Fuego in La Posada, Santa Fe
Credit: fuego | ©public domain
Fuego Restaurant in Santa Fe, New Mexico - See the Ghost of Julia Staab
Santa Fe, New Mexico is one of the most endearing, culturally rich cities in America. I was born in Albuquerque, so I had many opportunities to visit Santa Fe. Our family would frequently drive to Santa Fe on a Sunday afternoon for dinner, a stroll around the historic oldtown square to view the famous sidewalk Native American artists at work, and perhaps purchase turquoise jewelry, pottery, Navajo rugs, or many of the other crafts uniquely offered on the square. I enjoyed visiting the Loretta Chapel to see the miraculous staircase, now documented in Ripley's Believe it or Not. People from New Mexico would like to believe that the story of the Miraculous Spiral Staircase was the inspiration behind the movie Lillies of the Field, starring Sidney Poitier.
My absolute favorite stop on our family outings was to eat at Fuego Restaurant located inside the historic La Posada Hotel on the downtown square. In addition to indulging in the AAA Four Diamond Award-winning food, I was obsessed with wanting to see the ghost of Julia Staab. I will get to the review of the restaurant, but first, I must tell you the story of the ghost.
The Staab House, a Victorian mansion built in 1882, now sits in the middle of the La Posada Hotel. Abraham Staab built the mansion for his wife, Julia, from his fortune made as a supply contractor for the U.S. Army during the Civil War. It was considered one of the most lavish homes of the times, with the finest of European furnishings and materials. Julia loved to show off the grand ballroom on the third floor to all of the socialites in Santa Fe. The couple had six children, and the seventh, a son, died soon after birth. Julia had several unsuccessful births after that and became reclusive until her death at age 52 in 1896. She spent almost all of her time in her room and some say she lost her mind. In the early 1900's, the ballroom was destroyed by fire, and in 1913, Abraham died. The Nason family bought the property in the 1930's and opened the La Posada (Spanish for "resting place") Hotel. La Posada hosts many famous people from the literature and film communities.
My absolute favorite stop on our family outings was to eat at Fuego Restaurant located inside the historic La Posada Hotel on the downtown square. In addition to indulging in the AAA Four Diamond Award-winning food, I was obsessed with wanting to see the ghost of Julia Staab. I will get to the review of the restaurant, but first, I must tell you the story of the ghost.
The Staab House, a Victorian mansion built in 1882, now sits in the middle of the La Posada Hotel. Abraham Staab built the mansion for his wife, Julia, from his fortune made as a supply contractor for the U.S. Army during the Civil War. It was considered one of the most lavish homes of the times, with the finest of European furnishings and materials. Julia loved to show off the grand ballroom on the third floor to all of the socialites in Santa Fe. The couple had six children, and the seventh, a son, died soon after birth. Julia had several unsuccessful births after that and became reclusive until her death at age 52 in 1896. She spent almost all of her time in her room and some say she lost her mind. In the early 1900's, the ballroom was destroyed by fire, and in 1913, Abraham died. The Nason family bought the property in the 1930's and opened the La Posada (Spanish for "resting place") Hotel. La Posada hosts many famous people from the literature and film communities.
Comments
Terrific read, and Santa Fe is a great city. I always loved the legend of the spiral stairs and made sure to visit the Lorretta when I was there, but next time I'll check on La Posada.
Julia Stabner
(Guest)
(Guest)
04/08/2008
Iam a local of Santa Fe. I was born and raised here all my life. The La Posada has always been a scary place, but at the same time very warm. The Stabb House is something every person should see if you come to Santa Fe. Everything in the mansion is exceptionally extrodinary and has a different feel to it. Every room you enter has a story behind it. You can just feel it. Its like you can feel the presence of the Staab family still living there. The shiny original wood floors that squeek and the detailed woodwork of the walls and the grand staircase. Its amazing and so beautiful, but creepy. The staircase was creepy, because it is so narrow and a long way up. There must be at least 30 steps before you get to the top. I would hate to climb those long stairs everyday. At the top of the stairs is the Julia Staab room which has a creepy feeling to it. The floor in the entire room is slanted and all the pictures on the wall are crooked. Even the window and doors frames are
I can do without the ghost, but the picture looks great. If I'm ever in the area, I'd like to try this place out.
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