Arapahoe Cafe and Pub Home Page

Both the Town and the Cafe were doomed to disappear under the rising waters of Lake Dillon. Many of the local citizens abandoned their homes and businesses to the bulldozer, or moved them to Frisco, Breckenridge, or the valley below the dam which later became Silverthorne. There were a few hearty souls, including the Bryant’s, determined to see a new Dillon Built among the pines on the shores of the lake which had forced them to move. In 1960 the Arapahoe Cafe, along with the Community Church, now the Dillon Historic Museum and a scattering of private homes were moved up the hill to the site of the new town. The move was not an easy one which explains why our floors are a bit uneven and the walls are somewhat out of square. The distinctive pine paneling is just as the Bryant’s installed it many years back.
From 1972 to 1987 many people knew the building as the Tappan House but in early 1988 under new ownership and management it was returned to its original name and reputation as a great mountain cafe, the “Arapahoe Cafe.” Today the Arapahoe Cafe is one of the historic landmark site buildings in Dillon.
This photo was taken in the 1950's.

The Arapahoe Cafe- The Story
Back in the early ‘40’s, when Max and Edna Dercum were developing the Arapahoe Basin Ski Area, Faye and Lenore Bryant were building their Arapahoe Cafe in the Old Town of Dillon. Around 1950, the Denver Water Board announced plans for the construction of a major reservoir which would flood the area.