Comfort food chain Black-eyed Pea is making a comeback in Fort Collins, the business announced earlier this month — more than a decade after it closed a location in town. It will be located at 807 E Harmony Rd.
The property that the business is moving into was formerly an Outback Steakhouse. Director of Operations Elyse Shaw confirmed the team has keys in hand, and light cleanup and repainting are underway. Not too much work has to be done, as the building was remodeled fairly recently. It has a capacity for around 225 guests.
Staffing is well underway; the company has hired a general manager and is seeking four additional managers, and will then bring on servers and kitchen staff in the weeks before opening. They are targeting a November opening, pending liquor license approval.
While the chain once had over 130 locations nationwide, it struggled with bankruptcy in the early 2000s and started to rapidly close restaurants. Corporate employees Steve Shaw, Alan Laughlin, and Jim Shaw purchased the rights to all remaining Colorado locations, forming RMR Colorado.
With this reborn Fort Collins location, there will now be nine eateries in operation across the state. Right now, you can find Black-eyed Pea in Englewood, Lakewood, Westminster, Colorado Springs, Castle Rock, Pueblo, Northglenn, and Parker, its website shows.
“We’re so excited to come back to this city. It was a lease situation when we left 13 years ago, but we loved it here,” Mast shared. “I grew up in Fort Collins, I went to college here, and my dad (Steve) grew up in Greeley, so this is a kind of ‘home away from home’ that we’re excited to return to.”
