In Littleton, a longtime community favorite, the Shack, shut its doors after "29 years, 10 months & 12 days" in business, it shared on Facebook. "The 'send off' you all gave us these past few weeks was incredible!! We cannot THANK YOU enough!! We will truly miss the family that we created!! To the entire community... Thank you from the bottom of our hearts!! To our staff, past and present... Thank you!!"
The latest chain to exit the 16th Street Mall is Corner Bakery Cafe at the Denver Pavillions, which had occupied its space there for 25 years. It still operates four other locations in the metro area, including one at 17th and Stout streets.
And Kyle and Katy Foster have shut down Pirate Alley Boucherie, which got its start as a po'boy pop-up at their Southern eatery in RiNo, Julep, which closed in 2020. After running Pirate Alley for a year, the two are focusing on their cooking school, Stir.
Yuan Wonton, a popular dumpling-focused food truck owned by chef Penelope Wong, now has a permanent home. After months of delays, it's moved into a space in Park Hill that it's sharing with two other food businesses. Thuy is a new Vietnamese concept from husband and wife Long Nguyen and Shauna Seaman, founders of Pho King Rapidos, which started as a food truck and moved into the Avanti food hall in Denver earlier this year. Sweets & Sourdough is a woman-led bakery that's now open in the space from 7 a.m. to 2 p.m. Thursday through Sunday. Yuan Wonton's menu is available from 5 to 9 p.m. Wednesday and Thursday and from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. Friday; and Thuy by PKR is open 5 to 9 p.m. Thursday and 5 to 10 p.m. Friday and Saturday.
Other additions to the scene include Buddies, a gay bar that replaced Prohibition on East Colfax; the sixth Denver location of Sweetgreen; and the latest mini golf bar to join that growing scene, Holey Moley, which replaced Urban Putt in the former Spaghetti Factory space.
Banh mi fans, take note: The owners of Golden Saigon have added Golden Banh Mi in the same Aurora shopping center. Its menu includes a pho banh mi that comes with broth for dipping.
The pizza scene in Denver continues to evolve with the opening of Dough Counter. The concept from the family behind Marco's Coal Fired Pizza specializes in New York-style and thick, Sicilian-style pies plus gluten-free chicken tenders, salads and more.
In other openings-and-closings news:
- Ryan Pachmayer rounds up six new breweries worth visiting.
- Wash Park fine-dining restaurant Bittersweet will close on September 15 after twelve years in business.
- Troy Guard's brunch concept HashTAG is expanding to Highlands Ranch and downtown.
Restaurants and bars that opened this week:*
Buddies, 504 East Colfax Avenue
Dough Counter, 2466 South Colorado Boulevard
Golden Banh Mi, 2648 South Parker Road, Aurora
Holey Moley,1201 18th Street
Sweetgreen, 2770 South Colorado Boulevard
Yuan Wonton/Thuy by PKR/Sweets and Sourdough, 2878 Fairfax Street
Restaurants and bars that closed this week:*
Corner Bakery Cafe, 500 16th Street Mall
Pirate Alley Boucherie, 1801 Wynkoop Street
The Shack, 151 West Mineral Avenue, Littleton
*Or earlier and not previously reported.
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