This fall's changes in LoHi and along West 32nd Avenue mostly fill the hours before and after dinner. A 16-year-old bakery was kept open for the morning crowd. A small-plates room for lunch and happy hour is going in under El Five. A dessert shop in West Highland stays open until 8 p.m. A store for gifts, plants and frozen meals will stay open until 10 or 11 at night next to the Little Man churn. The Acadian is the only new place built mainly for dinner, and it has no opening date yet.
Most of these moves also came from people who were already invested in the block. That explains why the new places fit the existing routine so closely.
7 a.m.: The Wooden Spoon stays open under new owners
This summer the Wooden Spoon at 2418 W. 32nd Ave. was close to joining the list of Denver bakeries that closed in 2026. Westword reported in July that owners Jason and Jeanette Burgett had spent months looking for a buyer after 16 years of baking for LoHi, and that the shop's usual mid-July summer break looked likely to become permanent.
Edible Beats bought it. The group runs Root Down, Linger and El Five, all within blocks of the bakery. Westword reported that founder Justin Cucci heard about the sale through the Wooden Spoon's landlord, who is also Linger's landlord. Cucci told the paper, "I live in the neighborhood. The VP of Edible Beats lives in the neighborhood, and we have been going there, probably, for 15 years." The bakery was set to reopen Wednesday, Aug. 5, and Westword reported that the new owners planned to keep its name, all five employees, its recipes and its equipment.
In an October interview with The Denver Post, Cucci said the customer feedback signs in the shop are there because the Burgetts kept most of the recipes in their heads. He described the new team as "still finding our feet," and said, "We have not changed a single price. We have not changed a single recipe." He added that the blueberry scone is still on the menu and that the new chef has put a maple bacon croissant on for fall.
The Wooden Spoon's website now lists hours of 7 a.m. to 1 p.m., Wednesday through Sunday. That is an hour earlier than the 8 a.m. opening Westword printed in July. If you've been showing up at 8 out of habit, you can come an hour sooner.
Midday into happy hour: Pip moves in below El Five
The same owners are working on the next block of hours. Westword reported in September that Pip Food + Drink will take the former Sushi Ronin space under El Five at 2930 Umatilla St. Edible Beats calls Pip El Five's "little sister." It plans tapas and small plates for lunch, happy hour and dinner, and the kitchen will work partly as a test kitchen for the group.
Cucci explained the location plainly in the Post interview. "Honestly, I don't think we would have opened a restaurant anywhere else right now. It's just too risky and too expensive," he said. He pointed to the overflow and fan base El Five already has upstairs and said, "We're not starting at zero." Pip is in LoHi because Edible Beats already operates there, and the group can open beneath an existing audience.
On Oct. 13 the Post reported that Pip was set to open within five to seven weeks. That puts the opening between mid-November and about the start of December. When it opens, Pip will be Edible Beats' fourth restaurant in LoHi, and the Wooden Spoon gives the group a bakery as well. Edible Beats is now an employee-owned company with about 300 employees, according to the same interview.
Another midday option opened in Avanti Food & Beverage at 3200 Pecos St. on Oct. 12. Westword reported that For Your Boca, owned by Kaitlyn Peot and Brandon Spain, took over the upstairs stall that Amá Modern Mexican used to hold. Executive chef Ricardo Avila serves tacos, bowls and shareables, and the paper singled out his cinco leches cake.
After dinner: Hearth Patisserie on West 32nd
Farther west on 32nd Avenue, Hearth Bakery already operates at 3621 W. 32nd Ave. On Aug. 27 it opened Hearth Patisserie next door, in the space Happy Cakes used to occupy, according to The Denver Post.
The patisserie was designed for a different part of the day than the bakery. Hearth's statement said it "is built around afternoon and evening desserts: something to enjoy after dinner, something to bring home, something for a special occasion." The opening case included Paris-Brest, raspberry and tropical chouquettes, tarts, gâteaux, Parisian flan and tiramisu, along with a tea-focused drink menu. Pastry chef Kevin McCormick runs it. He was most recently culinary director at Union Station and has 20 years of pastry experience. Hearth was founded in 2022 and now has four Denver locations.
The hours fit that purpose. Westword listed the patisserie as open noon to 8 p.m. Wednesday through Saturday and 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Sunday. Those hours were published at the August opening, so check them before a weeknight visit.
That stretch of 32nd Avenue lost a business this fall too. Westword reported that Natuur closed its Highlands location at 3712 W. 32nd Ave. on Sunday, Sept. 28.
Until 11 p.m.: The General Store next to Little Man
The latest-hours addition is at 1575 Boulder St. Paul Tamburello, owner of Little Man, owns the building. BusinessDen's August report, republished in The Denver Post, said he bought the 0.3-acre property from the Olinger Mortuary in late 2002 for $800,000. "That's where LoHi started. We named that the LoHi marketplace, which started the whole buzz of LoHi," Tamburello told the outlet.
He leased the unit next to the 26-foot-tall ice cream churn to The General Store. Owner Nicole Haas bought the original store in downtown Littleton eight years ago. The LoHi store is 3,000 square feet, about twice the size of the Littleton location. It replaces Scarlet Salon, which had been there since 2007 and closed at the end of March.
BusinessDen described it as a store that "will solve a need in the neighborhood." It noted that the nearest convenience stores are at gas stations on the corner of Zuni Street and Speer Boulevard. Haas said the store will carry gifts, plants, frozen meals and other basics. She is considering produce now and then and may pursue a liquor license, but wanted to see what the neighborhood needs before committing. She also said her average sale is $24 and that she will carry 20,000 items across both stores.
The late closing time is the reason this matters. Haas planned for the store to stay open until at least 10 or 11 p.m., and Little Man stays open until midnight in summer. The General Store's website lists LoHi hours of 9 a.m. to 10 p.m. Monday through Thursday, 9 a.m. to 11 p.m. on Friday and Saturday, and 10 a.m. to 9 p.m. on Sunday. The store's About page still promises grand-opening details, so check the site before planning a 10:30 p.m. trip.
The one dinner addition, still under construction
The other side of 1575 Boulder St. is the only new place built for a full dinner. The Acadian, a Cajun restaurant, is going into the 4,900-square-foot space Dimestore Delibar left when it closed in October 2025. Permitting documents cited by BusinessDen list jambalaya, truffle tenderloin steak and Louisiana-style braised short ribs. Plans include a patio along Boulder Street and a second-story bar with rooftop dining. Tamburello told the outlet, "It's going to be absolutely next level for LoHi."
WhatNow reported on Oct. 14 that David Simpson is a co-owner, that Felipe Giraldo will be executive chef, and that no opening date has been confirmed. Simpson runs a restaurant group in Bogotá, according to BusinessDen.
Where each one stands this week
- The Wooden Spoon, 2418 W. 32nd Ave. Open Wednesday through Sunday, 7 a.m. to 1 p.m., under Edible Beats, with the fall maple bacon croissant.
- For Your Boca, upstairs at Avanti, 3200 Pecos St. Open since Oct. 12.
- Hearth Patisserie, 3621 W. 32nd Ave. Open since Aug. 27, with afternoon and evening desserts Wednesday through Sunday.
- The General Store, 1575 Boulder St. Unit D. Its website lists hours until 10 p.m. on weeknights and 11 p.m. on Friday and Saturday. Grand-opening details are still to come.
- Pip Food + Drink, 2930 Umatilla St. Expected between mid-November and about the start of December, based on the Post's Oct. 13 timeline.
- The Acadian, 1575 Boulder St. Under construction, with no opening date announced.
For many owners in LoHi and West Highland, how close they are to places like these is part of what their home is worth. When it's time to show what your corner of the neighborhood offers, Horizon Home Group can help you build a plan around it. Let's connect and build your real estate strategy.
