Colorado Eats guide · checked fall 2026
Colorado's oldest restaurants
Colorado's longest-running dining rooms and bars: 29 places whose opening year at their present address is on record, from the oldest down. 18 of them date from before 1950, and a note under each one explains its year.
What counts as a founding year
We count the year a place opened at its current address in its current form, from the place's own history or a published one. A hotel bar or dining room that opened with its hotel takes the hotel's year. A brand's start somewhere else doesn't count, and neither does any year before a move; older history on the same lot, such as a tent saloon, goes in the note. If sources disagree, the later year wins, and the note flags a year that rests only on the place's own telling. Each was checked in fall 2026 against a 2025–26 source.
Other guides: Colorado green chile guide, Colorado brewpubs, Ski town dining, Colorado game & steakhouses, MICHELIN & James Beard restaurants, Boulder County restaurant inspections. City pages: Denver, Colorado Springs, Aurora, Fort Collins, Boulder, Pueblo, Lakewood, Longmont, Greeley, Golden, Grand Junction, Durango, Aspen, Breckenridge, Steamboat Springs, Vail.
Oldest first
Gold Pan Saloon
103 N Main St, Breckenridge
On the menu: Breckie burger, lamb French dip with goat cheese · Since 1879
Breckenridge's longest-running saloon, in its 1879 building on Main Street, now pouring drinks and serving burgers and lamb French dips.
A tent saloon (Long's Saloon) operated here from 1861; the permanent building went up in 1879, and the Gold Pan name dates to 1953.
Lacey Rose Saloon
1219 Greene St, Silverton
On the menu: filet mignon, ribeye, chicken-fried steak, half-pound burgers · Since 1882
Saloon and restaurant inside Silverton's 1882 Grand Imperial Hotel, serving steaks, burgers and chicken-fried steak.
The Grand Imperial Hotel opened in 1882; its saloon and restaurant now trade as the Lacey Rose Saloon.
Silver Dollar Saloon
315 Harrison Ave, Leadville
Game & steak On the menu: rabbit and rattlesnake sausage, chicken fried yak (seasonal), wings · Since 1883
Victorian Harrison Avenue saloon from Leadville's silver boom, now with a kitchen serving rabbit-and-rattlesnake sausage and chicken-fried yak.
The saloon's site says 1879; other histories date it to 1883 as the Board of Trade saloon, renamed Silver Dollar in 1935. We use the later date.
J-Bar
330 E Main St, Aspen
On the menu: burger, Aspen Crud milkshake · Since 1889
Wood-paneled bar in Aspen's 1889 Hotel Jerome, a silver-era saloon turned après hangout known for its burger.
Hotel Jerome and its bar opened in 1889.
Baron's Restaurant at Hotel Colorado
526 Pine St, Glenwood Springs
Since 1893
Restaurant inside Glenwood Springs' grand 1893 Hotel Colorado across from the hot springs pool.
The hotel has operated since 1893; its main dining room now runs as Baron's Restaurant.
Buckhorn Exchange
1000 Osage St, Denver
Game & steak On the menu: Rocky Mountain oysters, elk medallions, buffalo prime rib, buffalo tenderloin, smoked buffalo sausage, quail, fried alligator tail, prime steaks · Since 1893
Lincoln Park steakhouse filled with mounted game and Old West artifacts, serving buffalo, elk, quail and Rocky Mountain oysters alongside prime beef.
Opened by Henry "Shorty Scout" Zietz in November 1893; its history page says it was issued Colorado Liquor License #1, which is still displayed.
New Sheridan Chop House & Historic Bar
231 W Colorado Ave, Telluride
Game & steak On the menu: elk shortloin, dry-aged bison ribeye, Colorado rack of lamb, prime New York strip, prime filet mignon, dry-aged tomahawk · Since 1895
Telluride's 1895 hotel bar with its original back bar, next to a steakhouse that grills elk, bison and prime beef.
The hotel's Historic Bar has served since 1895, when the New Sheridan was rebuilt; the Chop House is a later addition in the same building.
Chautauqua Dining Hall
900 Baseline Rd, Boulder
Since 1898
Historic dining hall in Chautauqua Park below the Flatirons, built for the Chautauqua's first season in 1898.
The dining hall was built for the Colorado Chautauqua's opening season in 1898 and is still at the same address.
The Sink
1165 13th St, Boulder
On the menu: burgers, pizza · Since 1923
University Hill burger-and-pizza spot with hand-painted ceilings, feeding CU students since the 1920s.
Opened in 1923 as Somers' Sunken Gardens at this address; officially renamed The Sink in 1949. It closed for a time during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Charlie Brown's Bar & Grill
980 N Grant St, Denver
On the menu: green chile, prime rib (Thursdays), Greek specialties, burgers · Since 1933
Capitol Hill piano bar in the Colburn Hotel with nightly live piano, a long diner-style menu with green chile, and Thursday prime rib.
Opened December 6, 1933, on the ground floor of the Colburn Hotel; the bar's site cites 93 years in business.
Silver Grill Cafe
218 Walnut St, Fort Collins
Green chile On the menu: pork green chili, breakfast burrito, tamale & eggs, loaded hash browns, cinnamon rolls · Since 1933
Old Town breakfast-and-lunch cafe known for its giant cinnamon rolls, with Colorado pork green chili on burritos, tamales and hash browns.
Opened at 218 Walnut St on October 28, 1933; it later expanded into neighboring storefronts but never moved.
The Cruise Room
1600 17th St, Denver
On the menu: martinis, small plates · Since 1933
Art Deco bar inside the Oxford Hotel, modeled on a lounge from the Queen Mary ocean liner, pouring martinis with a small-plates menu.
Opened inside the Oxford Hotel in 1933, the day after Prohibition was repealed, per the hotel.
Ship Tavern
321 17th St, Denver
On the menu: New York strip, petite filet, flatiron steak, oysters · Since 1934
Nautical-themed tavern inside the Brown Palace, decorated with model ships and brass, serving steaks and seafood.
Opened in the Brown Palace Hotel in 1934, after Prohibition ended.
The Rock Inn Mountain Tavern
1675 CO-66, Estes Park
BrewpubGame & steak On the menu: smoked elk sausage, Colorado bison meatballs, bison marinara, pan-seared trout · Since 1937
Mountain tavern on Highway 66 outside Estes Park with a menu of smoked elk sausage, bison dishes and pan-seared trout.
The tavern's site gives 1937 as its founding year at this location.
Cherry Cricket
2641 E 2nd Ave, Denver
Green chileGame & steak On the menu: pork green chili, veggie green chili, 303 green chile relleno burger, Colorado bison burger, grande burrito with pork green chili · Since 1945
Cherry Creek burger bar serving pork green chili by the bowl and as a burger topping, plus a Colorado bison burger.
Opened at this address in 1945 as Mary Zimmerman's bar and renamed Cherry Cricket in 1950; it was rebuilt in place after a 2016 kitchen fire and reopened in 2017.
Don's Club Tavern
723 E 6th Ave, Denver
Since 1947
Old-school neighborhood tavern near Governor's Park that stays open until 2 a.m. daily.
Opened in 1947; the bar says it has changed little since then.
Gaetano's Italian
3760 Tejon St, Denver
On the menu: meatballs, lobster ravioli, lasagna, chicken parmesan, gnocchi · Since 1947
Red-sauce Italian restaurant in a brick building in Highland with long ties to the Smaldone family.
Opened on Tejon Street in 1947 by the Smaldone family; current owner since 2013.
Charco Broiler
1716 E Mulberry St, Fort Collins
Game & steak On the menu: hand-cut steaks, ribeye, New York strip, chicken fried steak, burgers · Since 1957
McGarvey family steakhouse on East Mulberry serving hand-cut steaks, burgers and weekend breakfast for three generations.
Opened in fall 1957 as a coffee shop and burger joint and later became a steakhouse; a 2017 list of Fort Collins' oldest restaurants says it is still at its original location.
Davies' Chuck Wagon Diner
9495 W Colfax Ave, Lakewood
Green chile On the menu: green chile smothered breakfast burrito, green chili eggs Benedict, country fried steak, Chuckwagon breakfast · Since 1957
Stainless-steel 1957 diner under a giant neon cowboy, serving breakfast burritos smothered in green chile and country fried steak.
A prefabricated diner built in New Jersey, shipped by rail and opened on this West Colfax site in 1957 by Lyman Davies; listed on the National Register.
Diamond Belle Saloon
699 Main Ave, Durango
On the menu: green chile burger, filet mignon, burgers · Since 1957
Victorian saloon inside Durango's 1887 Strater Hotel, revived in 1957, with live music nightly and a burger-and-entree menu.
The Strater Hotel dates to 1887; the Diamond Belle Saloon inside it was revived as a saloon in 1957.
Bastien's Restaurant
3503 E Colfax Ave, Denver
Game & steak On the menu: sugar steak, filet mignon, New York strip, porterhouse, bone-in ribeye, dry-aged ribeye · Since 1958
Family-run mid-century steakhouse on East Colfax under a folded-plate roof, known for its sugar-rubbed steak.
The Bastien family ran the Moon Drive Inn on this corner from 1937 (hence the restaurant's 'since 1937' line); they tore it down and opened Bastien's in the current Googie-style building in 1958, which is on the National Register.
Columbine Steak House & Lounge
300 Federal Blvd, Denver
Game & steak On the menu: steaks with baked potato and Texas toast · Since 1961
Cash-only, order-at-the-counter steakhouse on Federal Boulevard with budget steak dinners.
Open on Federal Boulevard since 1961.
Pepi's Restaurant & Bar
231 Gore Creek Dr, Vail
Game & steak On the menu: wild game dinners (Antlers Room), Austrian dishes · Since 1964 · Season: Antlers Room game dinners run in the winter season
Austrian-style hotel restaurant in Vail Village from the town's first years, with a wood-paneled Antlers Room known for wild game dinners in winter.
Gasthof Gramshammer was established by the Gramshammer family in 1964, in Vail's early years.
The Original Chubby's
1231 W 38th Ave, Denver
Green chile On the menu: Mexican hamburger, green chile · Since 1967
Northside walk-up Den-Mex stand whose green chile has smothered its Mexican hamburger since the 1960s.
Open on West 38th Avenue since 1967.
Outlaw Restaurant
610 Main St, Ouray
Game & steak On the menu: prime rib, ribeye, New York strip, filet mignon, Colorado lamb chops, trout San Juan · Since 1968
Ouray Main Street steakhouse since the late 1960s, serving prime rib, Colorado lamb chops and Rocky Mountain trout.
Site says its front sign went up in 1968.
My Brother's Bar
2376 15th St, Denver
Game & steak On the menu: JCB (jalapeño cream cheese burger), Ralphie bison burger, Steerburger · Since 1970
Unsigned corner tavern at 15th and Platte with classical music on the stereo, known for its JCB burger and a bison burger.
Renamed My Brother's Bar by the Karagas brothers in 1970. The bar says a saloon has served at this corner since 1873 under other names, last as Whitey's; that claim spans Prohibition and isn't independently verified, so the year shown is 1970.
Ore House at the Pine Grove
1465 Pine Grove Rd, Steamboat Springs
Game & steak On the menu: peppered elk loin, bison ribeye, Rocky Mountain ruby red trout, steaks, salad bar, cinnamon rolls · Since 1971
Steamboat steak and game house in an old ranch barn since 1971, with elk loin, bison ribeye and trout alongside its salad bar.
Opened in 1971 in a converted barn more than a century old.
Gold Dust Saloon
217 S Union Ave, Pueblo
Green chile On the menu: slopper, mac 'n' cheese slopper, chile relleno slopper, green chile burgers · Since 1984
Union Avenue saloon and grill with several slopper variations, green chile burgers and craft beer.
The saloon's own site says it has been open since 1984.