Denver is filled with East Coast transplants, so it was only a matter of time before the Mile High City got a New England–style seafood shack of its own. Culinary Creative Group (the team behind Bar Dough, Señor Bear, the soon-to-come Morin, and others) announced that it’s partnering with Drew Ryan (of MoBoogie.com) and John Caprio (general manager of Fiddler’s Green Ampitheater) to bring Maine Shack to LoHi this summer.

Ryan, a Maine native, developed the concept and brought it to Culinary Creative’s Juan Padro a few years ago. Now that they’ve found a fitting location—the former Uber Eats space in LoHi—the team has tapped Craig Dixon, who grew up on Boston’s North Shore, to run the kitchen alongside Max Mackissock.

If you’ve eaten at one New England’s many wonderful clam shacks, the fare at Maine Shack will be familiar: steamed and fried (whole belly!) clams, a few different styles of lobster rolls, and even the rare roast beef sandwiches beloved across the region. Dixon plans to source much of the seafood directly from his lobstermen friends back east. “This is the food we grew up with,” Dixon says. All will be served from a walk-up counter in a casual dining room decked out with reclaimed Maine barn wood and lobster traps.

If you can’t wait to try Maine Shack’s menu, you don’t have to. The group is holding a series of pop-ups at Bar Dough throughout the summer; the first pop up takes place this Saturday. Drop by to sample lobster rolls, lobster mac and cheese, scallops, and more.

If you go: Maine Shack pop-up, Saturday, June 16, 11 a.m. to 1 p.m., Bar Dough, 2227 W. 32nd Ave., 720-668-8506

Callie Sumlin
Callie Sumlin
Callie Sumlin is a writer living in Westminster, and has been covering food and sustainability in the Centennial State for more than five years.