Sometimes everything comes together to create the perfect dinner party—the kind of gathering you can’t forget, such as this one from Beck and Bulow. Gabriella Marks heads north of Santa Fe to the bison ranch of Beck and Bulow, a local purveyor of mouth-watering meat and fish. Hosted by Jean Paul Bulow and Tony Beck, the setting, the food, and some very relaxed bison, made for a magical moment.
A group of dinners spark conversations over bottles of wine curated by Mary Hallahan, Executive Director of the Santa Fe Wine and Chile Fiesta.
A Dinner Party at Beck and Bulow for the Ages
Guests, friends, and family dined yards away from bison who have lived and grazed in this Northern New Mexico valley for centuries.
Chef Tony Smith introduces Beck and Bulow’s guests to their dinner.
“There will never be another ranch dinner like this again,” says Jean Paul Bulow, co-host and half of the founding team of Beck and Bulow.
A family attending the party travels through the lands of the Beck and Bulow bison ranch.
There will be others, to be sure, but none quite like the first. A chance bid at a Beck and Bulow charity fundraiser auction brought families together for a ranch dinner in an arroyo that cuts through the high valley. It doesn’t get more “local” than this.
Or more New Mexican. “We call it rustic elegance,” explains Tony Beck, the other half of Beck and Bulow. Forget LED fairy lights strung over hand-cut flowers in mason jars. Welcome to the real frontier, a wilding of the family meal—a cut of meat, handsomely plated in a pasture.
The historic land at Beck and Bulow.
A History Within Beck and Bulow
The terroir and history of the land is palpable here. The spectacle of massive beasts that appeared astonishingly serene in the twilight, or beholding the scent of the same late-summer grasses that early indigenous people—later pioneers—encountered. It’s a meal that is as much a moment of traveling back in time as it is a culinary experience.
A dish of bison short rib with seared scallops and farm-grown vegetables.
Diverse and Mouthwatering Menu Offerings
We are always trying new ways to get to the same place,” says Chef Tony Smith, now head chef of Sassella, and the person responsible for the cuisine at dinner. A sated smile and a full belly is Smith’s ideal dining effect. With a nod towards showcasing the diversity of the Beck and Bulow offerings, Smith went for high desert surf and turf, by pairing large, seared scallops with an entrée of rich bison short rib, (a more unctuous cut than the standard filet.) “Buffalo bison short ribs are my favorite thing in the world,” Smith reveals. “I love short ribs to begin with. [They’re] so rich with an awesome flavor, but you have to work for that flavor—braising slow and low. You need to put the time in to make the flavor.”
Bison carpaccio was on Chef Smith’s menu.
Smith also served wafer-thin slices of bison carpaccio. Other chefs might opt for beef tenderloin, but Smith finds that the bison, as lean as it is, works perfectly here. “Let the meat shine for itself,” says Smith, “The grass-fed flavor really comes through.”
A special cocktail served to guests especially for the occasion.
Sipping Through Beck and Bulow
Great wine pours were also inevitable with Mary Hallahan, Executive Director of the Santa Fe Wine and Chile Fiesta, on the guest list. Bison and Bordeaux, new world meets (and meats!) old world with Château Blaignan Grand Vin de Bordeaux. Though, for those who prefer a lighter glass, there was a rare white Châteauneuf-du-Pape. A choice as unique as the setting, (since white wines are generally not paired with red meat), but an inspired one: the southeastern vines of France paired the meat perfectly.
A guest sips wine selections by Mary Hallahan of the Santa Fe Wine and Chile Fiesta.
One Small Step of a Bigger Journey
The ease with which Tony Beck and Jean Paul Bulow could host a fantastical, larger-than-life family and friends feast miles from Santa Fe, was hard-earned. However, both Beck and Bulow revel in the grace of a challenging landscape, be it topographical or economical. Having spent years putting one foot in front of the other to keep opening doors, Beck and Bulow both represent the next generation of culinary exploration and excellence.
One of the younger diners takes a bite while the adults converse.
“It was a hard sell at first. No one knew us, and there was only bison burger on the menu,” Beck recalls, “I used to say the doors didn’t open. We literally had to kick them in.” Before they were a household name they would pound the pavement for hours after the farmers’ market, reaching out relentlessly to tentative restaurateurs. One of their favorite customers would say of the pair, “No one will outwork Beck and Bulow.” An adage they clearly wear with pride.
All the guests raise their glasses to a beautifully delicious dinner.
Near the lavish dinner, two-thousand-pound bison mums snorted softly at their growing calves in the golden sundown. Caviar and carpaccio, fondue and dry ice, molecular gastronomy coupled with flames from the growing fire as children delighted in s’mores. There will be other ranch dinners, each equally unique, given all the eccentric variables needed to create a truly wild plate of rustic refinement, but none will be like this one.
Story and Photography by Gabriella Marks
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