06/15/2020
Death of a Neighborhood Joint
It is with a tremendous amount of sadness that I formally announce the permanent closure of Milo's Sports Tavern.
Milo's has been a part of this neighborhood in SE Denver for almost 20 years, and I have been the proud owner of the establishment for 11+ years. My wife and I always used to joke Milos was like our third child. We simultaneously raised two children and a neighborhood establishment in our decade plus run of ownership, and the similarities were striking. Oh, the stress, the anxiety, the fears, the joy, the laughter, the love...the sheer pride on a daily basis of growth and achievement. It rang true for our children and our Milo's.
I was always proud of Milo's being a "neighborhood establishment." I so wanted our neighborhood to be better because we strived to make Milo's better each and every day. We always didn't succeed, but we sure as hell tried. We worked with our local police districts to establish relationships to keep our patrons, our neighbors, and our community safe. We donated our time and resources to help our police officers, our charities, our parks, our streets, and our neighborhoods to be cleaner, safer, and better. In all, it was always what we wanted our business to be....a neighborhood joint.
In the end, Covid killed the party. A small, neighborhood, full-service restaurant isn’t made for masks, 6 feet of distancing and 50% capacity, not to mention new hiring and purchasing. The deal simply doesn't "pencil." Rents in Denver have skyrocketed. Food and commodity pricing is high and going higher. The labor thresholds are rising to levels that will fundamentally change the business model of a restaurant. And the always thin margins of our industry will now be even tighter and unsustainable for many of us.
It's easy to see that the restaurant industry is in crisis. Milo's is the poster child of the aftermath of this pandemic whitewash of the main street mom and pop joints that enrich our communities, both large and small, all throughout our great nation. I'm fearful of what is next in what I find to be one of the great (insert food pun) "binders" of our communities. Who doesn't like to share a beer with your co-worker after a long day? Wings and some adult beverages for the Avs big game? That sounds like a plan....Broncos Sundays may never look the same...I literally cried in sadness (don't fall down Raheem!) and hugged others in joy (you da man Von!) while sharing life long memories with so many at our neighborhood joint.
I think we all realized something in quarantine...we miss social interaction...we miss the human touch...we miss our friends and our neighbors...we miss our communities. I'm sorry we couldn't bring that back but thank you for bringing that to us for all these years. It's been a wonderful ride and we couldn't have had it without you Denver....
We love you; we thank you; we miss you...and remember, it's always better at your friendly neighborhood joint!
Be Safe and Be Kind!
Lights Out...
TC Clark
Milo's Sports Tavern
