Every Opening and Closing This Week: Three New Options at DIA and More

The Culinary Creative Group has brought tacos, Italian and coffee to the airport.

November 23, 2024

Image: hands holding a frozen drink anda margarita

Frozen cocktails and margs are on offer at Mister Oso's new DIA location. Connor Stehr

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The holiday season means more travelers at Denver International Airport, and now there are three new options for those with some downtime before catching a flight.

Many locally born food and drink businesses have outposts at DIA; the latest group to debut concepts there is Culinary Creative, which has brought Aviano Coffee, Bar Dough and Mister Oso to Concourse C. Other notable upcoming additions to airport dining options include Uncle, the Bindery, Maria Empanada, Williams & Graham, Tocabe, D Bar and Bagel Deli.

Other recent openings include Fortune Nong Jia Le, which took over the former Bittersweet location. That building is now owned by Li Hong Li, who also helps run Fortune Wok to Table in Cherry Creek. The menu includes a variety of Shanghainese-style dumplings, shared plates and soups.

Honey Basil Express in Greenwood Village is a fast-casual offshoot of Honey Basil Grill on Broadway, which has operated as Spicy Basil since 2003.

Il Forno Di Tutti is a new Italian restaurant on Havana Street in Aurora. The trattoria, deli and bar from chef Scott Burnham replaced a My Favorite Muffin outpost and is serving freshly made pasta, sandwiches on housemade rolls and more.

Saltwater Social is the latest addition to Cherry Creek. The seafood concept now open in the former Thirsty Lion space comes from One Group Hospitality Inc., which also operates the Denver locations of STK and Kona Grill.

The space at the Source in RiNo that was formerly home to Bellota Denver and Acorn before that is now a sports bar dubbed the Moose. According to an announcement, the menu includes "a wide variety of grilled American fare infused with a Colorado twist," including burgers, wings, nachos and veggie green chile, plus local craft beer and cocktails.

The only closure to report this week is 14er Brewing. Its last day in RiNo is Saturday, November 23, and it will be open from noon until "late" with food from Moya's Tacos, live music and bingo.

In other openings-and-closings news:

Sapphic speakeasy Pearl Divers is opening soon inside Your Mom's House.
The owner of Your Mom's House has also teamed up with chef Jesse Mora to open a new pizzeria in the former Benny Blanco's space in Capitol Hill.
Ironton Distillery's last day in RiNo will be December 21; it's moving to a new facility and tasting room in Louisville.

Here's the complete list of restaurants and bars that opened and closed this week*:

click to enlarge

The Moose is serving burgers, wings and more.

The Moose

Openings

Fortune Nong Jia Le, 500 East Alameda Avenue
Honey Basil Express, 9555 East Arapahoe Road, Greenwood Village
Il Forno Di Tutti, 1627 South Havana Street, Aurora
The Moose, 3330 Brighton Boulevard
Saltwater Social, 201 Columbine Street

Now open at Denver International Airport, Concourse C-East expansion area:

Aviano Coffee
Bar Dough
Mister Oso

Closures

14er Brewing Company, 3120 Blake Street

*Or earlier and not previously reported.

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

Molly Martin has been the Food & Drink editor at Westword since 2021. Prior to joining the staff, Molly reported on the Denver dining scene for more than a decade and contributed to Thrillist. At Westword, Molly monitors restaurant openings and closings, offers dining recommendations and reports on Denver-area food news and trends. She also publishes such annual lists as Top 100 Bars and Top 100 Restaurants, and contributes to the yearly Best of Denver edition. In 2023, she was recognized with the Colorado Restaurant Association's Outstanding Media Professional award.

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