Six months after shuttering Bistro LeRoux, a French fine-dining restaurant on the 16th Street Mall, restaurateur Lon Symensma has closed his YumCha Dumpling & Noodle Bar next door. “It is with a heavy heart,” the restaurant, at 1520 16th St. Mall, wrote on Instagram, before saying the three-year-old restaurant has closed. “Thank you all for … Read more
Denver’s explosion of dumpling restaurants wasn’t on anyone’s radar two years ago, and nixtamalized corn wasn’t on the bingo card for 2024. But both became notable trends in the restaurant industry locally. So what will 2025 bring? There’s no way to know, but here are a few predictions for what we’re seeing already and what … Read more
Denver’s Whittier neighborhood and the surrounding streets have built a little bit of a restaurant culture in the past few years, from standards like Genna Rae’s Wings & More and The Plimoth to newcomers like Point Easy, Luchador Taco & More and Sesame Sandwiches. On Dec. 4, the neighborhood welcomed its newest addition, Whit’s End, … Read more
Back in 2005, when Garrett Brizendine was a marketing student at Johnson & Wales University, he adopted the Anthony’s Pizza & Pasta store at East 29th Avenue and Roslyn Street as his own. “I lived in President’s Hall at the corner of 17th and Quebec, about five minutes away,” Brizendine said, “so that Anthony’s was … Read more
Panera Bread has closed its sole location in downtown Denver after 10 years. The St. Louis-based chain’s store at the corner of Market Street and the 16th Street Mall was closed as of Thursday morning. “We’ll miss serving you from this bakery cafe,” notices posted on the doors read. The company didn’t respond when asked … Read more
Olive & Finch, the 11-year-old cafe and restaurant from chef Mary Nguyen, will open a new location inside Denver Union Station in early 2025, according to a Wednesday statement. The company currently operates its original restaurant at 1552 E. 17th Ave., and a second location in Cherry Creek. It also runs Little Finch, a quick-serve … Read more
Denver’s Union Station just wrapped up an $11 million renovation, but that wasn’t enough to keep its first restaurant tenant in the house. Stoic & Genuine was the first restaurant to open in the historic building when it reopened with a hotel, shops, restaurants and bars in 2014. But restaurant owners Beth Gruitch and Jennifer … Read more
When chef Lon Symensma opened his fine-dining French restaurant in 2018, “it was initially a great idea,” he said. But six years later, the ongoing reconstruction of the 16th Street Mall has taken the light out of Bistro LeRoux’s chandeliers and champagne service. Symensma and business partner Christopher Davis-Massey permanently closed Bistro LeRoux, 1510 16th … Read more
Denver Mayor Mike Johnston celebrated his administration’s progress on some of the city’s biggest challenges during his first year in office on Monday, while making a pitch for the first big initiative of his second — a sales tax increase to tackle affordable housing. The mayor delivered his State of the City address a year … Read more
After 14 years in a cramped kitchen, Zoe Ma Ma has outgrown its original space in Boulder. The Taiwanese restaurant plans to relocate from 2010 10th St. to a larger space just around the corner on Pearl Street. “The kitchen was so tiny that we were really limited in our offerings and held back on … Read more
