JOHN ARNOLF0
AUTHOR · STORYTELLER · ENTREPRENEUR
Meet John
John Arnolfo, author of The Silver Grill Cafe: An American Story and Counter Seat to Fort Collins History, is the proud son of Italian immigrants. In this memoir, Arnolfo’s storytelling skills shine as he describes starting and building a business, cultivating long-term relationships, taking sometimes-crazy risks, helping revitalize Old Town Fort Collins, Colorado, and preserving the legacy of Northern Colorado’s oldest and most beloved restaurant.
Mike Gress (L) and John in front of their new restaurant, 1979
John (L) and Mike Gress in the Grill, 2025
Colorado State University Alumnus
While growing up in California, John spent his summers at his cousins’ vineyard and grew to love the outdoors. He chose to attend Colorado State University, thinking the university was in the mountains and students rode horses to class. He was a bit disappointed to find that CSU is only near the mountains, and the students' preferred mode of transportation had two wheels rather than four hooves. Ever the optimist, John's disappointment quickly disappeared when he met his first true cowboys and the first snowflakes began to fall. John’s appreciation for CSU grew as he formed lifelong friendships, students became customers and employees of the Grill, and administrators held formal and informal meetings at its tables.
The Grill just a few years before John and Mike bought it.
Fort Collins Advocate
When John and Mike Gress purchased the Silver Grill in 1979, Old Town Fort Collins had lost much of its luster. John and Mike, on the other hand, felt at home in the neighborhood and saw its potential. They joined other Old Town business owners to form a group called Historic Old Town, which organized events to attract people to the area. That organization merged with another group of downtown Fort Collins business owners to become the Downtown Business Association, and John eventually served as its president. By the time John sold the Silver Grill in 2021, Old Town had become the jewel of Fort Collins, and John was proud to have played an active role in that transformation.
The Silver Grill today is part of the fabric of Old Town and a cherished community icon.
Entrepreneur
During college John started his own junk-hauling business. He also worked as a ditchdigger, waiter, realtor, and even a door-to-door gravesite salesman.
John’s love for a challenge and his experiences being his own boss and an employee convinced him to pursue his path as an entrepreneur. He and Mike Gress, John’s former college roommate, dreamed of owning a restaurant and fulfilled that dream in 1979 when they bought the Silver Grill Cafe in Fort Collins. When they purchased it, the Grill bore the scars of its 46 hard years, seated 40 customers in 1,300 square feet and employed only two waitresses. On their first day as owners, sales totaled $166. To keep the doors open, John and Mike worked two and sometimes three jobs each.
John eventually bought out Mike and ran the Silver Grill on his own. As sales grew—thanks in large part to the popularity of the Grill’s famous cinnamon rolls—and opportunities arose, John expanded the Grill from one to five buildings. Despite its growth, John continued the Grill’s tradition of serving delicious food, which he describes as “Colorado style: no glitz, no glory, just good home cooking at a reasonable price.”
Over his four-plus decades of ownership, John developed friendships with neighboring business owners, his suppliers, and many regular customers. Year after year, locals and visitors returned for the Grill’s food and small-town feel.
By the time John sold the Grill in 2021, it had grown to seat 160 customers inside and another 80 customers on a covered patio. Its 50-person staff served (and continues to serve) thousands of meals every week.
The now-famous Silver Grill cinnamon roll
Cinnamon Roll Expert
John truly started from scratch when working to develop a recipe and baking process for what would become the most popular item on the Grill’s menu: cinnamon rolls!
He started with a basic dough recipe from the only cookbook he owned: the Better Homes & Gardens New Cook Book. With no baking experience, his first batch had more in common with hockey pucks than pastry, but over time, he perfected his process.
Once customers tasted the improved version, business took off, and today the Grill bakes over 10,000 cinnamon rolls each month.
Accolades for the Grill
Over the years, the Silver Grill has received numerous accolades for its delicious food. Viewers of a Front Range television station voted the Grill the “Best Breakfast in Colorado.” Sunset magazine included the Grill in its list of three restaurants that make Fort Collins a great place to live. Esquire magazine named the Silver Grill one of the "100 Restaurants America Can’t Afford to Lose,” and USA Today named the Grill one of the “Best old-school restaurants in America.” John is thrilled that the accolades continue under the Grill’s new ownership.
Coach to Entrepreneurs
John enjoys sharing the many lessons he learned before, during, and after owning the Silver Grill.
Prepare for a Business Exit Before Needing One
John began thinking about life after the Grill years before he was ready to hang up his apron. He considered several exit strategies and took every opportunity to build a strong foundation for his exit by expanding and improving the Grill’s space and by building sales.
Plan For and Enjoy Life After Ownership
Even before John sold the Grill, he planned to fill his days with long-postponed travel, golf games, fishing trips, cooking for friends, and writing his memoir. Writing about and researching the past gave John the chance to share stories about some of the colorful characters who visited the Grill, to reconnect with family and friends, and sort through the nearly 20 boxes of memorabilia he’d collected over decades. The result is his memoir, The Silver Grill Cafe: An American Story and Counter Seat to Fort Collins History, is truly a labor of love.
Share What You’ve Learned
In his memoir John shares much of what he learned while working to improve Old Town Fort Collins and run a growing restaurant. In his new chapter as a storyteller and coach, John draws upon decades of experience to both entertain listeners and help them become successful entrepreneurs.
The Silver Grill Cafe: An American Story and Counter Seat to Fort Collins History