Blackbelly, Santo owners open first Denver location

DENVER — Little Piggy Hospitality LLC, which owns the Santo and Blackbelly restaurants in Boulder, opened its first Denver outlet, Blackbelly Market, on Thursday morning in Denver.

The new restaurant and market at 4334 W. 41st Ave. opened in a space occupied for the past nine years by the Il Porcellino Salumi delicatessen and retail shop, which closed Jan. 27.

Blackbelly’s original Boulder location at 1606 Conestoga St., which is celebrating a decade in business this year after adding private dining spaces and a larger market in 2023, earned a “green star” for its sustainability practices in September when Michelin introduced its first Colorado guide. Michelin cited Blackberry for its “full utilization of every ingredient and animal, most of which are butchered in-house; sourcing from local ranches and farms that apply natural practices to everything it cultivates.” It noted that the restaurant grows herbs and flowers for its plates on its property. Its butcher Kelly Kawachi was honored with a Michelin Colorado Culinary Professional Award.

SPONSORED CONTENT

Business Cares: April 2024

In Colorado, 1 in 3 women, 1 in 3 men and 1 in 2 transgender individuals will experience an attempted or completed sexual assault in their lifetime. During April, we recognize Sexual Assault Awareness Month with the hopes of increasing conversations about this very important issue.

Charcuterie, salami and salumi produced by Kawachi and her team will be featured at the new Denver location, along with some cuts of beef, lamb, pork and sausage, and artisan groceries. It also is offering breakfast and lunch from 7 a.m. to 4 p.m.

Santo, which opened in 2017 and features New Mexican cuisine at 1265 Alpine Ave., was one of five Boulder restaurants that earned “recommended” status in that first Michelin guide.

Little Piggy last fall announced it would develop a tapas concept called Panza Negra — Spanish for “black belly” — at The Reve, a new mixed-use development near 30th Street and Pearl Parkway in central Boulder that was completed in 2022. The 2,446-square-foot space that’s been vacant since The Reve was completed has a 962-square-foot outdoor patio and can accommodate 71 seats inside and 66 outside.

A spokesperson at Blackbelly in Boulder told BizWest on Thursday that Panza Negra is still planned, but no timeline has yet been announced for its opening.

The Reve, developed by Southern Land Co., includes about 250 apartments, 24,500 square feet of retail and hospitality space and more than 120,000 square feet of office space spread across six acres.