Viola’s owner Belinda Jaramillo stands next to her longtime employee and ‘right-hand man’ Bernardo Bojorquez. Photo by Kirsten Laskey/ladailypost.com

By KIRSTEN LASKEY
Los Alamos Daily Post
kirsten@ladailypost.com

Viola’s restaurant is a family affair.

Several generations of original owner Viola Jaramillo Pepin’s family owned and worked in the restaurant at 1360 Trinity Dr.

After Viola died in 1998, one of her sons took over ownership for five years and then in 2003 her daughter-in-law, Belinda Jaramillo, was given the business.

The restaurant has strong ties in Viola’s family but also it has deep roots in Los Alamos County.

Jaramillo said her mother-in-law started cooking in 1962 at the lab site. She explained her father-in-law was legally blind but had the opportunity to run a snack bar at the lab site through a state department program that provided jobs to those who were blind.

Jaramillo said originally her in-laws lived in Albuquerque and when they were offered a job in Los Alamos, they wondered where in the world that town was located.

Still, they moved and started working at TA 3. When her husband died, the state told Viola she needed to move on, Jaramillo said.

She was given the opportunity to open her own restaurant. To this day, Jaramillo said some of Viola’s original customers still come to the restaurant along with their children and grandchildren.

When Jaramillo was offered the opportunity to take over the restaurant, she said she never imagined herself running that type of business.

“I never dreamt in a million years that I would do that,” she said. “That wasn’t in my plans, but I learned that God has plans for me that I didn’t know about.”

Cooking would become an important factor in Jaramillo’s life. In fact, she said she remembers one of the stipulations her husband gave her when they first met.

“My husband told me when we met … that he wouldn’t marry me until I cooked like his mother,” Jaramillo said.

Luckily, Viola showed her the ropes, Jaramillo said, adding that Viola had seven sons and no daughters.

“I was always with Viola,” Jaramillo said. “She taught me how to do everything.”

Viola’s serves up New Mexican cuisine as well as lunch staples including burgers, chicken sandwiches and quesadillas. Jaramillo said popular menu items include Navajo tacos, which is the Tuesday special, the Thursday special, stuffed sopapillas, and the Friday special, carne adovada.

If diners are unsure of what they want, Jaramillo said her staff usually recommends getting the combination plate because it has a little bit of everything. When she first assumed ownership of the restaurant, Jaramillo said it felt a little surreal.

“When we first opened as me being the owner, it was just a very different feeling … I would think, I am cooking this food and people are paying money to eat it,” she said. “I enjoy that, and I enjoy being my own boss and just getting to know my customers.”

Some of her favorite customers are Martin Pacheco and his sons, Jaramillo said, adding that Pacheco is at Viola’s almost every day. Another favorite customer is the Harris family.

She added because the elementary schools have half days on Wednesdays, she would get to know a lot of students who would come to the restaurant after school was dismissed. Later, she would see the same students, now teenagers, driving themselves to the restaurant.

“There are quite a few different families that we watched grow from babies to grownups,” Jaramillo said.

It’s not just customers’ families that have grown up in Viola’s but also Jaramillo’s own family. She said her daughter works at the restaurant and her son is a grill cook.

Her husband also helps out.

“My husband helps me an awful lot,” Jaramillo said. “He just does what I need him to do.”

She added that she enjoys running a family-owned business.

“There are some trying times,” Jaramillo said. “I suppose that’s the way in every business. It’s nice; I enjoy working with family. Before I owned it, Viola’s sons worked at it at one time or another … you just learn to get along.”

Despite its lengthy history in Los Alamos, nothing could prepare Viola’s, or any other restaurant, for the events that have unfolded due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Jaramillo said with many laboratory employees now working remotely, it has cut down on the lunch traffic.

To adapt to this new situation, Jaramillo said Viola’s is offering outdoor dining as well as take out.

She said her grandson created a website for the restaurant, www.violasnm.com, which features the menu as well as its hours of operation, which are now 8:30 a.m. to 2 p.m. Monday through Friday. Diners also can call in their orders at 505.662.5617.

“We do the best we can … we’re not out to become millionaires, we just want to serve our food,” Jaramillo said. “Every dollar is certainly appreciated. I have faith in God that we will get through this.”

One of the things Jaramillo said she has learned through this experience is to try and remain calm. She added it is important to stay true to yourself and your business.

“…I have to do what is going to work for me … treat the customers as well as we can and make sure they are happy with their food,” Jaramillo said.

Despite the challenges of the global pandemic, Jaramillo said she wouldn’t trade serving Los Alamos for any other community.

“I don’t think I would have my business anywhere else … I enjoy doing business in Los Alamos,” she said. “My husband and I were raised in Los Alamos … we just thank everyone for their patronage.”

Viola’s owner Belinda Jaramillo and her ‘right-hand man’ Bernardo Bojorquez out in front of her restaurant Wednesday at 1360 Trinity Dr. Photo by Kirsten Laskey/ladailypost.com