Helen Xu

1 week ago | westword.com | Helen Xu

After five years on the road with his food truck, owner Vladimir Demin took a leap of faith and opened the first brick-and-mortar location of Samos Grill this spring. It was the perfect opportunity. The previous tenant, Seasoned Swine BBQ, got tired of the commute from Golden and so Demin was able to inherit a fully-functional restaurant with all its equipment when he signed the lease in March.

1 week ago | westword.com | Helen Xu

Denver Milk Market kicks off its revitalization efforts with its first three long-term tenants: Konjo Ethiopian Food, Lucky Bird, and YumCha. The downtown food hall was started in 2018 by Denver restaurateur Frank Bonanno, whose group operated all sixteen of its food and beverage concepts. However, by 2023 the business was struggling and Bonanno ultimately sold his master license to Sage Hospitality, who came in and took over operations of the existing concepts.

1 week ago | westword.com | Helen Xu

Like other businesses on East Colfax Avenue, the award-winning SAME (So All May Eat) Cafe has experienced its fair share of trouble with the Bus Rapid Transit construction project. So last November, when SAME found out that a Business Impact Opportunity Fund grant for $15,000 would soon be available for impacted businesses, the managers breathed a sigh of relief. Last month, however, they found out they’re ineligible. Why? Because SAME is a nonprofit.

2 weeks ago | westword.com | Helen Xu

Nearly sixth months after we covered Lucky Noodles’ struggle with rising costs at its East Colfax location, the beloved Thai eatery is back — this time with a fresh start off Broadway at the former location of Señor Burritos. It was a rocky end-of-the-year for Kamolrat “Ploy” Limpapath, owner of Lucky Noodles. “I gave up on December…the sales were down too low, so I just, yeah, gave up,” she says.

2 weeks ago | westword.com | Helen Xu

HB25-1208 is finally law. After months of heated debate and multiple rounds of legislative revisions, Colorado’s controversial tipped wages bill was signed last week by Governor Jared Polis — but big questions remain about how cities like Denver and Boulder will respond. The final version of the bill that landed on the governor's desk keeps the existing $3.02 tip offset intact statewide, but gives local governments the power to raise the tip offset higher when increasing local minimum wages.