Issue Seven: Fish
Cover Art by Cedra Wood
Cedra Wood is an artist interested in narrative and the environment. She lives with an inconveniently industrious woodrat in a renovation-in-progress in Romeroville, New Mexico.
editor’s note
F​​​ish in the desert. Sounds wrong. Must be a typo. Must be a metaphor.
Yet they are all around us, scales shimmering. Hiding in plain sight, behind the grocer’s counter and freezer door, coiled around capers in tiny jars, eluding our lures in our rivers and lakes, and staring up at us from menus across the state. Sliding past public attention like they slide on the deck of the boat, caught but hard to grasp, slippery and a little difficult to look at.
And what do we see when we decide to meet the desert fish in the eye? An ocean in trouble, a world connected like a net, strange possibilities for beautiful meals. A perfect bite, poignant because it may be fleeting. This is what makes the fish eye worth a deeper stare—it’s a glimpse into a sea worth contemplating, a sea worth savoring, wherever you happen to come across its bounty.
That’s a taste of the story behind the issue, the salty breeze that ruffles these pages: they hold a small survey, a sampling, a beached boatful of the local catch. They’re for the desert-fish-curious, the river lovers, and the mariners at heart; for the cloud watchers and the homesick beachcombers; for those who can’t make the trip to Baja or Hilo or Tokyo or even LA; and for anyone else with a bit of surf in their high-desert soul.
Fishing for Tacos in Burque
Maria Manuela scopes out new venues for fish tacos in the Duke City.
Maria Manuela
Maria Manuela is a freelance writer based in Santa Fe, where she was born and raised. She works with publications likeNew Mexico MagazineandHyperallergic, focusing on stories about creative New Mexicans. She spends all her free time with her partner, Joel, and their three pups, Darla, Hamlet, and Pea. She’s working on a collection of short folktales based in the Southwest.
A Desert Dweller’s Guide to Sushi
Ty Bannerman takes a sushi tour.
Ty Bannerman
Ty Bannerman has been writing about New Mexico for over a decade. He is the author of the history book Forgotten Albuquerque and his work has appeared in New Mexico Magazine, Atlas Obscura, Eater, and the American Literary Review. He co-hosts the podcast City on the Edge, which tells stories from New Mexico’s past.
The Rise of Poke
Clarke Conde breaks down the poke trend.
Clarke Condé
Clarke Condé is a veteran food photographer and writer based in Roswell with a strong preference for red chile, keto-friendly beverages, and natural lighting. Find him on Instagram @clarkehere.
Tributaries by Jason Conde
Jason Conde fishes the Rio Grande with Chef Sean Sinclair.
Jason Conde
Jason Conde is a writer and educator. He lives in Las Vegas, New Mexico, with his partner and their daughter.
Sea to Table
Candolin Cook visits Above Sea Level to learn more about where “local” fish comes from.
Candolin Cook
Candolin Cook is a historian, writer, editor, and former co-editor ofedible New Mexico.She recently received her doctorate in history from the University of New Mexico and is working on her first book.
Fishing for Tacos in Burque
Maria Manuela scopes out new venues for fish tacos in the Duke City.
Maria Manuela
Maria Manuela is a freelance writer based in Santa Fe, where she was born and raised. She works with publications likeNew Mexico MagazineandHyperallergic, focusing on stories about creative New Mexicans. She spends all her free time with her partner, Joel, and their three pups, Darla, Hamlet, and Pea. She’s working on a collection of short folktales based in the Southwest.
A Desert Dweller’s Guide to Sushi
Ty Bannerman takes a sushi tour.
Ty Bannerman
Ty Bannerman has been writing about New Mexico for over a decade. He is the author of the history book Forgotten Albuquerque and his work has appeared in New Mexico Magazine, Atlas Obscura, Eater, and the American Literary Review. He co-hosts the podcast City on the Edge, which tells stories from New Mexico’s past.
The Rise of Poke
Clarke Conde breaks down the poke trend.
Clarke Condé
Clarke Condé is a veteran food photographer and writer based in Roswell with a strong preference for red chile, keto-friendly beverages, and natural lighting. Find him on Instagram @clarkehere.
Tributaries by Jason Conde
Jason Conde fishes the Rio Grande with Chef Sean Sinclair.
Jason Conde
Jason Conde is a writer and educator. He lives in Las Vegas, New Mexico, with his partner and their daughter.
Sea to Table
Candolin Cook visits Above Sea Level to learn more about where “local” fish comes from.
Candolin Cook
Candolin Cook is a historian, writer, editor, and former co-editor ofedible New Mexico.She recently received her doctorate in history from the University of New Mexico and is working on her first book.
