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Overzealous…Colorado Expression says in its latest issue that Undici (1200 E. Hampden Ave.), an Italian restaurant run by the Kallas family (think Steakhouse 10) is open for business. But hungry diners will have to wait. An insider says construction hiccups have delayed the opening—most likely until early 2006. We’ll keep you posted as to when it’s official.
A piece of the pie…A phone call to Rayme Rossello, one half of the Proto’s Pizzeria Napoletana dynamic duo, revealed that the pizza empire is expanding to Boise, Idaho. Opportunity came knocking when developers for the BoDo (Boise’s LoDo) saw an ad in 5280 and latched onto the concept of the urban pizzeria. The developers—who are building a BelMar-style district—dined at Proto’s and approached the owners. Build-out begins this month and if all goes well, the pizza spot (Proto’s first outside of Colorado) is slated to open in February. Rossello and Pam Proto are temporarily relocating to the Potato State to oversee operations. When asked if this is the beginning of a growth trend, Rossello says it’s a wait-and-see: “This is definitely a jumping off place for us. We’ll see how we do outside of the Front Range.” www.protospizza.com.
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And, action!…Denver is finally getting its due as a cool place to live and a cooler place to own a business. Through Wednesday The Food Network is in town shooting a January episode of Recipe for Success at Monkey Bean Coffee and Bistro. When next-door neighbors Monique Costello and Amy Rosewater opened the Baseball-neighborhood shop in July 2004, it was already labor of love—the two left promising careers as a freelance producer (Costello) and a software engineer (Rosewater) to do barista duty. Recipe for Success, which features the good, the bad, and the ugly about starting up a business in the food industry, intends to go behind the scenes at Monkey Bean and get the lowdown on what makes the small business tick. So when you order that double, non-fat, half the caramel, decaf, extra-hot latte, smile big, because chances are there’s a camera waiting in the wings. 2470 Broadway, 303-296-9559, www.monkeybean.com.
