On December 13, Jon Bortles announced via an Instagram post on the Woody's page that his father passed away this week, and shared a rundown of some of his notable accomplishments over many decades in the industry, writing:
Bart Bortles in front of the Hotel Boulderado.
Woody's Pizza
Bart moved from Fruita to Boulder in the 1960’s after receiving a scholarship to play football at CU. When he graduated, Bart got a job managing the Catacombs Bar underneath the historic Hotel Boulderado. It was the first liquor license in Boulder, and you wouldn’t believe some of the stories he had. At one point the mob put out “a hit” on him for not letting them sell drugs at the bar. But this didn’t stop him from falling in love with the restaurant “biz,” where he would go on to own and operate dozens of restaurants, bars and hotels in the region (ultimately being inducted into the Colorado Restaurant Association’s Hall of Fame in 2021).Golden is one of our favorite staycation escapes because of the thriving hospitality scene that Bart Bortles helped build. So here's to this local legend: We'll be making a trek to Woody's soon for a fix of unlimited pizza, salad and beer cheese soup in his honor.
In 1986, Bart decided to purchase the Golden Eagle Saloon right here in this same location on a very different, sleepy Washington Avenue facing 50% vacancy. But Bart could see the potential of Golden long before most. By 1991 Bart (and partners) decided to build the Table Mountain Inn & Cantina across the street – saving it from becoming a retirement home! Some would argue this helped set the stage for making Golden the vibrant tourist attraction it is today.
Then in 1993, Bart decided to turn the Golden Eagle Saloon into a funky pizza concept – Woody’s Wood-Fired Pizza & Watering Hole. Over time it became clear that there was more demand for dining tables than there was for pool tables, and the smoky little bar became the family-friendly pizza restaurant it is today.
If you are one of the countless people who have worked for Bart or had the pleasure of knowing him as a patron, you have gotten to see his unwavering commitment to this place. Even if you didn’t know him well you probably saw him lean over to pick up a piece of popcorn off the floor or stop by a table of little kids to give them a “wooden nickel” even through his final days.
He was the kind of man who would (and did) give the shirt off his back for any of us. Bart simply wanted to leave things better than he found them. And he did. This place, all of us, are better for having known him.
