Looking for new Fort Collins restaurants to try this summer? We have you covered
A liquid nitrogen ice cream shop, all-you-can-eat sushi restaurant and chicken salad chain are looking to make their mark on Northern Colorado's food scene this summer.
The concepts were among the more than a dozen new food and drink spots that opened — or announced plans to open — in the Fort Collins area in late May and June.
Here is a breakdown of what opened, closed or had "coming soon" signs hanging in their windows:
What opened
Sushi-Fi, 921 E. Harmony Road, Unit 104, has brought all-you-can-eat sushi to a spot already known for its rolls. The new eatery opened May 20, taking over the former home of Nimo's Sushibar and Japanese Restaurant — a Fort Collins fixture that closed this spring after its owners retired. Sushi-Fi offers two tiers of all-you-can-eat sushi, costing $33 and $48 per person, respectively. The new eatery boasts both all-you-can-eat and a la carte options as well as takeout and delivery within a 6-mile radius, owner Albert William told the Coloradoan.
Roast Coffee Shop, 505 S. Mason St., Unit 100, opened June 9. The addition brings coffee grounds back to the ground-level retail space under the Max Flats apartment complex. The location was previously home to Harbinger Coffee, which moved to 236 S. College Ave. in early 2022.
Horsetooth Tavern, 4791 W. County Road 38E, opened June 13 after a lengthy renovation and management change. The tavern, formerly Canyon Grill, closed at the end of its lease in late 2022, according to Dawn Isaacs, who owns the restaurant's building with her husband, Donovan Isaacs. After fixing up other parts of the building over the years, Dawn said she and Donovan took over the restaurant's management and started a 1 ?-year renovation of the space. Horsetooth Tavern serves lunch and dinner daily with a focus on American pub fare, as well as a weekend breakfast on Saturdays and Sundays. Its live music schedule can be found on its website. It is open from 11 a.m. to 11 p.m. Monday through Friday and 8 a.m. to 11 p.m. Saturday and Sunday.
FoCo Beer Collective, 225 Pine St., opened in mid-June, taking over the former Crooked Stave taproom that closed in The Exchange late last year. The new beer collective features a variety of beers, seltzers and nonalcoholic drinks on tap.
The Taco Stop made its big move to Midtown last month. The Fort Collins taco shop, which started as a late-night Old Town taco cart in 2012 and grew to include a food trailer, food truck and, eventually, a brick-and-mortar location at 6324 S. College Ave., opened in the Scotch Pines Village Shopping Center on June 20. After nearly four years on South College Avenue, The Taco Stop's owners, husband-and-wife team Cesar Lopez and Berenice Longoria, announced plans to move its operation to the Scotch Pines Village Shopping Center early this year. The couple closed its College Avenue location May 26 and took over its new location, 2601 S. Lemay Ave., Unit 30, shortly after, according to Longoria. The restaurant space formerly housed The Garlic Knot. The Taco Stop is open from 10:30 a.m. to 9 p.m. Sunday through Thursday and from 10:30 a.m. to 9:30 p.m. Friday and Saturday.
Speaking of The Taco Stop: See how they fared in the Coloradoan's 2024 taco bracket
What closed
The Post Chicken & Beer has closed its doors in Fort Collins. The Colorado chain — known for its fried chicken plates, soul food sides and craft beer — shuttered its location at 1002 S. College Ave. in June, according to a sign posted on its door at the end of the month. The eatery originally opened as a ghost restaurant concept inside Fort Collins' Jax Fish House & Oyster Bar in 2020. It went brick and mortar in 2021, taking over the revamped former IHOP restaurant across from the Colorado State University campus. The Post has six remaining locations in Colorado: Lafayette, Boulder, Longmont, Estes Park and two in Denver.
What's coming
Timnath Beerwerks will make its Fort Collins debut when it opens a new location in the former Snowbank Brewing space, 225 N. Lemay Ave., on July 16. The Timnath brewery acquired Snowbank Brewing this summer in an effort to increase its production capacity and streamline operations for both brands, the breweries' owners said in a joint announcement in May. The new Timnath Beerwerks location will be open from 3 to 8 p.m. Monday and Tuesday; noon to 8 p.m. Wednesday and Sunday; and noon to 9 p.m. Thursday, Friday and Saturday.
Gib's Bagels is adding to its local bagel empire with a new location in east Fort Collins. The new shop will open at 320 N. Link Lane on July 15, according to a newsletter sent to Gib's Bagels customers. It will share the space with Spoons, Soup, Salads & Sandwiches.
Chicken Salad Chick is laying two new eggs in Northern Colorado. The Alabama-based restaurant chain is opening locations in Windsor and Johnstown next month, according to franchisee Jessica Zumbrun. The eatery's Windsor location, 475 E. Main St., will open first, around the second week of August. The restaurant's Johnstown location, 4884 Larimer Parkway, Suite 600, is set to open roughly two weeks later near the town's Scheels store. The restaurants will be the second and third locations for Jessica and her husband, David Zumbrun, who signed a development deal for five Northern Colorado Chicken Salad Chick restaurants in late 2021. The couple opened their first location in Greeley last April.
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Anthony's Pizza and Pasta is opening its first Fort Collins location later this summer. The Denver-born New York-style pizza chain is set to open in the former Pulcinella Pizzeria space at 2550 E. Harmony Road around late August. It will be the restaurant's 18th location, according to Anthony's Pizza and Pasta CEO Garrett Brizendine. Brizendine, a longtime Anthony's franchisee, said he purchased the company with Fort Collins development firm FR Development in February. Anthony's Pizza and Pasta specializes is 22-inch New York-style pizzas made in-house, as well as a variety of salads, sandwiches, pastas and desserts.
Madre Cocina Y Lounge is coming to Old Town. The Mexican eatery is set to open later this summer in the longtime former home of Blind Pig Pub, 214 Linden St. After more than a decade on Linden Street, the bar shuttered at the end of last year. The building's vacancy presented an opportunity for husband-and-wife team Graciela Lucero and Armando Chavez, who opened Taqueria Los Comales off Prospect Road in Fort Collins in 2001. The couple, who run Taqueria Los Comales with their son, Daniel Chavez, dreamt of having their own restaurant in downtown Fort Collins. Madre Cocina Y Lounge will be a departure from Taqueria Los Comales' more casual atmosphere, with the downtown eatery instead serving elevated Mexican fare and prime cuts of meat cooked on a high-end, Spanish-made Josper charcoal grill, according to Armando.
Another Broken Egg Cafe is bringing its Southern-inspired breakfast to south Fort Collins. The breakfast chain, which already has restaurants in 16 mostly Southern states, plans to take over 2909 E. Harmony Road — formerly home to The Original Pancake House — this fall. The Fort Collins eatery will be part of a five-location Northern Colorado franchise agreement for father and son Marc and Zach Rogers and their partner, Brian Jones. The Rogerses own all 16 Fuzzy's Taco franchises in Colorado, including the one that will be next door to Another Broken Egg Cafe on Harmony Road. They also opened Newk's Eatery last year at 1700 S. College Ave., and they own Mash Lab Brewing in Windsor, 4487 Highland Meadows Parkway.
Einstein Bros. Bagels appears to have a second Fort Collins location in the works. The bagel chain filed for a sign permit at 1281 E. Magnolia St. on June 4, according to city records. The company did not respond to the Coloradoan's request for comment on the potential new location.
Sub Zero Liquid Nitrogen Ice Cream is taking shape in Campus West. The unique Utah-based ice cream chain, which you might recognize from its pitch on "Shark Tank," uses liquid nitrogen to make ice cream, frozen yogurt and Italian ice to order. Fort Collins franchisee Kenny Haap said he hopes to open Sub Zero's first Colorado location at 1501 W. Elizabeth St. in October.
Coloradoan reporters Rebecca Powell and Kelly Lyell contributed to this report.
This article originally appeared on Fort Collins Coloradoan: Fort Collins restaurants: 5 opened, 1 closed since late May
