Monica LaSalle, Nederland. Originally a restaurant that burned to the ground in 1978, The Branding Iron was resurrected out of the ashes of the Stage Stop closure in Rollinsville, Colorado, at the beginning of July 2018.
Owner Heather Hatwan refused to be shut down by building maintenance problems in her Rollinsville location, the Stage Stop, and decided to move her whole operation to the more cosmopolitan location of Nederland.
Renting in the location that originally housed such legendary establishments as The Wolftongue, 1st Street Pub, Assay Office and the previous Branding Iron of the 70s (owned and run with an iron fist by Vivian Ayers), the menu is a mix of American fare with a Creole influence along with anything from Japanese to Mexican. Where do the ideas for daily specials come from? Well, they come from Heather’s nightly dreams.
Unique menu items such as bacon cheddar pancakes and the dream omelet (made to order, it includes 1 or two eggs over easy inside each one) all came from visions from the dream world that manifest themselves under Heather’s magic touch to become favorite menu items.
The restaurant features local music with a weekly Thursday night bluegrass pick from 6 to 9 p.m. as well as the occasional weekend band. There has also been known to be some enthusiastic bingo playing on the event schedule, which can be found on Facebook.
Heather and her staff are dedicated to being active members of the community by participating in benefits for those in need and running a family-friendly establishment.
Located at 35 E. 1st Street and serving breakfast, lunch and dinner 7 days a week, from 9 a.m. to 11:30 p.m., with great food, great atmosphere and an outdoor patio and bar, The Branding Iron is the place to be as the weather warms up on a snowy spring day.
(Originally published in the April 4, 2019, print edition of The Mountain-Ear.)
