'A good adventure': Chef David Reyes has built family, community into the menu at Bike In Coffee

Editor’s note: Cocina Connection is a once-a-month feature that takes a behind-the-scenes look at a New Mexico-based chef, who, in turn, shares some recipes.

At eight years old, David Reyes stepped into the kitchen for the first time to cook.

It was a moment where a seed was planted.

Over the years, Reyes has cared and cultivated it, and the journey has led him to a career in the culinary world.

“Every day is something different,” Reyes says with a laugh. “I have an amazing team and we all work together to create some amazing dishes.”

Today, Reyes is the chef at Bike In Coffee, which is located at the Old Town Farm.

His journey to where he is has been a long and windy path.

Reyes, 39, jumped into the culinary world with his first job at 14 years old at a restaurant in Mexico.

As he grew up, he began traveling through Mexico – always finding a home in the kitchen.

'A good adventure': Chef David Reyes has built family, community into the menu at Bike In Coffee

At 21, he moved to the United States with a dream.

His family thought he would finish college, but he had other plans.

“There were some thoughts in my mind that I wanted to do something else other than cooking,” he says. “But then I got a job making Korean and sushi. I began to fall in love with the profession again. I knew that the kitchen is where I wanted to be for the rest of my life.”

Reyes worked as a sushi chef for seven years.

By 2010, he was one of the chefs in charge.

“To be honest, I didn’t know what I was doing,” he says frankly. “I was in love with cooking and I was cooking from the heart. I had a lot of support from the cooks and I was doing my best. I was learning each day.”

In 2016, he moved to Albuquerque.

Reyes was still at Cowgirl BBQ in Santa Fe, where he was a bartender and doing catering.

In 2018, he met Lanny Tonning and Linda Thorne, who are the co-owners of Old Town Farm – and his life changed

The farm is located west of Old Town and east of the Rio Grande. It is on 12 acres in one of the most historic settings in New Mexico.

The Duranes Lateral, which forms the western boundary of the farm, is reputedly the oldest registered ditch in North America.

Reyes and the team at Old Town Farm use the Madre de Duranes which provides water to irrigate the pastures.

“When I met Linda and Lanny in 2018, I was prepared,” he says. “I knew it was going to be a good adventure. I wanted to do as much as I could. When they offered me the position of chef, it was one of the best decisions of my life.”

With the position, he began to create a team – a family.

“Being at the restaurant, there is a different vibe,” Reyes says. “The staff and the customers mean so much to me.”

At Bike In Coffee, Reyes wants customers to feel at home – and stay for a while.

“I call it a picnic with the people,” he says. “I’ve been able to get to know a lot of people and everyone has the same vibe. We’re about the community.”

Living in Albuquerque is a long way from his hometown of Tijuana, Mexico.

Reyes has built a family at the restaurant and has intertwined his family life into it as well.

He’s a husband and father of three children, who all live in a simple home.

“I really love to be present for my family when I get home,” he says. “I work long hours and make sure that everything is done before I get home. When I’m there, I give them all my attention.”

Because the restaurant is located on a farm, Reyes and his team are able to switch up the menu often.

During most of the year, he will spend Wednesday in the garden to ensure that the crops are growing nicely and see how they are coming along.

“That’s how I create the menu,” he says. “The farm and table menu is where I make cold foods and salads. I’ll look at the garden and see what we have to help create some of the dishes.”

Reyes jokes that having vegetables is a huge departure from the essentials he had while growing up in Mexico.

“I used to cook for my brothers and we were poor,” he says. “I started making refried beans with chile and onions. Then I would fry corn tortillas. At some point, I began to experiment with food because we were tired of beans, rice, beans and eggs. I’m blessed to be surrounded by so many crops.”

Bike In Coffee is open 9 a.m.-2 p.m. Wednesday-Sunday. The menu changes a bit from weekdays to weekends.

On any given day, customers will find breakfast burrito options, as well as tacos, soups, salads and sweets.

There are days when Reyes will be at work at 5 a.m. to get prepped for the days.

Though it doesn’t happen too regularly.

He has a team that will help him get the work done, but he knows that he has to be a leader and show them how it’s done.

“Whatever it takes, I’m going to do,” he says. “I tell everyone that I don’t pay attention to the clock. My staff leaves by 3 p.m. and then I have two hours of being by myself and really appreciating the life I have. I believe that everyone should have at least 25 minutes on your own. Time alone is always good for yourself.”

Homemade chorizo sausage

5 pounds of 81/19 ground beef

1 cup apple cider vinegar

2 tablespoons fresh garlic

2 tablespoons dried oregano

½ tablespoon cumin

½ cup paprika

1 tablespoon clove powder

5 cups of red chile puree

2 tablespoons of salt

1 tablespoon pepper

1 tablespoon cayenne pepper

Salt to taste

Mix all together and cook until brown.

(Recipe by David Reyes)