Jill Storey has been hard at work since March, transforming the 5th Avenue Grill into what will be unveiled as The Branding Iron on Friday, July 10.
“I’m so excited, and we are finally opening,” she told the Forum the morning of July 6.
While there won’t be food or refreshments served on Friday, Storey truly wants community members to stop by and see the new space. The open house takes place from 11 a.m. to 8 p.m., and she’ll lead people through the kitchen and dining spaces.
Her partner, Cory Barnett, has been instrumental in the renovations. He questioned her decision to have an open house before the grand opening, but Storey explained to him it was necessary. The 5th Avenue Grill was “the” restaurant for so many years in Nucla. She wants everyone who loved it to come step inside, before the first rush of cooking, to get a feel for what it’s like now.
“This restaurant means a lot to the community,” she said. “They want to see it.”
And, she’s done a lot. It’s true that she spent all of last weekend on her hands and knees finishing the kitchen tile, what ended up being 14 hours of labor. The last few months’ effort did fill a big Bruin Waste dumpster twice.
Not only is she looking forward to the tours, she wants ranching families to BYOB, bring their own branding irons.
“Our community’s rich ranching history inspired the mural outside the restaurant, as well as its namesake,” said Storey’s daughter Aurhianna Sandefur in a press release to the Forum. “Now, we need your help to bring that culture inside to our branding wall.”
Sandefur, a local teacher, has been a blessing to her mom throughout the renovations, with IT, planning and labor. She’ll also serve and cook sometimes, in addition to her work at the Nucla school.
July 10, the family literally asks local ranchers to burn their brands into wood planks during the open house, planks which were milled in Ute and brought down from a cabin in Pinon. Additionally, they’d like to compile an informational booklet, containing each local brand’s details and history, so that visitors may read about them.
Both paper and digital forms will be available for families to provide at least the brand’s number, or owner. They may use Colorado’s BrandAbetical to research the image, description and counties for their brand. The new restaurant will have an extension cord on hand, plus a torch for electric or traditional irons.
Storey told the Forum if anyone wants to burn a brand but can’t do so that day, they can still do it later, during business hours anytime after the grand opening.
The menu is already circulating online, and the big day for patrons to experience Nucla’s Branding Iron is July 18, first featuring the buffet. The buffet is something Storey has been excited to offer. That grand opening day will also include a meal special, to be announced later.
Yes, the staff are ready. They’ve got their uniforms in order, and merchandise will be available as soon as the open house.
It’s getting real for Storey. The first Cisco order has already come; another delivery of fresh produce arrives next Wednesday, so the kitchen can prep food on Thursday and Friday.
Storey is counting down the days until she welcomes folks for her open house.
“I’m so excited for them to walk through,” she said.
