But another one of its eateries, Bellota at the Source, has shut its doors. "It was not a decision that was made lightly, but we are making our exit so that we can look toward our next chapter," says the group's founder, Bryan Dayton. "We are very grateful for all the support we've been given by our team and our guests over the last two and a half years."
For seven years, the space at 3550 Brighton Boulevard had been Acorn, an offshoot of Oak at Fourteenth. But in September 2020, the group made the decision to close it for good. At the time, Dayton said in a statement, "The uncertainty this pandemic brings has forced us into making incredibly difficult decisions. ... We will be taking the next six to eight weeks to re-evaluate and re-conceptualize."
Half Eaten Cookie Hospitality transformed Acorn into Bellota in 2020.
Danielle Lirette
In June of 2022, Bellota added a second location in Boulder, at 4580 Broadway. But four months later, Barella made the decision to leave the group. He's now the culinary director for Camp Pickle, a new pickleball eatertainment concept from Punch Bowl Social founder Robert Thompson, which is planning to open locations in Centennial and Globeville. And now the restaurant Barella helmed is gone, too.
"The good news is, the Bellota outpost in Boulder is doing great and will continue to operate as usual," Dayton says. So if you got hooked on items like Bellota's buttery shrimp tacos, you can still get a fix — just not in Denver.
