Metro moves: Snooze A.M.'s original restaurant reopens this week after $2.5M remodel

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After a $2.5 million renovation, Denver’s brunch restaurant Snooze A.M. announced it will reopen its first location Wednesday.

The project expanded the restaurant that opened in 2006 from 2,870 square feet to 4,100 square feet in the historic building located within the Ballpark district.

The expansion increased the seating to fit 124 people inside and 14 outside, but it primarily focused on building a bigger kitchen space.

“Snooze Ballpark is the first Snooze restaurant and a staple of the neighborhood, and we wanted to invest in an enhanced breakfast experience for guests and honor this historic location so that we can continue serving the community here for years to come,” Snooze CEO David Birzon said in a news release.

Snooze A.M. is also working on a new Union Station location where Next Door Eatery used to be that will be larger and have an expanded patio area. It’s set to open in September. The current Union Station home for Snooze A.M. will remain open until the new restaurant is completed.

In total, the brunch chain with more than 70 locations nationwide is spending $3.5 million expanding its downtown Denver locations.

“This renovation was very important to us to honor our roots in Denver,” Birzon said.

The Ballpark reopening will feature a limited-edition pancake on the menu made with spiced apples and topped with vanilla crème, whipped mascarpone, almond streusel and powdered sugar.

The Ballpark restaurant opens at 6:30 a.m. everyday. It closes at 2:30 p.m. on weekdays and 4 p.m. on weekends.

DTC building bought

Local real estate firm DPC Companies bought a new office building in the Denver Tech Center for $5.3 million, the company announced.

The Atrium Plaza at 5675 DTC Blvd. will be the company’s new headquarters.

“In spite of a challenging office market, we remain bullish on ownership of quality office assets in proven locations,” said Christopher King, president of DPC Companies, in a release.

King said workers are returning to the office and value spacious workspaces, amenities and close access to restaurants and services and added the company continues to support investing in quality office buildings despite the economic conditions since the pandemic and high interest rates.

The company plans to make minimal changes to the building, the announcement said, other than updating the carpeting, artwork and lobby furniture.

Denver-based landscape and architectural firm THK Associates will occupy 8,800 square feet of space in the building.

AJAX Downtown opens

The company behind Aspen’s AJAX Tavern opened a new restaurant in downtown Denver last week.

The Ajax Downtown restaurant near Union Station opened inside the Limelight Denver hotel on 1899 16th Street Mall. It’s operated by Aspen One, the parent company of resort operator Aspen Skiing Co.

The menu features live fire cooking, according to the restaurant.

“Most items have touched the live ember grills – from salads to desserts – and our team prides itself on responsibly sourcing Rocky Mountain raised meats, fresh seasonal vegetables from local farms and making every dish in-house,” said Ajax Downtown’s Executive Chef Jared Becker in a news release.

The restaurant is open for breakfast between 7 a.m. to 10:30 a.m. Its lunch hours go from 11:30 a.m. to 2 p.m. and dinner starts at 5 p.m. and goes until 9 p.m. from Sundays to Thursdays and 10 p.m. on Fridays and Saturdays.