Boulder’s First Food Hall Will Open Downtown in Early October

While the last few years have seen food halls proliferate in Denver neighborhoods extending from RiNo to West Washington Park, Boulder has so far avoided getting in on the metro area’s most unstoppable dining and drinking trend. But not for much longer.

On Friday, a team that includes the owners of the Boulder Theater and Boulder’s Rembrandt Yard gallery and event center, announced that their new food hall, Rosetta Hall, is set to open in Boulder in early October.

Located one block off the Pearl Street Mall in downtown Boulder at 1109 Walnut Street, Rosetta Hall is located in a space that previously housed several nightspots, including the Pop Up and the New Foundry. The Pop Up closed in May of 2018 while The Foundry closed in 2009 after 13 years of operation, according to the Boulder Daily Camera.

The new “European-style” food hall will include 10 restaurants operated by independent chefs. There will also be a 48-set oval bar and an upscale rooftop lounge featuring private cabanas.

According to Donovan Greene, the hall’s CEO, the ownership team spent two and a half years researching food halls around the world in order to develop their vision for Rosetta Hall. They then considered more than 50 chefs in order to select the 10 that would open their restaurants inside Rosetta Hall. The result of that process is a varied roster of international cuisines encompassing French, Asian street food, Italian, Mexican and more.

One of the biggest names involved in the hall is Justin Brunson, the chef behind popular Denver restaurants Old Major and Masterpiece Delicatessen as well as the newer River Bear American Meats business. Brunson will open Folsom Foods, which will focus on sandwiches, meats and cheeses.

Joining Brunson at Rosetta Hall will be Joseph Lee, a former executive chef at The Kitchen American Bistro. Lee will open Tierra, a contemporary Mexican restaurant that will serve tacos with handmade tortillas, mole and other contemporary Mexican offerings with a Korean influence.

Alberto Sabbadini, who has worked as a personal chef in Boulder, will open La Tigella, an Italian kitchen that will serve Roman-style pizza as well as its namesake sandwich from Bologna, Italy, which is stuffed with Italian meats, cheeses and vegetables.

Meanwhile, Boulder chef Dustin Brandt is opening a casual French option called Confit, while local chef Aaron Lande will open Eridu, which will feature a legume and grain-based menu.

The hall’s remaining offerings will include a patisserie called Petite Fleur, a West African spot called Jacaranda, and a food hall version of Boulder’s the Ginger Pig food truck. Pearl Street’s Boxcar Coffee Roasters will also open “an old school Italian-style sit down coffee bar.”

Curtis Worthley, a veteran of the New York bar scene, will serve as beverage director for the two bars. The main bar will serve classic cocktails and modern variations of them while a press release promises the rooftop bar will feature some of the best views in Boulder and a raw bar called the Barceloneta Oyster Company.

Rosetta Hall will be open seven days a week at 8 a.m. An information brochure does states the hall will be open until “late” but does not list a closing time. On Thursday, Friday and Saturday nights, the space will also feature dance events, independent films, community gatherings and other live music.

Rosetta Hall won’t be Boulder’s sole food hall option for long. Eater reported in January that LoHi’s popular Avanti Food & Beverage food hall and incubator plans to open an outpost on the Pearl Street Mall by the end of the year.

• Food Hall Pioneer Avanti Expands to Boulder’s Pearl Street [EDEN]