Pete's Cafe

Located along the braided routes of the historic Camino Real (the Royal Road) which skirts the Rio Grande, Belen remains the hub for two major rail lines and Pete's Cafe.  Pete and Eligia Torres launched Pete’s Cafe across the street and acequia from the old Harvey House. Though neither had any restaurant experience, they delighted travelers and railway employees with their cafe–even though the Torres family didn’t begin serving New Mexican cuisine for about twenty years when local traffic surpassed train traffic. With more than sixty years of serving the community of Belen, Pete’s continues to thrive because it operates under a simple philosophy: Not the best because it’s the oldest; it’s the oldest because it’s the best. For nearly six decades, Pete’s has held steadfast to three strong commitments, the first based on the belief that chile is basic to New Mexico. Pete’s celebrates the growing, harvesting and preparation of chile in the family home across generations. That chile is prevalent in the menu. Surprisingly, it’s not chile grown in the Belen area, but from a farm in Hatch which has been providing some of the very best chile in New Mexico for years.