Chef Cliff Blavelt and his wife Cara Blavelt are opening the second location of their sandwich shop Odie B’s
By Dina Katgara, Denver Business Journal
Driven by a mission to create a recovery-friendly workplace that supports mental health and wellness, Odie B’s sandwich shop owners Chef Cliff and Cara Blauvelt are planning a second location in Denver’s River North Art District.
After opening the New York bodega-inspired sandwich shop in 2022 in Denver’s Sunnyside neighborhood, the husband-and-wife duo needed more kitchen space to sustain its original food service hours of 8 a.m. to 9 p.m.
Odie B’s, which was renamed from Bodega this summer after a trademark dispute, is awaiting city permitting for its larger 2,250-square-foot spot at 1350 40th St, Suite 180, inside the Novel building.
It is set to officially open in January, according to Cliff and Cara Blauvelt, who live about five blocks away from the new RiNo location.
“We really like being community-driven and living in RiNo,” Cliff Blauvelt said, “It’s a food desert – there’s not a lot around there like grocery stores, so we wanted to feed the neighbors.”
The space’s design will include urban and hip-hop influenced elements like a built-in awning and graffiti-style mural.
The menu features city classics like the Chopped Cheese as well as new creations like the Dirty Denver. Most of the menu can be made plant-based, which makes up 25% of the business, according to Cliff Blauvelt. The new location will allow them to extend its hours as well as offer grab-and-go options in the spring.
The business owners also focus on supporting employees going through active recovery and emphasize mental health. The couple, who has been in the restaurant industry for over 20 years, quit drinking about five and half years ago. Since then, Cliff Blauvelt became certified as a peer support specialist in mental health and addiction recovery.
“We see how our problems were exacerbated by the industry and how it was accepted, and we didn’t want to do that anymore. We figured we’re not the only ones and really want to put at the forefront,” he said. “At a lot of restaurants, it’s celebrated – if you do poorly, you do a shot and if you do well, you do a shot. It’s difficult, but we’ve created a place where it’s not a part of our culture.”
In a study across different professional sectors, the restaurant industry was found to be at the highest risk for illicit drug use and substance use disorders and the third-most at risk for heavy alcohol use, according to the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration.
Odie B’s currently employs 20 staff members at its first location and will add another 20 for the new RiNo location. Now, about 75% of the staff is in active recovery, according to a press release. The restaurant also has a wellness week for employees, where the owners bring in a chiropractor, acupuncturist, do yoga, and cook healthy meals and juice, Cara Blauvelt said.
“I think it’s definitely great that we can lead by example and that we are both in active recovery,” she said. “We are also there for people to ask us questions or who need advice, so it’s nice to be able to help employees who are also going through recovery.”
Odie B’s also worked with the Colorado Recovery Friendly Workplace Initiative, offered by the Colorado School of Public Health, a public health school from the University of Colorado, Colorado State University and University of Northern Colorado. It offers training and resources to help businesses support employees in treatment and recovery, according to its website.
“Being so vocal about it has been really important to us – anything we can do to help enriches our lives more than having 10 restaurants,” Cliff Blauvelt said. “The proof is in the pudding – you can have these issues and then still be able to flip your life around.”
The owners are also opening a fast-casual pasta shop called Boombots next door to their original restaurant at 2651 W 38th Ave. It will be more of a refined, elevated concept to Odie B’s while maintaining a focus on playful food combinations like Pastrami Agnolotti inspired by the Reuben sandwich. It is estimated to open in summer 2025 and will seat 45 inside with an additional 25 seats on the open-air patio.
