SEDALIA, Colo. — Blink and you just might miss it.
Sedalia is a small town about 30 miles south of Denver, with a downtown just a few blocks long.
But what it might lack in size, Sedalia makes up for in heart.
"I've been everywhere in the country and this is just one of my favorite places in the country," Dawson Devries, who grew up in Sedalia and still lives there today, said.
Denver7's Natalie Chuck met Devries at Bud's Bar, a local staple in the community that was established in 1948.
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"A lot of our locals, this is their table," Amber Jachetta, a bar tender and waitress at the bar who also grew up in Sedalia said, while pointing to a round table in the bar. "They come in in the morning and afternoon and they sit there and talk about whatever's going on that day."
Bud's Bar is cash only, does not serve french fries, and reportedly has one of the best burgers in Colorado.
This town founded on ranching in the late 1800s feels like a place frozen in time. Yet, sprinkled between the pieces of history are some new beginnings.
Encanto, a Mexican restaurant next to Bud's Bar, opened earlier this year. Laritza Bernal, Encanto's owner, was also born and raised in Sedalia.
"It kind of came out of nowhere," Bernal said, describing why she opened up the restaurant. "I grew up here, and we were driving by and we saw the place up for lease and I called the landlord."
Step into the restaurant and you will likely see Bernal standing behind the counter by herself, acting as the front of the house, back of the house, head chef, dishwasher and anything else the business needs.
"Definitely one of my number one priorities was like making it pop, making it look good... But I definitely need to figure (out) more pop and how to bring people in a little bit more," Bernal said.
While Sedalia has managed to stay quite small, the areas around it are booming and locals fear it is only a matter of time before their hometown sees the same fate.
"There is talks about putting townhomes close to here. A lot of people aren't very happy about it," Jachetta said.
Meanwhile, Benal said, "It's still very small, so I can't say it's evolving the way some of the other smaller towns around the area are evolving. Not yet."
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