Best of Boulder 2017

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Lucky’s Market Store Director Andy Gardner

Every year we put up our online survey, open throughout the month of March, and then wait to see how many people fill it out and who they choose as Best-of winners. And each and every year for two decades our readers’ have amazed us with their level of enthusiastic participation and insightful choices. If there were a category for best readers, Boulder Weekly’s would surely be the perennial favorite.

It’s one thing for a newspaper to report about the community and culture of a place like Boulder County, and another thing altogether for a paper to sit back and listen to how a place views itself. We love hearing about your favorite places to eat and shop. It’s fun to know who your favorite local characters are or what institutions you hold in the highest esteem. Most of the time we agree with you.

So here is a quick refresher of how the Best of Boulder survey works. With the exception of boxes marked as “Staff Picks” — which are selected by us, often to highlight great businesses in an area that doesn’t have its own category — all of the winners in all of the categories in this publication have been determined solely by our readers’ votes. Period. Boulder Weekly employees were allowed one vote in each category just like everybody else and we had no idea of what the vote totals were until the survey officially closed.

This is exactly why winning Best of Boulder has become the most coveted award in the region. It really is a measure of the quality of a business from the perspective of the community. BW isn’t saying you are great — although we probably think you are — it’s our readers, including your customers and friends, who are saying you are great. That’s why we list five winners in each category. And this year, because it is impossible to get every business in the County onto our survey, we have added a write-in winner as well. A write-in winner this year will be guaranteed a spot on next year’s survey — and it’s no small thing that people took the time to write in the name of a business. In categories where no write in winner is listed, it means no one business received enough votes to be deemed a true write-in winner.

Making it onto a Best of Boulder winners list in any category is an impressive accomplishment of which any business should be proud. Congratulations, winners. Your businesses help to make Boulder County the best place to live.

Check out each section for this year’s winners: Food, Drink, Entertainment & Culture, Fitness & Health and Retail.