Nueve Uno Cinco, a new high-end craft cocktail lounge from local entrepreneur Luciano Aguayo III, has opened this week in downtown El Paso. The two-level room at 218 W. Franklin Avenue, directly across from Southwest University Park, bills itself as a "915" concept that turns the city’s histories and desert flavors into cocktails and small plates. The lounge is positioning itself as an intimate evening spot for locals and visitors, pairing curated drinks with rotating art and live music.
Menus That Map El Paso's Stories
The cocktail program, developed with award-winning mixologist Jason Asher, leans on Southwest ingredients and local narratives, with drinks named Batido de Fresa, El Chuco, and La Dama de Juarez, as reported by KFOX14/CBS4. The menu is described as meticulously crafted to reference the people and places that shaped the borderland. Nueve Uno Cinco lists hours as 4 p.m. to midnight Wednesday through Sunday and plans to pair its cocktails with small, locally sourced plates.
Permits And The Buildout
State project filings confirm the address and tenant. The Texas Department of Licensing and Regulation's project record lists "Nueve Uno Cinco Bar" at 218 W. Franklin Ave., names Luciano Aguayo as the tenant, and shows a roughly $50,000 tenant-improvement scope that began in September 2024 and is scheduled to be completed in February 2025, per the Texas Department of Licensing and Regulation. The record also identifies in*situ Architecture as the design firm for the small renovation. Taken together, those filings indicate the opening followed a targeted renovation rather than a full-scale gutting of the storefront.
Design, Events And Community Fit
"This whole concept is based on El Paso," Aguayo said, describing the 915 idea that underpins the drinks and programming, according to KFOX14/CBS4. The lounge plans to host art exhibitions, live music, and private events, aiming to add a more curated late-night option to downtown's nightlife mix. Owners say the focus will be on flavor-driven cocktails and small bites made from locally sourced ingredients.
Local Partners And What To Expect
Local firms are also part of the buildout. The El Paso landscape studio The Dry Land lists Nueve Uno Cinco among its recent hospitality projects, suggesting attention to the storefront's exterior and street-level presence. That mix of local design partners and a story-driven cocktail program follows a familiar playbook for boutique lounges that aim to function as both neighborhood hangouts and destination spots. For now, programming and reservations are being handled directly by the owners, with a gradual roll-out of special events expected in the coming weeks.
Nueve Uno Cinco joins a stream of new and refreshed hospitality spots downtown that are trying to extend evening foot traffic beyond the stadium crowd. The lounge is open to the public at 218 W. Franklin Ave., with hours and event listings available through the owners' channels as they formalize the calendar.
