Chris Marhevka
Audio By Carbonatix
Denver’s bakery boom continues, with a pair of new places where you can pick up treats. Sắp Sá»a co-owner Anna Nguyen has returned to her roots with the debut of the Bakehouse, which is dishing out muffins, cookies, tea cakes and more from the restaurant’s space on weekend mornings.
Ana’s Norwegian Bakeri, which started as a pandemic pop-up before opening a brick-and-mortar in Centennial, now has a second outpost on the 16th Street Mall.
Over at the TAXI community in RiNo, the former Comal space is now Verbena, a Venezualan concept from Pablo Francisco Castro Lopez that’s open from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. daily.
Local chain Rush Bowls continues to grow, adding two outposts this week, in RiNo and Arvada.
There’s also a new bar on South Broadway. Pretty Neat opened on Black Friday and specializes in classic craft cocktails in a space that includes two separate bar areas.
Tom’s Starlight paid homage to the building’s past.
Molly Martin
The Googie-style building on East Colfax Avenue that was the longtime home of Tom’s Diner is dark again after owner Tom Messina decided to shutter Tom’s Starlight just over a year after debuting the revamped space, which is now for lease. “It’s too good of a spot,” he told Westword. “Someone will come in and do good by it.”
Also gone is the Burrito Company, a takeout-only spot on Santa Fe that was popular for decades for its breakfast burritos.
In other openings-and-closings news:
- Savory Vietnam will shutter on December 15, but its owner is planning to open something new in 2024.
- Annette owner Caroline Glover is opening an oyster and cocktail bar in Stanley Marketplace next month.
- TRVE Brewing and Full Metal Burgers will move into the Mica RiNo building next year.
Here’s the complete list of restaurants and bars that opened and closed this week:
An Old Fashioned from new cocktail bar Pretty Neat.
Molly Martin
Restaurants and bars that opened this week:*
Ana’s Norwegian, 918 16th Street Mall
The Bakehouse at Sap Sua, 2550 East Colfax Avenue
Pretty Neat, 114 South Broadway
Rush Bowls, 3354 Larimer Street and 8031 Wadsworth Boulevard, Arvada
Verbena Restaurant + Bar, 3455 Ringsby Court
Restaurants and bars that closed this week:*
The Burrito Company, 1290 South Santa Fe Drive
Tom’s Starlight, 601 East Colfax Avenue
*Or earlier and not previously reported.
Know of something we missed? Email cafe@westword.com.
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