Broadway Market Place Announces Opening Date, Final Roster

The paper is off the windows at 950 Broadway, revealing the gleaming tile decorating the multiple food-service counters within. Broadway Market, Denver's newest food hall, is rapidly taking shape and is close enough to completion that the founders have announced Friday, February 15, as the official opening date.

Those founders go by the name Eclectic Collective; the group comprises developers and builders who've worked together on other successful markets and shopping meccas in Denver. Mark Shaker had a hand in the creation of Stanley Marketplace, on the edge of Aurora and Denver; Brad Arguello co-founded Avanti Food & Beverage and currently owns the White Whale Room, a coffee and cocktail bar at 415 South Cherokee Street; and Chris Haugen is a partner in White Construction Group, the builders who banged in every nail at the Source, Zeppelin Station and Stanley Marketplace.

Along with an opening date, Broadway Market has revealed three new tenants that will occupy counters inside the space, which was home to Tony's Market until December 2017. Maria Empanada will launch its fifth location to accompany its current Argentinian cafes on South Broadway, Platte Street, East Belleview Avenue in the Denver Tech Center and inside Stanley Marketplace. Maria Empanada chef/owner Lorena Cantarovici says it will be the smallest of the five locations. "Denver food halls are great, and Broadway Market will be a beautiful destination in the Golden Triangle," she adds.

Also joining the fun are Little Noodle Pasta Co. and Wonder, a juice bar with a Boulder home base. Little Noodle comes from Philadelphia chefs and longtime friends Justin Lisius, who moved to Denver in 2008, and Jason Cichonski, a 2013 Top Chef contestant who opened his own restaurant, Ela, when he was only 26. The two sell Little Noodle dried pasta in Denver and Philadelphia, so their Broadway Market stall will offer packaged noodles to cook at home as well as fresh pasta dishes to enjoy at the market. You may have already tried some of them at Mondo Market at the Stanley, but the new menu will offer more selections.

Wonder will sell organic, fresh-pressed juices in reusable glass bottles along with smoothies, bone broth, butter-enriched coffee (a staple in the paleo community and a luxurious indulgence for the rest of us), and grab-and-go foods.

These three will join several purveyors who'd already signed on at the food hall. The owners of Coperta and Beast + Bottle will show off their Roman pizza skills with Pizzeria Coperta, which will peddle both thin- and thick-crust pies. Chef Daniel Asher will draw from street food from around the world for Mother Tongue, which will initially specialize in Turkish doner kebab and falafel; over time, Asher plans to change up the menu with other international bites.

Local favorite Biju's Little Curry Shop is also in the mix, as are Stanley veterans Miette e Chocolat; Mondo Market, which will streamline its concept under the name Mondo Mini; and Misaki, a sushi and ramen counter from chef Jesus Silva.

Food halls are a growing trend in Denver and across the country, as real estate developers convert difficult spaces (old warehouses, grocery stores and showrooms, for example) into profitable property and restaurateurs search for low-rent alternatives to brick-and-mortar establishments. Broadway Market fills a void in quick-service options in the Golden Triangle, where vacant restaurant spaces almost outnumber those currently operating.

Nine new vendors offering everything from cheap bites and snacks on the run to whole pizzas and gourmet meals from around the world — that's quite a haul for the neighborhood.