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Maybe it’s the Sundance anticipation glow, but even more first-class culinary talent is migrating to Boulder. Two upscale sushi spots will open in the next week, and a Peruvian eatery is coming soon.
This week’s Nibbles also reports on the fate of The Merc and Mustard’s Last Stand, and celebrates an oven-toasted anniversary. In honor of Stop Food Waste Day on April 29, we note that the average family of four loses more than $3,000 a year to food waste at home.
Questions? Comments? Let me know: nibbles@boulderreportinglab.org.
— John Lehndorff
There are plenty of ways to taste Boulder. But only one place serves it all up. Where trail mornings turn into patio lunches, and quick bites turn into something you linger over. Where menus are fresh, local and in season, and every table comes with a view of the energy around you. From laid-back bites to elevated plates, it’s all right here. Welcome to Downtown Boulder, where Boulder comes to life.
Everybody wants to open an eatery with a view of the Flatirons. I know because so many chefs have talked to me about their desire to cook in Boulder. The high food and labor costs, taxes, mile-high leases and parking challenges in Boulder usually dissuade them.
Honestly, you have to sell a boatload of tacos and mocktails to keep the doors open very long in this town.
Yet, Boulder’s award-winning allure as a dining and culinary destination continues to overcome the objections. The looming Sundance Film Festival doesn’t hurt.
A recent arrival, Spanish-influenced Casa Juani, is drawing national attention. Locals are anticipating the June openings of Morso pizza parlor from “Top Chef” winner Hosea Rosenberg, as well as Taverna Laudisio in Niwot.
On April 30, Christopher and Ariana Teigland will begin serving sushi and Asian fare at Odd Rabbit in a new restaurant space at 5683 Arapahoe Ave. in East Boulder. The pair, who met working at the nearby Blackbelly, have already earned a Michelin Bib Gourmand award for their debut eatery, Denver’s Glo Noodle House.
Phoebe and Steven Lee will launch Wellness Counter on May 7 at 1117 Pearl St., the former site of High Country and Mork & Mindy’s New York Deli. The couple draws a devoted crowd to their Denver-based Wellness Sushi, which serves remarkable plant-based sushi. The Boulder spot will focus on Japanese seafood with a chef’s counter and a dry-aging program for fish.
Ever since Dave Query’s beloved Zolo Grill closed in 2020 during the pandemic, the space at 2525 Arapahoe Avenue has stood empty. A second location of Denver’s Pollo Lima is set to open there soon, serving Peruvian cuisine.
Boulder County openings include new Longmont ice cream destination
Horm-a-Rice Thai Cuisine is open at 2400 Arapahoe Ave., the former home of Boulder Fresh Garden Thai Cuisine and Doug’s Diner.
Boulder’s beloved Fleishman’s Bagels and Delicatessen food truck has relocated from its longtime 30th Street site to a spot in front of VisionQuest Brewery, 2510 47th St.
Twenty rotating house-churned ice creams and sorbets are on the menu at Scoops on the Corner, now open at 1844 Hover St. in Longmont.
Spring is officially sprung in Ward with the yearly reopening of Marrocco’s Family Dining, now serving Italian food in the mountain town. Nearby, the Gold Hill Inn opens for its 64th season on May 1.
I’ll take a Mother Clucker with bacon and provolone
Congratulations to Boulder’s Jimmy Seidel. Thirty years and 60 restaurants ago, he opened the first Snarf’s Sandwiches serving oven-toasted subs at The Shack, a former A&W Root Beer stand on Pearl Street.
Saving The Merc and moving Mustard’s?
Since it was built as an Elks Lodge in 1896, The Jamestown Mercantile Cafe has been much more than a mountain town dining spot. It has been the community’s heart through fire, flood, pandemic and recession.
That legacy is now up for grabs, according to Rainbow Shultz, owner of The Merc for the past 16 years, who told Boulder Reporting Lab:
“The current landlord has decided to sell the property for $1.5 million. A group of us Jamestowners has formed a nonprofit to raise funds to purchase the Merc building and cafe. We want to secure it as a gathering spot for future generations. The landlord has agreed to give us exclusivity to see if we can raise the funds.”
For more on the Save the Merc effort.
Following the recent requiem for the Dark Horse (which will reopen in Louisville), some locals were upset to hear that the building housing Boulder’s iconic Mustard’s Last Stand will be razed in 2027 or 2028. However, fans of the eatery have known for 11 years or more that the building would eventually have to go. The 2013 floods only reinforced the need to clear high-danger areas of the Boulder Creek floodplain.
Mustard’s founder Dan Polovin told Boulder Reporting Lab’s Brooke Stephenson that he’s not sure if he’ll be able to find another location, but either way, “It’s been a great ride.”
Favorite flavors shine in Ali Baba’s chicken barg
When I’ve dined with friends at Boulder’s Ali Baba Grill in the past decade, we’ve often skipped the entrees and filled the table with authentic Lebanese and Syrian-inspired appetizers to nibble on.
My favorite starters include rice-stuffed grape leaves, magdoos (walnut-stuffed pickled baby eggplant), creamy fava beans, and kibbeh (beef and wheat fritters). Two lovely dips — motabbal and muhamara — are made to be shared and scooped up with warm pita bread.
On a recent visit, I was solo and getting takeout, so Ali Baba’s chicken barg was my go-to dinner solution. This substantial feast starts with two flame-grilled marinated chicken breasts with tartness, smoke, and spiciness infused into every bite. Dinner also includes a skewer of nicely chewy ground chicken koobideh kabob and perhaps the longest grain, fluffiest basmati rice in town. Rounding out my Middle Eastern taste trip were olive oil-topped hummus with warm pita, a cuke and tomato salad, and lebneh (kefir cheese) for dipping.
Lafayette Farmers Market opens for second year
The Boulder Valley School District Culinary Center at 6500 Arapahoe Road hosts a family-friendly public open house on April 30 featuring tours of the kitchen and greenhouse and sample bites. BVSD’s School Food Project was recently honored with a Snail of Approval award from Slow Food Boulder County, the first such school program nationally to earn the sustainability distinction.
What’s for lunch? April 30’s BVSD lunch choices are the highly popular French Toast Casserole with Chicken Sausage and Berry Sauce, a Nashville Hot Chicken Sandwich, or Red Lentil Dal over Rice.
The Lafayette Farmers Market opens for its second season on May 3 on Public Road. The market’s vendors include Buckner Family Ranch, Common Name Farm, Legacy Pie Co., Cafe Tres Cuban bakery, Cherry Eyes Frybread, Susan’s Samosas and Taeko-san, offering vegan and gluten-free mochi, onigiri and curry.
(Get your upcoming food event, festival or class listed free on Boulder Reporting Lab using the self-submission form here.)
Harsh season ahead for Colorado peach lovers
Longmont’s John Ellis — everybody knows him as “Farmer John” — is one of Boulder’s most experienced agricultural elders and a Longmont Farmers Market vendor. He reached out to share that Colorado’s hot early weather followed by a spring freeze has had a devastating impact on fruit trees:
“I hate to be the bearer of bad news, but according to Gwen Cameron, co-owner of Rancho Durazno Orchard in Palisade, and Casey Kroop of First Fruits in Paonia, there will be no fruit from the North Fork Valley of Delta County. This includes First Fruits, Ela Farm and Topp Orchard. On the Palisade side, Morton’s Orchard will have limited cherries, apricots and peaches. Amazingly, Rancho Durazno looks to have a full peach crop and approximately 50 percent of its cherry and apricot crops. We expect cherries early at the Boulder and Longmont markets around June 6, and the first peaches in early July. The fruit season should end earlier, in late August this year.”
Market Meals: Wake your buds with feisty radishes
Locally grown radishes in multiple multicolored varieties ranging from fiery to sweet are among spring’s first crops from local farms. You could add them to a salad, but why not try buttered toast topped with sautéed fresh radish slices?
“Here’s to the java flowing like lava out of the coffee pot. Here’s to the eggs and bacon, here’s to the waffles unique, and here’s three rousing cheers for the best meal of the week!” — “Sunday Morning Breakfast Time” by Cole Porter
Want more Boulder bites?
Sanitas Brewing closed. Its co-founder is opening a new Boulder brewery in the same space.
Pattern Break Brewing takes over with an experimental approach to brewing, a broader drink menu and a redesigned taproom experience. Continue reading…
New Boulder restaurant Casa Juani brings Spanish seafood and tapas from Frasca alumni chefs
Frasca alumni chefs Eduardo Valle Lobo and Kelly Jeun open their first solo restaurant on Pearl Street in downtown Boulder. Continue reading…
Check out recent editions of Nibbles:
🍽️ A chef’s dinner at Boulder’s shelter
☕ Boulder’s bike-through coffee spot now has biscuits and a national following
