Have you ever heard of Colorado style pizza? Neither had I. A trip to Beau Jo’s in downtown Fort Collins changed that for me. One of Brett’s friends recommended that we check out Beau Jo’s while in Fort Collins. We were both in the mood for pizza, so we figured why not. The red building and large red awnings, and smell of delicious pizza made Beau Jo’s a pretty easy place to locate. Beau Jo’s had both indoor and outdoor seating. The weather and light were both awesome outside (yes the lighting of a restaurant generally dictates where I sit, my friends who join me on these trips have learned that) so Brett and I chose to dine there. As we were walking outside, I saw that their salad bar was served in bathtubs. Interesting, I had never seen a bathtub salad bar before. I was definitely intrigued. When our server brought out the water glasses my intrigue grew further. They served their beverages in mason jars! In Madison and Athens I had encountered beverages in mason jars, and these were both great experiences. With Beau Jo’s being known for its Colorado style Pizza and Mountain Pies, Brett and I knew that is what we were going to order. Little did we know that ordering was much more involved than just saying I want a mountain pie.
You may be wondering what exactly is a Mountain pie? Well Beau Jo’s describes it as “Our Mountain Pie is The Legendary Colorado Style Pizza! A thick pie topped with mountains of ingredients and our hand rolled edge. Any leftover crust can be covered with honey and eaten as a dessert!” Beau Jo’s also offers a Prairie Pie. The Prairie Pie has thinner crust and less ingredients.
Now that you have selected your style of pie, you have to decide what size. Well by size I should clarify. At Beau Jo’s you order by weight. Anywhere from 1Lb to 5lbs. This was the first of 4 stops for the evening, so Brett and I split the 1lb. If I was only eating there, I probbbly could have finished a 1lb by myself. After your weight (size) is selected you have to decide what type of crust you want, ingredients, cheese, and herbs on top. There are thousands of combinations you can create, or you can make your own.
Beau Jo’s also offers gluten free options to its menu. I had never seen gluten free on a pizza menu before, so I thought you might find that interesting as well. Brett and I went with one of their house combinations, The Dude Ranch. This pie consisted of Ranch dressing, chicken breast slices, mushrooms, roma tomatoes, smoked bacon, Monterey jack and smoked provolone cheeses. You are looking at the 1lb version above. Here is a cross section of the delicious pie! Look at the crust! You could eat it with the pizza or you could save it for dessert! That’s right! Save your crusts, and when you are done with the pizza add honey to the crusts and you have dessert! I have dipped my pizza crust in garlic butter or ranch before, but never gone the swet route with honey. It was awesome! I think I might have found a new way to eat my pizza crusts. Honey on pizza crusts were great, but stay tuned to see what other desserts Brett and I found in Fort Collins.
That pizza looks amazing! I love all of your pictures. I just clicked through to your blog from google reader. ThenHeatherSaid shared your post, and I think your blog is fabulous!! Def. plan on reading more!
I never ceased to be amazed at the novel ways to enjoy pizza!
Thanks for the interesting write up on Beau Jo’s. I don’t know when I will be in Fort Collins, but I will file that away to remember. It’s always fun to find restaurants doing creative things with old stand-by’s. The built in dessert idea is a great one. My husband doesn’t really like dessert, this could be the solution. Thanks.
Ashley Mackay says
Ok, I almost cried when I saw this post on foodgawker! I used to live in Highlands Ranch where my most favorite pizza place on earth, Beau Jo’s, was. Unfortunately now it has been closed and turned into something really depressing like a carpet store. Honestly, the best pizza ever! Can’t beat the crust drenched in honey! Thank you for letting me eat through your pictures! I will make it to Fort Collins again someday.
Mmmmm, my older sister worked at Beau Jo’s in Denver when she was in highschool. We drank out of mason jars at my house because my mom thought it was such a cute form of glassware! So clearly, I have FOND childhood memories of sitting in a corner booth doing my homework and eating crust with honey while she waited tables. Their stuffed mushrooms are also to die for. Glad you found it!
erin @Naturally Ella says
I was half-sleepily scrolling through my feed reader and when I saw Beau Jo’s I had to stop.
They have a Beau Jo’s in Idaho Springs that I always go to when I’m out in Colorado. The place is always packed and with good reason! I really enjoy their pizza. Great write up! (and now I’m craving Colorado pizza which is bad considering I’m stuck in Illinois!)
jamie @ jamelafamela says
omg Taylor this looks incredible!
I love love love Beau Jo’s! They are starting to scatter across Colorado (the one in Idaho Springs is the first) but their pizza is always good. And if you pair it with any of the Tommyknocker beers then you are good to go! Thanks for making me hungry.
Nice photos!! the pizza looks so yummy!!
Mark Doty says
I live in Texas now, but went to School in Ft Collins. I miss the best Pizza in the US. I stop by everytime I go back to visit.
Wait, you didn’t take the Beau Jo’s Challenge? I’m sure they still do it!
2 people
1 hour
a 12-14 lb pizza
If you eat it all in one hour, you get a hundred bucks, your photo on the wall, and the pizza bill is free! I tried it once (I was quite the food hog when I was younger). My partner was a 6ft 6in basketball player.
We failed. We were so close! It was the crust that killed us, really. We got all the insides eaten, and half the crust. But we were both on the verge of vomiting when the 60 minutes passed. So sad!
jimt says
been there its great if you get try it you wont regrat it