El Vado Motel’s lobby soon will open as beer taproom

The lobby of the historic El Vado Motel in Albuquerque will open in early November as a taproom for local beers from Ponderosa Brewing Co.

Redevelopment of the Route 66 landmark into a boutique motel is continuing, but Chad Rennaker of Palindrome Communities Development told the Albuquerque Journal that El Vado Taproom will open in a few weeks:

The taproom will showcase local beers from Ponderosa Brewing Co. Rennaker said the establishment will have 10 taps — four for permanent Ponderosa beers and six for the brewing company’s rotating and seasonal selections.

The new watering hole will be 700 square feet and, according to Rennaker, will be built in the former lobby of El Vado Motel. The taproom will face the large outdoor courtyard on the north side, while restaurants will be to the south of the courtyard.

“We really intend for it to be for the outdoor (customers),” Rennaker said.

It will be Ponderosa’s second site in Albuquerque.

Here is an image of the fireplace in the motel’s lobby in 2005, shortly after it closed.

Rennaker also told the newspaper the complex at El Vado also will include several small restaurant pods, housing, a spa and an amphitheater.

El Vado is part of an $18 million redevelopment project, with $3 million from the city.

Irish immigrant Daniel Murphy opened El Vado Auto Court Motel on Route 66 in 1937. It’s cited as one of the best examples of pre-World War II motels in New Mexico. It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1993.

El Vado closed in 2005 after new owner Richard Gonzales said he wanted to bulldoze it for luxury townhouses. The city seized the property a few years later after a long fight to save it. The redevelopment project by Palindrome began in the spring.

(Artist’s rendering of a renovated El Vado Motel via city of Albuquerque; image of El Vado Motel fireplace courtesy of Emily Priddy)

One thought on “El Vado Motel’s lobby soon will open as beer taproom

  1. That’s excellent news. Ponderosa is doing some good things since my friend Antonio took over as Head Brewer. The burgeoning craft scene in ABQ has many tap rooms up and down the ’37 corridor (Central Ave.), including one I was Head Brewer at, and a few breweries along the 1927 alignment (4th St). Unfortunately, they’re opening during the horrid ART construction project that has claimed a few businesses, including the repeated flooding of a tap room not to far up the road from El Vado. Hopefully this nightmare will conclude soon so everything can return to normal…

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