Shortly after the appeal of Prohibition in the 1930’s, Romeo Di Lallo, Sr. and his wife, Molly, both Italian immigrants, opened one of the first old-time nightclubs in New Mexico, the “Monterrey Gardens.” Less than two years later all was lost in a fire, so Romeo and Molly had to start all over.

In 1938 after Romeo became ill with miner’s lung disease (having working in New Mexico coal mines for a number of years), Molly opened ROMEO’S BAR on Bridge Street in the South Valley of Albuquerque. That same year their son, Romeo, Jr. was born. Romeo, Sr. passed away in 1946.

In 1947 Molly married a builder named Tony Simballa. One year later Tony built them a new and larger facility for ROMEO’S BAR, on Isleta Boulevard in the South Valley. In 1948 their son, Albert Simballa, Jr. was born.

In 1952 Molly, Tony, Romeo, Jr., and Al moved to Tijeras in the mountains just east of Albuquerque where they opened MOLLY’S BAR. As had been the case in the South Valley, because of Molly’s dynamic personality, MOLLY’S BAR became one of the area’s most popular bars.

When I-40 replaced Old Highway 66 thru the Tijeras Canyon in 1975, MOLLY’S was forced to replace their original facility with the building that now houses MOLLY’S BAR, on the same property – set back farther from the highway right of way.

In 1976 Romeo, Jr. joined the family business, having previously been Vice President of the New Mexico Broadcasting Company and Manager of KVSF radio in Santa Fe, New Mexico. Previous to that Romeo had been an entertainer in Las Vegas.

Romeo’s show business background and marketing acumen has enabled him and his wife, Dianne, to turn MOLLY’S BAR into one of the premier entertainment venues in New Mexico.

MOLLY’S now features a variety of entertainment with performances scheduled on Tuesdays and Wednesdays from 5:30 p.m. to 9:00 p.m. On Thursdays from 5:30 p.m. to 9:00 p.m. a band-hosted jam session is held. On Fridays and Saturdays one performance is scheduled from 1:30 p.m. to 5:00 p.m., and another, different performance is scheduled from 5:30 p.m. to 9:00 p.m. This amounts to seven separate and distinct performances per week, every week. The high quality of these performances truly has to be seen to be believed. Suffice it to say that MOLLY’S BAR has become “THE PLACE TO PLAY” among the entertainment community in New Mexico.

The wide variety and high quality of entertainment appeals to the broadest possible spectrum of the crowds who enjoy great entertainment in an atmosphere that is friendly and wholesome. Like most people if you come to MOLLY’S once you will become a regular patron. This reality has spawned the slogan; MOLLY’S … FIRST AND ALWAYS … THE BEST!!

On June 19, 1994 MOLLY’S expanded its facility by building the “CLASS ACTION SUITE.” This open-air amphitheatre is one of the finest facilities of its kind anywhere in the world. Weather permitting, all performances at MOLLY’S BAR are held in this venue. Everyone enjoys the ambience of fresh mountain air and the New Mexico azure sky shaded by giant elm and cottonwood trees. During inclement weather the inside stage at MOLLY’S is the venue.