The Broker Will Close on December 31 After 45 Years

Sunday night will mark not just the end of 2017, but the end of an era in Denver fine dining: The Broker Restaurant will close after 45 years of serving steak and seafood downtown. The Broker opened in the basement of a former bank at 821 17th Street in 1972 under...

By Mark Antonation

December 28, 2017

The vaults will close at the Broker at the end of 2017. Flickr/Ishrona

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Sunday night will mark not just the end of 2017, but the end of an era in Denver fine dining: The Broker Restaurant will close on December 31 after 45 years of serving steak and seafood downtown.

The Broker opened in the basement of a former bank at 821 17th Street in 1972 under the guidance of restaurateur Ed Novak; before out-of-state steakhouses came to town, it had gained renown for its expense-account dinners and complimentary peel-and-eat shrimp. Novak eventually sold the Broker to longtime employee Jerry Fritzler, who purchased a 25 percent stake in 1996 before taking the helm in 2010.

When I was In my mid-twenties, one of my first business dinners was at the Broker, and I sat nervously trying not to drip salad dressing on my tie as the higher-ups got down to brass tacks. By the 1990s, the Broker had been around long enough to host throwback nights, when certain menu items were rolled back to 1972 prices, making it an affordable night out for me and my low-budget friends.

But the prime rib with horseradish, the steak Oscar and the dimly lit dinners in the alcoves beneath 17th Street will all come to an end after dinner service on Sunday, December 31. What are your favorite memories of dinner at the Broker? Let us know at [email protected] or in the comments section below.

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Mark Antonation is the former Westword Food & Drink Editor. In 2018, he was named Outstanding Media Professional by the Colorado Restaurant Association; he's now with the Colorado Restaurant Foundation.

Contact: Mark Antonation

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