spiced! We were also greeted at the door promptly. Great view of downtown Cortez. They have plenty of margarita flavors such as grapefruit and beer on tap. The ambience is super chill. Great place after traveling or to read by the window. I love the chile concept.

There’s very few places we eat where we can’t wait to get home, sign on to Unilocal and review because the food was excellent. This place is the rare gem in Southern Colorado/​Northern New Mexico that would survive in a big city with endless restaurants available. The service was excellent, the food is outstanding and everything is well priced.
This is New Mexican food that rivals that dished out in Santa Fe, Taos, Las Cruces, Albuquerque and beyond. And, most shocking is it’s good food found in a tourist town. When in Cortez or the vicinity to see Mesa Verde National Park, this is a must eat. It’s a laid back atmosphere that spreads the New Mexican feel north of the border. If you’re a beer drinker they do a good job at rotating local beers on tap.
As for the food, it’s top-​notch, simple and packed with flavor. Everything tastes homemade. In fact, we weren’t hungry when we walked in, but figured we should eat something small before heading into the park. We opted to split a bowl of posole, which was more than enough for two as an appetizer. This posole is different than traditional soup that you’d get down south, but I’d recommend it. They add chunks of meat into it, cabbage, etc.
I ordered a stuffed sopapilla with chicken and it was excellent. One of the best I’ve had. The chicken was tender, flavorful and the green chili sauce was worth coming back for. My buddy ordered the burro. It’s a large burrito that comes dry with melted cheese and is stuffed with rice, beans and chicken (you have choice). He went Christmas style (green and red sauce) and it was so good, pounded the entire thing.
We didn’t have any room left in the tank, but the sopapillas we ordered for dessert didn’t last long on the table. They were light, didn’t taste deep fried and greasy and went down the pipe great with honey.
Kudos to the entire staff here. I eat out three times a day 300 days a year on the road and rarely get excited after a meal. You’ve done a great job delivering quality and flavor and it isn’t going unnoticed.

Really interesting restaurant — we ended up there for dinner because the restaurant next door was closed for dinner for the winter.
The menu is basically Mexican, but they do other dishes as well, hence the name. Hubby had the Masaman Curry (the last of a string of curries the restaurant was doing — a different one each week). He said that he thought it was the best curry he’d EVER had. The portion was generous, smelled wonderful, and he said that it wasn’t just like a stew where all of the flavors mush together — he could taste each individual component.
I’m a wimp, so I had the Cubano sandwich. It was excellent, as well. The pork was moist and flavorful, and the bun was perfectly pressed and toasted.
We had light, fluffy sopapillas with honey for dessert, and they were sizable, as well.
We had a nice chat with the owner — so he explained the concept to us — peppers, not a specific cuisine, per se. It allows them to do pretty much whatever they want, and it’s working!
Best part, chips and house made salsa, 2 entrees, 2 beers, an iced tea and 2 sopapillas = $ 34.00!!! I’ve spent more than that without the beer or dessert at Chipotle!

Cool restaurant with a huge open floorplan that reminded me of eating at a restaurant in Peru. Had the pepper steak which was absolutely delicious! I ate the entire thing! Their margaritas were also very tasty. Fun environment and I would definitely come back if i were in the area.

It was lunchtime (just after 12pm) and we came in with a few tables opened. We were seated right away in a nearby available table. Their menu was small but that made it easier to decide what to order. A few coworkers of mine talked about Pepperhead and how it was good which was why we came here to try out.
I had my eye on the Chimichanga ($ 10) on the menu but saw other items like the Stacked Enchiladas ($ 9) and the Pepperhead Steak ($ 14). I learned my lesson from a couple of days prior to go with my gut instinct and that was what I did. I ordered the Chimichanga, my coworker ordered the Carnitas ($ 14), and my other coworker ordered the Ensalatone (large for $ 12 and small for $ 8).
We received chips and salsa and those were just okay. There was nothing that stood out for both of those. We waited a pretty long time and had our chips replaced before our main food came out. First off, looks can be deceiving. My coworker’s Carnitas looked great which made me want to try it out. It didn’t taste good in my opinion and it was missing something in the flavor. My Chimichanga was just okay because the chicken inside didn’t seem to complement the other ingredients inside; in addition, I wasn’t feeling the sauce that was everywhere on the plate and on the chimichanga.
Pepperhead was not what I was expecting and could be over-​hyped. I didn’t think it was anything special.

Driving through this part of CO we didn’t think we could find anything good, but boy were we wrong! Apparently, a pepperhead is someone who likes peppers & always has chilis on their mind, & I’m one of them! I got a combo of one stuffed pepper (chili rellenos) served with 2 enchiladas, served with rice & beans, for just $ 12. You can mix & match the sauces (red or green) and choose the meat for your enchilada (beef, pork, or chicken), so everything is really customizable. The food was fantastic & there was so much of it I could barely finish. The chilis weren’t spicy at all, but the sauces do add a kick!
If I were ever in Cortez again, I would definitely go out of my way to eat here!