Friends,
I lived in downtown Lafayette from 2022 to 2024, on West Simpson Street, very close to South Public Road.
That stretch of Old Town became my backyard. Almost everything I loved was walkable. I spent a ridiculous amount of time exploring it, working from coffee shops, grabbing tacos, wandering into boutiques, and ending up in bars that somehow felt both new and like they’d always been there.
A few years ago, some friends in Boulder asked me to put together my favorite spots. They hadn’t spent much time in Lafayette and didn’t know how awesome it was. So I put this guide together for them, and then I realized it was actually useful. Maybe more people than just them would want it too.
People still ask me what there is to do in Lafayette, CO. So here it is: my totally biased local’s guide to Old Town Lafayette. The restaurants, coffee shops, bars, breweries, and shops I’d still send you to first.
I am not a travel blogger with a spreadsheet. I’m just a guy who lived there, made friends there, and still thinks this little downtown punches way above its weight.
Let’s go.
Things to do in Lafayette, CO, at a glance
In a hurry? Here’s the short version of Old Town Lafayette.
| Spot | Kind | What to do / order |
|---|---|---|
| East Simpson Coffee Company | Coffee / hang | Patio time. European-style seating, tree shade, outdoor fireplaces |
| Otis | Coffee | Cortado. Then whatever seasonal latte they're running |
| Teocalli | Mexican | Carne asada tacos. Some of the best I've had, period |
| Button Rock Bakery | Breakfast | The chorizo burrito. Get the homemade salsa |
| Foxglove | Bar | Garden cocktails (and as many AF drinks as regular) in one of the most beautiful rooms I've been in |
| Vintrey | Shopping | Adorable boutique. Say hi to Vanessa. Ritual's first retailer |
| Thalken | Shopping | Small, lovely, local goods |
| Public Wine | Wine shop | Stop in, say hi to Doug, leave with a bottle you actually want |
| Acreage | Ciderhouse / restaurant | Sunset mountain views, Stem cider, outdoor hang (short drive) |
| Odd13 | Brewery | IPAs and a chill patio |
| William Oliver's | Pub | Huge whisky list, open late, cozy |
My perfect day in Old Town Lafayette
If you’ve got a free day in Lafayette, Colorado, here’s how I’d actually spend it:
- Hang on the patio at East Simpson Coffee Company. This is such a great coffee shop. Extremely charming European-style patio, tons of seating, shade from trees, even outdoor fireplaces. It’s just a really nice place to sit and be a human for a while.
- Walk around Old Town. Do some shopping at Vintrey or Thalken. Pop into Public Wine if you’re feeling it.
- Lunch or dinner at Teocalli. Carne asada tacos. Trust me.
- If it’s evening: Foxglove. Walk the path with the arches, behind Vintrey, into a bar that feels like a secret garden hideout.
A few tips:
- Park once and walk. Old Town Lafayette is genuinely walkable. That is half the charm.
- Talk to people. Vanessa at Vintrey. Ty at East Simpson. Doug at Public Wine. This town runs on relationships.
- Save Foxglove for later in the day. They open in the afternoon. Perfect closer.
- Leave room for a burrito or a cortado you did not plan on. You will plan on them anyway.
- If you’ve got a car and a sunset: swing to Acreage after Old Town. Flatirons views, Stem cider, outdoor hang.
East Simpson Coffee Company patio. This is the hang. Photo: Jon
Best coffee shops in Lafayette, CO
East Simpson Coffee Company (best vibe, and my perfect-day starting point)
If Otis is where I go when I want a specific drink, East Simpson is where I go when I want to be somewhere.
The patio is the whole plot. European-style seating. Tons of room. Shade from trees. Outdoor fireplaces. It feels like a little village square somebody accidentally left in Colorado.
The shop sits in a historic building on East Simpson Street (Lafayette’s old commercial strip), and it has that neighborhood living-room energy that good coffee shops either have or they don’t.
Ty Hubbard owns East Simpson Coffee. He is an amazing entrepreneur, very community-minded, always hosting cool events, and extremely friendly. Worth talking to. If you only meet one Lafayette business owner on your trip, make it him (or Vanessa at Vintrey. Or both. Meet both).
📍 East Simpson Coffee Company · 201 E Simpson St, Lafayette
Otis (my favorite cortado in Lafayette)
Otis is my favorite place in Lafayette to get a cortado.
They also have some amazing seasonal lattes that are always worth trying. Don’t sleep on whatever’s on special. That is usually where the magic is.
In my Notion notes I called Otis the best coffee in Lafayette (fast wifi, lots of light). The cortado is still the reason I go back in my head first.
Friends at Otis. Cortado energy. Photo: Jon
📍 OTIS Craft Collective · 400 W South Boulder Rd, Ste 1100, Lafayette
Other coffee worth knowing
The Read Queen (bookstore + cafe) has a fun book collection and better-than-you’d-expect coffee. Easy Old Town stop if you want something to read with your drink.
The Read Queen. Books and better-than-expected coffee. Photo: The Read Queen / thereadqueen.com
BREW does creative lattes and has lots of seating if you need to work.
BREW Tea & Coffee Bar. Photo: BREW / brewduesouth.com
Brewing Market is more of a seating play than a coffee destination. Fine if you need space. Not where I’d send you for the drink itself.
Brewing Market. Photo: Brewing Market Coffee / brewingmarketcoffee.com
Best restaurants in Lafayette, CO (Old Town and nearby)
Teocalli (the tacos I still think about)
Teocalli has the best carne asada tacos I think I’ve ever had in my life.
I genuinely think they have some of the best tacos in all of Colorado, if not in the U.S. Fancy vibes. Amazing tacos. Prices cheaper than you’d expect for how good it is.
This is my lunch-or-dinner default in Old Town. If someone is visiting Lafayette and I only get one meal with them, we are going here.
Teocalli Cocina. Photo: Teocalli Cocina / teocallicocina.com
📍 Teocalli Cocina · 103 N Public Rd, Lafayette
Button Rock Bakery (massive chorizo burrito)
Button Rock’s chorizo burrito is massive, and they make a homemade salsa they give you with it that is really good.
In my notes I called it the best breakfast burrito in Lafayette. Lots of other goodies too. Same general area as Otis, so you can do coffee and a burrito without turning it into a road trip.
Button Rock Bakery. Get the chorizo burrito. Photo: Button Rock Bakery / buttonrockbakery.com
📍 Button Rock Bakery · 400 W South Boulder Rd, Lafayette
Community, The Post, and Morning Glory
Community (often called Community Supper Club) is the fancier-vibes dinner. Creative cocktails, great food, right on Public Road. Save it for a night you want to slow down.
Community. Photo: Community / eatatcommunity.com
The Post Chicken & Beer is comfort food heaven. Amazing gluten-free fried chicken, great beer, and it lives in the old VFW building that gave the place its name. This is the original Post.
The Post. Photo: The Post / thepostcolorado.com
Morning Glory Cafe is, in my opinion, the best breakfast joint in Lafayette. Beautiful back patio. Not on Public Road, so plan a short drive.
Morning Glory Cafe. Photo: Morning Glory Cafe / morningglorylafayette.com
Foxglove (my favorite bar in Lafayette right now)
Foxglove is just incredibly vibey.
It opened in June 2025 in the old apartment behind Vintrey Honest Goods, in a 1900 house on South Public Road. You get there on a path with arches. It already feels like a secret before you walk in.
Jordan Lewis (co-founder of Vintrey) turned that back apartment into a neighborhood bar and hideout with a pretty clear thesis: slow down, connect, feel like you belong. Not a velvet-rope thing. More Mad Hatter garden party than speakeasy cosplay.
And the design. Please go look at the design.
Denver studio The Made Shop did the architecture, interior design, brand, menus, art, and even the landscape as one cohesive fairy-tale narrative. (Baseline Design handled the construction documentation and permitting side.) Every single piece of the interior feels cozy and intimate and extremely well thought through. There are little details in the paintings, in the menu, in the lighting. Cool cozy lighting is a big thing for me, and Foxglove nails it. Music is always great. Prices are still decent.
They put as much care into spirit-free drinks as the regular cocktails. That matters. It is one of the most beautiful bars I think I’ve ever been to.
If you only go out for one drink in Lafayette, make it here.
Foxglove interior. Photo: Christopher Shaw for Baseline Design / Foxglove project
Foxglove details. Photo: Christopher Shaw for Baseline Design / Foxglove project
📍 Foxglove Bar & Hideout · 107 S Public Rd (behind Vintrey), Lafayette · Hours: Tue-Wed 4-9, Thu-Sat 4-10, Sun 3-8, closed Mon
Bars, breweries, and a wine shop worth stopping in
Public Wine (say hi to Doug)
Public Wine was started by Doug Wargo and Genae Lako. I’m friends with Doug, and he’s one of those people who makes a shop feel like a living room. Really sweet guy. Always worth stopping in and saying hi.
It’s a community-minded bottle shop more than a “wine bar performance.” Doug brings a long restaurant and bar background (and he built a lot of the woodwork in the space). Genae is a longtime Lafayette resident who helps make the place feel like it belongs to the town. Go ask what they’re excited about. Leave with a bottle.
Public Wine. Go say hi to Doug. Photo: Public Wine / publicwine.co
Inside Public Wine. Photo: Public Wine / publicwine.co
📍 Public Wine · 100 S Public Rd, Lafayette
Acreage (the sunset you drive for)
Acreage is Stem Ciders’ restaurant and ciderhouse on Horizon Avenue, a short drive from Old Town. Part production facility, part restaurant, part outdoor hang, with the Flatirons and Front Range sitting right on the horizon. Huge outdoor seating (deck, cider garden, Back Forty lawn), wood-fired food, Stem cider on tap, and honestly some of the best mountain views in Lafayette.
If Old Town is your walkable day, Acreage is your golden-hour closer. Go for a flight, stay for the sky.
Acreage at sunset. This is why you leave Old Town for twenty minutes. Photo: Jon
The overlook at Acreage. Hero energy. Photo: Jon
📍 Acreage · 1380 Horizon Ave, Unit A, Lafayette
William Oliver’s Publick House
William Oliver’s has a huge whisky selection and is open until 2am every single day. Cozy vibes. When you want a late night that still feels local, this is it.
William Oliver's. Photo: Visit Old Town Lafayette / oldtownlafayette.com
📍 William Oliver’s Publick House · 201 N Public Rd, Lafayette
Odd13 Brewing
Odd13 is great IPAs, chill patio, rotating food trucks. One of the easiest Old Town brewery stops, and basically next door to East Simpson energy.
Odd13. Photo: Odd13 Brewing / odd13brewing.com
📍 Odd13 Brewing · 301 E Simpson St, Lafayette
Cellar West and Westbound & Down
Cellar West for farmhouse / mixed-fermentation beers. Bratwurst food truck is often there and very good.
Cellar West. Photo: Cellar West / cellarwest.com
Westbound & Down for good beer and good food on the east side of town.
Westbound & Down. Photo: Westbound & Down / westboundanddown.com
Shopping in Old Town Lafayette
Vintrey Honest Goods (say hi to Vanessa)
Official spelling: Vintrey (not Vintory). Adorable little boutique. Vintage, handmade, ethically sourced goods. Everything feels intentional and high quality.
Vanessa is a friend who works at Vintrey, and she’s wonderful. Go say hi to her.
Full disclosure, and a soft spot of mine: Vintrey was Ritual Organics’ first-ever retailer. I’m co-founder and CEO of Ritual, and seeing our whipped tallow sitting on their shelf still makes me weirdly emotional in the best way. If you’re browsing, you might spot the jars. That little store believed in us early, and I will never forget that.
Foxglove lives behind the shop, so Vintrey is both a shopping stop and the doorway into my favorite bar night in town.
Vintrey in winter. Go say hi to Vanessa. Photo: Jon
Ritual Organics on the shelf at Vintrey, our first-ever retailer. Soft spot unlocked. Photo: Jon
📍 Vintrey Honest Goods · 107 S Public Rd, Lafayette
Thalken
Thalken is the other shopping stop on my perfect-day loop. Small family-run boutique energy. Handmade jewelry, candles, local goods, that kind of carefully chosen shelf. Perfect after coffee, before tacos.
Thalken. Photo: Visit Old Town Lafayette / oldtownlafayette.com
📍 Thalken · 101 1/2 E Chester St, Lafayette
More things to do in Lafayette, CO (beyond eating and drinking)
Old Town is not only restaurants. If you’ve got extra time:
- Festival Plaza on South Public Road is the community living room for summer events, music, and gatherings.
- The Collective (arts center) at the north end of Public Road for free exhibits.
- Lafayette History Museum on East Simpson if you want the coal-mining story behind the cute downtown.
- Waneka Lake and the trail network if you need water, a walk, or a reset between meals.
- Peach Festival if your timing is lucky. Lafayette takes peaches seriously.
The point of this town, though, is still the walkable loop: coffee, shop, taco, maybe a cocktail under good lighting.
Lafayette, CO FAQ
What are the best things to do in Lafayette, CO? Walk Old Town. Coffee at East Simpson or Otis. Shop Vintrey and Thalken. Eat at Teocalli. Catch a drink at Foxglove or William Oliver’s. If you want outdoors, Waneka Lake or Acreage for the views.
Is Old Town Lafayette walkable? Yes. That is the whole point. I lived on West Simpson and walked basically everywhere that mattered.
What are the best restaurants in Old Town Lafayette? Teocalli first for me (carne asada tacos). Then Community for a nicer dinner, The Post for fried chicken and beer, Button Rock for the chorizo burrito, Morning Glory for classic breakfast.
What’s the best coffee shop in Lafayette, CO? Depends what you want. Otis for my favorite cortado and seasonal lattes. East Simpson for the best hang and that European-style patio.
Where should I get a cocktail in Lafayette? Foxglove. Designed by The Made Shop, tucked behind Vintrey, as many spirit-free drinks as classic cocktails, ridiculously beautiful room.
Is Lafayette, CO worth visiting from Boulder or Denver? Yes, especially if you like walkable downtowns more than big-city nights. Old Town is compact, friendly, and full of independently owned spots.
What is Lafayette, CO known for? Historically, coal mining. Today: a revitalized Old Town, the Peach Festival, and a ridiculous density of good independent restaurants, coffee shops, and shops for a town its size.
The real reason I still talk about this place
I’ll be honest with you.
I don’t miss Lafayette because I can’t find good tacos or coffee somewhere else. (I can. Hawaii has ruined me in other ways.)
I miss it because for two years, a few blocks of Public Road and Simpson Street became a place where people knew me. Vanessa. Ty. Doug. The bartenders who remembered what I liked. The patio tables that turned into long afternoons.
That is what a great little downtown does. It gives you a reason to leave the house, bump into people, and be known.
So if you’re in Lafayette, CO, go do the loop. Cortado or patio coffee. A little shopping. Carne asada at Teocalli. Maybe Foxglove when the lights come up.
And if you see Vanessa or Ty or Doug, tell them Jon said hi.
Sending love from Hawaii (but mentally still on that East Simpson patio),
Jon
About me: I’m Jon Caliguire. I surf, work from home on the North Shore of Oahu, and I’m co-founder and CEO of Ritual Organics, a tallow skincare brand. I lived in downtown Lafayette, Colorado from 2022 to 2024. Photos credited to a shop or photographer are theirs; the rest are mine.