Please notify us of business-related news within your neighborhood so we can provide coverage in “Business as Usual.” This is the place for business anniversaries, relocations, openings, intrigues and ownership changes. Call us at 303-778-8021 or send an email to bau@washparkprofile.com.
Openings
DartMania
The Mulvey and Piccolo families of Platt Park recently opened DartMania, a Nerf blaster fun zone in Englewood, located at 301 Englewood Pkwy. They were able to convert their backyard fun into a new business that delivers excitement, fun and exercise to players five-years and older.
Customers are provided cutting edge Nerf dart blasters and Nerf darts. They are split into teams and enter a clean, safe, and super cool 10,000 square foot Nerf arena. The DartMania crew sets up games such as Capture the Flag, Freeze Tag and Find the Spy. When the ref blows the whistle, the game begins. The goal is to blast your opponents with Nerf darts before they blast you. In the evenings, bright lights are replaced with black lights for glow-in-the-dark “GlowMania!” play time.
Like many families, the Mulveys and Piccolos are concerned about the amount of time their kids spend on electronic devices and regularly seek opportunities to keep them active. They recognized a popular activity for their children was running in neighborhood backyards with Nerf blasters.
One day, on a whim, the parents jumped in on a game and realized they had a ton of fun, too. To share this joy with other families and the broader community—and to play in a much larger space than their backyards—the idea of DartMania was conceived.
Their four children, ages 7-11, and other kids in the neighborhood have had a hand in creating the business. They helped choose the Nerf blasters provided to players, the company’s name and logo, and created many of the games.
“We have done our very best to create a space that is visually appealing, fun and safe for players of all ages. We partnered with a local mural artist, SoGnar, to paint unique visuals on the walls of the Nerf arenas,” said Vinny Mulvey.
Hours are Tuesday-Thursday 4:00p.m.-8:00p.m., Friday 4:00p.m.-10p.m., Saturday 10:00a.m.-10:00p.m. and Sunday 10:00a.m.-6:00p.m. Visit dart-mania.com.
Chubby Cattle
Mongolian and Chinese hotpot restaurant Chubby Cattle is opening in Baker in October. The eatery will occupy the former Walnut Room space on South Broadway at Ellsworth Avenue, and promises to be a unique addition to the Denver restaurant scene.
Founder Harbey Yang, 22, grew-up in Inner Mongolia and developed the concept for the restaurant. Hot pot cuisine is thousands of years old, but the restaurant could not be more high-tech. It will feature a refrigerated conveyor belt system running through the space and is being built out at a cost of $1 million.
The first Chubby Cattle opened in Las Vegas a little over a year ago. It also has the refrigerated conveyor belt technology, which was imported from Japan.
The owners picked Denver as their next location because of the city’s booming restaurant scene and “the willingness of residents to try something new,” said David Zhao, CEO of NXTFactor. Zhao, who is also 22, is Yang’s business partner and handles digital marketing for Chubby Cattle.
The menu will include grass-fed kobe beef, raised on the company’s ranch in Dallas. Zhao said they were not pleased with the quality of beef they were getting from suppliers and decided to buy a ranch and do it themselves. Other options include pork, handmade noodles and vegetarian fare.
Zhao stresses that while Chubby Cattle will provide a high-end dining experience with the freshest and healthiest ingredients, it will be affordable. He estimates dinner for two costing $50-$60, excluding drinks. Visit chubbycattle.com.
Care on Location
Wash Park residents Jon and Maureen Savage recently launched Care on Location, an online urgent care service. Jon is a board-certified ER doctor with over 15 years’ experience and licensed in Colorado and Utah.
Dr. Savage and his team provide medical consultations statewide via video conference Thursdays - Mondays 4:00p.m.-12:00a.m. The business objective is to provide patients a convenient, cost-effective option to see a physician, after-hours, when primary care doctors are unavailable, avoiding an expensive trip to the emergency room or urgent care office.
As an emergency room doctor, Savage observed roughly 40 percent of patients were using the ER because they couldn’t get in to see their primary care physicians. Often times, the visits were on evenings and weekends.
“People pay a crazy amount of money when they go to the ER and I thought there was opportunity to offer an alternative,” said Savage.
Another factor in his decision to start Care on Location involved legislation Governor Hickenlooper signed in 2015 mandating private insurers cover telemedicine visits effective January 1, 2017.
In August of 2016, Savage left his ER job to focus full-time on Care on Location and designed the software. He works out of his house in Wash Park. Patients contact him for a variety of ailments. Some of the typical ones include coughs, sore throat, rashes, medication refills and symptoms of bladder infections. The service is typically used for advice on whether or not a particular situation requires further evaluation after-hours and weekends.
Anyone physically located in Colorado can use Care on Location, including visitors to the state. Services can be paid for using Health Savings Accounts (HSAs), Flexible Spending Accounts (FSAs), private insurance and credit cards. Care on Location is currently “in-network” with UnitedHealthcare and Cigna.
The cost is $49.99 for one video visit with a board-certified physician via desktop, laptop or tablet. The Savages are launching additional services soon including assisted video visits where nurses, EMTs and medical assistants go to patient homes. Also in the works are on-site visits where procedures and tests will be performed. Visit careonlocation.com for more information.
Alternation Brewing
This fall, Alternation Brewing opens its doors at 1539 S. Broadway. Alternation owners Brendan and Jenn, are betting their concept of frequently changing what’s on tap (hence the name Alternation) will appeal to customers.
“We want to be able to easily adapt to what’s new and don’t want to be locked into making specific beers. I also want our brewing to have more of a communal feel and wouldn’t be opposed to sharing recipes with customers,” said Brendan.
Alternation will be a three-barrel, 90-gallon brewery with 10-11 beers on tap and at least one non-alcoholic brew available. The business’ smaller size makes it easier for the owners to quickly adjust their brewing menu.
The couple, who is from New York, moved to Denver six years ago. They have always enjoyed beer, but were bitten by the brewery bug shortly after relocating to the Mile-High city.
“Coming to Denver expanded our horizons and really opened our eyes to what is possible in brewing,” said Brendan.
He was hooked on home brewing after experimenting with his first starter kit. “There is a lot of math and science to it and I just love it,” said Brendan. He credits his wife with having a particular talent for honing flavors.
For the past five years, he has worked diligently to improve his beer making skills while working full-time as a CPA. Three years ago, the couple began to seriously consider opening their own brewery.
In 2016, they purchased the building on South Broadway that will house Alternation for $450,000. It is 2,100 square feet and has a 500-square foot patio. They have been refinishing it mostly themselves. The interior has reclaimed wood and the couple have incorporated pieces purchased from local antique stores into the design. Visit the Alternation Brewing Facebook page for more information.
Novo Coffee
Novo Coffee just opened a new store at 217 S. Holly in Hilltop, the company’s fourth retail location. The new shop is in the same building as High Point Creamery and Park Burger.
Crumb Cafe used to occupy the premises and the owners of Crumb Cafe were Novo wholesale customers. Having access to a full kitchen was one of the major selling points of the location. Along with all the standard Novo coffee drinks, owner Jake Brodsky is serving pastry items, including empanadas from current vendors. Over the next few months, he plans to develop a more robust food program.
Novo started as primarily a wholesale roastery and celebrated its 15th anniversary this summer. The first retail store opened four years ago. Hours are Monday-Sunday 6:30a.m.-6:00p.m. Visit novocoffee.com.
Letterpress Depot
Wash Park Residents Peter and Heather Bergman, and Tom and Patti Parsons, are opening Letterpress Depot in September. Letterpress is a 501c.3 dedicated to preserving and promoting the art of letterpress printing. It is a method of printing deploying movable metal and wood type, which was used as the primary means of mass-producing the written word from the mid-15th century to late 20th century.
The couples are working to restore and preserve the historic mission style Englewood Train Depot at 675 W. Dartmouth Ave. in Englewood, near Santa Fe Drive, to house their extensive collection of presses and type in a working museum and community print shop. They recently wrapped up a crowdfunding campaign that raised $40,000. The funds were mostly used to prepare the building for the installation of the presses. The hope is to raise additional funds, through major donors and grants, to update the building so it can be a public event space. Visit letterpressdepot.com.
Four Friends Kitchen
Four Friends Kitchen is opening its second location in September at 2070 S. University Blvd., just south of Evans Avenue, in the former Redford’s Tavern Space. The original location opened in Stapleton in early 2015.
The restaurant offers a contemporary take on southern classics for breakfast, lunch and weekend brunch. It is the brainchild of four friends: General Manager Jenefer Thornton, who grew-up in the restaurant business and has an MBA, corporate attorney Kurt Pletcher, child psychologist Sarah Pletcher (whose skills have come in handy with restaurant staff) and management consultant Tim Thornton. Visit fourfriendskitchen.com.
The Ten Penny Store
South Broadway has a cool new vintage store offering an eclectic array of clothing, jewelry, art and curiosities. The Ten Penny Store at 39 E. Florida Ave., just off off Broadway and near Antique Row, opened in August. Owners Kelley and Matt hope to add ever more diverse inventory in the coming weeks and months. Visit their Facebook page—facebook.com/tenpennystore—for more information.
Body by D
Body-builder Danielle Harvey recently opened Body by D, a group fitness gym in the Baker Neighborhood at 520 Cherokee Street, across from Denver Health. She is also a certified yoga instructor and assumed the lease of the yoga studio, where she had been teaching, to open her business.
Harvey has been competing in bodybuilding competitions for the past four years. Two years ago, she got her personal training certification. Body by D offers yoga and group fitness classes, as well as personal training services. Massage therapy is also in the works. Visit bodybydfitness.com.
Palizo Italiano
Palizo Italiano is now open at 1472 S. Pearl St. in the former restaurant Fourteen Seventy-Two space, next to Stella’s Coffee. The menu offers farm-to-plate, hand-crafted northern Italian fare including seafood, house rolled pastas, risotto, gnocchi and duck. It also features an affordable northern Italian wine list.
Restaurateur/Chef Patrick Mangold-White is behind the venture. He also owns Kaos Pizzeria, Uno Mas Taqueria and Yardbird. Palizo Italiano is open for lunch and dinner. Visit Palizo Italiano’s Facebook page for more information.
Changes
Broadway Music School
Broadway Music School is celebrating its 12th anniversary. The store also recently relocated from 1940 S. Broadway to 2555 S. Santa Fe Dr., one block south of Evans Avenue. Visit broadwaymusicschool.com.
Designs Within Reach
Cherry Creek furniture retailer Designs Within Reach moved a block to a new location at 1st Avenue and Clayton Street, across the street from Crate & Barrel. The store, which offers modern design classics, has been in Cherry Creek for 10 years. The new location is double the size of the original and expands the store to two floors. Visit dwr.com.
Djuna
Djuna, a home furnishings and interior design store, has relocated to 1824 S. Broadway. Visit djuna.com.
Closings
Wild Eggs
Breakfast spot Wild Eggs, located at 300 E. Alameda Ave., near Logan Street has closed. The restaurant served many eggs in its six years of operation.
