A breakfast burrito with a side of veggie green chili is now on the menu at 1604 S. Cascade Ave. at seven in the morning. The counter that sells it, Bluebird Breakfast, sits next to the Principal's Office. The bar now opens at the same hour and pours coffee made with beans from Loyal Coffee, a local roaster. Just inside the front doors, Yellow Brick Bake Shop has a case of scones with Devonshire cream and preserves, cinnamon rolls, Danishes and Norwegian school bread. Everything is baked on site.
Breakfast at Ivywild School is only the visible part of the change. Since 2013, the old elementary school has been a joint project of Bristol Brewing Company and Joseph Coleman's Blue Star Group. This fall the partners split. The building went to one side, and the other side is regrouping across South Tejon Street. The corner people knew as one destination now works as two addresses, and each one keeps different hours.
Who Owns Which Side Now
The refresh took effect Monday, Sept. 21. With it, the Principal's Office, Ivywild Kitchen and Decent Pizza passed from Coleman to Mike and Amanda Bristol. All three were among the original partners when Ivywild School opened in 2013. By late October, Springs Magazine reported that the Bristols had full ownership of the school. Coleman is putting his attention on reopening The Blue Star across Tejon, along with other projects such as Stellina Pizza Cafe.
Mike Bristol explained the plan in the magazine's September report on the refresh. He said the founders hoped Ivywild would become "a gathering place where people can come together to enjoy music, art and artisan food and beverages created on site," and added, "It's inevitable that there will be some change after 13 years, but we absolutely plan to carry on that original vision."
New people are behind the food and drink. Front of House Manager Alyssa Mather built a new fall cocktail menu at the Principal's Office with Montana Horsfall of Craft Cocktail. New Executive Chef Paul Ryan revamped the Ivywild Kitchen menu a little, and Chef Jay Gust of Ascent Restaurant Group consulted on the refresh overall.
Some parts of the building stayed exactly as they were. The Bristol Pub, Salad or Bust, Axe and The Oak, and Odds & Ends are unchanged.
A Day That Now Starts at Seven
The building's own website says Ivywild School opens daily from 7 a.m. The early hours came back with the refresh. The October 22 Springs Magazine piece said the new counters and renewed early coffee service "officially mark the return of mornings at Ivywild." Bristol told the magazine who he thinks the early hours are for:
"Mornings in the building are quieter, so there's more of a relaxed coffee shop vibe for remote workers or neighbors meeting for coffee and a scone. But it's also great for someone who wants to pop in the back entrance and order a breakfast burrito to-go on their way to work."
Each counter keeps its own hours, so it helps to know which part of the building is open when you arrive. These are the hours posted on the Ivywild School eat page and drink page as of late October 2026:
| Counter | Hours |
|---|---|
| Bluebird Breakfast | Daily, 7 to 10:30 a.m. |
| Yellow Brick Bake Shop | Daily, 7 a.m. to 8 p.m. |
| Principal's Office | Sun–Thu 7 a.m. to 10 p.m.; Fri–Sat 7 a.m. to 11 p.m. |
| Ivywild Kitchen | Sun–Thu 11 a.m. to 10 p.m.; Fri–Sat 11 a.m. to 11 p.m. |
| Salad or Bust | Sun–Wed 11 a.m. to 7 p.m.; Thu–Sat 11 a.m. to 8 p.m. |
| Spark BBQ | Wed–Sun 11 a.m. to 8 p.m. |
| Bristol Pub | Sun–Thu 11 a.m. to 10 p.m.; Fri–Sat 11 a.m. to 11 p.m. |
| Axe and the Oak | Closed Sun–Tue; Wed–Thu 4 to 10 p.m.; Fri 4 p.m. to midnight; Sat 2 p.m. to midnight |
The hours show how the day now runs. Until 11 a.m., only three counters are serving, and all three are clustered near the front doors and the Principal's Office. The full building opens up at lunch, and by late evening only the bars are still pouring. Yellow Brick keeps the longest hours of any food counter, with savory breads, tarts, cookies, brownies and desserts after the morning pastries run out. The Principal's Office serves coffee into the evening next to its cocktails.
The Pizza Gap, and What Is Still Being Built
The biggest change regulars will notice is Decent Pizza. It is on hold, and in mid-January 2027 its space becomes The Restless Chef, a lunch and dinner spot with a menu that changes every quarter and draws on a wide range of food cultures and regions. "I hope to blow people's minds with a kaleidoscope of flavor when it comes to the food," Chef Ryan told Springs Magazine. That leaves the rest of fall and the holidays without a pizza counter inside the school.
Several changes announced in September haven't shown up yet. As of late October, these are still plans:
- Ivywild Kitchen moving to the north end of the building, next to a new indoor counter for Spark BBQ. The building's food page still lists Spark serving from a converted shipping container in front of the brewery.
- One tab for the whole building, through a single point-of-sale system, plus QR-code ordering with food brought to your table. Counter service will continue.
- Weekend brunch, more live music, art openings, and a private event and catering program.
Brunch is the item most likely to change a Saturday morning in the neighborhood. No start date has been announced, so for now the 7 a.m. counters cover weekends the same way they cover weekdays.
Across Tejon, the Other Half Is Coming Back
The other half of the old partnership sits at 1645 S. Tejon St. Coleman opened The Blue Star in Old Colorado City in 1995. It moved to South Tejon in 1998, when he partnered with Bristol, and closed in 2017. The Gazette reported that the Pikes Peak Regional Building Department issued permits in March for a $1.7 million remodel at the address.
According to the same Gazette story, the old restaurant was split into what amounted to two separate dining spaces. The reopened Blue Star will be one restaurant, with a bar and lounge on one side, a dining room on the other, and the same menu in both. No grand opening date had been announced as of that September report. The hope was late fall or early winter. The Blue Star's website still says "Fall 2026."
Gold Star Bakery is the clearest sign of the split for anyone used to buying bread inside the school. It stays with the Blue Star Group and has moved across the street. Gold Star's website says it is no longer inside Ivywild. It now runs preorder pickups at The Blue Star, Wednesday through Friday from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m., and has no storefront for same-day purchases. The old routine of walking in and buying a loaf has turned into ordering ahead and picking up across Tejon. If you want same-day pastry on the block, Yellow Brick inside the school is where to go now.
November on Both Sides of the Street
Each side of the street keeps its own calendar now. Here's what's left in November as of this week:
- Sunday, Nov. 8: Bristol Beer Choir meets in The Gym at Ivywild School. This cycle the group is singing music from "The Greatest Showman," and all voices are welcome.
- Wednesdays, Nov. 11, 18 and 25: Trivia night in the Bristol Brewing Pub.
- Monday, Nov. 16 at 6 p.m.: Stellina Pizza Cafe, one of Coleman's other projects, holds a Friendsgiving Supper Club.
- Nov. 24 and 25: Gold Star Bakery's Thanksgiving preorder pickups at The Blue Star.
Bristol Brewing's events calendar is the most up-to-date list of what's happening inside the school this month. If you're counting on Gold Star for the holiday table, the Thanksgiving pickup dates mean ordering ahead.
If you live near Ivywild and have been wondering how changes like these play out on your own block, talk to us. The Case Advantage keeps track of what opens, moves and reopens along the Colorado Springs and Teller County corridor, and we'll gladly tell you what we're seeing. Schedule a consultation.
