Fire on the Mountain has fired up its third Denver location, opening September 16 at 10155 E. 29th Drive, Suite 160, in the Central Park neighborhood's Eastbridge Town Center. It's the wing chain's first Denver expansion in seven years, and the new spot came together fast by stepping into a space that chef Troy Guard's TAG Burger Bar had just vacated.
Owner Andrea West said Central Park stood out as the right place for the brand's next move, according to 9News. TAG Burger Bar closed its Eastbridge location in late July as part of broader financial pressure on casual neighborhood dining concepts in Denver, and Fire on the Mountain moved quickly to take over the remaining four years on Guard's lease, as reported by Denver Westword.
Because the space was already a turnkey restaurant with a transferable liquor license, the new location opened in just six weeks. That's a sharp contrast to the five-month buildout Fire on the Mountain needed for its West Highland shop and the 14-month construction slog behind its Wash Park opening, the same Westword report notes. The chain held a friends-and-family soft opening the week before its official September 16 debut.
A Neighborhood Hub With a Patio and Shared Plaza
The Central Park location includes a large heated outdoor patio that opens into a shared plaza alongside neighboring restaurants and shops. West said the community came out in full force for the opening, and called the spot a fun place for people to linger after dinner, per the station's report. The interior carries the chain's familiar colorful look, and the location has plans for a mural down the road.
Like Fire on the Mountain's other Denver outposts, the menu centers on signature wing sauces alongside a monthly rotating sauce and dry rub, plus burgers, salads and sandwiches. The bar pours from 14 rotating taps and mixes craft cocktails, and for now the location offers dine-in service and walk-in takeout only, with online ordering, phone takeout and delivery expected to roll out in the coming weeks.
From Portland Roots to a Third Denver Address
Fire on the Mountain traces back to January 2005 in Portland, Oregon, founded by Jordan Busch and Sara Sawicki. Denver franchise owners West and Craig Oberlink, both former Arkansas River rafting guides who knew the founders, brought the brand to Colorado, opening the first local shop in West Highland in April 2012 at 3801 W. 32nd Ave., according to Denver Westword. A second location followed in Washington Park in August 2019 at 300 S. Logan St., making Central Park the chain's third Denver site and its first new one in seven years.
The restaurant's name and its music-themed interior pull from the 1978 Grateful Dead song of the same title, a nod the chain's founders and owners have carried since the brand's earliest days, per Wikipedia. The live-music-inspired atmosphere is part of the Central Park experience, and the company describes its approach to growth as deliberate, built around lasting ties to each neighborhood it enters.
Sourcing Standards and a Spicy Challenge
The chain serves Colorado grass-fed beef and emphasizes sustainability practices. For those chasing bragging rights, Fire on the Mountain also runs the El Jefe Challenge, requiring diners to sign a liability waiver before attempting to eat 15 wings with El Jefe, the restaurant's spiciest sauce, within three minutes; finishers earn a t-shirt and a spot on the wall of fame, according to Wikipedia.
Beyond the kitchen, the company points to its Charity Partner of the Month program, through which it has donated more than $300,000 to non-profit organizations and local causes in the Denver community, per the University of Denver Magazine. The lease transfer that made the Central Park opening possible was brokered by John Livaditis of Axio Commercial Real Estate on Fire on the Mountain's behalf, with SRS Real Estate Partners and JLL representing TAG Restaurant Group, according to a Reddit thread citing BusinessDen's coverage of the deal.
