Frommer's Review
If a romantically historic stay in an Old West town appeals to you, consider spending a night at this landmark hotel. It looks much the same today as it did in 1873, when it was built by Henri Lambert, previously a chef for Napoleon, Abraham Lincoln, and Ulysses S. Grant. In its early years, it was a rare luxury hotel on the Santa Fe Trail, with a dining room, a saloon, gambling rooms, and lavish guest rooms outfitted with Victorian furniture. Today, you'll find lace and cherrywood in the bedrooms, though the feel is frontier elegance rather than lavishness. Rooms don't have televisions or phones -- the better to evoke the days when famous guests such as Zane Grey, who wrote Fighting Caravans at the hotel, were residents. Annie Oakley's bed is here, and a glass case holds a register with the signatures of Buffalo Bill Cody and the notorious Jesse James. The beds are comfortably soft, and the bathrooms small and basic. One room just off the lobby stays open so that those not spending the night can have a peek. The most authentic and atmospheric rooms are next to this one, all on the ground floor.
The St. James was a place of some lawlessness: 26 men were said to have been killed within the 2-foot-thick adobe walls, and bullet holes can be seen in the pressed-tin ceiling of the dining room. The ghosts of some are believed to inhabit the hotel still.
Next door are 12 more rooms in a motel. These basic accommodations offer clean bathrooms, TVs, and telephones for those who prefer the 21st century.
Lambert's at the St. James serves good food in semi Old West ambiance, with a molded tin ceiling and Western murals. The menu is short, but good, with dishes such as fettuccine primavera and prime rib, priced from $15 to $30. It's open in summer for dinner daily and in winter Wednesday to Sunday. A separate coffee shop serves three meals daily, purveying sandwiches and large portions of tasty New Mexican food. On a large patio outside, bands sometimes play in summer.
Facilities:
Restaurant; bar; coffee shop; billiards room
Note: This information was accurate when it was published, but can change without
notice. Please be sure to confirm all rates and details directly with the companies in question before
planning your trip.
