On Sunday, October 4 Frank’s Food and Bodega opened in a Mostly residential Division of Edgewater. Replacing the space formerly inhabited by Happy Leaf Kombucha, Frank’s serves a variety of cabinet items, fresh produce, locally-produced wares, pasta, meats and hot and cold meals ready to eat either at home or onsite. By all outward appearances, Frank’s may easily be mistaken for a community grocery or food combined — blending an unmistakable Colorado nonchalance with inspiration in Mexican and New York bodegas. But the industry is actually an expansion of Blue Note Event Services, the exclusive caterer for basically all Denver’s most renowned venues several decades running. The job — particularly the many house-made items which fill the deli counter — has been bringing to the public the meals which has long fueled the local music industry. “It’s basically what we do to bands but for the neighborhood — comfy, convenient accessibility to feel-good food,” said business development director Katie Scotten.
Blue Note was set two decades ago from Irene Taras, a business vet whose catering history dates back into the ’80s, in which she once, at the petition of The Grateful Dead, created granola for the entire Red Rocks crowd by a heap of oats that the band sent . Blue Note has since grown to be the go-to company to both AEG and Live Nation, servicing bands, crews and production teams in all the major places across the Denver area. Anyone living backstage at Red Rocks, the 1STBANK Center, the Pepsi Center, Dick’s Sporting Goods Park, Mission Ballroom and Fiddler’s Green during the last decade has surely feasted on one of Taras’ banquets. The crack team has also been proven to assemble fully-functioning temporary kitchens outside Mile High Stadium and managed all of the catering in Grandoozy along with a selection of annual one-offs. “What we do is music. That’s what we all live and perish,” said Scotten.
Even though Frank’s was surely developed as a go to get a company that normally spends its summers granting the requests of nearly every major touring artist which touches down, Blue Note — with its adjacent offices — had been planning on converting the prior kombucha home into a notion that in last served members of the crowd. “We were thinking about doing something with all the space once we bought the building,” said Scotten. “We always knew it would be food-related,” she continued. Initially, the team considered forming a restaurant, although 2020’s uncompromising dictates driven the group to alter its program. “A shop would be a much better approach to provide what we do and a better approach to serve the area,” said Scotten. Most of the workers have long been with the company, with Taras’ son Blake Elwell and his wife Jennifer managing onsite.
Frank’s is curated with a blend of thoughtfully-sourced local products and a equally top-tier choice of the principles brought in from far and wide. River Bear Meats and Tenderbelly are on display and not far off are jars of Tajin and biscuits from Tate’s Bake Shop. Nick, Nora and Emily’s Toffee Corn — produced in Nederland — shares the shelf with pie crusts from Kinnikinnick and Bob’s Red Mill. The integration between the local items and more familiar brands is underscored by a overall commitment to quality — upscale but free of pretense. “Local men and women get shelf priority round here,” grinned Blake. Nevertheless, the motive to visit Frank’s is the house-made dishes.
Though the menu changes frequently, there’s a list of “Everything All the Time” choices which will always be available. Even the bacon-wrapped meatloaf ($3.95 a piece or $11.95 for dinner) is a good move there. On Wednesday, the group recreates menus requested by artists — with Phish, Ariana Grande, Big Gigantic and Adele have been on display. The toppings — such as chicken noodle and cream of asparagus — are particularly liable to cause misty-eyed returns to whatever remembered kitchen love resides. “All of the recipes have rotated throughout our menu offerings a great deal of times over time. That’s a big portion of our assurance, this food isn’t new. Thousands of people have consumed these dishes,” said Scotten.
It’s unsurprising — particularly considering that the insular world Blue Note has assembled behind the scenes — which Frank’s cuisine has all of the reassuring familiarity of a friend who only recently reemerged in the woodwork. The posters that line the walls — Mac Miller, Rebelution, a signed photo of The Police — lend a warm reminder of a temporarily bygone era. And even when concerts do reunite, the group says Frank’s is here to stay. “We simply found a new group of people to nourish,” smiled Scotten.
Frank’s Food and Bodega is located at 5700 West 25th Ave., Edgewater. It’s open every day from 8 a.m. – 8 p.m.. A special Thanksgiving menu can be found here.
All photography from Alden Bonecutter
Article Source and Credit 303magazine.com https://303magazine.com/2020/11/edgewater-franks-food-bodega-blue-note/ Buy Tickets for every event – Sports, Concerts, Festivals and more buytickets.com
