Old Town Patio Market
Website | 206 1/2 San Felipe NW, Albuquerque, NM
Located in Albuquerque, the Patio Market is a collection of local artist-owned shops and a delicious local coffee shop in a calm garden setting in the historic Old Town. This is a favorite spot for locals and visitors just looking for a quiet and relaxed place to sit and enjoy a lovely evening; visit Old Town Patio Market to enjoy a delicious cup of iced tea or coffee while strolling or shopping for a little something.
The old Town is home to permanent or temporary markets, but the Patio market is always available for every visitor. Old Town Patio Market serves as a local outlet shop for artisans to sell their handmade art, jewelry, sculpture, artifacts, etc. If you’re looking to acquire unique and authentic handcrafted items from the southwest, Old Town Patio Market is the place to be.
The Patio Market was the homestead site of Juan Nepomuceno Armijo, part of an influential New Mexico dynasty that settled first in the Rio Grande Valley in 1965. The Nepomuceno Armijo family were primarily sheep ranchers and farmers. Juan willed the property to Ambrosio, his son. Ambrosio built a new home and a store on the current Sand Felipe and South Plaza corner. Until 1880, Old Town had built a reputation as a commerce area along the Santa Fe Trail. The Old Town’s fortune changed with the railroad’s arrival in Albuquerque. The railroad moved the center of commerce to “New Town” (downtown Albuquerque), and eventually, the Armijo descendants drifted away from the site. Old Town then went through a rough spell, and the Armijo House property fell into disrepair. Nelda Swell eventually purchased this place at a tax auction in the early 1930s.
Around this time, Old Town regained the attention of shop owners and artists as an area of commerce. Parts of the sprawling Armijo House were restored in 1935 and used as a restaurant. The Old Town Patio Market area was gated “zaguan” (passage to a courtyard). In the 1950s, the Patio Market and more areas of the property were restored with the help of the UNM School of Architecture. These architects copied the original territorial and pueblo style and created a unique wishing well over the original Armijo’s well.