A Favorite Downtown Grand Junction Colorado Italian Restaurant Closed
For the second time this week, Grand Junction, Colorado has said goodbye to one of our restaurants. After a 25-year run, this downtown restaurant just closed its doors for good.
The owners posted a message on the door of the restaurant thanking Grand Junction residents for their years of support.
Farewell To This Main Street Restaurant In Grand Junction, Colorado
After almost 25 years of service to the Grand Valley, il Bistro Italiano is closed. This message is posted in their doorway at 400 Main Street.
A Message From The Owners
The following email was shared via the Fruita, Colorado Message Board on Facebook:
It is with great sadness that I have to write this last email to you.
Monday afternoon, I had to make one of the most difficult decisions of my life: the close il Bistro Italiano after more than 24 years.
About 15 months ago, my husband and I made the decision to pursues our dream to produce some of our Bistro products, Rosetta especially, in a separate FDA approved facility so that we can package it and sell to grocery stores. It was actually Guy Fieri who very insistently planted the seed for this project when he was here for his show in September 2021.
There was no way for me to pursue this other business and run the Bistro as well, so we entered into a partnership with my then sous chefs so that they would own a percentage of the restaurant. I spent most of last year training them and they did a great job. During the last few months, I progressed with the other business venture, which by the way is called Brunella's Kitchen, securing a lease on a property and so on...
The email adds more details regarding the decision to close. The email can be viewed in its entirety here.
If you place a call to the restaurant, you'll be greeted by a voice message confirming the closure. The message states, "We had to close the bistro permanently."
What If You Have a Gift Certificate For il Bistro Italiano?
The email adds, "I am happy to refund gift certificates - I feel so very badly about all of the people that chose the Bistro as a gift and now will be disappointed; and believe me when I say that this was an element that I took into consideration when making this decision. Come during the hours I will be open (see below) or leave a message or send and email and I will work with you for a special time to meet you and refund your certificate."
What About The Restaurant's Assets?
According to the email, "Just about everything is for sale, including plates, glasses, etc, and we have so much stuff after almost 25 years!" For information regarding purchasing inventory, see the complete email.
An Amazing Place In Grand Junction
Restaurants have customers. This venue had "fans." In addition to its strong local following, il Bistro Italiano received high praise from review sites such as Yelp.