The Matador

Stars for not having a cover!
It’s like Santa Fe charges you just to be in Santa Fe, so many over priced things but luckily this bar doesn’t charge a cover.
Well drinks are $ 6 minimum which really kills me, being a broke college student that’s just not worth the price.
Dive bars wouldn’t be that expensive it’s like a hipster bar pretending to be a a dive bar.
But it’s a chill spot if you have some close friends who aren’t high maintenance. Have a drink and hang out in this basement bar if you can.

It was iight. Cool basement scence, when on a Thursday, so it was dead, bit could have possibly had a good time during a busier week. Met 2 hot chics and chilled with them for a few. Good times

Rudest service I’ve ever experienced. Would never ever go again.

Dive bar. Cheap beer. Really great bartender. Actually gave me a pbr for $, which was the only cash I had.

great little basement dive bar! slightly loud, but it works with the vibes of the place. bartender was welcoming and kind. cash only!

Been coming to Santa Fe for years and never gone down to this secret gem. Easy to miss if you’re not looking… Literally just a set of stairs going down the side of a building. I was with a group of 8 girls for a bachelorette, and we ventured in to get a shot before we went across the street. 8 fireball shots later and after the bartender gave us all free water bottles (he knew what we really needed)… We left happy having gone in! It’s very tiny, but a really cool place, with a really cool bartender. Check it out!

A dive bar stuffed to the gills with hipster trash writing poems about their vegan bicycle. If you like tiny, crowded, loud bars full of mutton chops, here you go. Good bartenders.

If you’re looking for somethin else, look somewhere else, but, if you’re just looking for somethin, look here.

Definitely a dive bar. It’s a small, kind of run down basement that’s a little sloppy in its appearance. Also, do you self a favor and use the restroom *before* you come here. Gas station bathrooms look more welcoming than the bathrooms here. But the music was good– grungy punk rock and some metal from different decades. And the atmosphere was nice too. There were maybe 10 people here and everyone seemed to be having a good time. PLEASE NOTE THAT THEY ONLY ACCEPT CASH!!! That was such a turn off for me. Although I liked the bar itself, my drink wasn’t very good at all. My margarita was bitter and the rim was salted with table salt. That’s just bad bar tending etiquette.

THE bar in Santa Fe. No frills. Just booze, conversation and maybe some rock n’ roll or an obscure, cult film playing for your enjoyment.

This place kind of feels like I’m in someone’s dingy basement. It’s really small, super loud, the drinks are small and only ok for the price. On the up side the people working behind the bar are great, friendly and pretty quick to get you a drink. Downside the bouncers are total jerks I got turned around once and almost went into an employee only area and they totally treated me like garbage. It doesn’t take anything to simply say what is happening nicely you don’t have to screen at people. Don’t waste your money on this place there are way better bars in town.

God delivered to me to the promised land. A REAL bar in the heart of Santa Fe. No posing allowed here. The odor you smell is not money — it’s gritty, basement, dive bar greatness.
Escape the heat and take the unassuming stairway down to a dark, dank oasis of super chill.
For those that collect such experiences — this place reminds me of the Double Down Saloon in Vegas. Yep — I. Will. Be. Back!

Great little no frills basement bar. Looking to have a drink and enjoy the music… with the occasional smell of last nights spilled beer… this is the spot!

This place is legit. Start here in Santa Fe and then go everywhere else. The people watching is great. Everyone is friendly the crowd is eclectic and best of all the drinks are really strong. I loved his place. Cash only. I will be be back next time I am in time. Hmm maybe next weekend.

If you are looking for trouble in Santa Fe (the harmless kind, most likely) this is a good place to find it.

This is the dive bar to go to in Santa Fe, with all the upper crust places in town, this is a little oasis of sanity and real life.

Decent dive bar. Small, unpretentious with a good mix of locals drinking cheap beer and listening to tunes.

I never write Unilocal reviews but this place was the only slamming bar in Santa Fe so I feel obligated. I came with my mother and we made friends with people my age — all the way up to this guy who was in his 80’s. We got there early and hung all night; we didn’t want to leave. The bartender was the shit (Jonah) and thanks to him we had a great night. I live in Philly, and quite honestly I think this place/​bartenders exceeds shit like the el bar… And in Santa Fe?! If u don’t wanna be in bed by 8, aren’t scared of loud ass music, go. Go now.

I don’t drive the right car, wear the right clothes or make a large enough income to hang out with the upper crust tourists that flood to the plaza in Santa Fe.
Thank goodness for The Matador to be my punk rock safe haven away from the throngs of money-​wasting yuppies in the animal-​hide-​filled shops and James Beard-​winning restaurants.
What I needed was a small, dark dive bar to drink a delicious margarita or a cheap beer and listen to The Specials. That’s exactly what I got at The Matador.
The bartender — wearing a vest clad in patches from obscure bands — was a gentleman and chatted us up about the bar and food around town. The DJ was playing a perfect blend of 70s and 80s punk and ska. And the crowd was mellow and friendly.
I loved this place and recommend it to anyone who, too, needs a breather from the highbrow Santa Fe plaza scene.

It was a couple of years ago, me and my friend had been going on a road trip through 4 states, and made the mistake of plowing through New Mexico where we was always met by ‘closed’-signs. This changed when we came to Santa Fe. After a night of plan-​less bar hopping, we ended up at the Matador. This was my take-​home.
First off this is a skittish place, that has a feel that it is run by college students.
Everything about this place seem impromptu and spontaneous. This partially gives this place its charm. The other part is the clientele. A magical, unlikely and questionable blend of people. but the no-​so-​subtle theme is punk rock which make me feel right at home.
I entered this place already well served. Shortly after our grand entrance, I spoke to some statistically overrepresented native Americans. Pueblos to be exact. Very nice hard rocking people. My and my friend immersed ourselves into the sea of patrons and had a seriously good time with punk rockers and Pueblos alike. This bar visit concluded an epic barhop — and I felt welcome here, in a way I rarely have experienced.
Epilogue.
At the end of the night I was outside talking to some awesome rockers, when the most gorgeous girl of the bar steps outside. Naturally beautiful, with a tough exterior that together with her Mohawk makes a statement. The heat of her body created a steamy sphere of mystery that surrounded her, as I saw her in profile against the streetlights. She seemed to be looking for something, and slowly searched left and right with her intense predator-​like gaze… until she spots me. Her posture changed as she locked on target and moved with a sense of purpose towards me. Her look fixated and didn’t even blink.. I stood fast and let her walk all the way up to me. She stopped really close to me, tilted her head slightly and uttered those words I will never forget.
— «You need to take control over your friend!»
That was the obvious sign of our retreat, before I hastily ventured in to find/​rescue my buddy. It was night never forgotten, and never truly remembered. and I will come back if I ever revisit Santa Fe.