Celebrating one year of ownership of the Adobe & Pines Inn Bed and Breakfast in October, Cat Cannon and Robbie Stiefel are no strangers to welcoming travelers, or to New Mexico. In fact, they lived a stone’s throw from the inn just south of Taos for two years before they purchased it in 2023.

“Northern NM, and Taos specifically, is remote enough, the pace is slow enough, that it provides a kind of lifestyle if you want to slow down,” says Stiefel. “We were looking for place to slow down but still make a living.”

The couple lived in California and Colorado for a time, and both felt New Mexico was their perfect next step. They had been building and remodeling houses – even having one featured in Dwell Magazine – while Robbie produced music and Cat pursued filmmaking and travel-related photography. They see becoming innkeepers as a natural progression and synthesis of their love of architecture, design and travel.

“We’ve had Airbnbs in the past, so the hospitality aspect is familiar,” continues Stiefel. “But all the other elements, too – the design/build potential of the inn, and the whole food element. Being an innkeeper is about building community.”

Community is how Cannon and Stiefel discovered the inn, too. As they were close neighbors of the property, they came to know the previous owner. When she told them that she would be moving on and that the inn was for sale, they began talking with her. Eventually, they struck a deal.

“There aren’t a lot of incredible, historic, hacienda-type properties in Taos, and they don’t come on the market a lot. This property is one of those. It really resonated with us,” he adds

They didn’t ease into ownership, either, rather jumped right in, immediately diving into the daily routine, building a stellar team, and planning the inn’s future. Both are involved with day-to-day tasks, as well as communication with guests. Robbie does most of the cooking, which he is proud to say is almost all organic, with many ingredients coming farm-to-table from local farmers and growers.

“People have always enjoyed the food here, but we’ve been focusing on it even more. We think it rivals most good restaurants. It’s taken a lot of work to hone in on things and do them consistently,” Stiefel continues. “We’re also thinking about expanding our food offerings to include grab and go, and doing pop up dinners on occasion.”

In the last year, the pair has viewed the inn as a canvas to paint on – they are planning to expand the workshop, event and retreat program that welcomes groups to the property, and adding on to existing structures to increase guest room capacity.

“We’ve got some space to do it, and this is an opportunity to have fun with design and architecture, and build something within the style of what is here with adobe, natural and organic materials,” he says.

With the limited spare time they have, the duo love to travel, hike, and cook. Stiefel still writes songs, plays guitar and bass, and is a self-proclaimed frustrated drummer. He continues to produce and record in the studio with musicians across the country, too, while Cannon keeps up with her photography.

Visitors sometimes are surprised that Cannon and Stiefel, both in their thirties, have embarked on an innkeeper’s life. Luckily for their guests, the pair say they can see themselves sharing their love of the outdoors, Northern New Mexico, good food and hospitality for a long, long time.

ADOBE & PINES B&B • Cat Cannon and Robbie Stiefel
4107 State Road 68  •  Taos, NM 87557  •  855-828-7872
www.adobepines.com  •  mail@adobepines.com
Facebook: AdobePines • Instagram: @adobepinesinn