Hot Times Ahead: Celebrate Sixty Years of La Fiesta at Party September 27

La Fiesta marked the start of its sixtieth year on October 1, the day in 1963 when the owner of a former Safeway at 2340 Champa Street was issued an occupancy permit to reopen the place as a Mexican restaurant and nightclub.

And La Fiesta is still hot after all these years, which it will prove at a belated 60th birthday celebration on Friday, September 27.

There have been changes over the decades, of course. As envisioned by founder Michael Herrera, a businessman and broadcaster for Colorado’s first Spanish-speaking radio station, KFSC-AM, La Fiesta wasn't just a restaurant, but a party — a place where people who loved Denver's unique style of Mexican food could eat during the day, and where fans of Mexican music could dance at night and enjoy being part of a community.

Born February 10, 1924, the native Coloradan went straight from high school to World War II, where he was a sergeant as well as an amateur boxing champion in the Air Force. Back in Colorado, Herrera attended the University of Denver, graduating with bachelor’s, master’s and law degrees, then went to work in the assessor’s office for the City and County of Denver.

But his external activities were what brought him fame, fortune...and lots of fans of Mexican food. In addition to opening La Fiesta in an old Safeway on the edge of Curtis Park, then a neighborhood just starting to hit the skids, he started the El Papa Gallo Night Club, the Casa Herrera grocery store and La Botella liquor store, all in the neighborhood.

By the late ’70s, La Fiesta had pared back its hours and solidified its reputation as a lunchtime gathering spot, attracting everyone from cops to lawyers to Colorado Supreme Court justices to Michael Herrera himself, who came in to eat lunch just about every weekday until his passing in early 2020, just shy of his 96th birthday.


Hot Green Chile, Cold Snap

Michael Herrera left behind a slew of children and grandchildren, including his son, Robert, who oversees the place today, and his son Robert. The family carried on, continuing to serve one of Denver's best green chiles over those crispy rellenos that are unique to Denver, according to no less an authority than Gustavo Arellano, author of Taco USA.

But at the start of La Fiesta's 61st year, the Herreras faced a new challenge: A pipe burst in the building during the cold snap last January. When Robert Sr. opened the doors the next morning, he found the place flooded. He thought the cleanup would be quick, but as workers surveyed the damage, they discovered asbestos — a souvenir of the building's initial incarnation as a 1950s Safeway.

So what would have been a mop-up project became a major remediation. Robert initially estimated La Fiesta could be closed for a month, but repairs stretched to ten weeks. Fortunately, he says, his father had negotiated a very good insurance policy, and all of the employees got their usual paychecks until the place reopened on March 30.

Time to Party

Today, La Fiesta is the oldest Mexican joint run by the original family in Denver, perhaps all of Colorado. That's reason to celebrate, and fans of the place persuaded Robert Sr. it was time to party.

On Friday, September 27, La Fiesta will stay open long past its usual 2 p.m. closing time, opening its doors to regulars and those who should be regulars. There will be drink and food specials, as well as mariachi music and stories. As testament to the importance of Michael Herrera's legacy, various officials have been sending in letters of congratulations, which will be shared with the crowd.

And there will be toasts, of course: to sixty hot years, and many more to come.

La Fiesta, 2340 Champa Street, is usually open from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. Monday through Thursday, 11 a.m. to 9 p.m. Friday, and 4 p.m. to close on Saturdays. On Friday, September 27, the celebration will begin at 2 and run until the last margarita is poured.