Shadows Lounge and Grill

Sports Fan Alert: NINE Screens

Dine Time: Bring the Kids

August 15, 2006

The new Shadows Lounge and Grill, managed and owned by Mr. and Ms. Quick Stop, Marty and Jolene Santistevan, seats 150 customers inside and out. You can watch sporting events on nine, count-em, nine screens, inside, beneath the pressed tin ceiling in a saloon-like pub. Or you can sit outside on the patio and smoke, or watch the traffic pass by 330 Paseo del Pueblo Sur in midtown Taos. Shadows, part of the Plaza de Colores, an urban renewal project designed for mixed residential and commercial use by architect Dave DiCicco, is built on the old Levi and Helen Cohn property.

Marty and Jolene’s partners, Jim and Wendy Perea, from Denver, own RAC freight company, which has more than 400 employees and 100 freight terminals. Jim explained, “We love Taos,� and noted that he and Marty are old friends from the Mile-High City, during the days when Mr. Check-and-Change-Your-Oil worked at King’s Soopers grocery store. Jim expressed his gratitude for Dave DiCicco’s architectural services, Chubby Tafoya’s construction company, and Jeff Brown’s installation of state-of-the-art sound and lighting. Joan Duncan of Creatix studio designed the interior.

Asked if he had ever been in the food and beverage business, Jim said, “No, but we’ve hired good managers—Pedro Gonzalez, Jillian Smothers—and chef Steve Price.� Ms. Quick Stop, Jolene Santistevan, will act as hostess during the day and Marty, Mr. Check-and-Change-Your-Oil, will report for duty on the night shift, after work at Ms. Quick Stop (next to Gutiz restaurant in the Jose Larry Silva complex). “Marty and Jolene know everyone,� said Jim. (In passing, he mentioned that he and Wendy live in the Polo Grounds in the Cherry Creek area of South Denver.)

If you’re hungry, you can choose from a classic grill menu—hamburgers, BLTs, Philly cheese steak, blackened salmon, or layered enchiladas. But chef Steven Price has spiced up the traditional choices with a zesty New Mexico-Cubana touch. The prices range $4.25 for a cup of red to $23.95 for a 12-ounce ribeye. Purchase hot wings by the half dozen, the dozen, or buy a 50-wing platter for the TEAM! Shadows has a full liquor license for those with a taste for beer and fine beverages.

The significance of the 16,000-square-foot Plaza de Colores and the seven condominiums located behind the commercial shops and offices on Paseo del Pueblo Sur can’t be overstated. Its low-key design and appropriate scale fit the site and fill a gap in the neighborhood both architecturally and culturally. Shadows Lounge and Grill also fills a need with its inexpensive menu, designed for working men and women, professionals, families, and single folks who want a bite, a beer, and some wings while watching a sporting event in slightly upscale surroundings. You can get earphones so you can hear the broadcasts despite the din of conversation and howling Bronco fans. (Jim Perea says he’s had Bronco tickets since 1968.) From time to time, Shadows will feature live music. “We’ll play it by ear,� says Jim.

The Quixotic Sanchez and I dined at Shadows for lunch. Gene said his smoked trout Cobb salad ($11.75) was “very good.� My classic BLT with fries ($7.75) tasted just right. Now it’s your turn to visit Shadows Lounge and Grill. Say hello to Marty and Jolene. Or stop at Ms. Quick Stop and make a reservation.