With four decades of hit songs like “Black Magic Woman” and “Smooth,” Carlos Santana has established his bona fides in the music industry.

Now, he’s showing he may do the same thing in the restaurant industry.

Maria Maria, the musician’s stylish Mexican restaurant that takes its name from another of his famous songs, opened Monday at Tempe Marketplace. If my initial visit is any indication, Santana has another hit on his hands.

The look and feel of the place is impressive. From the parking lot, you follow a long, curved patio as it goes on and on — wrapping around two-thirds of the building before it finally reaches a large fire pit.

Just past the fire pit, the restaurant’s heavy wood doors open to a cavernous space called the Candle Dining Room. A long bar runs the length of the back wall; above it, two giant trees are illuminated by more than four dozen faux candles.

To the right, behind a musician playing acoustic guitar, a wall of cubbyholes filled with more candles hides another dining area. To the left, a covered portion of the patio is served by an outside bar.

The opening night’s see-and-be-seen crowd is surprisingly young — the majority in their 20s and 30s — and mostly dressed to impress.

As I take a seat in the lounge area, a server brings out a copper dish of house-made tortilla chips and three types of salsa. The first is a typical mild one, nothing to get too excited about.

The other two, though, pack plenty of kick. One is a dark red “salsa de arbol” made with roasted tomatillos and arbol chiles. The other is a light green “salsa de manzano” made with fresh tomatillos and fiery manzano (apple) peppers.

The two salsas are good examples of the complex, globally inspired cuisine of Roberto Santibanez, the acclaimed Mexico City chef (read my Q&A with him) who Santana and partners tapped to create Maria Maria’s menu (see menu pdf).

I start with chicken flautas ($9), crispy corn tortillas filled with mildy spicy chicken. An orange tomatillo sauce is made a bit more luxurious with crema and cotija cheese.

Soft duck tacos ($11) are a popular item at finer restaurants nowadays, but you’ll be hard-pressed to find any as good as these. The finely shredded pink meat practically melts in your mouth. Habanero cream sauce is complemented by chopped onions, cilantro and sunflowers seeds.

Foot-long skewers of beef tenderloin and sliced chorizo links separated by pieces of onion, pepper and pineapple ($19) are brushed with a bacon vinaigrette. Like all entrees, they come with a bowl of saffron rice and black beans (cooked in vegetable oil, not lard), both spiced with guajillos peppers.

I barely have room to try the flourless bittersweet chocolate cake ($7), which has the consistency of thick pudding and comes with juicy slices of orange.

Like a new song that you just can’t get out of your head, I can’t wait to go back to Maria Maria for an encore.

>> Maria Maria, 2000 E. Rio Salado Parkway is open 5 p.m. to close daily (lunch starts April 7). (480) 449-3663.

(First Taste reviews are based on initial visits to new East Valley restaurants. Full reviews are written after multiple visits, usually over a period of several weeks, after the restaurant has been open at least a couple months.)