The Way Back Finds a Home on Tennyson Street

After closing in August at 4132 West 38th Avenue, The Way Back plans to reopen less than a mile away in early 2018. The new address for the creative cocktails and small plates spot will be 3963 Tennyson Street, in the heart of the Tennyson arts district at former Paddy the Yank.

“We were surviving on 38th, but we were never going to flourish there,” says co-owner Chad Michael George of his 16-month-old bar’s first location. He hopes to benefit from the foot traffic on Tennyson and offer another food option to that neighborhood.

Owners George, Kade Gianinetti, and Jared Schwartz plan to update the old Irish pub’s design for the Way Back 2.0. Where the original Way Back was masculine and utilitarian, the new space will be cozy and comfortable, according to George. An imposing wood and mirror back bar from the Irish pub will stay for the redesign. Around it shades of dark green and tan, pillows, and textured wallpapers will warm up the room.

“It’s definitely going to have a darkness to it,” George says. The owners currently are looking for a chef and other key staffers for the new Way Back. George, president of the Colorado Bartenders Guild, will run the beverage program. But food — sticking to the company’s ethos of “responsibly sourced, mostly regional cuisine” — largely will be up to the new chef.

While waiting for The Way Back to reopen, fans of the brand still can visit newer sister stores Wayward in Riverfront and American Grind in Avanti Food & Beverage.

• Goodbye (But Not For Good) to The Way Back [EDEN]
• Sneak Peek: Wayward Opens in Former Zengo Space in Riverfront [EDEN]
• Wayward: The Approachable Brother to The Way Back [EDEN]
• Sneak Peek into American Grind, Opening at Avanti [EDEN]