Meet Dan Vizzard of Revival

Today we’d like to introduce you to Dan Vizzard.

Hi Dan, we’re thrilled to have a chance to learn your story today. So, before we get into specifics, maybe you can briefly walk us through how you got to where you are today.
My mind tends to race a lot and I’ve always had trouble sitting still. So when most people talk about the chaos of working in a kitchen, I have always found it weirdly therapeutic. There’s not much else you can think about when there’s a full dining room and 20 tickets on the rail. I’ve worked in restaurants my whole life. I tend to do everything ass-backward.

When I saw everyone getting out of the restaurant industry due to the COVID shutdowns, I thought it would be a really good opportunity to get in. I spent the COVID shutdowns working on business plans and doing location research for restaurants. It was a very long and hard road but we eventually found our way into the space that is currently Revival.

Would you say it’s been a smooth road, and if not what are some of the biggest challenges you’ve faced along the way?
I think I was prepared for most of the hardships that come with owning a restaurant. I wasn’t naive to how hard of a field it is to manage. I always worked long, odd hours most of my life, so when I do a 15-16 hour day, I go to sleep happily knowing that I worked it for myself and not some corporate hotel management group.

A friend of mine John Adam, who runs a great steakhouse in Georgia called Bull and Barrel once told me “you will talk yourself blue in the face trying to convince people how hard you work.” At the end of the day, it has never been the work or the chaos that comes with owning restaurants. More money, more staff, and better equipment would always be great, but at the end of the day, we work with what we got.

I think the biggest struggle has been the loneliness that comes with ownership. At the end of the day, employees, managers, friends, and family don’t understand the struggle that comes with ownership, especially when it all stops at you. So when I’m staring at the ceiling hoping to make enough money the next day so the rent check doesn’t bounce, there isn’t a ton of people in my circle that can relate.

Alright, so let’s switch gears a bit and talk business. What should we know?
Revival is an approachable American restaurant in Uptown Denver. I grew very tired of the pretentiousness that came with fancy restaurants. I was cooking food that I couldn’t afford to eat. I was cooking for people that wouldn’t give me the time of day on the street. I opened Revival to attempt to be a neighborhood restaurant and bar that I would enjoy eating at. I think we specialize in twisting American classics through Colorado ingredients.

For example, Our bison gumbo uses a traditional southern recipe with a Denver twist. I am proud that we are beginning to support Denver musicians in ways that don’t just include paying for live music. We sell and play vinyl records on Thursday nights to promote the local music label Color Red Music.

Eddie Roberts, CEO of Color Red, and guitarist of The New Mastersounds has been a huge friend, a supporter of the restaurant, and a supporter of the Denver Community. He brings some awesome vinyl music to the restaurant Thursday night and we cook great food, drink great wine, and listen to great music. It’s pretty much the perfect vision we had an opening this restaurant 2 years ago.

Contact Info:

• Website: revival-denver.com
• Instagram: @revival.denver