HOSPITABLE HIESS

by Natalie Johnson

This sidebar appeared in the Winter 1996 issue of New Mexico Resources,
as an adjunct to the article "New Mexico's Cookin'".
Photography: J. Victor Espinoza

---

If there's such a term as hotel brat, Gordon Heiss would fit the bill. Born and raised in his father's hotels in St. Louis, Heiss naturally thought all soap bars were two inches long. He was 8 years old before he found out they came in large, too.

After graduating from Cornell University's hotel school, he followed his father into the business. He even built a hotel in Antigua, which was named the best new hotel in the West Indies in 1960.

But Heiss soon switched to the restaurant business. He settled in Scottsdale, Ariz., and started a chain of seafood houses called Nantucket Lobster Traps.

"Eventually, there were eight Nantucket Lobster Traps around the Southwest, and I sold them and thought I was going to retire," Heiss says. "But I couldn't stand the peace and quiet, so 13 years ago I moved to Santa Fe to open La Casa Sena restaurant."

Lucky for New Mexico.

Since then, Heiss has added the Blue Corn Cafes, the Santa Fe Chocolate Company, and a dinner theater called the Old Santa Fe Music Hall to the portfolio of Santa Fe Dining Inc.

He has embraced New Mexican cooking in his restaurants. At the Blue Corn Cafe, he offers chile rellenos, fajitas, tacos, and tamales. Many of the items come with the trademark blue corn tortillas. Desserts include fried ice cream, Spanish flan, and sopa, a native bread pudding.

Heiss is especially proud of the company's chocolates and wines. "Our biggest seller is a dark chocolate in the shape of a chile that's filled with red chile fondant," Heiss says. "It's a very heavy European chocolate that goes perfectly with the slight heat of the chile."

Santa Fe Dining's New Mexican wine did well at the Orange County Fair in California, beating out most of the California sauvignon blancs. "We think we're the only restaurant in New Mexico that buys grapes, rents space in wineries, and makes its own wine," he says.

As Heiss "retires" again, this time to the warm climes of Mexico, he plans to pursue some of his favorite restaurant activities. "I might spend most of my time in Mexico where it's nice and warm, but I'm still going to come back to New Mexico and California to make wines for the company and do a little consulting."

Lucky for New Mexico.