Foodie Friday
There's a good reason Bon Appétit called Boulder, America's Foodiest Town. This weekly blog will help you understand why! Every Friday, check out downtown's food scene and all the incredible opportunities available to tantalize your taste buds! Check out this list of restaurant specials and promotions compiled weekly - just for YOU!
Food-Related Events and Announcements: October 16, 2026
Images courtesy of Boulder Lifestyle Magazine
Happy Friday, Foodies! Family Weekend is here, and downtown is ready for a little extra company. Whether you’re showing your family around Boulder or meeting friends before tonight’s inaugural Pearl Street SLAMpede, leave some room in your plans for a good meal. Saturday brings World Singing Day to the 1300 block of the Pearl Street Mall from 2 to 3:30 PM, along with CU football taking on Utah. Between all the cheering and singing, there’s plenty worth sitting down for. Pull up a chair and see what sounds good.
Congratulations to Lindsay’s Boulder Deli @ Häagen-Dazs on its feature in Boulder Lifestyle Magazine! The story follows owner Lindsay Shaw’s connection to food, from growing up scooping ice cream at her parents’ Häagen-Dazs shop to creating her own deli tradition here in Boulder. A CU alum herself, Lindsay has built a place that feels right at home during Family Weekend. Stop by for lunch and raise a sandwich to a familiar downtown favorite getting some well-deserved attention.
Anna Zoe and Zoe Ma Ma also received some love in the issue, with a story that takes readers back to the home cooking behind the restaurant. Anna and her son Edwin opened Zoe Ma Ma together in 2010, sharing the food he grew up eating and bringing her Taiwanese roots to Boulder. Her approach comes down to putting love into what she makes, something that feels especially fitting when gathering around a table with family.
If you’re heading downtown early, Lolita’s Market & Deli has breakfast covered. The Lolita Burrita wraps scrambled eggs with green chile, potatoes and cheese, plus your choice of bacon, sausage, chorizo or avocado. Pick your favorite and give yourself a few minutes to enjoy breakfast before the day gets busy. A full weekend calls for something a little more substantial than coffee on the way out the door.
Halloween is getting closer, and the Boulder Dushanbe Teahouse has a few seasonal flavors to help set the mood. Try Pumpkin Spice or Halloween Spice if you’re leaning into the season, or see how Chocolate Blood Orange and Autumn Mist fit into your tea rotation. Bring someone along for an afternoon break and compare your picks. There’s something lovely about catching up over a warm cup while the rest of downtown carries on outside.
For an Italian meal that’s easy on the budget, settle in at Sforno Trattoria Romana. The Pasta Sforno is baked with eggplant in a ricotta and tomato basil sauce, then finished with melted mozzarella. It sounds like the kind of dish worth arriving hungry for. If you’re starting with something to share, try the Fiore Di Zucca, tempura-fried organic squash blossoms served with spicy aioli. Let dinner take its time before heading back out for the evening.
Over at Fuji Cafe & Bar, the Fuji Don offers another reason to make room for a meal downtown. Layers of kinshi-tamago, or thin strips of egg, join your choice of topping over rice, with thinly cut seaweed to finish. It’s a good one to keep in mind when you want something savory between weekend plans. Take a seat and give yourself a proper lunch break before getting back to the festivities.
A little chocolate belongs somewhere in you rweekend plans, and Piece, Love & Chocolate has a tempting place to start. Their Salted Caramel chocolate cake slice pairs chocolate cake with a middle layer of salted caramel mousse. Order a slice to share after lunch, or make the cake itself your afternoon plan. You don’t always need a special occasion to stop for dessert.
For anyone whose ideal fall evening involves cooking at home, Savory Spice has some inspiration. Its limited-release Khao Soi Curry seasoning is a starting point for a silky coconut curry with mild heat, served over noodles. Finish your bowl with a crispy noodle nest and add fresh lime and shallots for a little brightness and crunch. Stop into the shop for the seasoning and recipe, then put an evening in the kitchen on your calendar. A warm bowl of curry sounds like a good reward for slowing down.
For a different take on something sweet and savory, try Björn’s Colorado Honey’s new berenjenas con miel de caña, a Spanish-style fried eggplant dish with honey. If eggplant and honey haven’t crossed paths on your plate before, this could be your reason to give the combination a try. Finding something unexpected is part of the fun of seeing what our downtown food community is sharing each week.
However your Family Weekend unfolds, we hope there’s time for a meal you enjoy and a little wandering between plans. We’ll see you downtown. SKO Buffs!
Ways to Help
Emergency Family Assistance Fund (EFAA) helps those in our community whose immediate needs for food, shelter and other basic necessities cannot be adequately met by other means, and supports their efforts toward financial stability or self-sufficiency. You can help them with a financial contribution, volunteering, or donating non-perishable food and cleaning supplies.
Emergency family assistance fund
Harvest of Hope Pantry's sole mission is food assistance. They offer clients a choice shopping experience where individuals select preferred foods within their shopping allowances. You can help them with financial assistance, volunteering or by hosting food drives.
Boulder Food Rescue aims to create a more just and less wasteful food system by facilitating the sustainable redistribution of healthy food that would otherwise be wasted to low-income communities, by bicycle. The best way to help them currently is to donate or volunteer.
Meals on Wheels Boulder provides nutritious meals and a daily well-being check to Boulder residents, regardless of age or income. The number one way to support them during this time is to contribute financially.