Style and substance
Lazy Susan's replaces Batch Slapped out East; a year-round vendor market is born off Academy Blvd.; Momo Korean authentic at Briargate; Cocktails After Dusk delights downtown + more food & drink news
Keep an eye out for the imminent opening of Lazy Susan’s Cocktail Lounge at 5859 Palmer Park Blvd. in the former Batch Slapped Brewery/Cidery space. (Follow their social pages for updates.)
The venture comes to us via Susan Gates and Stephon Black, who’re also co-owners in Bloom Ultra Lounge downtown. Gates replaced Black’s former partner Colter Lillich at Bloom, and Black also operates the drive-up unit the Samich Shack located in the parking lot outside of Lazy Susan’s. He was also once involved in the Slingers Smokehouse & Saloon at 5853 Palmer Park Blvd., which is now Buzzed Crow Bistro.
“We believe places close together create synergy,” Gates says, “because people love to go out to more than one location in a night. We felt the need for this over here. A lot of times at Bloom, people will tell us they wish we were on the East side. This opportunity fell into our laps for us to bring a similar concept out here.”
But, she clarifies, “this is not Bloom. It’s more like your best friend’s house. Comfy and cozy, with a sense of humor. Easy. Our niche is great customer service and a friendly environment. This is not as high end as Bloom, it’s right underneath that.”
She notes six beers and six-each red and white wines on draft, plus four signature batched cocktails. One is the Boozy Suzy, made with vodka, lemon, watermelon, strawberry and St.-Germain Elderflower Liqueur topped with Prosecco. Two popular Bloom cocktails will be available: the Bee Sting (which I wrote about here) and Rosé All Day. “It’s a fun menu,” she says, “with popular modern drinks and some classics.”
For food, they’ll serve build-your-own charcuterie boards plus dips, sandwiches and soups. “The whole concept is like you’re at your friend or girlfriend’s house,” she says. “It’s party snacks, simple eats, nothing over the top, but plated beautifully.”
Lazy Susan’s plans to be open daily from 11 a.m. to 10 p.m., and until 2 a.m. on Fridays and Saturdays. Before my phone chat with Susan concludes, I ask about the decor and she mentions having fun and being humorous in a beautiful way, with “quirky things hidden all over.” I decide it’s something I should see before I write, so I run over to snap some photos, which speak for themselves. Stylish! Enjoy the visual tour:
For vendors, by vendors
In a first-of-it’s-kind effort locally that I know of, a group of growers, producers makers and food truck folk are uniting for a year-round, outdoor vendor market. It will exist in a newly carved out stretch of land off Academy Boulevard, in between Vickers and Montebello drives at 0 La Montana Way, at the Erindale Drive intersection.
The businesses are operating individually under the banner of All Seasons Farmers & Artisan Market, created by husband and wife Trey and Gennie Oyervides. He’s a general contractor and she’s a former Realtor who owns Springs Soap Co. As vendors themselves at other area markets, they came to realize the need for a year-round market to fill in all the typical dead months for cottage industry people and producers of items other than seasonally grown produce (which obviously caters only to our growing and harvest seasons — here they’re pulling from Smith Farms for now).
When I start to sense the uniqueness of this concept as I’m talking with Trey, he says, “yeah, nobody’s done it.” We’re standing inside the perimeter fence of All Seasons at a preview display on Oct. 16, when he and Gennie had hoped to be fully open. Factors have led to them being a bit behind schedule, so they’ve announced a Nov. 1 official opening and are taking the next couple weeks to complete necessary landscaping to create mini grass park areas (including a tiny dog park with a water feature), a chicken coop (for fresh egg picking), seating spaces, swings and fire pits. Among the vendor tents and a few Tuff Shed kiosks that will host other regular vendors, I’m told there’ll also be wintertime heating tents for guests.
Regular hours of operation will be 10 a.m. to 2 p.m., Wednesdays-Sundays and 5-9 p.m. Thursdays-Saturdays. Though in time Trey talks about hosting events such as holiday markets or even private functions. There’s a lot of flexibility to the space in which he’s been moving small boulders with heavy equipment over the past few weeks and laying concrete pads for a circular booth set-up. The market says it can host roughly 25-35 vendors at a time. At this sneak peek, I can see cuteness in progress, and the mountain view above the park space is panoramic and gorgeous on this fall day.
A handful of vendors show up to help with the market preview and I sample what I can from each before I run out of time (as I’ve arrived midway through and they’re soon closing). Here’s some notes from chats and samplings, not all as expansive as this first one:
• BrewCHA Tea Lounge: I’ve been following this business since I first had samples at the recent Sober Soiree. They were impressive and unique to town. Owner Fatima Concepcion, who’s a server at Chaang Thai — under its owner Suwanna Meyer, her “sister,” denoting a cultural deference to elders and a familial friendliness — launched BrewCHA in late July. She’s traveled abroad to taste and hand-select tea sources like a Fortmason blend of Darjeeling and Chinese teas from English brand Fortnum & Mason. It’s highly aromatic with orange essences. She serves it traditionally, hot with milk, or in a mocktail she’s created that I order. It consists of the black tea (shots pulled off an espresso machine, interestingly) iced and lightly sweetened by organic cane sugar, with a pinch of lavender salt and garnishes of a fresh orange segment and a stem of rosemary grown at her home. It’s lovely.
I want to try her Thai tea that she’s also ventured to source at its site, mainly because she notes that it doesn’t have all the added flavorings and food coloring found in commercial Thai teas served at restaurants; hers is all natural and organic. One drink she makes with it is the strikingly sea blue Cha Thai Anchan with butterfly pea flower (for that color), oat milk, vanilla, cane sugar and toasted coconut flake garnish. That adds alluring aroma to the nose and the Thai tea flavor you love from the commercial tea is much cleaner and focused, less sweet, and delightfully pungent.
Lastly — because I simply haven’t had enough caffeine in my day, and who doesn’t want to triple-fist drinks around a market? — I buy the Matcha Chaga, which pairs the popular powdered green tea ( hers is meticulously sourced and again organic) with the healthful, wild-foraged forest mushroom plus cinnamon, cacao and a touch of monkfruit for balancing sweetness. (You gotta watch it come together in the below video — gorgeous.) It’s green tea-bitter like I love my matcha (which is to say not overly sweetened as at too many coffee shops) and earthy and muddy in a good way. I use chaga at home so I’m familiar with its faintly woody, umami flavor. This is only one of BrewCHA’s eight creative matcha drinks, so I can’t wait for more excuses to visit All Seasons to try more of Concepcion’s drinks. I feel like she’s taken a cocktail approach to their design. They’re very well conceived, take proper time to make, and are beautifully presented. Down the road, she envisions her own brick-and-mortar spot, hence the “lounge” part of BrewCHA’s name.
• Creole Roots: This food truck is a known quantity, winning this year’s People’s Choice Award at the 719 Battle of the Food Trucks back in June. Though they mainly serve on our local military bases, expect to see them around this new market. Proprietors the Jones family (parents and two children) came to the Springs as Hurricane Katrina refugees in 2005 and loved it out here, so they stayed.
I order the green chile chicken étouffée because I love seeing the twist on the classic with the incorporation of the local terroir of Pueblo green chiles. I’m told the family was originally gifted some green chiles by a friend many years ago, and didn’t really know what to do with them, “so we made étouffée.” They liked it, and their customers loved it when they offered it on their truck. Next to their seafood gumbo, it’s their most popular item. (Go NOLArado!)
• On the Rocks: This mobile bartending company is new to our area as of late August as an offshoot of a business started originally in Panama City Beach, Florida. I meet cofounder Zachary Mutsko who tells me he’s moved here to set up one of many envisioned satellite locations. The Springs is a target demographic and marketplace that his company feels has the right potential to support their customizable LED light-up mobile bars for events. He assures me that’s the reason he’s here, as he hates the cold weather otherwise. (… So, what about an outdoor market appealed to you?… Haha!)
Since On the Rocks can’t serve booze at this market, Mutsko will develop weekly rotating mocktail menus with fresh ingredients, locally sourced where possible. He cites the number of people who prefer NA beverages now and is happy to cater to healthier drinks. At this preview, I try his blueberry ginger spritz made with local honey and organic ginger and berries, which he steeps and strains and adds to soda water for a clean, light sipper with true blueberry flavor and a touch of ginger zing.
That’s pretty much all I have time for before the market closes, so I miss sampling from The Rockies Birria food truck, who I have yet to try and appears to be relatively new on the scene. I do manage to buy a couple bread loaves off The Sourdough Boulangerie as they’re packing up — another known, respected brand in town that lends this market some early credibility with its presence. And I briefly meet the Coronas, who’re a husband-and-wife team behind an upstart business named Kingdom Gardens. Their booth is a mix of handmade craft items (some incorporating pretty pressed flowers) and a line of seasoned, roasted, organic walnuts that are first soaked (to strip out phytic acid, called an antinutrient). In the example of the Spiced Mocha Eminence flavor, the nuts are then lightly coated with grass-fed salted butter and maple syrup plus cacao powder, cinnamon, ground espresso, sea salt and a touch of cayenne. They’re a healthy, low-sugar snack that’s simple and easy to like.
Ranch Foods Direct Oktoberfest + a ground beef special
This month we’re honoring Oktoberfest with this Jägerschnitzel recipe from John Kuespert, Area Chef for SSA Group, who operates food services for Cheyenne Mountain Zoo, Flame Cafe and Royal Gorge Bridge. Chef Kuespert has German/European heritage and used to serve this recipe at a restaurant named Prost Kitchen + Bar in Tampa, Florida. Head to Ranch Foods Direct for your pork tenderloin and tallow to make this at home during Oktoberfest. As always, mention you are a Side Dish subscriber for 5% off your full shopping basket.
* Ranch Foods Direct is running a special for the month of October on 80% lean ground beef: 20-pound bundles of 1-pound packages for $100. Individual one-pound packs for $5.50.
Dine & Dash: Momo Korean
Momo Korean is going on two years in the Briargate corridor (at the Union Boulevard intersection) with an approachable, condensed menu of Korean staples and American favorites. Those range from sides like japchae and tteokbokki to mains like short ribs (galbi) and a few seafood plates such as pan-seared mackerel and stir-fried squid. Momo’s strip-mall space is bright, clean and shiny with stainless steel wainscoting and light colored composite wood accents by way of flooring and furniture. What immediately stands out is excellent service, but more on that in a moment.
First, we dive into a dish of spicy bulgogi served in sturdy metal dish ware that includes side garnishes of jalapeño threads, raw garlic slivers and an extra sauce (in addition to already delivered banchan accouterments). The thin-cut beef’s textbook tender and soft, delightfully chewy with mixed sautéed veggies and more enjoyable with liberal use of the garnishes. The jalapeño plays off the existing mild-level heat and garlic sharpness spikes the Korean red chile seasoning. I ask for more side sauce which I douse on everything, particularly enjoying its earthy depth and acidic enhancement. Sips of our oksusu-cha corn tea make a nice pairing for their roasty and faintly nutty sweetness.
We also order Momo’s jjajangmyeon made with the traditional noodle that has the same name — it’s a thick, spaghetti-like wheat noodle — and topped with the rich and somewhat tangy black bean sauce that defines the dish. It would be a vegetarian item if not for diced pork in the mix, with zucchini and onions. It’s mild in flavor, not spicy anywhere, served with a fried egg on top and pickled daikon garnishes with additional sauce in a more concentrated form. The color of the black liquid next to the lemon-yellow danmuji (the daikon) makes for beautiful presentation.
Back to the exceptional service: We receive lots of perfectly timed check-ins and are brought extra banchan and sauces by request with sincere smiles at every turn by stepbrothers and servers Jason and Michael. (First names-only used by request.) They answer our questions thoroughly and tell me that Momo’s menu reflects how their family eats at home. I talk to them a bit on my way out and they emphasize they want all credit to go to the “Momo family” (not their actual last name). But especially to Jason’s dad and Michael’s step dad, who is the chef/owner and unseen hero in the back-of-the-house.
“We are able to do what we do because my step dad provides a lot of inspiration for us every single day,” Michael says. “Without him we couldn’t keep up. He helps us both keep a positive attitude every day… I didn’t even know I could serve people until my step dad taught me the ropes… This job has honestly changed my life and it’s provided me with so much opportunity to grow as a human and I’m so grateful I’ve been able to experience this with my family especially.”
I’m touched by his sincerity and transparency, not expecting to encounter insight into the family dynamic that’s helping shape two young men in the service industry. (One more reason I love doing my job, meeting people and creating experiences over food and drink.) Michael elaborates on challenges they have, sometimes stepping on one another’s toes (metaphorically), but always coming back together as a family. “We love serving our customers the best we can, and we take huge pride in maintaining a genuine environment,” he says. It shows.
Bites & Bits
• Great American Beer Fest 2024 award winners were announced this past week. Though many Colorado breweries made the list, none medaled from Colorado Springs this year. Westword has this full list of Colorado awards. One Springs connection, at least, is Burns Family Artisan Ales, who earned a bronze award in a barley wine, strong ale or old ale category. Congrats to their head brewer Charles McManus who had been at Phantom Canyon for many years before taking the job at Burns earlier this year. (Which started a wave of brewer migrations around the Springs in his wake.)
• Springs Magazine staff selected their favorite 15 happy hours around various sections of town, with an invite to vote on a people’s choice nod as well. (Related to this newsletter, a few Side Dish Dozen members made their list: Red Gravy, Wobbly Olive and Odyssey Gastropub/Nacho Matrix.) See details for all choices in their article.
• Our local Big Table branch has relaunched after an “organization-wide redesign process” that put the industry-outreach agency on hiatus since February of this year. Now, with new leadership in place — including former local industry Chef Ben Gallegos-Pardo — referrals for those in-need are reopening on Oct. 21.
• This next blurb is really just an image, captured by me outside the Switchbacks’ stadium at the ground level of Experience at Epicenter Apartments. It pretty much speaks for itself, for now:
• Chef’s Roots, which is to say Chef Supansa Banker, posted earlier this week to announce her first official mobile event: at Phil Long Ford Chapel Hills (1565 Auto Mall Loop) on Oct. 26 from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. for their Trunk N' Treat event.
• A new eatery that replaces Spice Island Grill at 10 N. Sierra Madre St. downtown will soft open this weekend on Oct. 19, at 4 p.m., according to Fox21. It’s named Ówàḿbẹ̀ African Restaurant and Lounge and will serve Nigerian food says the news station. I haven’t yet made contact (running short on time this week), but I will aim to get by soon for backstory and more details. I can say it’s awesome to see more African food representation in town, though, building on the momentum of recently opened spots like ArkCleoRich African Kitchen (which I reviewed back in January) and Taste of Ethiopia (which I reviewed in April). The standard-bearer and OG ambassador in town is of course the always outstanding Uchenna.
Side Dish Dozen happenings
• Odyssey Gastropub: Join us for Whiskey & Wings Wednesdays — eight wings and a shot of a rotating weekly whiskey for just $16.
• Rasta Pasta: For the month of October, mention Side Dish Schniper and get a free beer, wine or rum punch with your entrée.
• Red Gravy: Our owner Eric Brenner is a Chef of the Year nominee in the Colorado Restaurant Association & Foundation HOSPY awards. Vote here, before Oct. 24.
• Eleven18 Latin Tapas Bar: Chef Brother Luck is hosting a Thanksgiving Dinner Turk-torial series starting Nov. 5, with multiple instructional dinners available. Book early, here.
• Wobbly Olive: Half-priced cocktails from our full menu during happy hours, 4-6 p.m., Mondays through Fridays, at both locations.
• The French Kitchen: Purchase sweet and savory crepes in our retail market to take home and add your own fillings to. Preorder your Beaujolais Nouveau now and consider our Beaujolais Nouveau classes, Nov. 21-23. We also have Chocolate Desserts classes on Oct. 25-26.
• Bristol Brewing Company: Our annual Benefit Beers, Venetucci Pumpkin Ale, Cheyenne Cañon Piñon Nut Brown and Smokebrush Smoked Porter, hit taps at 6 p.m., Oct. 18. Come for the release party and samples, watch Mike Bristol tap a giant pumpkin full of pumpkin ale, and learn about the nonprofits who receive 100% of the profits from these brews. Enjoy another Movies Under the Stars at 6:30 p.m., Oct. 19.
• T-Byrd’s Tacos & Tequila: Have you tried our current taco of the month? Meet The Kraken: sous vide octopus in an al pastor-style marinade with grilled pineapple salsa.
• Blue Star Group: Our Oct. 21 Stellina Supper Club has limited seats left; book now! October ghost pepper specials: ghost pepper wings at Decent Pizza and a ghost pepper burger or loaded ghost pepper fries at Ivywild Kitchen. Join us Oct. 31 for the Ivywild Wild West Halloween Party starting at 7 p.m. Wristbands ($35 online/$40 at door) include unlimited punch and special cocktail pricing.
• Goat Patch Brewing: Taproom Session with Chuck Snow & Mark Larez, 5-7 p.m. Oct. 18. Make & Take Workshop: Spooky Charcuterie with Charcuterallie, noon to 2 p.m., Oct. 19. Trivia, 6:30-8:30 p.m., Oct. 23.
• The Carter Payne: Book now for our Oct. 26 Deep Dive Dinner: The Flavors of Italy, dinner at 5:30 p.m., featuring multiple courses for $55 with drinks à la carte. Next up: Nov. 1’s special Dinner in the Veil: A Night To Remember, inspired by Dia De Los Muertos. Multiple paired courses, $95.
• Ascent Beverage: Backwards Distilling Co. whiskey tasting at 3D’s Cigars’ S. Academy Blvd. location as part of the West Tampa Cigar Event; 5-9 p.m., Oct. 18.
• Kangaroo Coffee: Now offering Italian sodas. Have you tried our cold foam coffee toppers yet? Pick your flavor. Drink of the moment: our pumpkin spice and cinnamon latte at the Hillside location.
• Edelweiss: Cold weather approaches. Everyday we offer a soup de jour made in house. Every Wednesday we also have everyone’s favorite: beer cheese soup.
Upcoming events
• Through Oct. 20: Colorado Springs Distillery Week & Festival. Multiple events in the area.
• Oct. 19: Leaning Tree Micro-Farm pop-up with Hoof Beats & Co. at Bread & Butter Neighborhood Market. 8 a.m. to 2 p.m. By now you’re familiar with all the goodies from Leaning Tree’s OCC Farmers Market stand — because you watched our podcast with them, or still can — which will all be available here today. (Dozens of varieties of hot and regular peppers, eight types of heirloom tomatoes, the spicy coffee, all the hot jams, double dark chocolate chip extra spicy cookies, and more.)
• Oct. 20: 6th annual Fall Festival at The Sourdough Boulangerie. 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Food trucks, games, live music, pumpkin smashing and more.
• Oct. 20: Paella on the Patio and Birthday Bash at Tapateria. Three seatings between noon and 5 p.m. $49 includes first wine, beer or sangria.
• Oct. 22: “Are You Smarter Than a Fifth Grader?” Trivia Night at Bristol Brewing. 6-8:30 p.m., teams of two $10 + $5 more per person for larger teams. Hosted by Atlas Middle School’s principal (with questions written by fifth graders) as a fundraiser for the school’s gym renovation.
• Oct. 24: Feast & Froth, an Autumn Goat Patch Brewing Pairing Dinner with Homa at Kinship Landing. 6 p.m; five beer-paired courses, $98.98. View menu here.
• Oct. 25: SoulFULL Series Culture Mashup with Latimers Kitchen & Catering and Chef Katie Fisco of Baon Supper Club. 6:30 p.m., five courses, $103.
• Oct. 26: Downtown Candy Crawl. 2-5 p.m.; $7 tickets (digital pass). Trick-or-treat at 40 participating downtown businesses.
• Oct. 26: Howl-O-Ween Party at Cerberus Brewing Co. Noon onward. Dog adoption fair and dog costume contest and a human costume contest.
• Oct. 26: Beer-Muda Triangle Trunk or Treat at FH Beerworks, Nano 108 and Peaks N Pines breweries with Local Motive. 4-8 p.m. Enjoy a pint and punch a card at each spot and (maybe) win prizes.
• Oct. 31: Haunted Carnival Dinner at Ephemera. 5 and 8 p.m. seatings, $125. “Where whimsical bites and spellbinding sips are served with a touch of the macabre.”
• Nov. 1-10: COS Vegan Restaurant Week.
Parting shot(s)
This is an unintended mini review. I was trying not to work last Saturday night as we left the Switchbacks FC match and decided to stop for a drink on the way home. I was overdue to visit Cocktails After Dusk, who inhabits the Salad or Bust space by night (obviously). That’s at 8 E. Bijou St., Thursdays through Saturdays from 5 p.m. to 1 a.m. and Monday nights (8 p.m. to midnight) for industry and special event nights. Cocktails After Dusk is the business co-created by Tim Chapman of Bitter and Glitter and fellow seasoned local bartender Anastacio GarciaLiley (Chiba Bar most recently).
Anyway, I ended up being inspired to work because the drinks were so damn interesting and good, and fellow pop-up vendor Orsetto’s Wood-Fired Pizza won us over quickly with their elegantly simple vegan marinara pizza (to which we added mushrooms) made with naturally leavened, organic flour. It’s a thin ’za with a bit of a stretch to the dough, which on the underside reminds me of the appearance of matzah flatbread, culminating in a lightly charred perimeter on the thin crust, with the sauce brought far up to the edge. It could fairly be compared to New Haven-style pies in this burnt-edged way, exemplified locally by White Pie. The tart, starkly acidic tomato sauce pairs unbelievable well with the refreshing and low ABV Heirloom Spritz cocktail, created with tomato water and tomato shrub, gin and Bianco Vermouth and made effervescent by Prosecco, with a Luxardo cherry juice-infused, blanched, peeled cherry tomato as garnish. Brilliant.
The Farmer’s Market cocktail is another vegetal surprise with celery, beet, carrot, orange, pomegranate, lemon juice and brown sugar syrup spiked with vodka and absinthe for a more potent anise flavor than a mere glass rinse in other absinthe drinks provides. Lastly, we enjoy Nani’s Masala Iced Chai as a mocktail (to which rum or whiskey could be added to), with all the traditional chai spices plus house-made toasted oat milk as the creamer. It’s rich and velvety with an elevating craft touch. All of which is to say it was worth working a little on my Saturday night. Cocktails After Dusk is a gem. I wasn’t sure how drinking in the dining room of Salad or Bust would feel atmosphere-wise, but with drinks these good, excellent service, great pizza and friends in the crowd that piled in after us, I totally dig the experience and applaud the creative use of the space in what would otherwise be dark hours (not Dusk hours).
