On Monday, the Denver City Council approved a contract that will allow an airport concessionaire to open a Fat Sully’s Pizza restaurant inside Concourse A.

Known for its ginormous New York-style pies, Fat Sully’s is owned by the Atomic Provisions group, which also owns Denver Biscuit Co. and Atomic Cowboy. Airport concessionaire FM Juice Company will operate the pizza shop under the Fat Sully’s name. (All of DIA’s branded concessions, from Tattered Cover to Great Divide Brewing, do business this way.)

The restaurant group declined a request for comment.

The city council also approved a second Chick-fil-A and a second Shake Shack in Concourse A. Both Chick-fil-A and Shake Shack opened their first DIA locations in Concourse B.

Atomic Provisions, owned by former CU Buffs football player Drew Shader, boasts seven Colorado locations with all three restaurant brands, including the newest, which opened this fall, in Golden, and two locations in Kansas City.

Other local businesses with their names at the airport include: Snooze, Heidi’s Brooklyn Deli, New Belgium Brewing, Smashburger, Elway’s, Etai’s, Steve’s Snappin’ Dogs, Boulder Beer Tap House, and Mercantile Dining & Provisions.

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At 73 years old, the chef is still constantly on his feet, cooking, cleaning dishes and greeting guests. “I am happy to be back here, but I am busy,” he said.

Homma reopened Domo, at 1365 Osage St., last month after a year hiatus, but with a smaller menu, limited hours and only four people on staff, two up front and two in the kitchen; that’s compared to the nearly 30 he had before the closure.

“My hands can only hold so much,” Homma said.

Domo closed temporarily in 2021 after a 40-second TikTok video of the restaurant’s beautiful outdoor gardens went viral and led to hundreds of people forming lines around the restaurant, overwhelming Homma and his staff. In September 2022, Homma appeared to have permanently closed up shop, saying he was ready to retire after running the restaurant since 1996.

“I wanted to slow down, and I needed a break after so many busy years in the kitchen,” Homma said. He spent his time off taking a series of trips to Turkey, Nepal and Thailand to teach the practices of Aikido, a modern Japanese martial art. During his visit to Thailand, he cooked some of Domo’s popular curry, which he has been serving in support of the Monthly Meals Project in Denver for the last 32 years, for children at Bilay House, a humanitarian aid and education facility.

Homma helped found the Bilay House, where children who fled from Myanmar to Thailand live, in 2004 through his foundation Aikido Humanitarian Active Network (AHAN). He’s used profits from Domo, as well as his Nippon Kan martial arts studio next door, to help fund meals, boarding houses and college scholarships for the children.

When Homma decided to “put on his armor once again and get back in the kitchen,” it was to honor Bilay House, as well as his loyal customers over the years, who have left many wishes and messages tied to a string hanging from a gazebo in Domo’s sprawling garden.

“People need me, and I feel happy when I’m needed, especially at my age,” Homma said.

Homma’s customers are happy to see the sensei back in his robes, rolling carts of steaming food and tea around the dimly lit restaurant, which is covered in Japanese artifacts.

Larry and Sue Reichert have been coming to Domo since it opened 27 years ago (was still serving red bean ice cream in thimbles after every meal). They even donate to Homma’s foundation.

“When Domo closed, the story wasn’t over,” Sue said. “Now this time, he can go out the way he wants to.” The Reicherts have resumed their weekly visits to the restaurant, ordering their favorite veggie curry, udon and spicy maguro. “I used to travel the country often, and I’ve tried Japanese food in numerous cities, and nothing comes close to this,” Larry said. “I tried making some of his dishes at home with his cookbook, but nothing compares,” Sue added.

Domo is only serving lunch Monday through Saturday from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m., as opposed to the full-service dinners it offered before, and there are no reservations. There’s no longer a daily line that wraps all the way around to Colfax Avenue, but Homma said Saturdays are especially busy.

The menu is much more simple with no more of the popular ramen noodles or sushi. Instead, Homma is using recipes from his childhood growing up in the Japanese countryside, as well as old-school methods, like cooking out of a hanging pot over a fire.

While sitting at the low wooden tables with cushioned tree stump stools, guests can slurp on a bowl of Japanese curry, Domo’s most popular menu item. Or if they prefer to sit outside in the garden, Homma recommends the Nabeyaki Udon, a Japanese winter staple with shrimp tempura, kamaboko fish cake, fried tofu, mushrooms and noodles.

“Japanese people don’t only eat sushi and ramen,” Homma said. “My mission is to teach people about some of the original and simple food that Japanese people have been eating for centuries.”

Eventually, Homma plans to bring back select menu items over time and add a dinner service when he’s adequately staffed.

“At 73, I thought I wanted to retire, but I couldn’t imagine doing anything else,” Homma said.

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The Los Angeles-based competitive eater visited Denver in November and shared videos of her completing various food challenges with her 435,000 Instagram, 497,000 YouTube and 3.6 million TikTok followers.

Food challenges bring competitors like Huang from around the world. Local restaurants like Pho 95 Noodle House in Centennial, where Huang slurped down four large bowls of pho in 20 minutes, have started timed eating competitions to attract a new audience (one with a never-ending pit of a stomach).

“The goal is to not make money from customers losing, but so people can come and try our pho,” said Pho 95 owner Aaron Le.

If you think you have the stomach to down a 4-pound burrito, out-of-this-world spicy wings with no milk or water, or a 14-pound pizza, here are six spots in and around Denver to challenge yourself:

Pho 95 Noodle House

Before Le opened Pho 95 Noodle House’s first location in Denver in 2008, his friends and family would always call him the “Pho King Guy” because of his pho obsession. This nickname was later the inspiration for the T-shirts that both winners and losers of his Pho King Challenge get to wear. Losers get: “I am a Pho King Loser.” Winners, well, you get it.

The Pho King Challenge, which is only offered at Pho 95’s larger Centennial location, requires diners to finish four large bowls of pho with 2 pounds of noodles, 2 pounds of your choice of meat or tofu, and 200 ounces of broth within an hour. It’s recommended to call two days in advance of your attempt. Le said around 2,468 people have tried to complete the challenge in the last 10 years, but only 22 competitors have finished it. If you lose, you pay $40 for the meal and get the T-shirt. If you win, you get a free meal, a T-shirt and a photo on the winners’ wall.

“Before I started the challenge, I weighed in at 140 pounds and could finish two large bowls of pho, so I figured if I could do that out of pure hunger, someone is bound to be able to eat more,” Le said.

Huang is the only woman to finish the challenge in 20 minutes, and the record holder is popular competitive eater Ricardo Corbucci, who finished it in 12 minutes. Le said these competitors with millions of followers bring in a ton of business after their visits and help boost the challenge.

“You have to sign a waiver before you try the challenge, and in it, it says, ‘If you throw up, you have to clean it up,’” Le said. “Only one person has thrown up at the table, and they fulfilled their promise.”

6879 S. Vine St., Centennial; pho95noodlehouse.com

Fire On the Mountain

Put a little fire in your belly by trying the El Jefe challenge at both of Fire On the Mountain’s Denver locations. After signing a waiver to acknowledge you’re completing this out of your own free will, you must eat 15 wings (bone-in chicken or seitan for vegetarians and vegans) drenched in the restaurant’s ridiculously spicy El Jefe sauce in 3 1/2  minutes or less. There’s no ranch, blue cheese, or alcohol for relief. Winners get a free meal, a free piece of Fire On The Mountain merchandise and a picture on the restaurant’s Wall of Flame. Losers have to pay the $19.99 and drown their sorrows in milk.

300 S. Logan St.; 3801 W. 32nd Ave., Denver; fotmdenver.com

Beau Jo’s

Pick your ravenous friend as a teammate to devour Beau Jo’s Grand Sicilian Pizza challenge at any of the six Colorado locations. The buddy challenge requires two people to finish a 14-pound Mountain pie with hamburger, sausage, pepperoni, green pepper, red onion and mushroom on top in an hour. Each location requires advance notice before the challenge. “One person has attempted to finish it on their own, but failed,” said Arvada Beau Jo’s manager Victor Romero III. Winners get a free meal, a T-shirt, pictures on the restaurant wall and $100 cash.

Multiple locations; beaujos.com

Swanky’s Vittles and Libations

Not for the lactose intolerant: Swanky’s offers a food challenge with a 3-pound grilled cheese made with six slices of Texas Toast, a full order of mac and cheese, cheddar cheese curds, 18 slices of American cheese, a half-pound of french fries and a half-pound of tater tots. Whew! Sounds like a Saturday night. Winners get a free meal, a T-shirt, a $10 gift certificate and a photo on the restaurant wall. Losers have to pay $35 for the meal and get a photo on the Wall of Shame. There is no time limit, but you can’t leave the table without finishing it. The challenge is not available during peak hours and marquee games.

1938 Blake St., Denver; swankys.com

The Rock Restaurant and Bar

The Rock serves a 4-pound burrito nearly the size of a newborn to the bravest of stomachs. The ground beef burrito is smothered in green chile and cheese and comes with a side of refried beans, lettuce and tomato. There’s no time limit, but the longer you let that ground beef dry out, the harder it becomes. Winners get a T-shirt and all the glory.

 22934 E. Smoky Hill Road, Aurora; rockrestaurantandbar.com

Kickin Wings

For the last 13 years, Kickin Wings has been challenging guests to finish its spiciest 10 wings in 10 minutes. And only 10 guests have completed the restaurant’s Triple X challenge. The wings are coated in Kickin Wings’ spiciest Triple X sauce, which requires gloves for handling. After you finish the 10 wings in 10 minutes, you aren’t allowed a drink for another 5 minutes. The meal is free for winners and losers, but whoever can handle the spice – akin to pepper spray – gets a gift certificate for 20 free wings.

4990 Kipling St., Wheat Ridge; facebook.com/KickinWings

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Beast + Bottle, which highlighted seasonal Colorado ingredients, had closed its doors in June 2021, but Apple Blossom, at 822 18th St., was a way for the Reillys to carry on its legacy.

Goodbyes are never easy, especially a second time around. The sibling duo announced on Tuesday that they have decided to close their hotel restaurant on Friday, Dec. 8.

“The Beast + Bottle Group is working with the Hyatt Centric Downtown Denver team to pass on the beautiful restaurant space to hotel operators, who will transition it to a new, more casual dining concept for hotel guests,” the owners wrote on Instagram.

They didn’t reveal the name of the upcoming restaurant, however, which won’t be affiliated with the Beast + Bottle Group.

Apple Blossom’s brunch, lunch and dinner menus celebrated the best of America’s ingredients sourced from regional farmers, ranchers and purveyors.

For those who will miss a famous Reilly brunch, Coperta, the siblings’ Italian restaurant in Denver, started its first brunch service this past weekend. On Saturdays and Sundays at 400 E. 20th Ave. from 9:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m., guests can enjoy the food and wine of Rome and Southern Italy, including Roman street fritters and a Sicilian gelato sandwich.

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Walking into Tamales by La Casita’s small space, it’s easy to miss how much work is going on behind the swinging kitchen doors.

That’s where seven women work tirelessly, making 18,000 tamales from scratch every day between 6 a.m. and 3 p.m., and then steaming them in custom-designed steamers. The restaurant, which has been serving some of Denver’s (and my personal) favorite tamales for nearly 50 years, sources its corn husks directly from Mexico and uses 900 pounds of pork and 40 pounds of cheese daily to make its signature dish.

Paul Sandoval, a Colorado state senator in the 1970s and ’80s, started making tamales in 1974. That enterprise would later turn into Tamales by La Casita, which is now owned by his wife Paula.

Sandoval, a Denver native, was inspired by a childhood spent with kitchen counters littered with different stages of the tamale-making process with his family. Tamales are a Mexican tradition made for spiritual celebrations, especially Christmas.

“Paul passed away 11 years ago,” Paula said. “When a key person is gone, sometimes a small business falls apart, but we feel good about how we’ve been able to keep up with the quality, taste and consistency of his tamale recipes.”

When I get excited for the start of the season of red and green, I think tamales, not Christmas. I stumbled upon Tamales by La Casita earlier this fall while hunting for the best green chile in town, and was immediately taken by the craftsmanship and flavor that’s stuffed into the corn husks.

People travel near and far to stock up on Tamales by La Casita’s green chile and cheese ($18 per dozen) or classic red chile and pork ($16.90 per dozen) tamales. That’s why it’s one of the first (or last) stops for Denver visitors, who can also get Las Casita’s tamales in Denver International Airport’s Concourse C. Paula said nine years ago, a couple from Las Vegas flew in just to get tamales from the Highland restaurant before flying back the same day.

During Christmas, Paula said customers will order as many as 10 dozen red and green tamales at a time for their family gatherings. The restaurant also wholesales its tamales to grocery stores and restaurants in town. Every Christmas, the restaurant offers customers a calendar with their orders, and Paula still gets calls from out-of-state guests asking her to mail one for their collection.

“The best tamales are the ones you make yourself,” Paula said, “but if you can’t make them at home for whatever reason, I hope ours are your next choice.”

And be prepared: Everything is first come first serve, Sandoval said, but most loyal customers know to get them early and pop them in the freezer.

3561 Tejon St., Denver; tamalesbylacasita.net. Open Mon.-Fri. from 7 a.m. to 5 p.m., on Saturdays from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m., and closed Sundays.

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Her customers and fellow restaurant industry folks — not to mention accolades, like the 2022 James Beard Award for Best Chef in the Mountain Region — definitely realize it.

“I absolutely consider Annette fine dining,” said Denise Mickelsen, a former food writer who now works for the Colorado Restaurant Association. “Colorado is known for being rather casual. Even our fine dining restaurants don’t need linens on the table to define themselves as fine dining.”

Ten or 15 years ago, fine dining in Denver was defined by white tablecloths, waiters in suits, a tableside Caesar salad. Steakhouses were top of mind when it came to special-occasion meals while long menus catered to every diner’s needs. These days, servers at Michelin-star restaurants, like Bruto, dress in T-shirts and aprons while they meticulously walk customers through the story of the ingredients on their plates – everything from the name of the boat captain who caught their fish to the pig who sniffed out a fresh-shaved truffle.

So, while there have been rumblings in the past few years that fine dining is dead, plenty of people are willing to spend $500 on a fancy dinner, even if the staff aren’t wearing suits.

“Fine dining is not a dying breed; it’s just evolving,” Glover said.

That evolution means customers don’t have to dress up. But it has changed the experience in other ways as well. For instance, all three of Denver’s new Michelin star winners — Bruto, the Wolf’s Tailor and Beckon — have tasting menus, meaning diners are served set courses that the chefs have chosen, often based on the season. The lure of fine dining also has become more approachable than luxurious, and elevated fare from other cultures and cuisines has entered the steakhouse-dominated scene.

“You don’t need a suit to impress,” said Bruto executive chef Michael Diaz de Leon. “White tablecloths aren’t necessary for you to have a really great experience at a restaurant. … If you think white tablecloths have value, you can find them at the French Laundrys of the world.”

What is fine dining?

Fine dining usually falls into a higher price bracket because the cost reflects the experience that a restaurant provides its customers, something that is a step above average.

“All your needs are met during the fine dining experience in a remarkable way, from the way you’re greeted at the door to the way you’re taken care of at your table,” Diaz de Leon said. “The servers are making sure you’re not missing anything and anticipating your needs before you even know them, on top of the spectacular cuisine and atmosphere.”

Ashley Farris, a local foodie and teacher, went out of her way earlier this year to visit the restaurants she anticipated would receive a Michelin star — even before they were announced in September. That included Bruto, where Farris and her husband sat at the 15-seat chef’s counter and indulged in the Mexican-inspired, seven-course tasting menu for $125 each.

“I cried eating my pasta dish,” Farris said. “I was completely overwhelmed by the experience of it. You sit there and watch them grilling and making everything in front of you at Bruto. They talk about every aspect from the grain they use to make the tortilla and where they source the lamb.”

The relationships restaurateurs and chefs foster with Colorado ranchers and farmers are clearly emphasized on seasonal, fine-dining menus. Many times, the restaurant will also emphasize the length it goes to reduce its environmental impact. In fact, that’s why Michelin has a sustainability category with its awards, which Bruto and The Wolf’s Tailor both won.

But chefs are also extending their reach, sourcing some ingredients — like fresh fish flown in daily or specialized herbs and spices — from the waters or countries of origin.

“In the last 10 years, the accessibility of interesting ingredients has dramatically increased,” said John Imbergamo, a veteran Denver restaurant consultant. “We can get anything from anywhere in the world in a couple of days, and that changes things. Chefs are more inspired by exotic ingredients, and Denver’s fine dining scene has improved because of that.”

Then there’s the service, which goes far beyond keeping a water glass full. Servers are expected to know every inch of the menu – from cooking techniques to ingredients to wine pairings — and some restaurants customize the experience to individual meals. For instance, Beckon, an 18-seat chef’s counter restaurant that opened in 2018 — sometimes researches customers beforehand.

“We’re interested in our guests’ expectations, so we want to know things, like if you’re in the restaurant industry,” said Allison Anderson, who has the title of Beckon’s director of experience. “If it’s your night off, and you’re coming to our restaurant, that’s a big deal for us and that person, so we want to make sure they’re recognized and have a great time.”

As for decor, there’s more of an emphasis on modern mood lighting, raw materials and sleek wooden tables to create a more approachable feel.

At least for most. Michelin-starred Frasca Food and Wine in Boulder still drapes its tables in those white tablecloths of old, but the cost to maintain the pristine linens is substantial, said Bobby Stuckey, co-founder of Frasca Hospitality Group.

“We literally have a team that comes in every day to iron all the linen before each turn of service,” Stuckey said about Frasca’s luxurious linens from Frette, a 160-year-old Italian textile company. “It feels good when you’re dressed up touching a nice, Frette linen, but it’s a commitment for sure. There are multiple costs before someone even sits down.”

Labor is more costly as well, as the staff, most of whom are restaurant professionals, needs to be trained in every aspect of the meal, from how to handle high-end glassware and silverware to the ingredients in the dishes. Fine dining is “the highest level of difficulty,” Stuckey said.

Michelin puts Denver on the map

Attention to Denver’s fine dining scene grew quickly under the heat of the Michelin spotlight and after the prestigious guide made its Colorado debut this year.

Michelin Stars – one, two or three – are awarded based on five criteria: the quality of the ingredients, the harmony of flavors, the mastery of techniques, the personality of the chef as expressed through the cuisine and consistency both across the entire menu and over time, according to Michelin.

“Michelin coming to town has made every chef want to up their game, whether they were recognized or not, and I think that’s the whole point of the Michelin effect,” Mickelsen said. “It charges everyone’s ambition, making even the best chefs want to be even better.”

Five Colorado restaurants earned single Michelin stars in 2023: The Wolf’s Tailor and Bruto – both owned by chef Kelly Whitaker’s Id Est Hospitality Group – Beckon, Frasca and Bosq in Aspen.

Outside of those five restaurants, though, metro Denver boasts a long list of varied fine-dining spots, according to Mickelsen, Imbergamo and other industry experts and chefs.

These include Tavernetta, Rioja, Annette and Barolo Grill (which still stands behind the white tablecloths), as well as Molotov Kitschen + Cocktails, Sap Sua, Fruition, Noisette and Restaurant Olivia. While French and Italian food stand tall on that list, adventurous eaters will also find other cuisines they might not have associated with fine dining in the past, like the Vietnamese food at Sap Sua and Ukrainian-inspired fare at Molotov.

Then there’s geography. In the past, these restaurants would have been mostly concentrated in certain epicenters of the city, like downtown or Cherry Creek. Now, they’re dispersed throughout town in neighborhoods like Whittier, Capitol Hill and Lower Highland, as well as the River North North Art District.

“It would have been a huge risk to put a fine dining restaurant anywhere other than where those concentrations were 10 years ago, but now people are taking those risks,” Imbergamo said. “That’s because there’s an increased interest in dining, so people like to seek out new spots, wherever they are. And rents are expensive in the urban core.”

A multi-course niche

One of the newest and most popular niches in modern fine dining are tasting menus and omakase-style meals (omakase means “leave it up to you” in Japanese). Michelin awarded three of its stars to tasting-only restaurants in Denver, and more chefs are beginning to show off their creativity by adding tasting options to their restaurants alongside typical a la carte menus.

“Denver’s growing up a little bit, and it seems like more people are curious and interested in trying experiences that might be outside of the norm for them,” said Beckon’s Anderson. “Or maybe they moved to Denver from somewhere where they’re more accustomed to higher-end dining experiences.”

Beckon was the first to open a modern tasting-only restaurant in Denver in November 2018. Chef Duncan Holmes runs the intimate, $175 experience, during which diners sample ever-changing seasonal dishes at a U-shaped walnut counter.

“The tasting menu model is so courageous and really an undertaking because it requires such dedication from a chef,” Anderson said. “What it takes to operate a fine dining restaurant is exhausting. It’s the creme de la creme of restaurants, and tasting menus are at the top of that because of what’s asked out of the chef.”

The Wolf’s Tailor opened in Sunnyside in September 2018 with a blend of Japanese, Chinese, and Italian fare before transitioning to a $160-per-person tasting menu with a rotating theme. Bruto followed closely behind, opening in downtown Denver’s Dairy Block in 2019.

Other upscale spots are experimenting with the idea as well. For instance, The Regular, a new downtown Denver restaurant, opened a private room for its tasting-only dining series, The Guest, this fall. The menus at Restaurant Olivia, Mizuna, Rioja and Frasca now offer multi-course tasting options in addition to their regular menus as well.

And of course, there are upscale sushi restaurants offering omakase-style meals, including Uchi, Kumoya, and Sushi Den. Other examples include Koko Ni’, from Paul Qui, which offers guests a 10-course, ticketed omakase dinner, and Hana Matsuri’s new Glendale location, where longtime Denver chef Duy Pham started his own omakase program in August.

Mike Benge, a 40-year-old foodie who has lived in Denver for 10 years, said he’s a fan of tasting menus, which he considers fine dining. “I enjoy going into somewhere knowing what the cuisine is but saying, ‘Cook the food you cook best for me,’” Benge said. “I don’t want to have to make a decision of this or that. I’ll eat whatever, so when I step into those restaurants I expect to learn more about the chef and the food itself.”

Long live fine dining

When Copenhagen’s Noma, which had held the title of the best restaurant in the world for several years, announced in January that it would close, fine dining’s current model was called into question internationally. After all, if a three-Michelin-star restaurant led by famed chef René Redzepi couldn’t make it with $800 tasting menus, who could?

Closer to home, experienced Denver restaurateur Jared Leonard told BusinessDen in March that he was closing his Washington Park French bistro, Au Feu Brasserie, because its fine-dining format wasn’t working. “The amount of time and food costs in fine dining, it’s just a format that’s kind of dying out,” he said. “It’s hard to do in the current economy.”

But the difficulty of getting a reservation at places like Bruto, Wolf’s Tailor, Restaurant Olivia and others, would seem to indicate that that is not the case.

“There’s still a whole segment of people who are looking for the innovation and the craftsmanship that’s evident in fine dining restaurants, and I think that will continue,” Imbergamo said.

Benge is proud to be one of those people. “I’ve really been impressed with Denver’s food scene. I think it’s really opening up here. The industry is supporting itself. There are a lot of opportunities for newer chefs, like pop-up events, to start their following, and it’s been tremendous in helping us, over the last 10 years, to go from two dozen to 50-plus good options.

“Michelin coming is going to grow it even more.”

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“No matter how far they travel, though, they always know how to return home,” said Justin Freeman.

Freeman, the former head chef at The Greenwich and the current executive chef at vegan restaurant Somebody People, was inspired by the monarch butterfly and using that inspiration for his upcoming pizzeria: Monarch. He loves the sense of nostalgia that food gives you, and how it can make you feel like you’ve returned home from a long migration.

“When I think of home in New York, I have vivid memories of the smell of chicken in the oven, or even on nights out when we’d grab a slice of pizza,” Freeman said. “I have always loved the idea of cooking for people in a way that makes them feel like they’re coming to my house.”

Monarch, which doesn’t yet have a location, will be Freeman’s first restaurant on his own. A former chef at upscale New York City restaurants like Nobu, Ai Fiori and Upland, he moved here in 2021 to help restaurateur Delores Tronco open The Greenwich, a New American restaurant in RiNo.

And he brought his sourdough starter — which he kept in the front seat of his car with him for the entire drive west — from New York and carved out a section of The Greenwich’s menu for creative pizzas, like a rendition of a Hawaiian pie with bacon jam, pickled pineapple, whipped cream cheese and jalapeno. He had tended to the sourdough starter for more than a decade.

But Freeman said he left The Greenwich this summer to “spread my own wings,” starting as Somebody People’s executive chef two months ago.

Once he finds a spot for Monarch, he plans to serve specialty sourdough crust pies, like a house Margherita, a take on a pepperoni pie with spicy andouille sausage instead, and a possible radicchio pizza. Freeman also wants to have an extensive vegetable section featuring selections from local farmers he cultivated relationships with while at The Greenwich.

“I’m happy people enjoyed what I did at The Greenwich, and I just want to continue that, but make it smaller and a little more personal to me,” Freeman said.

Freeman has teamed up with his barber, Danny Matthews, who owns the Dark Rose Club barber shop in Washington Park, to see his vision through. The two discussed the business plan over many haircuts, as Matthews, who also owns a small clothing boutique in Denver, has always wanted to get involved in the hospitality industry from an ownership perspective.

“We felt aligned on a lot of things,” Matthews said. “It’s hard to find someone who shares the same work ethic and vision as you, so the partnership felt natural.”

The duo are going to be picky about a location, they said, and won’t stop until they find the perfect, intimate space. “I want it to have an open kitchen, so it can feel like you’re sitting at a holiday party in the kitchen, talking to your friends while they make food,” Freeman said.

Until then, Freeman and Matthews will test their concept at pop-ups, including one on Dec. 12 at Brasserie Brixton, 3701 N. Williams St. There will be two dinner services with five courses for $65 per person at 5:30 and 8 p.m. Guests can reserve a spot online through OpenTable.

“Denver is a land of opportunity, and I can’t wait to share a little bit about what I grew up with,” Freeman said.

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Snooze, an A.M. Eatery is opening its 13th Colorado location at 7240 W. 56th Ave. in Arvada on Dec. 6. The newest 4,000-square-foot location, within walking distance to Olde Town Arvada and the RTD station, has enough room for 137 diners inside and an additional 46 seats on the patio, where guests can enjoy Snooze’s signature pineapple upside down and blueberry Danish pancakes or a parmesan-panko-encrusted crab cake eggs Benedict.

No brunch is complete without a little booze, especially to soften the long wait times. The bar will be stocked with spiked coffee beverages, strawberry martini mimosas and spicy bloody marys, along with a list of mocktails and pressed juices.

Founded in 2006 by brothers Jon and Adam Schlegel, Snooze has 65-plus restaurants across the U.S., primarily in the West and the South. Popular locations in Denver include those in Union Station, at 7th Avenue and Colorado Boulevard, and at 22nd and Larimer streets.

Snooze debuted a location on South Broadway last year.

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“Bagels are one of my favorite things, and I’ve perfected my own recipe,” Odell said. “Trust me, it has nothing to do with the water.”

The 33-year-old chef hopes to open Odell’s Bagel in the former Denver Bread Co. space at 3200 Irving St. by spring 2024. Owners Greg Bortz and his wife Kristy announced in August that they had decided to permanently close Denver Bread after nearly 29 years, along with their cookie business Victory Love + Cookies.

Odell had originally planned to open a Japanese restaurant dubbed Keepsake when he moved to Denver last year. He started his own pop-up at the Highland Square Farmers Market this summer, selling bento boxes and Japanese breakfast sandwiches with milk bread, pork and a Japanese omelet, which “took three days to prep,” Odell said.

But when the Denver Bread Co. space became available, he switched to bagels — and began selling them at the farmer’s market as well. Odell said he spent the last 10 years perfecting his recipe, “which has seen 100 variations.” On the first day at the market, he sold out of 200 bagels in a couple of hours.

“By the end of the season, I was baking 600 bagels overnight — the most I could do in my tiny commissary kitchen,” Odell said.

Odell’s Bagel will serve hand-rolled, naturally leavened bagels made with locally milled flour. “Since we don’t use a machine, not one bagel will be the same, sort of like a snowflake,” Odell said. He plans to stick to the classics, like everything, plain, salt, garlic, poppyseed, etc. “No trendy rainbow bagels,” he said. There will be a variety of playful cream cheese flavors, like hatch green chile or cereal milk.

The shop’s other specialty will be house-smoked salmon, trout and whitefish, plus occasional specials like smoked eel. He plans to use his connections to Japan to source the whole fish, which he will cure for 24 hours, air dry, smoke for another eight hours and hand slice. “It’s super time-consuming, but I think the end result is worth it to stand out,” Odell said.

There will also be breakfast sandwiches such as bacon, egg and cheese and a Taylor ham, egg and cheese, a New Jersey staple. “Coming from the East Coast, an hour-and-a-half wait is unacceptable at a bagel shop, so a huge goal of mine is to set a 30-minute or less standard,” he said.

Odell also hopes to host 12-seat chef’s tasting experiences on Friday and Saturday nights, collaborating with chefs from around the world.

“I would love for this to be the best tasting-menu experience in Denver,” Odell said. “This will fulfill all of my passions as a chef. I grew up working in fine dining and Michelin-starred restaurants, and this is kind of way for me to use my skills.”

Odell started cooking when he was 15 and attended The French Culinary Institute (now known as the International Culinary Center) in New York in 2009. He then went on to work for Nobu and three Michelin-starred Bar Masa, before he was selected by the Japanese Minister of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries as one of 15 chefs around the world to move to Kyoto for three years as part of a culinary ambassador program.

Odell learned the language and worked at a different restaurant each month, including three Michelin-starred Gion Sasaki, to learn the traditional cuisine and culture.

“Now, I’m a culinary ambassador of Japan,” said Odell, who visited Japan again last month, five years after he left.

He later moved to San Francisco to become a private chef. When the pandemic hit, he began offering private cooking classes on Zoom, and one of his customers asked him to come cook for their family in Aspen, which he did in 2021. He moved to Denver last year.

“The goal was to always open my own spot,” Odell said. “I never thought it would take 18 years to do so, or that it would be a bagel shop first, but here we are.”

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But when the pandemic hit, construction prices nearly doubled, so he decided to scrap the idea for what he called Colfax Country Club altogether. Newman couldn’t watch the 0.22-acre lot sit empty, though. “It was too much of an ordeal for a fun, silly motel concept,” he said. “But it was more financially frustrating to have it just sitting there.”

Inspired by food truck parks in Austin and Portland, Newman decided instead to create Full Tank Food Park at 4200 W. Colfax Ave. this month. “The only thing that worked in that space while we figured out what to do with it was food trucks,” he said.

There is enough room for seven food trucks to rent a space in the lot. Newman hopes to have three permanent vendors and four rotating ones at all times. “We want to make sure there’s a variety with no overlap of offerings,” he said.

KrazyCoconut Thai Street Food is parked in a permanent space, and Uptown & Humboldt is serving gyros there Wednesday through Sunday. Other food trucks that have rolled through, include Turkish Chef on Wheels, Fritay Haitian Cuisine, What’s Happening Catering and Pint’s Peak Ice Cream.

Moonflower Coffee, a former mobile coffee cart, has claimed a permanent home inside the old tire shop on the lot, which has been transformed into a lounge with cozy couches, tables and bathrooms for the food truck park.

Newman has also applied for a liquor license and is in the process of converting a 40-foot bus into a bar for the lot. He hopes to make it Christmas-themed with an inflatable igloo out front for the holidays; he’ll host other family-friendly events there throughout the year.

There are outdoor picnic tables for guests to enjoy their food, and dogs are welcome. In the winter, guests can head inside the lounge to keep warm, or there will be canvas drapes for the sides of the overhang out front and heaters.

Newman is known for buying and preserving historic properties in town, including the top of the downtown Denver Clocktower, 150-year-old My Brother’s Bar and, most recently, the Mercury Cafe. Full Tank Food Park is his attempt to bring something new to the Sloan’s Lake neighborhood. “There aren’t enough local options over here,” he said.

“We want to make West Colfax cool again, while also giving local businesses a place to jumpstart their following.”

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