{"id":7971,"date":"2013-08-14T22:53:30","date_gmt":"2013-08-15T05:53:30","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.lasvegasbuffetclub.com\/blog\/?p=7971"},"modified":"2014-03-20T11:46:30","modified_gmt":"2014-03-20T18:46:30","slug":"the-edgewater-inn-last-of-the-continuously-operatedowned-by-the-same-family-italian-restaurants-in-the-near-what-used-to-be-denvers-little-italy-hood","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/lasvegasbuffetclub.com\/blog\/?p=7971","title":{"rendered":"The Edgewater Inn: Last of the Continuously-Operated\/Owned by the Same Family Italian Restaurants in The (Near What Used to be Denver’s Little Italy) Hood"},"content":{"rendered":"\"facebook\"<\/a>\"twitter\"<\/a>\"google_plus\"<\/a>\"reddit\"<\/a>\"pinterest\"<\/a>\"linkedin\"<\/a>\"mail\"<\/a>by <\/span>\"feather\"<\/a>

[Some links have been removed or changed since The Edgewater’s website was changed – 2014]<\/em>
\nUpdate 2014 – The Edge is now serving excellent, Sweet Potato Fries<\/strong><\/em>.<\/p>\n

The Edgewater Inn
\n5302 W 25th Ave
\nEdgewater, CO 80214
\n(303) 237-3524<\/p>\n

\"The<\/a>
The Edgewater Inn<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Every so often I have a need to drive across town to the soothing neighborhood of Edgewater across from *Sloan\u2019s Lake. The lake was dredged some time back, and surrounded by (cleaned-up) verdant Sloan\u2019s Lake Park, it\u2019s a beautiful spot. The view across the lake, from Sheridan to the east, is one of the best views of Denver\u2019s skyline. Most nights the reflections of downtown building lights paint the water \u2013 even though the lake is miles from downtown Denver. I know there\u2019s an explanation for that phenomenon, something about bending light waves. Whatever the science, she\u2019s drop-dead gorgeous.<\/p>\n

\"Sloans's<\/a>
Sloans's Lake at Edgewater, photo by radare<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

When one first enters the City of Edgewater, the instant vibe is Mayberryesque, however, it\u2019s changing fast.<\/p>\n

At the extreme north-west end of the lake, at 25th Ave & Sheridan Boulevard, through the overhead sign (Edgewater) declaring its boundary, down a block and on the left, you\u2019ll find a fairly plain building with green awnings and a HOWDY PAISANO sign on the east wall. This is The Edgewater Inn.<\/p>\n

[Update 2014 – The Edgewater’s website has been changed, the following paragraph is from the old website. A link to the new website follows.]
\n\u201cThe Edgewater Inn is a small pizza tavern in the heart of Edgewater, and for many years been one of the highlights of the town. The Inn, most famous for its pizzas and family atmosphere, has graced the neighborhood for over fifty years. The owners, Ben and Josephine DiPietro started the business back in 1953. The Inn, now located on the southwest corner of 25th Avenue and Ames was initially located at the building due west of it\u2019s present address. In 1957, the building next door went up for sale. The buildings previous occupant, the post office, moved into a newer quarters. Ben and Josephine purchased the lease and began their work. They realized they wanted to turn their 3.2 bar into a regular bar. To accomplish this task, many hours of hard work were required. Ben and Josephine had to petition everyone in the neighborhood, meaning they had to go to every household to ask the residents if they were or were no[sic] in favor of a bar going into the community. This amounted to a total of 96 blocks, this was no easy task. They did however succeed in getting enough signatures and community support to acquire a license.\u201d<\/p>\n

The Edge\u2019s Official NEW Website<\/a><\/span> <\/span><\/p>\n

Interview with Brandon Bucci, general manager<\/span> [A paragraph (here) was removed, it was part of the old website.]<\/p>\n

\"The<\/a>
The main dining area of The Edgewater Inn<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Close, but never quite in the heart of Denver\u2019s Little Italy,\u00a0The Edgewater\u00a0was a bit too far west.\u00a0The Bonnie Brae Tavern\u00a0(DU area), Romano\u2019s\u00a0in Littleton and several others around Denver are good restaurants, just not in the epicenter of Denver\u2019s Little Italy, which pretty much hugged the area bounded by\u00a032nd Avenue\u00a0to\u00a046th Avenue and\u00a0Broadway\u00a0to\u00a0Zuni\u00a0streets. There were a half-dozen-plus red-sauce places within a mere 2-mile stretch along 38th Avenue, and down connecting side streets of the Little Italy area, many within just a few blocks of each other.\u00a0Longo\u2019s Subway Tavern (shuttered in 2012,)\u00a0Gaetano\u2019s (new corporate owner)\u00a0and\u00a0Carl\u2019s Pizza (new owners)\u00a0were on 38th Avenue. R. Carbone\u2019s Pizza\u00a0(now Lechuga’s – For Sale in 2014) and\u00a0The Alpine Inn (John \u201cSkip\u201d LaGuardia\u2019s tavern – long closed)\u00a0shared Tejon Street with\u00a0Gaetano\u2019s.\u00a0Patsy\u2019s Inn\u00a0is still on 35th and Navajo (family-member of the founder is the current owner, however, there have been non-family owners.) Little Pepina\u2019s\u00a0was at 34th and Osage St (the building stands – soon to be an Asian restaurant,)\u00a0Pagliacci\u2019s\u00a0was at 33rd and Osage (raised last year.) Three Sons\u00a0was located at 44th and Federal ( 3-sons moved to Arvada,)\u00a0Ernie\u2019s Pizza Bar\u00a0was at 44th and Elliot (new corporate owners,) and\u00a0Carbone\u2019s Sausage Market and Deli (closed)\u00a0was catty-corner to the Subway, across 38th. I\u2019m getting dizzytized.<\/span><\/p>\n

Perhaps by default, The Edgewater has worked it\u2019s way up the list and is the last of it\u2019s kind left standing. To the folks from the neighborhood, The Edge is an institution.\u00a0The Edgewater Inn,\u00a0The Subway Tavern\u00a0and\u00a0The Bonnie Brae Tavern\u00a0were the three premiere Denver pizza joints for years \u2013 before NY Pizza came to town. In fact,\u00a0Longo\u2019s Subway Tavern\u00a0boasted about installing the first pizza oven in Denver.\u00a0Ernie\u2019s Pizza Bar\u00a0was in a quieter neighborhood.<\/span><\/p>\n

I\u2019ve been going to The Edgewater for years \u2013 mostly for an 18 oz.? goblet of beer. The original owner Ben DiPietro usually had a long cigar protruding from the corner of his mouth.<\/span><\/p>\n

\"The<\/a>
The late Ben Dipietro, sans cigar<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Recently, I had a decent house salad. The spaghetti is acceptable (other pastas on the menu,) a bargain for about $7.50 including salad and bread. The pizza and calzones (canolis) are unmistakably Colorado style \u2013 sort of a hard, crunchy crust. The calzone I had was different. I\u2019m a NY Pizza fan, so\u2026 Also on the menu: appetizers, including fried-ravioli, wings and more, salads, and classic meatball and sausage sandwiches served with marinara. <\/span><\/p>\n

OK, the food is Edgewater\/Denver style. It\u2019s not California cuisine or NY fine-dining, so get over it – this is bar food. \u00a0The Edgewater is still a good watering hole, reminiscent of a coastal\u00a0bar. Well, it is sort of on the coast, the coast of Sloan\u2019s Lake. There seems to be a new \u201cfeel\u201d to the restaurant. Next time I\u2019ll order something else to see if the food has been elevated.<\/span><\/p>\n

In naming more of the good qualities of this restaurant, one would have to mention the cleanliness, the clever U-shaped bar, the copper Moscow Mule mugs hanging like relics from bar racks (The Edge offers premium Vodka Mules), and gracious, friendly and attractive waitresses. These women have perfected the art of public relations.<\/span><\/p>\n

The restaurant\/bar is one, in other words the restaurant tables surround the perimeter of the U-shaped bar. The exception being the new covered patio addition, which is a bit different. The main dining\/bar area has a number of very cozy booths nestled up against quality, rich woods.<\/span> The only thing I’d change is the worn, grey veneer of the lower bar. Wood matching the window trim would complete the interior.<\/p>\n

From the Neighborhood Gazette
\n \u201cAs the reputation of the Edgewater Inn grew, it was rumored that high ranking Denver police officials would usher celebrities like Dean Martin and Frank Sinatra into the Inn after hours. Frank was said to have proclaimed that the Edgewater Inn had the best pizza in Denver.\u201d\u00a0Read more\u2026<\/a><\/span><\/p>\n

I\u2019m all for supporting this Edgewater\/Denver institution.<\/span><\/p>\n

Happy Hour specials! Customers can park across the street in The Edgewater\u2019s lot.<\/p>\n

*Doing research years ago I ran into some documents suggesting that the lake and park were simply called Sloan Lake and Sloan Lake Park, rather than Sloan\u2019s.<\/p>\n

The Edgewater Inn is a TrueItalianTable recomended<\/strong> authentic Italian restaurant.<\/a><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

\u201cAs the reputation of the Edgewater Inn grew, it was rumored that high ranking Denver police officials would usher celebrities like Dean Martin and Frank Sinatra into the Inn after hours. Frank was said to have proclaimed that the Edgewater Inn had the best pizza in Denver.\u201d <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[5],"tags":[1341,1342,323,764,214,509,1340],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/lasvegasbuffetclub.com\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/7971"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/lasvegasbuffetclub.com\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/lasvegasbuffetclub.com\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lasvegasbuffetclub.com\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lasvegasbuffetclub.com\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=7971"}],"version-history":[{"count":319,"href":"https:\/\/lasvegasbuffetclub.com\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/7971\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":9713,"href":"https:\/\/lasvegasbuffetclub.com\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/7971\/revisions\/9713"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/lasvegasbuffetclub.com\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=7971"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lasvegasbuffetclub.com\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=7971"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lasvegasbuffetclub.com\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=7971"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}