What’s happening at 2801 Welton St.?
Adrian Grace is moving in, that’s what.
Next month, the restaurateur who has operated a food truck since 2019 will bring What’s Happening Restaurant and Bar to Five Points. She’s taking the building formerly occupied by beer and charcuterie spot Goed Zuur, which closed in 2023 after a six-year run.
The chef will serve soul food in the 2,500-square-foot space, opening for lunch and dinner with occasional brunches. The core of the menu will be nearly identical to her food truck, with things like wings and a pulled pork grilled cheese.
But the bigger kitchen allows her to experiment with bites like a western burger, a patty topped with honey bourbon, crispy onions and barbecue sauce.
Grace also touted signature cocktails like “Trash Can in an Uber,” a mix of rum, tequila, gin and vodka blended with several fruity flavors. What’s Happening will also feature beers from local breweries like WestFax and Landlocked Ales.
“I would say we’re soul food meets American food,” she added.
What’s Happening will be on the same block as Welton Street Cafe, a longtime soul food joint that reopened at 2883 Welton last year.
Grace got her start as a server for IHOP, eventually moving up to management and taking jobs with national chains like Del Taco and Chiles. But a case of pneumonia and an ensuing heart attack led her to reevaluate.
During her recovery, the idea for What’s Happening Catering was born. In 2019, she hit the festival, event and wedding circuits.
Though the truck will go on a hiatus once the restaurant opens, she said it could come back in the future once her and her staff are able to get in a good groove on Welton Street.
“I love what I do. There is not a moment that I’m not always thinking about it,” Grace said. “I dream food.”
She said the name comes from her sister, and a lot of the decor, activities and hospitality mentality comes from her family. Grace grew up in Los Angeles with a big one — her grandmother had a whopping 22 brothers and sisters.
“My sister, she is always answering the phone like ‘What’s happening?’ It was catchy for me,” she said of her restaurant’s namesake.
“When I first came out with What’s Happening, everybody was like ‘Is it from the show?’ And yeah, that too, absolutely,” she said, reminiscing on viewing with her loved ones. “I grew up on those shows: What’s happening!!, Good Times, The Jeffersons.”
The space itself is an homage to that upbringing.
One wall is clad with posters of Denzel Washington, Janet Jackson and movies and shows. Another features quotes from the likes of Malcolm X and Barack Obama. A third has a photo of Kobe Bryant and Allen Iverson alongside a banner marking the Denver Nugget’s 2023 NBA Championship.
“I’m a caterer, and we decorate and we do things,” she explained. “That’s why this is such a dream for me. Because nobody can really stop all my ideas.”
But issues getting the place open nearly did.
Grace signed a five-year lease a year ago and has been paying about $9,000 in rent each month. First she had issues working with Denver’s permitting staff on getting a new hood, and she had to put in a grease trap. Those two alone cost around $85,000.
“It’s been hard. It’s been frustrating,” Grace said. “Thank God for my husband… He’s heard a lot of cuss words from me.”
But with opening just over a month away, she said it’s an “honor and a privilege” to be in the area. She wants to help usher in a new energy for Welton Street and spur continued revitalization.
“I think that Welton Street needs to turn that corner and change a lot of the way that it looks,” she said, suggesting more flowers, trees and statues honoring jazz musicians as things to add. “I think that definitely we can create a vibe here to where this street starts to move in the right direction.”
