Former Site of Grand Junction Gym Now Serving Elk Burgers and Beer

A building which used to house a Grand Junction hard-core gym now offers 24 rotating taps and a wide assortment of burgers and other eats.

I used to go to 417 Monument Road to lift weights and run on a treadmill. Well, the gym, Ultimate Fitness, is long gone. Now, though, the building has been totally revamped and features Grand Junction's newest restaurant.

Handlebar Tap House is now open! As a matter of fact, they just opened... today... May 3, 2018. Doors opened to the public moments ago at 3 p.m. Judging by their Facebook action, Grand Junction residents are loving it.

Glancing at their menu, it seems most selections are somewhere in the $8 to $11 range. Menu items include burgers featuring Western Colorado beef, Great Range bison, and Western Colorado elk. They even have chicken breast burgers and veggie patties. Which beers do they offer? It's a long list:

• Eddyline
• Alpine
• Palisade
• Alesmith
• Ballast Point
• New Belgium
• Odell
• Oskar Blues
• Two Roads
• Crooked Stave
• Telluride
• Melvin
• Ska
• Ninkasi
• Ommegang
• Avery
• Denver Beer Co.
• Left Hand
• Prost
• with more coming soon.

Over the last 40 years, I've seen a couple of things go in at 417 Monument Road. We used to go there to watch major movies such as The Empire Strikes Back, Poltergeist, Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan (one of my favorites), The Golden Child, and tons more. The building used to be the Monument Twin Cinemas. After that, it was Ultimate Fitness. For a little while, it was a dance studio. Check it out now.

Handlebar Tap House offers an interesting menu, and a ton of great beers. To be honest, beers are not my thing, but the menu sure looks good. The location is excellent. Here's wishing them a very prosperous future.