As contractors come in and out of the building, Fathima Dickerson, co-owner of Welton Street Cafe, which she says will reopen soon, makes her way around the tables and ladders that scatter the floor as they finish up construction.
Bright pops of orange, blue, red and yellow surround the walls of what will soon be a bar. Finishing touches are made on an iconic mural featuring Dickerson’s mother for the new location. Although the business has not sold alcohol since Dickerson was a kid, the new menu will feature Caribbean-style drinks inspired by the family’s roots in St. Thomas.
The business’s opening date is dependent on the completion of its final inspections, which are approaching. While Dickerson remained tip-lipped about the exact date Welton Street Cafe will reopen, she does say that folks will be shocked to see a completely new interior design from the old location, starting with the new waiting area.
“Newer restaurants normally don’t have waiting areas,” Dickerson said. “It was hard for us when we had to serve curbside and stuff at the old location. Some people don’t have cars or the physical ability to stand, so that’s what we considered when thinking about implementing one.”
Welton Street Cafe closed its doors at its previous location at 2736 Welton Street in 2022. After experiencing landlord and HVAC issues, it became increasingly difficult for the family to continue their business at their previous location.
“People think we’re building a similar space, but it’s entirely different,” Dickerson said. “The old space had outdated infrastructure and we’d have to squeeze past each other all the time to get orders out. We had carpet at our old location and were always sweeping to make sure it was clean for customers.”
The soul food staple is one of the very few Black-owned businesses that still exist in historic Five Points. The neighborhood, named after the five-point intersection on Washington Street, 27 Street, 26th Avenue and Welton Street, has long been home to Denver’s Black community.
However, what began as a community for migrant railroad workers in the 1870s has undergone dramatic transformation as a result of urban renewal and gentrification. Although many other businesses and residents have left, Welton Street Cafe has been serving the Denver community since 1999. The business has been praised for its welcoming atmosphere and is often described as a place to do more than just eat.
“Growing up in the Midwest, catfish dinners were a way of life,” said Don Middleton who works at the State Farm in Five Points. “Fast forward many years: moving to Denver and living in the Five Points neighborhood, I was pleasantly surprised to find the Welton Street Cafe. When it closed, I was heartbroken, thinking I’d not get a chance to taste that wonderful cooking again.”
Middleton fondly remembers the moment he found out the restaurant would be returning. “With the recent pop-up shops and watching the progress of their new location, I’m eagerly waiting for their reopening,” Middleton said. “You can bet the Welton Street Cafe will be back in my restaurant rotation as soon as they’re open!”
The new location has been completely renovated, making it a better space for the business to continue serving the community. With twice as many kitchen appliances and more room to double their previous capacity, the long process of renovations has ensured that when the Welton Street Cafe reopens, it will no longer have to deal with the issues it faced at its previous location.
“At our last location, both our HVAC and plumbing were outdated,” Dickerson said. “But when we walked into the new location, it was nothing but dirt and concrete. We put in everything from underground plumbing to the light fixtures and exit signs. We really started with an eggshell and put in the work to make this a space that we deserve to give the community,” said Dickerson.
The space for the new location was introduced to them by a repeat customer who was a broker at the time. It took a while for the family to get accustomed to the new area, but Dickerson says they’ve all put a lot of effort into the new building.
“We do a lot of the clean-up work ourselves,” Dickerson said. “When you are the person who has to wait on deliveries, sometimes we can sit here all day. When our chairs got delivered, they were on five different pallets and we had to unload every single chair and put tops on each one.”
The family has faced many challenges throughout their renovations, including the grueling fundraising campaign to raise enough capital to build out its new space. Its public GoFundMe campaign has raised $117,446 to date from community members who desperately want to know that the Welton Street Cafe will reopen.
“Our campaign, The Last Man Standing, means that supporters stand with Welton Street Cafe,” Dickerson said. “It is about the history, the community, the culture and the district. People supporting us means we made it; whether we reopened or not, we made that lasting impact and impression. People are forever going to be like, ‘You remember Welton Street?’”
Dickerson laments that restrictions for buildings in the Five Points district have also made the renovation process more difficult to navigate.
“This move has been a part of my next breath, my veins and my movement,” Dickerson said. “When I turned over the keys [on] April 1, 2022, and the door shut, I collapsed. Being the face of a business gets overwhelming and overstimulating because you have to perform every time you walk out of the house. People will recognize me and ask about the restaurant and forget the identity of what the family is going through behind that.”
Although the process has been fraught with mixed emotions, the outpouring of support and heartfelt messages from customers has served as a beacon of hope. It reminds the family that, while the journey has been difficult, the positive impact its business has had on the community provides them with a sense of accomplishment and encouragement.
“Sometimes when God wants you to move, he physically moves you,” Dickerson said. “Us moving here is by design; the more I sit in it, it was very much by design. We’ve got a wide variety of applicants from all different backgrounds, ethnicities, and cultures. Hearing the response for why they want to work at Welton Street is affirming. We’ve gotten many responses about wanting to work at a place where they can genuinely be there for the community and liking the personal touch that we offer here with our service.”
After Welton Street Cafe reopens, the business will continue to expand how it serves customers. Dickerson, however, wants to emphasize that this does not necessarily imply more locations.
“A lot of people want Welton Street to have many locations, but you cannot duplicate Welton Street Cafe,” Dickerson said. “We plan to expand our brand through service, not as a franchise. Another restaurant concept would not be an identical concept to Welton Street. Since we’ve been closed, what’s kept us alive is the brand. We want to be more knowledgeable in our field to help preserve history in a Black district. We want to make sure we leave our footprint in Five Points.”
