Meet Angela Neri of Pony Up in lodo

Today we’d like to introduce you to Angela Neri.

Angela has a hospitality career that spans 18 years. While earning her business degree from San Diego State University, she found her passion for hospitality in fine dining with Mr. A’s in San Diego and Delicias in Rancho Santa Fe. After finishing school, she joined Hillstone Restaurant Group and was afforded the opportunity to work in multiple locations, managing a variety of areas of the business, including General Manager.

Angela grew up in California, and developed a love of travel that’s taken her to great cities across the United States, and around the world. It’s been while visiting top-notch bars and restaurants in those places that she developed a love of inspiring environments and excellent service. World-class cities like San Francisco, New York, Barcelona and Paris particularly helped shape her commitment to refined hospitality.

Founding Farmers Restaurant Group in Washington, D.C. sought out Angela to serve as their General Operations Manager for two restaurant openings in two years. Intent on broadening her experience, she then moved to San Francisco to manage the team and refine the front of house protocols at Coqueta SF, quickly becoming a sought-after operator in the Bay Area.

She served as GM for Range, and during her tenure, the restaurant received 3.5 stars from San Francisco Chronicle’s Michael Bauer. Angela was noticed by Michelin-starred Chef Daniel Patterson and team for her impeccable standards and execution. She was asked to join the group as GM, and operated Haven, as well as leading the re-opening for San Francisco classic, Alfred’s Steakhouse.

Angela joined Sheamus Feeley Hospitality Group in 2016, leading the openings of four client restaurants in her first year, three of which were new concept restaurants for Barnes & Noble in three states across the U.S. Her goal is to establish thriving business and work environments while upholding the highest standards of service and hospitality in every aspect of the restaurant business.

In May of 2018, the opportunity to take over an existing restaurant and transform it was presented at 1808 Blake St. I project managed the full, floor to ceiling, remodel and put together the concept of a friendly, non-pretentious, neighborhood bar that specialized in French Dips. I partnered with Sheamus Feeley to get the new restaurant/bar open in July 2018 and we have been successfully operating for the past two years. We recently had to lay-off our entire staff on March 16th, 2020, as a result of Covid-19 and are trying to keep the business afloat by finding creative ways to make money. Government assistance has been limited and is not designed for independent restaurants, so we are having to take care of ourselves and dig out of this on our own.

We’re always bombarded by how great it is to pursue your passion, etc – but we’ve spoken with enough people to know that it’s not always easy. Overall, would you say things have been easy for you?
Up until now, Pony Up has been pretty seamless and successful. We have had to work hard, the restaurant industry is never easy, but the recent challenges are like nothing I have ever faced.

We’d love to hear more about your business.
Pony Up is a very special bar. I believe we have one of the most friendly and hospitable teams in Denver. We are known for our friendly & quick service and our French Dips! We also have fun programming behind the bar. People know us for 1/2 off bottles of Champagne late night and all-day Sunday. Beer and Shot Specials and fun, creative cocktails that don’t take forever to make!

I’m most proud of our team! They all work very hard and always with a smile on their face! We have a great culture in our workspace and it starts with the team and makes it a great place to work and an even better place to hang out in! I think we have a small menu and we work really hard to do that VERY WELL. I think the quality of product you get in such a simple and easy-going setting makes us really unique.

What were you like growing up?
Growing up, I guess you could say I was a go-getter. I always went for it! I skipped 7th grade. I was a cheerleader. I took stats for baseball in high school. I always wanted to go to college and move around. I left my hometown of Folsom, California at 17 years old and went to San Diego. I just kept going after that. San Francisco, Washington DC, Miami, now Denver.

I was always interested in sports and social events. Also traveling and other cultures. When I was `15, I lived in Japan for six weeks over a summer with a host family. I immersed myself into the culture and taught English in multiple settings – elementary, middle school & high school. That experience made me see the world as a much bigger place and made me want to push myself to see and learn more.

Pricing:

• Cocktails $8-13
• Food $6-13

Contact Info:

• Address: 1808 Blake St. Denver CO 80202
• Website: ponyupdenver.com and ponyuponlinestore.com
• Phone: 7207108144
• Email: info@ponyupdenver.com
• Instagram: @ponyupdenver
• Facebook: @sheamusfeelyhospitalitygroup
• Yelp: Pony Up Denver

Image Credit:
REN Creative all Pony Images, Tony White (CAKE) headshot

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