Iconik Coffee Roasters, Santa Fe
Almost regularly, at least once a week, I think about New Mexico. I recently spent a month there for school. It was one of the most memorable experiences of my life. The highlight was a weekend adventure in Santa Fe, when I got to try Iconik Coffee Roasters.
I had always felt drawn to go out West, however I never specifically had any desire to go to New Mexico. But, New Mexico was everything I didn’t know I was needing. It was like being dropped into another world, aka the desert, where there is a lot of sand and cacti and green chiles.
It was jarring, but in a good way. Santa Fe was out of my comfort zone from the flat plains, corn fields, and greenery of the Midwest. I fell in love with this place, experiencing a way of life that I didn’t even know existed.
Before I went on this trip, I ran into a family friend who had just returned from New Mexico. She talked about how the light played off the rocks and made it so magical. As she talked, I thought… they’re literally just rocks. But then I saw it myself. You could admire the beauty and the light of New Mexico for hours on end and still find it to be hauntingly beautiful.
I had been in New Mexico for a few weeks before my fiancé came to visit for the weekend. Being a huge fan of Cormac McCarthy, he wanted to make his way up from Albuquerque to Santa Fe to explore. We have to try the local coffee anywhere we go. In some cities it’s very difficult to find a good cup of coffee. In some cities, you just know, they’ve got it. They know how to make coffee. It’s just a part of the culture.
I believe to this day that Iconik Coffee Roasters is the best coffee in Santa Fe. Nay, probably in New Mexico. Santa Fe is an artistic city, and the art translates into their coffee. If you go to Santa Fe and you don’t try Iconik, you’re missing out.
My rating system for a coffee house begins with getting a standard iced latte. If that espresso is nutty and creamy and sweet, then you know that they know how to make good coffee and that they care about the quality of the coffee that they’re serving you. This iced latte was just that.
I also believe that the mark of a great coffee shop is their creativity. It takes a lot of skill to go out of bounds while still serving a quality product. Iconik had an Horchata Latte on their menu, and although I liked the thought of it, I was hesitant to get it. My fiancé is more daring than me and was brave enough to order it, and it was so good and so unique that I wanted to go back for seconds to get one for myself.
My friends, if you’re in the Santa Fe area, please go to Iconik Coffee Roasters! I love this little coffee shop and I hope to go back someday when we’re able to return to this special mecca in the desert.
