New Restaurants in Buena Vista, CO: What Their Buildings Kept

A longtime Buena Vista resident told Phil Palmer about growing up with a standing errand. His father would send him down to the Evergreen Cafe for French fries to go with steaks cooked at home. Ark Valley Voice reported the story in its July profile of Counter Culture, the restaurant Palmer opened in the old Evergreen space.

Stories like that one decided what got saved during the renovation. The same thing happened across town at 420 West Main Street, where Ada opened this fall inside an 1885 house. Buena Vista got two new restaurants in 2026. In both cases the owners started with what the old building already had and built the way they serve around it.

The counter that stayed put

The Evergreen Cafe served its last breakfast on a Saturday, August 24, 2023. When it closed, the Chaffee County Times reported that the cafe had been in Buena Vista for 50 years. Barb Zucker, its fourth owner, had run it for the last 20 of them. Bread + Salt, a Frisco breakfast restaurant, then opened a second location in what the Times called "the yellow cafe previously occupied by the Evergreen Cafe." That location was only there briefly.

Palmer took over the building next. He spent nearly three years renovating it, and permitting plus a new waterline added to the delays, according to the Chaffee County Times story on the opening. The wait went on long enough that "local Facebook comedians" started calling the place the "Forevergreen."

The Times reported that people kept asking him the same question the whole time: would the long diner counter survive the remodel? Ark Valley Voice reported that taking it out would have made the renovation easier. Palmer kept it anyway. He poured a new concrete top over it and replaced the tile underneath.

"Everyone has a memory of this counter. The counter to me means socialization. It's a place to sit. If you're just one person, maybe you get to know the person on your right or your left." Phil Palmer, speaking to the Chaffee County Times

The counter also gave the restaurant its name. According to the Times, Palmer tried out Counter Cafe and Counter Corner before a friend suggested Counter Culture.

How a 13-seat counter sets the rules for the room

The counter has 13 seats, and the Times describes the renovated dining room as "built around" it. The rest of the room is set up for the same thing the counter does, which is getting people to talk to each other:

• No public internet. The restaurant doesn't offer Wi-Fi to customers.
• Black-and-white TV. The screens play old black-and-white programs, not news or sports.
• Room between tables. The Times says the layout of the building is still quirky, but the dining room was laid out with wide aisles and enough space between tables for people to talk without feeling crowded. A curved seating area is meant for groups.
• No microwave. Staff arrive as early as 5 a.m. to cut potatoes by hand, and Palmer told the Times most of the food is made fresh.

Breakfast and lunch are served all day. The menu covers skillets, sandwiches, poached-egg dishes and other diner standards. The interior got a full update: new finishes, live plants, local artwork and a mural by Brian Henry, a tattoo artist from the town of Evergreen who works with Black Sage Tattoo. Records and portraits of musicians fill the walls, a nod to Palmer's years as a DJ and to the restaurant's slogan, "Eats & Beats."

The building's past shows up in his plans too. The Times lists Motown Mondays, Funk Fridays, oyster pop-ups and a possible collaboration with chef Eddie Sandoval among Palmer's ideas. Sandoval's Asian Palate concept got its start in the Evergreen's kitchen. These are plans for now. For the time being, Palmer has said the focus is on getting breakfast and brunch right.

A banker's house on West Main

Ada is on West Main Street, and its owners worked from the same starting point. On Friday, May 23, the Buena Vista Historic Preservation Commission named 420 West Main Street a Local Historic Landmark. The Chaffee County Times covered the designation.

The house is a Queen Anne built in 1885, known as the Ashley/Gabathuler/Dougherty/Aicher House. Charles Pinkham Aicher was a businessman, mine operator and prison guard overseer. He became president of the Buena Vista Bank in 1924, a year after he bought the house. The commission's recommendation describes what the house was used for in those years:

"His wife Pearl was a member of the Buena Vista Federated Women's Club, known as the Fortnightly Club, a voluntary organization responsible for establishing the first public library in town. Charles and Pearl, in their role as community leaders, also hosted numerous meetings, dinners, nights of card playing, and parties in their West Main Street home."

The Times reported that the house, once a bright pink, is now a deep forest green. A 2013 Chaffee County historic resource survey had already judged the property eligible for the National and State Registers.

How small rooms turned into a reservation-only dining room

Chef Zach Ramsdell and his wife Karly run Ada. He cooked in restaurants across Colorado and New York before coming back to Buena Vista, where he had lived before, Ark Valley Voice reported. They kept much of the original architecture: the woodwork, the tall windows and the small dining rooms. The article says the effect "feels more like gathering in someone's home than eating in a large commercial restaurant."

The Aichers' house was used for dinners and card nights, and the restaurant's format follows the same scale. The dining room is reservation-only so meals can go slowly. The bar and porch are first-come, first-served for anyone who just wants a cocktail or a glass of wine. Ark Valley Voice reported that the couple picked West Main over the busier East Main corridor on purpose, because a reservation-based restaurant suited the quieter street.

The cooking is seasonal New American, and the menu changes regularly. Dishes Ramsdell named for the opening menu included beef cheek, pork belly, octopus, crab and house-made gnocchi. Those may have rotated off by the time you go. The drinks list was built with the menu in mind, and pairings are available. The couple planned to open with about 10 employees besides themselves.

When Ark Valley Voice ran its profile in late July, the couple hadn't announced an opening date. Ada's OpenTable page now has diner reviews going back to late September 2026.

Before you go

The two places are open at different times of day, so you could go to both on the same day.

Ada takes dining room reservations through OpenTable, which lists the price range as $31 to $50. Ada posts updates on its Instagram account. Counter Culture's daily hours are on its online ordering page. Neither restaurant has posted a separate winter schedule, so check before you go once the season changes.

Counter Culture held its grand opening on June 2. Palmer and friends dressed as Oompa Loompas and went from business to business with a boom box, Wonka bars and golden tickets.

Julie Kersting grew up in Buena Vista and has watched buildings like these change hands. If you're thinking about restoring an older property in town, or you have your own Evergreen Cafe story, The Kersting Team at 8z Real Estate would like to hear from you. Work With Julie.