In the 1950s, Loveland residents and travelers along west U.S. 34 knew the double-barrel Quonset Hut on the north side of the highway as the Fawn Hollow Store, offering gear for those enjoying the outdoors or a few items for the night’s home dinner.
From the 1970s to the early 2010s, residents knew it as the Bohemian Cottage Restaurant, a place to pop in for some European grub. But since 2012, it has stood empty, remembered only for what it was.
Now, a Loveland couple is looking to what it one day will become without erasing what came before it.
“When you walk the property and you see how much work and money they put into landscaping … and then you learn the history of the people who were in here and have lived their lives, you don’t want to take a building like that — that has so much life in it — and just forget about it,” said Ann Tonia Weiss.
“This building is iconic to Loveland,” Brandon Weiss said.
The couple, who bought the property and the home above it several years ago, are working to turn it into a a self-pour beer garden and cocktail lounge as a place for families to spend time together all while taking in the historical weight of the 75-year-old building.
The double barrel Quonset hut along the highway
The building itself is a World War II-era Quonset hut built by the Stran-Steel company, according to a historic landmark nomination written by Ron Sladek, president of Tatanka Historical Associates. Records don’t show where the building was acquired, Sladek wrote, speculating that it could have come from a commercial retailer or even the Colorado State University campus, which was starting to sell its own surplus Quonset huts to the public at the time.
The two-story building combined the hut with a more traditional building, with the ground level being wood-framed and the double-barrel Quonset placed on top to form the upper floor and roof, according to the nomination letter.
Sladek wrote that the building is an “exceptionally rare” example of a Quonset hut in the state, writing that most appeared as single-barreled buildings that were on the ground, rather than forming the second floor.
“The architecture is what is so eye-catching about it,” Sladek told the Reporter-Herald. “That double barrel … Quonset roof is really unique for this era.”
The business was originally owned by George Lee, a WWII veteran who worked in Loveland as an auto repair mechanic in the 1920s and 1930s before opening his own shop in the 1940s. Lee and his wife Mary bought the property and moved into a house nearby in 1947. Three years later, they opened the Fawn Hollow Store, selling supplies for those heading up the mountains — including camping, fishing, hunting and other outdoor recreational activity items — as well as groceries and other merchandise.
The Lees sold the property in 1960 and, until 1967, the store was operated by different owners. The building briefly became the Fawn Hollow Cafe from 1974 to 1975 before it was transformed into the Bohemian Cottage Restaurant in 1975, offering fine German and Czech cuisine, according to the nomination letter. The restaurant was first owned and operated by Jaroslav and Anna Skoupy, who were followed by Imrich and Lubica Lampert, all of whom appear to have been immigrants from Czechoslovakia, the nomination letter adds.
However, in 2012 the Lamperts sold the business and the Bohemian Cottage Restaurant went with it, ending decades of service in the Loveland and rural Larimer County community.
That is, until over a decade later.
The Weisses and their vision
Ann Tonia and her husband Brandon bought the property along with the home overlooking it two years ago.
The high school sweethearts have lived in Colorado for several decades after bouncing around to several locations throughout their life. They lived in Parker for 21 years where Ann Tonia owned a yoga and aerial yoga studio, something she said was important in coming up with the experiential idea of the business they are building inside the old Bohemian Cottage.
“My motto is 100% you don’t just live life, you don’t just go dine; when we go (places), my kids’ hard rule is no phones, we experience it,” she said. “We want to experience it from the staff coming to serve us, interaction with other patrons … and really enjoying the food in each other’s company.”
The two moved to Loveland two years ago, buying the home that overlooks the old Bohemian Cottage along U.S. 34 in an attempt to downsize. They initially didn’t plan on buying the old building as well as their new home, but when they learned the home’s previous tenants owned both, they decided to follow suit, Ann Tonia said.
“We wanted to buy a small house in Colorado and then another house on the coast somewhere,” Brandon said. “So we got two houses, it’s just our southern property is only 500 feet south.”
The Weisses decided to revive the building, following on the dream of the previous owners. Ann Tonia said the couple who owned it before them had dreamed of bringing the old building back to life, but illness and other life difficulties made that impossible.
While the couple was initially unsure if they wanted to buy the old building along with the home, they spoke about it to each other as if they had already decided to buy the property, Ann Tonia said
“I mentioned that to my husband, like gosh we’re talking like we already own it, maybe we need to go take another look,” she said. “I walked the garden in its entirety and it just continued to speak to me. I just was inspired by every nook and cranny of this overgrown garden.”
Ann Tonia said their first thought was potentially to use the space to rent out through AirBNB, an idea she turned away from after walking through the several acres of gardens behind the building. Then when driving past it one day, Ann Tonia said she thought back to a number of self-pour tap houses the couple had been to and the idea “immediately clicked.”
This photo from 2012 shows the Bohemian Cottage restaurant after it closed after 37 years in business. (Reporter-Herald file photo)
The Weiss’ plan is to turn the downstairs area of the property into a self-pour taphouse with a beer garden out back, featuring an indoor seating area as well as an outdoor patio. The outside space will feature a number of gardens the couple has already begun working on, including a military garden to honor local veterans and a solarium up the hill. Upstairs, underneath the steel beams of the double-barrel Quonset, the couple plans to implement a full-service cocktail lounge, overlooking the gardens below.
The building has been added to the Colorado State Register of Historic Properties following Sladek’s nomination letter, something he told the Reporter-Herald will assist the Weisses with their plans in the form of grants and tax credits.
However it is not just the financial aspect that is important to the couple; they want to keep historical aspects of the building for people to learn about when they visit. This includes leaving the beams in the second floor visible and featuring antique wallpaper found inside, as well as a wall of photos and information right as you walk in.
Ann Tonia said they plan to open up the ceiling above the front door so patrons immediately see the unique double-barrel roof.
“From the moment you walk in I want people to start to experience it,” she said. “You’re not going to just grab a drink and sit down, you’re going to grab a drink and you’re going to learn about the history of the building. You’re going to learn about the people who dreamed before we dreamed about this place, the people who built this place, the people who, (for) 37 years, ran a successful … restaurant and then you’ll get to go experience our dream.”
When it came to the name, the Weisses originally thought about using the name The Mullet, as a nod to the phrase “business in the front, party in the back,” based on the combination of cocktail lounge and beer garden. But recently the idea changed to something they hope will further solidify their passion to share the history of the building.
The new business will one day be The Double Barrel.
Excitement for the future
The Weisses anticipate it will take around a year to fully realize the dream they have for the property. Brandon said they are working with Larimer County and other local agencies to finish all needed requirements to get the process underway. They will be working with a historic architect to maintain the integrity of the building’s history, something that adds additional time as it entails a more detailed process.
Though they hoped they could open in 2025, Brandon said they are now shooting to welcome customers in in the spring of 2026.
Sladek said he thinks what the couple is aiming to do is a wonderful idea, especially since they are working so hard to keep the history of the building alive and honor the heritage of businesses along the U.S. 34 corridor.
“The fact they are willing to undertake a rehabilitation of a historic building is admirable,” he said, later adding, “It’s going to really make it a special place in Larimer County and in the Loveland area.”
Brandon said he and Ann Tonia are eager that as more people learn about what they aim to do, they will share their stories of not just the Bohemian Cottage, but the Fawn Hollow Store before it.
Ann Tonia said this act of keeping the history alive is something near and dear to her heart, especially as she learned more about the building and its tenants.
“You can’t help but want to continue that legacy,” she said. “You want to continue this beautiful, rich history and put your mark on this building.”
More information on the building can be found at thedoublebarrelloveland.com. The Weisses are also looking for those who have history or memories from the old properties, which can also be shared through the website.
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