Sassella
In addition to working at two Michelin Star restaurants in Europe, Lombardy native Chef Cristian Pontiggia has received several awards from La Confrérie de la Chaîne des Rôtisseurs, an international gastronomic society. The Italian government recognizes him as a Master Chef, and he holds a culinary degree that certifies him as a Doctor of Enogastronomy.
Our goal during these unprecedented times is to ensure the safety of our staff and our guests alike. We will be adhering to strict safety and sanitation protocols and guidelines as outlined by the Governor's office . We encourage our guests to review our menus online in order to reduce the necessity of holding and sharing physical menus. For questions about our policies and procedures, we encourage you to call or email the restaurant.
Safety precautions
- Surfaces sanitized between seatings
- Common areas deep cleaned daily
- Digital, disposable or sanitized menu provided
- Sanitizer or wipes provided for customers
- Limited number of seated diners
- Distancing maintained in common areas
- Extra space between tables
- Waitstaff wear masks
- Diners must wear masks unless eating or drinking
- Sick staff prohibited in the workplace
We ate here the week before the second shutdown/pause so the restaurant was quieter than normal. They were great about following health protocols. The mushroom soup and all their pasta dishes were fabulous.
Everything was perfect. The food was amazing. I’m from the northeast and NM hasn’t quite provided on the Italian food front up until now. This meal was delicious from start to finish. The staff was so friendly and helpful, and the presentation of everything was impressive. We will definitely be back. We celebrated our 1 year wedding anniversary here and wouldn’t have had it any other way.
Last time for outside dining.
Service & food superb.
This place had great tasting cocktails, but extremely limited vegetarian options. The restaurant didn’t seem particularly accommodating. The worst of it is that it was way overpriced, particularly the drinks. I would not recommend unless money is of no concern to you and you are easy to please.
Daric was very attentive. Food was excellent. Will be back.
We loved everything about the restaurant. Sophisticated, elegant surroundings, attentive staff, inventive cocktails and really good food. Plus the Covid protocols made us feel very safe.
Wonderful restaurant! Fine service and great food. Worth every penny!
Fantastic food and service. Highly recommend. Very respectful of social distancing. Our new favorite in Sant Fe.
Truly disappointed. After reading the incredible reviews and the Chef’s experience and accolades, perhaps our expectations were too high. In addition, the mid week dining on a Wednesday (election night!) May have had an effect. Especially because of Covid world struggles, I refrain from poor reviews but aside from the friendly but mostly absent service (we pored our own wine at least twice) the food just wasn’t in any way high quality. We started with the ravioli which was substituted and was tasty but the filling was unremarkable. The Caesar salad was lovely and we shared it but they gave us these tiny plates for our portions that we struggled to keep it from sliding off. My husbands Tartare of air dried Bresaola was uninspired with a crostini that has already been served with the salad. Our mains were the egg plant and the cauliflower steak special. Both were dipped in a heavy breading and uninspiring sauces . I am truly sorry but this was our experience. We wish you luck.
Friendly welcome, excellent service, great wine list, and excellent food. We even bought a bottle of their olive oil to take home. Yum.
Chef is a genius, full of creative preparations.
We ate in the courtyard which has a very pleasant ambiance.
The service from the 2x hostesses and our waitress (along with support staff) was first class and the food was outstanding.
I would go again for sure.
Excellent food. We changed our seating to outdoors. Manager stopped by our table several times to check on us but was not intrusive.
very authentic Italian restaurant - great atmosphere and service - awesome bar/ drink menu- liked the incredible Gin options. Of course the wines were great- waiter very knowledgeable -great recs! Now the food- Delicious to say the least! Unique choices in appetizers- we had a delicious meat/ cheese tray. Best Mushroom soup I've had in a long time- I'd go back just for that! Veal chop flavors excellent, but the potatoes and asparagus are worth mentioning-perfect- I know -who mentions veggies?? But made for a fantastic meal. Great deserts- gelato/sorbet trio just right. Yes we highly recommend Sassela- we'll be back for sure!
Lovely outdoor dining due to the virus. While the staff tried hard service was a bit spotty.
Authentic fine quality Italian cuisine with a Northern twist.
Perfect risotto with duck. Impressive wines and delectable desserts! Bravo Chef Christian! 😍🍷
The patio setting is beautiful, matched by the artistic and creative dishes, which had us oohing and aahing over every dish. There isn't another spot in town that has such a gorgeous patio with as much room between the tables.
The COVID precautions made us feel quite safe. The masks stay on the waitstaff (in too many places, the staff spends lots of time readjusting the mask which doesn't feel like a great safe thing to do for a respiratory virus)
Great service and the food was outstanding. Thank you for a great evening.
As usual, every aspect of this dining experience was as much as one could desire.
It was a perfect date night experience. The food was exceptional and so was the service. Plenty of social distancing!
The food, service and ambiance were first rate. My cocktail was delicious. The pasta and shrimp tasted great. The chocolate ganache dessert was heavenly.
An amazing evening - fabulous meal, great wine, awesome service. Great menu (food and wine) and Cristian is ever evolving the menu. This is our favorite restaurant in Santa Fe.
Our best meal while in Santa Fe!.
Chefs board (meat and cheese appetizer) was the best I have had
Pasta was fabulous as was the service.
Also had the Amari (Italian liqueur) flight which was a new experience for me.
Prices better than the other high end places in town.
Everything was wonderful. We loved out food and the environment was pleasant.
Fantastic meal - we were blown away with how everything was presented and the flavors were through the roof. Just an excellent meal from cocktails through dessert.
Wonderful meal. Terrific service.
Great spot. Excellent service. Italian red list is solid.
We had a great time at Sassella. If you are in Santa Fe you should go. The staff was very professional, asked questions, and gave advice with style. The chef is innovative and the presentation was maybe the best I've seen. The inside is well designed and fun. They have seating outdoors that is quite large, but we were inside at night. You have to see their cesar salad. The pasta was perfect and we had the eggplant dish. You need to see that also, presentation is very special.
Wonderful experience at Sassella! Everything we ordered was executed and presented beautifully. Everyone loved their meal. It was a little chilly in the courtyard later in the evening, but I appreciate all the measures the restaurant has taken to provide diners with a safe and enjoyable evening while working within current regulations. The chef was checking on tables and available to answer questions throughout the meal. Would love to visit again.
Magnificent! Incredible food, wonderful service & lovely atmosphere.
Outstanding
Really excellent cocktails and we had baked oysters with caviar that were fantastic. Overall food was great and the ambiance was very nice. Definitely a quiet place for a date.
The service and food were impeccable! Attention was paid to every detail. Food was spectacular in taste and presentation!
In the age of Covid, outdoor dining is a blessing and Sassella has perfected it. Staff performed their duties to perfection. And the food was divine, a menu of traditional dishes with creative unique twists. We loved it. With their mobile heaters, we hope they can serve outdoors for months to come.
Excellent food . Nice ambiance and very good service. Beautiful patio dining. One of the best restaurants in Santa Fe.
Nice setting outdoors, but it was a windy evening, could have used a heater on a low setting.
Requested a ginger ale as soon as we sat down, waited more than 10 minutes for it to arrive, not sure why.
My friends food (branzino) was very nice, I only had the melon salad sans prosciutto, which the waiter almost refused to bring, again, not sure why.
Overall the menu looked very good, but we were not very hungry, so did not have a chance to experience it properly.
The dining room looked very pretty.
I recommend asking for a table inside.
Cheers.
Just plain awesome. Our waiter, Michael, was first class all the way! Great food and atmosphere.
Amazing service, Bella was outstanding! The food, the cocktails, the wine selection - the gin flights! This was one of our favorite meals we have had. It was a pleasure to spend our should have been wedding night with you.
Wonderful food, attentive but unobtrusive service. Were not rushed at all, which was just lovely.
Beautiful presentation of food. Unique tableware and lovely outdoor dining space. Did not see inside dining rooms. Food did not disappoint. Creative dishes. Did I mention homemade olive oil?
Nice adult beverage selections, both wines and cocktails.
FAQs
Sassella offers takeout which you can order by calling the restaurant at (505) 982-6734.
Sassella is rated 4.7 stars by 332 OpenTable diners.
Yes, you can generally book this restaurant by choosing the date, time and party size on OpenTable. Due to local restrictions, this restaurant may not be accepting reservations at the moment.