Bacco Boulder: Trattoria and Mozzarella Bar in NoBo

Tucked into the corner of Yarmouth and Broadway, Bacco is one of North Boulder's most authentic Italian restaurants. The trattoria, found online at baccoboulder.com, opened in 2010 and brought one of the first dedicated mozzarella bars in the United States to Colorado. It is a neighborhood spot where the food is honest, the atmosphere is relaxed, and the cheese is made in-house.

The Story Behind Bacco

Bacco is the work of chef and owner Marco Monnanni. He started cooking in his native Rome at age 14, attended hotel school in Verona, and went on to work in kitchens across northern and southern Italy, Switzerland, Germany, New York, and Las Vegas before settling in Colorado. After running Antica Roma, Monnanni opened Bacco in Boulder to bring the kind of cooking he grew up with to the neighborhood. The name and the cooking both nod to traditional Italian cuisine, with no shortcuts and no fuss.

The Mozzarella Bar

The mozzarella bar is the centerpiece of the menu and the thing that sets Bacco apart from other Italian restaurants in Boulder. Diners can build custom platters pairing fresh house-made fior di latte mozzarella with cured meats, marinated vegetables, roasted peppers, and tomatoes. The cheese is soft, milky, and made on-site rather than shipped in. It is one of only a handful of true mozzarella bars in the country, and it remains the most distinctive part of a meal at Bacco.

The Rest of the Menu

Beyond the mozzarella bar, the menu reads like a classic Italian trattoria. Antipasti, salads, and a rotating list of pasta dishes anchor the offerings, alongside meat and seafood mains. The kitchen leans on simple preparations and good ingredients rather than heavy sauces or oversized portions. There is a full bar with Italian wines and cocktails, and the restaurant runs happy hour specials during the week.

Atmosphere

Bacco is a casual neighborhood restaurant rather than a special-occasion-only destination. The dining room is warm and unpretentious, the kind of place where you can stop in after work in jeans or settle in for a longer dinner with friends. It works equally well for a quick happy hour bite at the mozzarella bar or a full sit-down meal.

Practical Details

Bacco sits on the corner of Yarmouth and Broadway, walking distance from a lot of NoBo neighborhoods and easy to reach by car or bike. There is a parking lot on site.

Address: 1200 Yarmouth Ave, Boulder, CO 80304 Phone: (303) 442-3899 Hours: Monday–Thursday 4:00 PM – 8:00 PM, Friday–Saturday 4:00 PM – 9:00 PM, Sunday closed Website: baccoboulder.com Instagram: @baccoboulder

Why It Works

Bacco has stayed quietly consistent for more than a decade in a city where restaurants come and go. The mozzarella bar is the headline, but what brings people back is the simple fact that the cooking is real Italian food made by someone who has been doing it his whole life. For 80304 residents looking for a relaxed weeknight dinner with a glass of wine and a plate of fresh mozzarella, it is hard to do better in the neighborhood.