A Revival: Robert Thompson Will Open New Denver Restaurant This Fall

Did you know that flying and hands are two of the most common themes in dreams? Restaurateur Robert Thompson does, thanks to the creative rabbit hole he fell down while dreaming up his latest Denver project, Three Saints Revival, set to open in early fall at 1801 Wewatta Street, in the space connected to the Hotel Indigo that was formerly home to Hearth & Dram. "I don't feel like that neighborhood ever got a fair shot," he explains. "It's been under construction for over a decade."

That neighborhood, the area just north of Union Station (shall we call it North Union Station?), is finally clear of road closures and traffic cones, so when Thompson got the call that the space was available, he went for it. "The framework is there for success," he says, noting the high density of multi-family housing and the "confluence of eating and drinking consumers that come together in that trade area."

Three Saints Revival will offer a menu of shareable "whole Med" tapas. "Anything that touches the Mediterranean" — from Spain and Greece to Egypt and Israel — is on the table, Thompson says of the culinary program being developed by consultant Sheamus Feeley. The restaurant will be open for breakfast, lunch and dinner, along with weekend brunch. The beverage program, headed by Patrick Williams, will focus on wines by the glass and craft cocktails. The goal is for the food and drinks to blend seamlessly in a space designed for socializing. "All the lines are blurred as far as where the bar ends and the restaurant begins," Thompson explains.

That blurred sense of reality will be reflected in the design, as well, which Thompson describes as a "bohemian dream" with elements inspired by 1860 Paris and the hallucinatory nature of the dream world — and, yes, there will be hands. The name, which is part homage to his three sons (who must be extremely well behaved, unless "saints" has a hint of sarcasm), is also a nod toward the post-COVID era of rebirth that Thompson is hoping to help usher into downtown...or at least North Union Station.

Thompson opened his first eatery in Denver more than two decades ago, and went on to open several more, ranging from Brasserie Rouge to other ambitious restaurants (who still misses the Scotch eggs at the Argyll?). Then he started his "eatertainment" concept, Punch Bowl Social, which grew from the original in a former Big Lots on South Broadway into a twenty-location national chain at its peak. But COVID put a damper on the fun and games at Punch Bowl Social; at the beginning of the pandemic, the conglomerate that owns Cracker Barrel, to which Thompson had previously sold much of his company, announced it would was divesting itself of Punch Bowl. Since then, six of the locations have closed, including the one built in the former Stapleton Airport air traffic control tower.

In August 2020, Thompson announced his resignation, and just made another big move — to New Orleans, where Angevin & Co., his newly formed hospitality group, recently purchased the historic Frenchman Hotel.

But while Thompson's home address has changed, he has a deep connection to Denver and no plans to stop dreaming up new concepts to bring to the Mile High City. Angevin & Co.'s hotel arm is based in New Orleans, but the restaurant side is firmly rooted here — so you can expect to see Thompson's name behind more projects in Denver's future, too.

But first, Three Saints will revive the Hearth & Dram space.