Albuquerque Brewery Opens Edgewood Location

Within the last year, Edgewood acquired new additions to expand the town, such as the new Champion Xpress Car Wash, Blake’s Express and Starbucks. Now the community is touting a new brewery. 

Juno Brewery’s seats have been full since its Edgewood location at 1913 U.S. Route 66, opened on Feb. 15. Jason and Maxine Marks opened Juno Brewery’s Albuquerque location at 1501 First St. NW, in June 2021, taking over Dialogue Brewing’s location. Jason Marks said they chose Edgewood because it lacks businesses like Juno Brewery. 

“From the start, we wanted two taprooms so we did some research and the number one area we identified was Edgewood because it was undeserved,” said Marks. “It is a growing community and that has been apparent since we started our project. We saw there was a real desire for a brewery, cocktail and dining experience.”  

While the taproom has a full kitchen, it is not yet serving food. It is in a soft-opening phase with only beverages available until the kitchen is operational. The business welcomes customers to bring outside food and has partnered with food trucks so guests can still enjoy the space. 

Marks says Juno will offer entrees including burgers and fries, steaks, chicken sandwiches and green chili stew. They serve alcoholic and non-alcoholic beverages including products from the New Mexico spirits, Heineken, Stella and the Athletic Brewing Company. 

“We are not trying to fit either one into the same box,” he said. “We will have somewhat of an overlapping menu to Albuquerque, but it’s not identical. We also serve mocktails but it is not just a margarita without the tequila, we have non-alcoholic mocktails that have been designed with recipes and they use non-alcoholic spirits as the base.” 

Maira Perez, Juno Brewery’s general manager who has worked for the company for three years, said along with the kitchen, they are also working on more decor and entertainment to bring to the new taproom. 

“The people are very welcoming,” Perez said. “I just hope the people out in Edgewood have this as another location to come and have drinks aside from what is already here, which is very limited, and have a little bit of Albuquerque vibes.”

Marks and Maxine said they are happy with their new team and customers and want to extend the hours, especially to stay open later on the weekends. The only other place in Edgewood that sells beer and wine is Pizza Barn, a community-favored restaurant that is across the street from Juno Brewery. 

“Pizza Barn is always slam-packed and we love it but I think everyone needs more places to hang out and it is nice to have a little more diversity,” said Asher Brown, a local customer. 

Along with the residents, Mark said the town manager and commissioners have been welcoming and supportive of the new business and asked them to provide beverages at the town’s 25-year celebration on July 4th. 

“You can tell it is a town that wants to grow and provide more amenities to people living out there,” Marks said. “We are proud of our beer and our priority is to have space that is there for the community, we are not interested in being a factory, we are interested in being a business that provides a space to the community, and that has been rewarding to us.”