The Pizza You Can't Refuse Returns to Colorado After Twenty-Year Absence

If you were in college in the '80s or '90s, when a well-rounded dinner meant a Taco Pie from Godfather's Pizza and a six-pack of light beer, you'll be pleased to hear that you'll soon be able to get back in college form. Godfather's Pizza is returning to the metro area after an absence of nearly twenty years, with a location that will open this spring at 2350 East 120th Avenue in Thornton. A second will follow soon in an address that has yet to be determined.

Godfather's was founded in Omaha, Nebraska, in 1973 and expanded nationwide in the following years. The company was purchased by Pillsbury before eventually being sold to a private group with former presidential candidate Herman Cain as CEO — so you can probably blame him for the loss of Godfather's in Colorado, since hundreds of locations across the country were closed under his watch in the 1990s. (He's no longer with the company though.) 
The new franchise will be operated by Cody Wickham, Jake Smith (an Omaha native who grew up eating Godfather's) and Adrienne Wood. Old favorites like the Bacon Cheeseburger (complete with pickle slices), that Taco Pie decked in shredded lettuce and tomato, and other classic combos built on a thick, chewy crust that nearly resembles a bread bowl will be part of the program. 

“I didn’t realize how lucky I was to grow up with Godfather’s Pizza until I moved to Denver and could no longer have it,” Jake Smith explains.

Godfather's didn't completely disappear from the state after the last sit-down restaurant closed, though. An express version currently operates at the Air Force Academy (with limited public access) in Colorado Springs, and another is opening in Buena Vista.