19 big losses on Fort Collins’ food and drink scene
19 big losses on Fort Collins’ food and drink scene
With just 29 days to make its mark, February saw its fair share of shakeups on the Fort Collins, Timnath and Windsor dining scenes last month.
One new eatery opened in Midtown Fort Collins, breathing life into a shuttered former cheese and meat bistro. A Laurel Street taco shop also made a big move, and a coffee shop chain put down roots across the way in Campus West.
Meanwhile, a longtime Mexican restaurant and brewery bid adieu to Fort Collins, a Windsor Italian eatery shut its doors and a Denver-born barbecue chain set its sights on Timnath.
Here’s the full monthly roundup of comings and goings on the Northern Colorado dining scene:
What opened
Stoneflower Market & Eatery, 2601 S. Lemay Ave., has breathed new life into the vacant former home of The Fox and the Crow cheese and meat bistro. The eatery — the newest endeavor for Bistro Nautile co-owners Kat and Mike Reeves and Ryan Damasky — officially opened Feb. 26, dishing up charcuterie boards, soups, salads, sandwiches and more in the Midtown space. Stoneflower Market & Eatery is open from 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. Monday through Thursday and 11 a.m. to 8 p.m. Friday and Saturday. It is closed from 2:30 to 3:30 p.m. Monday through Saturday and has a daily happy hour from 3:30 to 6 p.m.
Just Love Coffee, 1335 W. Elizabeth St., opened Feb. 5, taking over the Campus West space formerly occupied by Starbucks. The coffee shop — part of a Nashville-born franchise — serves up a range of coffee drinks as well as breakfast, brunch, lunch and dinner, with a waffle-iron-centric menu that includes a waffle-meets-omelet creation known as a “womelette”; artisan waffles; and iron-cooked breakfast biscuits, burritos, sandwiches and wraps. It is open daily from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m.
DGT is back at it. The Fort Collins taco shop, which got its start as a taco cart before settling into its longtime home under Alley Cat Coffeehouse in 2013, softly opened in its new Laurel Street location Thursday. The new spot, located around the corner at 120 W. Laurel St., allows DGT to expand its indoor seating and add a full bar, founder and co-owner Mike Falco told the Coloradoan earlier this year.
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What closed
Lupita’s Mexican Restaurant, 1720 W. Mulberry St., closed Feb. 24 after 13 years as a City Park fixture. After weathering the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020 and a Mulberry Street road construction project outside its doors two years later, “it’s the right time” to close up shop, owner Ernesto Becerra previously told the Coloradoan. Becerra, who ran the restaurant with his wife, Martina Becerra; daughters Jessica and Nicole Becerra; and son-in-law Jesus Varela, said he and Martina plan to ease into retirement following Lupita’s closure.
Envy Brewing, 3027 E. Harmony Road, closed Feb. 29. The brewery, which opened in 2019, cited the 2020 onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, construction on its building the following year and resulting financial strains as the reasons behind its closure.
Cacciatore at Heller’s Kitchen closed its last remaining location in Northern Colorado in mid-February. The eatery, which started in Fort Collins’ Jessup Farm Artisan Village before expanding with a second location in Windsor’s newly redeveloped Windsor Mill in 2019, shuttered its flagship location in fall 2022. Earlier this year, its remaining Windsor location announced it would be sold and close down, co-owner Mick Occhiato confirmed with the Coloradoan in late January. The sale of Cacciatore at Heller’s Kitchen was set to close at the end of February, and the restaurant’s last day in operation was Feb. 17. Occhiato declined to name the buyer but said they have experience in the Northern Colorado restaurant industry and plan to open a new, to-be-announced restaurant concept for Cacciatore’s former Windsor Mill space.
What’s coming
Bobs is bringing back some familiar eats to Fort Collins. The forthcoming food truck will officially hit the road in April, serving as a bit of an offshoot of Fort Collins’ shuttered Avuncular Bob’s Beerhouse. Bobs founders Robert Gardin and Kimmy Gall met while working at the neighborhood watering hole. When staff was informed of its closure this past fall, Gardin said he and Gall wanted to find a way to keep the bar and restaurant’s community going. Enter Bobs, a new food truck that will serve up a range of simple, scratch-made foods, including some favorites from Avuncular Bob’s Beerhouse — think jalapeno poppers, pretzel bites and pizza bites, Gardin said. The truck plans to softly open in March with a more formal opening in April. To keep tabs on its opening plans and whereabouts, follow Bobs on Instagram (@bobsnoco).
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G-Que BBQ is headed to Timnath. The independent Denver-based barbecue chain filed a conceptual review application with the town’s planning department Feb. 2 — proposing a 4,000-square-foot drive-thru restaurant in the planned 240-acre mixed use Ladera development east of Interstate 25, according to the plans.
Buc-ee’s will open its first Colorado location in Johnstown on March 18. The store, located at 5201 Nugget Road, will have 116 fueling stations; 12 electric vehicle charging stations; and fan food favorites like homemade fudge, Texas barbecue, kolaches, Beaver Nuggets, jerky, fresh pastries and more.
Pure Green is looking to join the fray on the edge of Old Town. The Florida-based smoothie and juice bar franchise plans to open its first Fort Collins shop next to the downtown Target, 460 S. College Ave., in May, according to local franchisee and owner Leigh Hall.
More Fort Collins-area food news
Beijing Noodle, a Fort Collins favorite known for its traditional Chinese dishes, made the cut on USA TODAY’s list of best restaurants in the country. The USA TODAY Restaurants of the Year 2024 list, which was released Feb. 15, featured 47 restaurants across the country and was compiled by USA TODAY’s network of food journalists.
Great Plates of Downtown unveiled its list of meal deals in February, with a new pricing change to boot. The annual two-week Old Town dining promotion that benefits Food Bank for Larimer County is kicking back up with dozens of meal and dessert deals planned at 45 downtown eateries from March 1 through 14. While the promotion historically served up $25 meal deals and $2.50 dessert deals in past years, Great Plates will feature menu specials ranging from $15 and less to $25, $35 and $45 in 2024, the Fort Collins Downtown Development Authority announced Feb. 14.
Coloradoan reporter Pat Ferrier contributed to this report.
