‘We can’t maintain a workforce’: Under the Sun in South Boulder is closing after 11 years

Under the Sun in South Boulder is closing after 11 years, with its last day of operations set for Saturday, Aug. 17. The restaurant is one of five Mountain Sun restaurants in Boulder, Denver and Longmont owned by Kevin J. Daly, including Mountain Sun Pub & Brewery on Pearl Street.

The announcement, made Tuesday, Aug. 13, on the company’s Facebook page and in a newsletter to subscribers, was met with mixed emotions. Diners shared fond memories and support on Facebook, while two Reddit posts were filled with mostly scathing criticism and accusations of mismanagement and mistreatment, some of which were removed by moderators.

“Please know that despite our best efforts to adapt to the challenges we face, closing our doors is the most responsible course of action at this time,” the restaurant group’s announcement said. “This decision will ultimately strengthen Mountain Sun Pubs, allowing us to focus our resources and energy on enhancing the experiences at our other locations.”

Boulder Reporting Lab met with Daly and staff Wednesday night. The restaurant was packed, with a line out the door at 8 p.m. When staff at the check-in stand offered alternatives, noting there was no wait upstairs at Southern Sun Pub, diners declined and said they’d wait for a table. People said they wanted a last bite of Under the Sun’s pizzas and wood-fired cookies with ice cream and caramel sauce, items not on the Southern Sun menu.

Daly highlighted several challenges that have been building up over the years, worsened by the Covid-19 pandemic, which came to a head this final week. “We can’t maintain a workforce. People were gone all summer, and tourism is down,” he said, adding that he visited Pearl Street restaurants on a Friday night earlier this summer and saw only two tables of diners.

When restaurants staff for a full night but don’t have enough customers, managers are forced to send workers home, cutting their income and making these jobs less desirable. On the other hand, if diners come in and there aren’t enough staff, patrons are turned away, or the small team on duty gets overworked and stressed out, damaging morale.

This dynamic was evident on Wednesday night as Boulder Reporting Lab observed a team that didn’t have enough work all summer but was suddenly overwhelmed, Daly said. Despite the closure, the staff were happy the community was turning out to say goodbye.

“There’s no affordable housing,” Daly continued, explaining why he believes it is challenging to hire workers in Boulder. “It’s a wealthy city where older people don’t eat out and young people aren’t here or can’t afford to [go to restaurants].”

“Why commute into Boulder?” he asked. “Other cities in the region have developed a great dining scene in Longmont, Lafayette and Denver. There’s free parking – Louisville bought a parking lot for people,” he said, adding that there are potholes and cleanliness issues on the east side of Pearl that affect the Mountain Sun Pub location.

These are similar issues that other restaurant owners have cited to Boulder Reporting Lab as reasons for pivoting their business models or closing entirely. This trend of restaurant closures in the City of Boulder and unincorporated Boulder County is a bellwether of what could happen if local government doesn’t address business concerns, restaurant industry leaders have warned. Nearly every recent restaurant closure has been attributed by owners to increased fees and utilities, rising food costs, property taxes on equipment and furniture and wage increase requirements without exemptions.

Daly shared an email with Boulder Reporting Lab that he sent to the city council in April 2024, following the highly criticized Xcel-planned power outage that cost Boulder restaurants up to $1.4 million in spoiled food, lost revenue and wages. In the email, he outlined some of the expenses and issues that ultimately led to the company’s decision to close Under the Sun.

Among his criticisms for the city were rising utility expenses and other increasing costs. For instance, on March 26, he claimed, the City of Boulder posted a water shut-off notice on the window of Under the Sun. The business had to spend $6,000 to replace a backflow prevention device, or the water would be shut off in eight days, according to Daly. “Why didn’t the city call us or write to us? Why such a draconian enforcement method?” he wrote.

He also criticized the city for allegedly imposing costly temporary permits, including those for outdoor dining. Daly said he discovered that the Mountain Sun was $10,000 in arrears due to years of bills he said the city never sent for revocable permits. He said they only learned of this debt when applying for an outdoor dining permit. Additionally, the planning department required businesses to submit new drawings and reapply, further adding to the expenses for establishments.

Daly and his staff said that their experiences with local government and clientele have generally been easier outside of Boulder.

“After opening in Denver, we realized that it’s so much easier there. And they’re still having problems, but at least there’s workers and there’s young people that go out,” Daly said.

“It was a wonderful place to run a business for 31 years,” he said of his restaurant group in Boulder, “and the pandemic just made it all worse. Business is broken now.”

In its announcement, the restaurant pleaded with customers to dine out locally. “Your support for locally owned restaurants is crucial now more than ever. Please make it a priority to dine out and strengthen our community during these challenging economic times,” it said.

Despite the closure, the Under the Sun space will remain available for private events, and Daly hinted at a potential revival of some menu items at other Mountain Sun locations. He told Boulder Reporting Lab that if they can get enough kitchen staff, they’ll use the kitchen downstairs to serve pizza and fried chicken to customers upstairs at Southern Sun. A former employee who was visiting with friends Wednesday night said she’s excited that Under the Sun’s fresh-baked cookie dessert will be available at Longs Peak, the Longmont location.

Daly said he has no plans to shut down the popular Mountain Sun Pub & Brewery, though he noted that the Pearl Street location is currently losing $150,000 a year. He added that he hopes he and other restaurateurs can team up with the city to make dining in Boulder more appealing.