Every Opening This Week: Little Brazil Is Back and More

The new, bigger Little Brazil is one of four spots that recently debuted in the metro area.

March 16, 2024

Image: beans and rice on a plate with greens

Little Brazil

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After signing a lease in June 2022 for a new, bigger space, Little Brazil closed the doors of its longtime home at Gold's Marketplace in Wheat Ridge in January 2023.

Lots of work went into creating the team's dream restaurant. Then, on December 19, a fire caused damage that delayed opening plans. But on March 15, Little Brazil finally welcomed its first guests at its new location, just a few blocks northeast of its former space (bagel shop Rich Spirit has since moved in there). Little Brazil 2.0 is serving breakfast, lunch and dinner, and still has a market fully stocked with a variety of Brazilian products.

This week also marked the debut of the Goldfinch, a cocktail bar in the Platt Park neighborhood that's serving up drinks, small plates and mellow DJ sets in the evenings as well as brunch on Saturdays and Sundays. We have more details about the newest addition to South Broadway here.

Boulder's Blackbelly now has an offshoot in Denver: Blackbelly Market took over the former Il Porcellino retail shop off Tennyson Street. Expect plenty of cured meats plus breakfast and lunch options, including its popular breakfast burritos.

The snowstorm on Thursday, March 14, delayed grand-opening festivities for Purple Door's new cafe, but it did start pouring coffee, lattes, matcha, chai and more in Capitol Hill. Purple Door started roasting and wholesaling beans in 2016 while also providing foundational job- and life-skills training for youth and young adults to provide them a path out of homelessness. The cafe is also working with Mary Nguyen (Little Finch / Olive & Finch), Troy Guard (Guard and Grace) and Michael Kurowski (Steuben’s / Ace Eat Serve) to offer sandwiches, salads, chocolate chip cookies and other baked goods.

While the weather temporarily postponed events around town, there were no permanent closings to report. In other restaurant news:

Buc-ee's, the Texas travel center with a cult following, is opening its first Colorado location on Monday, March 18.
La Forêt will debut in the former Beatrice & Woodsley space on Tuesday, March 19; we have a first look. Spoiler: It's stunning.

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

click to enlarge

There's plenty of comfy seating at the Goldfinch.

Molly Martin

Openings

Blackbelly Market, 4334 West 41st Avenue
The Goldfinch, 1842 South Broadway
Little Brazil, 7333 West 38th Avenue, Wheat Ridge
Purple Door Coffee, 1640 Sherman 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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