By Jo Mixon
John and Wendy Hail Welcome You!
As I write this story I am enjoying a piece of homemade carrot cake with heavenly cream cheese frosting, courtesy of Hail’s Holy Smoked BBQ and More. Mmm, good! Owners John and Wendy Hail told me that owning the restaurant is a “God thing”. Wendy has wanted to open a restaurant since she was fourteen years old. Through a chain of events that took place last fall with everything falling into place from financing to housing, that dream became a reality on December 21, 2012 when the Hail’s took possession of their new business.
As I entered Hail’s Holy Smoked BBQ & More, I found the atmosphere welcoming, the food delicious and the owners delightful! Right away Wendy came over to me and explained that for the past few weeks they had been running a contest. Anyone who had eaten at the restaurant was invited to write an honest review of his or her meal on tripadvisory.com. Then each person who wrote a review was entered into a contest for a free meal. She had the names of each participant in a cup and gave me the honor of drawing the winner. I drew a name and gave it to her. Bubco aka Bubba Davis won dinner for 2. In his review he wrote, “The best meatloaf I’ve had in 15 years.”
Located at 4300 Mountain View Blvd. in Angel Fire, Hail’s Holy Smoked BBQ & More is open Monday through Thursday from 11:00 am to 7:00 pm., Friday and Saturday from 11:00 am to 8:00 pm, and closed on Sunday. Wendy is a New Mexico native, but John is originally from Texas. Since he is the chief meat cook and head dishwasher (he added with a smile) they serve Barbeque Texas style. Brisket, ribs, sausage, pork tenderloin, and turkey are the meats offered on their menu. But they serve green chili, New Mexico style! Wendy makes award-winning tamales with green chili as her specialty. They package and sell her tamales to go, frozen by the dozen. And she makes homemade desserts ranging from cheesecakes and fruit cobblers to carrot cake.
They run specials every day. For variation, they offer items not on their regular menu for the specials. Green chili cheese potato soup with jalapeño cornbread, BBQ tacos with beans and rice, spicy posole, or green chili brisket burritos is a few examples of these specials. And they have a kid’s menu. With a dozen grandchildren of their own, (soon to be baker’s dozen!) John and Wendy stressed how important it is to them for the restaurant to be family friendly. Plus they always have complimentary coffee available.
John and Wendy moved to Angel Fire over a year and a half ago to manage the Angel Fire Retreat. They had vacationed in Angel Fire many times and fell in love with the beauty, the wildlife, and the people. John said they don’t intend to move Angel Fire is now their home. I asked how they met and both of their faces lit up. At a dance, they said, and after fourteen years of marriage and blending their seven children together, they are starting a new dance with this new venture. So please help me welcome them to the Chamber and go have a meal or two! “LIKE” them on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/HolySmokedBBQ to keep up with the daily specials.
Leave a Reply