It’s a sight that brought up plenty of feelings of nostalgia and even made one local man pull a quick U-turn just to see what was happening.

ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. – It’s a sight that brought up plenty of feelings of nostalgia and even made one local man pull a quick U-turn just to see what was happening.

Putts N Pints at the corner of San Mateo Boulevard and McLeod Road in northeast Albuquerque is now open at the exact location where the beloved Putt-Putt Golf and Games closed in 2017.

“I just was like, ‘Wait a minute. There’s people here. Oh my gosh!’ I was like, ‘I have to do a U-turn. Hold on. Hold on now!’ So, I had to come in. Had to see it,” said Reagan Carey.

Scott Salvas and his team, who are also behind Brew Lab 101, spent months and months creating a new haven for mini golf fans and those in Albuquerque with fond memories at that location.

“I think it’s gonna be really special for the community,” said Salvas. “You know, it’s really humbling to us because we want to cherish those memories. We want to honor those memories. And so, I think we’ve done a great job, and hopefully the community feels the same way.”

The venue is fully open although Salvas says they are technically “soft launching” it for now. A grand opening event is set to take place some time in the near future, but Salvas is looking to work out any bugs before that happens.

Some who used to go to the former Putt-Putt location are thrilled to have a modernized version of the old fan favorite.

“I always had my birthday party at Putt-Putt when I was a kid. So, it holds a fond memory for me for both the golf and the video games,” said Vincent Narducci.

Others had feared the mini golf location would be torn down at some point, so they were happy to learn a new team came in to create a similar experience at the same busy corner.

“It made us sad every time we’d drive by, like that’s a shame,” said Ari Fernandez about the nine-year wait since the old location closed.

Putts N Pints will feature a total of three mini golf courses in addition to a bar, retro arcade, private room, golf simulator, and more. Two of those courses are now open with another set to open in the coming days.

“A lot of blood, sweat, and tears went in to making this happen. You know, this is a pretty big project for us. And I think people are really gonna enjoy the build,” said Salvas.

Salvas told KOB 4 his goal was to have the venue open before the end of summer – a deadline they met with just a few weeks to spare. And with Labor Day fast approaching, he’s hoping they picked the perfect time.

“But yeah, we expect it to be pretty crazy. I’m glad we made it for the holiday weekend,” said Salvas.

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