Bonanno sells struggling Milk Market food hall to Sage Hospitality

1 year ago 12

They might be his concepts, but Frank Bonanno is out of the Milk Market.

The prominent Denver restaurateur has sold the food hall he opened in 2018 in the Dairy Block project at 1800 Wazee St. to Sage Hospitality.

Denver-based Sage, which owns and operates the Dairy Block’s Maven Hotel, took over operations Aug. 10.

“Our sales were half of what they were before the pandemic,” Bonanno told BusinessDen Thursday. “It just economically did not make sense anymore.”

Bonanno said he and Walter Isenberg, CEO of Sage Hospitality, have known each other for 30 years. They both said the deal was a mutual decision, and said discussions about a sale started in June.

“They’re better equipped to deal with something that big,” Bonanno said. “They’re a big organization, so they probably see things and are able to fix things we’re unable to. They have a lot of experience behind them.”