Wonderful family place that we stumbled upon. Saw lots of cars so we figured that was a good sign. Greeted by staff and guests alike with friendly hellos. Enrique was attentive and cordial, as were the other staff. Food selection was great and what we ordered was very tasty. Excellent for the price, which was lower than we normally encounter and plenty of food. Cute interior and decor and plenty of Smokey Bear sprinkled about (with a few tigers ????). My only negative comment, and only made in hopes it can change for them to keep them being a great place, is to clean the air vents on the walls and ceiling, address the lightbulbs that are out, and possibly change out the drip ceilings. These things take away from the overall ambiance. I'd love to see them continue for years. Definitely recommend! read more

See all

Food was just average. Ordered The New Mexican which is an open faced burger covered in either red, green or tex mex chile, cheddar cheese and onions. served with fries. I had the red chili, it was ok, surprised to find both sides of the bun stacked under the pre-made (frozen?) patty, shred cheese and no onions. Fries also had that frozen look and taste. The service was very good, very pleasant. The restaurant was clean and the decor was fun with Smokey Bear pics and knick knacks on display. read more

Smokey Bear Restaurant - Diners Near Me - Capitan, New Mexico

Pretty good food and nice service. Truly retro-- possibly 1950s and not much has changed since. They used to be sort of known for their steak fingers, so we tried that. It was really a cut up chicken fried steak and was good-- maybe not famous good-- but good. Tacos were just ok. Chips and salsa was tasty, with warm crispy tortilla chips. Coconut creme pie with graham cracker crust was good, too. read more

I would skip this place yall. They have a bit of a monopoly in town since they are the only breakfast place, but the food was really lacking in flavor. We tried Several of the pies, and I'm 95% sure they were all store bought (and frankly, just not good.) read more

Best place in New Mexico! Great service and overall vibes. Food was quick and amazing!

The food is delicious. We actually ate supper and breakfast here since we spent the night at Mama Bear RV park. For supper, I had the chicken fried steak which was real and not a frozen teased patty, fried okra, mashed potatoes with gravy. For breakfast, I had eggs over medium with bacon. The service is fantastic. Highly recommend this locally owned restaurant. The locals that eat are all friendly. read more

Quaint place with good home cooking. Staff very friendly. Would go back if in the area.

Good food, a little cluttered but the people are friendly and appreciate your business, breakfast always good!

Great service. We all ordered Mexican food and it was excellent. Though we each got our food at different times instead of all at the same, that meant it came out fresh. read more

Blue Plate SpecialsBreakfast TacosChicken Fried SteakChicken StripsGreen Chile StewPapa Bear Burger All looks delicious. Fast service, very polite and courteous. Has carpet on the floor and is very clean! Chips and salsa is very good, the chips are fresh!! If you driving along 380 in New Mexico stop in. This is a locals favorite read more

See all

Fantastic and reasonably priced meals. Friendly staff. Yummy raspberry tea. We enjoyed the grilled chicken salad. read more

Smokey Bear Restaurant - Lunch - Diners Near Me - Capitan, New Mexico

This place has been a staple on our family road trips since 2019, it is a reliable, affordable bite to eat and always gets your day started the right way with breakfast! Walking in to place that's stuck in time and serves great food is not an experience to be overlooked. The service is always great and the staff is super friendly. MUST visit. read more

Very good comfort food. Very kind staff. Very homey- especially given all the locals greeting each other. If I pass through this way again, I'll be stopping in again! read more

Smokey Bear is a great place for breakfast! Famliy owned and managed, you are greeted by Maria, so warm and welcoming, her son took our order and the laughter of the grandchildren was music to our ears! Breakfast was divine, perfectly cooked bacon and sausage, creamy gravy and a light biscuit and the red sauce as a side for scrambled eggs had the right amount of spice! Cannot wait to return and keep trying more offerings. Go now, don't wait and be prepared to love their food! read more

Well , the previous reviews are accurate. Very fun breakfast stop! Very friendly and good food. Thank you. read more

Smokey Bear Restaurant - Chose this breakfast stop based on recent reviews! Lovely people and cute cafe. - Diners Near Me - Capitan, New Mexico

The green chili omelette was off the chart good along with the Santa Fe sandwich. Portions are large and flavorful. The staff were excellent and friendly. The restaurant was clean and neat and the Smokey the bear vibe was nice. read more

We went to Capitan and Smokey Bear Restaurant on Sept 26th. Fortunately we arrived after peak lunch tine so we got a table right away. Food was good. I bad the turkey avacado sandwich was good. They stated in their menu of slim amount of turkey, and it was. But sandwich was very good and i love toasted sandwiches. I didn't pay attention to what was ordered by the 2 women, but they were happy with their meals. I was instructed to put the drink i had brought in to put it on the floor. Now i only drink filtered water because i had a kidney transplant 11 months ago and am immunosuppressed, and had sepsis 3 times in Feb through April. I still drank my drink but had to access from the floor each time i wanted to drink. I did not bring this up to the waitress because she was busy and i didn't think she would deal with my issue. read more

FOOD WAS GREAT! Waffles were delicious, all sides were delicious as well and cooked just like requested! Food was an extremely good price and service was friendly and homey! Such a wonderful little place! read more

Smokey Bear Restaurant - Pecan Waffle - Diners Near Me - Capitan, New Mexico

See all

Traveling thru New Mexico on nice spring day. Small town, lunch time & hungry - what a combination. This is how you eat small. All 12 of us enter a busy restaurant and get seated within minutes. We weren't the only large group with the same idea. So from the start these guys have got it together. Our server arrived promptly with menus and took drink orders. Drinks arrived and orders were taken. Our food was at the table within 15 mins. Hand Breaded Chicken Fried Steak with fries & cole slaw and steak fingers with tater tots. The Chicken Fried Steak was nicely fried without the overdone edges on the ends. The Steak Fingers were also hand battered and nicely fried. The Gravy was well spiced went well with the lunches. The service was equally outstanding. There was someone by our table frequently checking for needs and refilling drinks. As busy as it was this was no small feat! A great stop, great food and great service - it doesn't get much better than this. If you're in the area I highly recommend a stop here! read more

See all

Great stop!!! It could use a little updating but otherwise it had that great diner appeal. Lots of Smokey the Bear decor from curtains to posters and more. The waitress was very sweet and was one busy lady. She brought our menus promptly and we didn't even know we were going to get chips and salsa. The salsa was delicious and the chips definitely tasted homemade. Their sweet tea was on point. I ordered the steak finger basket it was like strips of chicken fried steak deliciousness served with your choice of side I got tator tots. It also comes with gravy and a toasted garlic piece Texas size slice of bread. Very good prices read more

See all

I came here while passing through NM because it had good reviews and I was camping in the area. The food here does not disappoint - I had one of the best breakfasts here that I've had in a while! I got the veggie omelet with home fries and bacon - and all were obviously made with care. And the coffee was amazing! The service was great too - our server was very attentive and the food came out fast. It's also very cozy inside, it feels like what it is - your classic diner in a mountain town. I couldn't recommend it more! read more

The food was delicious with quick service and came out nice and hot. The Smokey bear relics around brought back many memories of "Smokey bear" visiting my elementary school growing up. I wish I would have taken pics of the strawberry waffle my daughter enjoyed (I thought her eyes were gonna pop out when they brought it over). My Huevos rancheros w a side of beans was delicious and the perfect amount of heat to it in the red sauce. Completely affordable spot for a family of 5 to get full. read more

I moved to this area June 17, the first day of the Ruidoso Fires. The Smokey Bear Restaurant became a refuge and local meeting place for dislocated people. The food is GREAT, the service is wonderful and the outgoing care and concern for people is overwhelming. Thank you SBR!!! read more

This is our go to place when we are in Capitan. Yeah the decor may be outdated sometimes there may be paper towels on the floor, but the friendliness of the staff and the home cooking more than makes up for it. If you're looking for somewhere to take your family that won't break the bank this is your spot read more

The food was very good and good prices and good helpings! Service was good! I recommend eating there!!

Absolutely wonderful family run restaurant. Our younger server assistants were extremely polite and regularly checked on us to make sure we had refills etc. The place was slammed when we were there but the food was worth the wait. Everyone was working very hard but still a pleasure to be with. read more

We've been to this place several times so far. Very friendly owner and staff. Its The kind and quality of food you hope to find. Excellent quality, excellent prices, very good service in an eclectic, homestyle atmosphere. They serve amazing pies as well. read more

This is a family-run business that serves very good food at reasonable prices and supported by friendly and excellent service. If you're passing through Capitan, NM and need a break or are just feeling "peckish", this is a great place to stop. Breakfast is served all day and the rest of the lunch or dinner menu is extensive and diverse. You can sit at the counter, in a booth, or at a table. Looking around you will see locals and you just know that some are there every day, like clockwork, and others meet with friends on a regular schedule. It's the quintessential local restaurant that harkens back to simpler times. We pass through Capitan, back and forth, two to three times a year - we always plan a stop at Smokey the Bear's, no matter the direction in which we are headed, and we always leave with a smile on our faces and a better outlook for the road ahead. . read more

Really great place. We stayed in Capitain and Ruidoso had no restaurants open or they were packed so we came here and it was incredible. Fast service, great food, and super friendly service. They were knowledgeable and the restaurant was charming. We would definitely recommend and come back again if ever passing through. read more

Everything that we ate at this restaurant was very well priced. And the people were just so amazingly nice you felt like you were at home I highly. Recommend this place to anyone that is driving through Capitan New Mexico thank you everybody at Smokey Bear restaurant for the food and the warmest that we felt there. read more

Full menu, breakfast and lunch all day. Great prices. Very friendly staff. Will stop here again! read more

Cool people great breakfast and lunch. I like all the Smoky the bear pictures. Take time to have breakfast there.

I've eaten here twice. I had breakfast the first time and the breakfast was very good. The atmosphere was adequate. But the second time I ate here the guys running the place looked like they hadn't had a shower or changed their clothes in a couple of days and they were serving food. I just have no impulse to go there anymore. The food is good. I don't think one would get sick or anything like that, but I just cant forget those guys waiting tables, I mean really? read more

A really nice and cozy place, family friendly, and good food. Perfect after a nice drive from Alamogordo! It's close to the Smokey the Bear Museum. read more

The food was great. The service was awesome. BUT All you could hear was the thumping of the music from the kitchen. Very loud and hard to talk over. I don't think I will go back for lunch again. read more

Yummy food and cooked just like I asked (extra crispy tots) waitress service was 5 bear claws.

Better than what you would expect from small town NM. Food has consistently been good, service is incredibly fast, ambiance is akin to a comfy Western diner. Nothing crazy to note (the pie is alright depending on what you get) but a good place to stop if you want to sit down but not take too long and not spend all your dough. read more

The people there were super friendly and said we had gotten there right after the lunch rush. It was great food and really fast.

I kind of love this place. To be fair the service is a bit hit or miss. They got a lot of kids working there and it seems to be family owned and you'll see them hanging out at a table by the door. It's important to review places for what they are so let's break that down. This is a small restaurant in a small town where everything shuts down by 9pm. Everyone seems to know each other and this place is popular. There isn't a GM going from table to table to check in, they know they are the only game in town. That being said, no one is by any means rude, just don't expect to be waited on hand and foot. However, you will care very little once you get served. Both tea and sodas have been very good. I don't recall any pulp in my orange juice. Portions are very large and the prices are dirt cheap. They have daily specials that are extremely reasonable and blue plate specials at certain times. Seriously, this place is cheap which is great on the vacation budget. If you are staying at the motel next door and are an early riser you may find yourself anxiously awaiting their open for caffeine. We arrived late at night when everything was shut down and there wasn't a drive thu anywhere so I may want to plan that a little better in the future as I found myself staring at the dark restaurant longingly at 10:30pm. Tater tots are great, steak was good, chicken strips were yummy. My only real observation is that the breakfast items can be a bit greasy. I definitely prefer the lunch or dinner options over the breakfast. That's more of a personal preference as it's difficult for me to travel well and greasy food makes it harder. read more

Great menu, friendly staff and their pricing and portion size is generous. My family loves dining here.