Restaurant Roll Call: Over Twenty New Bars and Restaurants Debuted in March

St. Patrick's Day marked four years since the first pandemic-era indoor dining shutdown. Since then, the local dining scene has changed a lot. Many places closed for good and many more have opened — and through all that, three big mysteries remained.

This past March, two of those were solved. Our favorite new restaurant of the year (so far) occupies a spot that had been vacant since 2020. La Forêt, a French eatery with a Colorado alpine twist, is now open in the former home of Beatrice & Woodsley. La Forêt's owners kept the forest-themed decor and even added to it, creating a space that feels magical and serves food and drinks to match.

Last month also brought a long-awaited announcement about the fate of Vine Street: The sister restaurant of Boulder's Mountain Sun is finally set to reopen on May 15. Now we're just left wondering if Benny's will ever reopen.

Other notable additions that debuted in March include a pair of cocktail bars, The W and the Goldfinch, as well as a duo of new eateries from chef and restaurateur Lon Symensma, who added a third ChoLon and a new Italian concept in Sloan's Lake.

In total, we registered 22 openings last month — but more notable was the slowdown in closures. While some big losses had a lot of people talking in February, we only reported one in March, when chef Jeff Osaka scaled back his conveyor belt sushi concept Sushi-Rama. Four metro area outposts shuttered, though the original in RiNo is still in business.

Here's the complete list of restaurants and bars that opened and closed in March.
Restaurants and bars that opened in March:*

Asuka Ramen Poke, 6156 Simms Street, Arvada
Blackbelly Market, 4334 West 41st Avenue
ChoLon, 4200 West 17th Avenue
Culichi Town, South Abilene Street, Aurora
EQ Crepe & Burger Bar, 1517 Wynkoop Street
The Goldfinch, 1842 South Broadway
Gusto, 4200 West 17th Avenue
High Society Pizza, 2229 Wildcat Reserve Parkway, Highlands Ranch
La Forêt, 38 South Broadway
La Plaza, 15200 East Colfax, Aurora
Lilac Coffee Express, 4736 East Colfax Avenue
Little Brazil, 7333 West 38th Avenue, Wheat Ridge
Mariscos el Malecón, 2970 West Barberry Place
Nana's Dim Sum & Dumplings, 2495 South Havana Street, Aurora
Pita Central, 1575 Central Street
Purple Door Coffee, 1640 Sherman Street
Roast Coffee Bar, 1085 South Pearl Street
Supreme Chicken, 5410 East Colfax Avenue
Two Moons Music Hall, 2944 Larimer Street
The W, 5001 East Colfax Avenue
Wonderyard, 2200 Larimer Street
Wreck Room Underground, 9975 Wadsworth Parkway, Westminster
Restaurants and bars that closed in March:*

Sushi-Rama

• 4960 South Newport Street
• 10012 Commons Street, Lone Tree
• 8181 Arista Place, Broomfield
• 13650 East Colfax Avenue, Aurora

*Or earlier and not previously reported.

Know of something we missed? Email [email protected].