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Upper Larimer Street was busy Saturday morning -- as it is almost every Saturday these days. That wasn't the case twenty years ago; even as LoDo was starting to boom, this stretch was known as NoDough, and filled with pawn shops, empty storefronts, dive bars and hole-in-the-wall eateries. But today it's one of the hottest restaurant areas in town -- which means any remaining hole-in-the-wall eateries are on the endangered list. And Chelo's, at 2012 Larimer, is now gone for good.
See also: Best Chile Relleno 2000 -- Chelo's
For years Chelo's and Johnnie's Market next door made the 2000 block of Larimer a must-stop destination for fans of real Mexican fare. But now Chelo's has closed, and a sign on the window advises fans of its tamales to head a block away, where La Popular is still in business.
For now.
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