Colorado-based CraftWorks expands Old Chicago brand across eight states

Adrian D. Garcia

Sep. 27, 2016, 2:51 p.m.

An Old Chicago restaurant. (Courtesy of Old Chicago Pizza & Taproom)

The nation is set to get a smattering of fresh Old Chicago restaurants after the chain recently signed new franchise development agreements with three of its existing partners.

The nearly two dozen Old Chicago Pizza & Taproom locations are set to open in eight states in the West and South, the company announced Tuesday.

The expansion marks continued growth for Old Chicago, a company owned by Broomfield-based CraftWorks Restaurants & Breweries Inc.

Old Chicago reported record-breaking success in 2015 generating $254 million in revenue. The brand operates more than 100 restaurants in 24 states.

The Collier Group plans to develop seven additional Old Chicago locations in South Carolina and Tennessee; The Johnson Group plans to bring three restaurants to Wyoming and Montana; and The Nursariwala Group is expanding its portfolio with six new locations in Oklahoma, Missouri, Arkansas and Mississippi.

Business & data reporter Adrian D. Garcia can be reached via email at agarcia@denverite.com or twitter.com/adriandgarcia.

Subscribe to Denverite’s newsletter here bit.ly/DailyDenverite.

A troubled sidewalk in Globeville. Aug. 24, 2021.

Denver City Council will vote Monday on delaying sidewalk fee collection for six months

Voters approved the sidewalk fee in November 2022.

A rainy day by Union Station. June 7, 2023.

Denver sweater weather watch: It’s gonna get windy before cooler temps roll in for the week

Strong winds are expected Monday afternoon.

Anita Anderson works the floor during the 87 Foundation's revival show at El Chapultepec. Sept. 29, 2023.

One night at historic El Chapultepec, Denver’s once bustling but now shuttered jazz club

The show was meant to call attention to the cultural touchpoints that the city will lose if it doesn't prioritize the preservation of arts, culture and nightlife.

The signage on the corner of Evans and Abilene that lists the AAPI-serving organizations was damaged on September 22, 2023.

An Asian community center in Aurora was vandalized. In less than a week, the community tripled its repairs fundraising campaign goal

Happy Living’s GoFundMe campaign raised over $10,000 within a week.

The Regis Motel on East Colfax Avenue. Sept. 29, 2023.

Denver officials just closed an East Colfax motel that had been a chaotic home to people without one

The Regis Motel’s owner hoped to turn it into a shelter before its license was suspended over drugs, prostitution, theft and a homicide.

Blaire Caldwell (left) and Michael Dinh chow down during a moon cake-eating contest at the Far East Center's second Mid-Autumn Festival celebration. Westwood, Sept. 10, 2022.

Things to do in Denver this weekend, Sept. 29-Oct.1

The Lumberjack Festival, Suave Fest, the far East Center's Mid-Autumn Festival and much, much more!

A rendering of Denargo Market, a future development north of downtown Denver.

See the future of Denargo Market, a 17-acre development bringing thousands of new residents near downtown Denver

The first phase of the project just off Brighton Boulevard will include four acres of open space.

El Chapultepec's shuttered LoDo barroom. Sept. 27, 2023.

Live jazz returns to the old Chapultepec venue Friday night. Organizers say the special performance is about more than just the music

“How far down the line do we have to get before we realize that one of the very things that is sustaining us is also disappearing?”

Artist Cory Feder works on a new mural on the Auraria Campus. Sept. 26, 2023.

A new mural representing the Asian diaspora’s reach in the West will be unveiled at the Auraria Campus this weekend

The mural, sponsored by Colorado Asian Pacific United, seeks to continue publicizing Denver’s rich but often forgotten Asian history.

This box for used needles will be installed in this port-a-potty that's bound for use at a sidewalk encampment. Aug. 8, 2023.

Finding a restroom or water fountain isn’t easy in Denver — especially if you don’t have a home. A new report shows how the unhoused get by

Seeing feces on the streets? There's a reason for that: It's hard to get to a toilet.

Mayor Mike Johnston (left) speaks with David Sjoberg, a resident of an encampment at 22nd and Stout Streets that's set to be swept. Aug. 3, 2023.

Denver’s considering reallocating nearly $15 million toward mayor’s goal of housing 1,000 people

City Council will vote on the proposals pulling from COVID and American Rescue Plan funds in the coming weeks.

A plane flies over Confluence Park. Dec. 2, 2021.

Denverites will soon be able to fly directly to Monterrey, Mexico

Viva Aerobus is the latest airline to add operations at Denver International Airport.

Information on eviction support inside Denver's City and County Building. July 25, 2023.

Spike in eviction assistance calls leaves housing nonprofit Brothers Redevelopment ‘floored’

The nonprofit's hotline has seen an almost 60% spike in calls regarding rental and eviction prevention assistance, especially in Barnum, Westwood and Villa Park.

An A Line train pulls into RTD's Central Park station. April 12, 2023.

RTD’s A Line will still be called the ‘A Line’ because no one wanted to pay to rename it

A 2022 review valued the naming rights of the train to DIA at $1 million per year.

Kierre Dawkins works on a three-dimensional piece for the second-annual Black Love Mural Festival at Civic Center Park. June 3, 2021.

Four painters will battle it out at the Black Love Mural Festival at RiNo’s Art Park this Saturday

The event, born after the 2020 murder of George Floyd, will highlight Black women artists.

We’re telling scary stories in October. You should join us (if you dare)

Denverite presents "Denverfright: Tales of the Strange and Unusual" on Wednesday, Oct. 25, at the Bug Theatre.

Denver Police officers and members of the city's Street Enforcement Team hand out sweep notices to the residents of an encampment at Logan Street and 17th Avenue. Aug. 22, 2023.

Man charged in August shooting at Logan Street homeless encampment that was later swept by city

The shooting served as a justification for the sweep, though one witness interviewed by police said they'd never seen the alleged shooter.

A Safe Outdoor Space at Park Hill United Methodist Church, when it opened in June, 2021. This spot has since moved elsewhere.

At Denver’s sanctioned campsites, a model similar to Mike Johnston’s micro communities, roughly half of residents return to homelessness

Officials say their burgeoning "micro-community" program will strengthen the services needed for success.

Anna and John Sie with their grandchildren, Patrick and Sophia Whitten in their Denver home. Sept. 22, 2008.

Anna Sie remembered as trailblazing philanthropist across the state

“My mom’s story was a love story between an immigrant from Italy and an immigrant from China."

One of the Colorado Department of Transportation's "neon navigators" at the corner of Federal Boulevard and Howard Place/14th Avenue. Sept. 26, 2023.

Denver pedestrians give a collective shrug to CDOT’s ‘neon navigators’ safety campaign

CDOT this week recognized dangerous intersections in the Denver metro, including 14th Avenue and Federal Boulevard.

More Denverite

An Old Chicago restaurant. (Courtesy of Old Chicago Pizza & Taproom)