Shohko Café Seared Scallops (Source: TOURISM Santa Fe)

Last night my bride and I followed massages at Body Spa with a pitstop at Shohko Café to prolong the sybaritic pampering. In addition to being the original, longest running, and most reliable sushi restaurant in Santa Fe, Shohko Café offers another rather unique bonus. The whole establishment is fragrance-free. This policy was originally a response to the owner’s scent sensitivity, but it has grown into a welcome retreat for many Santa Feans like my bride who choose/need to avoid fragrances.

My meal was—and always is—delicious. I started with some warm ginger tea followed by a demi-carafe of Kikumasamune Taru Sake Cedar Cask. Now my post-massage mellow shifted into overdrive!

My bride started with miso soup and a tempura oyster mushroom roll, and I enjoyed “Prawns Blanketed in Snow”, three sizable tiger prawns wrapped in rice flour and lightly fried. It’s gluten free! I swapped the chili miso sauce (which apparently has a trace of gluten), instead dipping my crisp prawns in gluten free tamari.

I followed my appetizer with a couple pieces of bluefin high toro nigiri sushi and then dove into the “Chef’s Choice”, an impressive roll that included too many exotic ingredients to make a proper accounting. It was melt-in-your-mouth delicious!

And one final recommendation…

Santa Fe Roll (Source: Clare M. via Yelp)

A past favorite (before my gluten free shift) was the “Santa Fe Roll” comprised of green chile tempura, shrimp tempura, and avocado. Makes me miss the old days.

Welcome to Shohko Café

Welcome to Shohko Café, Santa Fe’s original Japanese restaurant. Since our founding in 1975, we have strived to serve delicious and wholesome food. Our menu was developed with your utmost health in mind and abounds in organic and all-natural ingredients. We remain committed to serving you good food for good health. (Shohko and Hiro Fukuda, 2010)

The Fukuda family opened New Mexico’s first sushi bar, and they are dedicated to serving authentic Japanese cuisine as well as providing innovating new flavors inspired by the region. Take a look at their lunch menu, dinner menu, sake menu, and sushi menu to see the variety of meal combinations you can create.

Housed in a former 19th century bordello with 3-feet thick adobe walls and original vigas, the restaurant’s décor fuses simple Japanese and Northern New Mexican design elements. (Shohko Café)

Get a glimpse into the history of the Shohko Café by visiting their photo gallery. To learn more visit their website shohkocafe.com. Or call (505) 982-9708. You can also visit the Shohko Café Facebook page.

Visit Shohko Café

Shohko Café is located at 321 Johnson Street, Santa Fe, NM 87501. Find it on the map below: