Fountain fancies
Dine and dashing through the Springs' Southern sister city; Lake & Lantern launches up North; several openings happening soon + more food & drink news
I stopped through Fountain last week to sample from some recently opened spots as well as some now-established places I hadn’t yet made time to taste through. I didn’t get to everything on the initial list I created, so I have the nagging feeling that I only scratched the surface by way of an update. I’ll have to make it back down sometime, though my list of spots around the wider city and region that I feel I owe a visit grows ever longer. Also, I would usually punch this up as a separate, Dine & Dash mini review post, but I’m working on several big projects for Side Dish (and Tap&Table) that prevented me from reporting another lead story for this week. Still, I’ve got lots of smaller news items for your perusal, so please enjoy the meal. Without further ado:
Olde Town Coffee Shop
Olde Town opened in mid 2023 next to Fountain’s post office. There’s a cute VW Beetle out front and the small shop has a walk-up window, drive-thru and cafe seating for around 15 people. Decor is black-and-white clean, with low ceilings, corrugated metal for an industrial touch, and stylish modern chandelier and pendant lighting.
No disrespect to longer-standing Valley Espresso and MoGlo Espresso near-ish by — who have their own loyal followings, but Olde Town is the more craft-coffee option, utilizing a custom, Loyal Coffee-roasted Olde Town Coffee Blend. I’m told it’s a medium-dark variant of Loyal’s popular Double Zero blend. You’ll find traditional drinks, including pourover options, but also crowd-pleasing custom latte drinks. Check out the creative list of more than a dozen “flight menu” specials (some seasonal, some monthly) from which you choose four 8-ounce sippers for $20. Snack options include gluten-free, vegan and vegetarian options such as purveyed burritos from Golden-based Bonfire Burritos and fresh bagels from The Springs Bagel Co. (Their awesome jalapeño-cheddar flavor offers a show of their prowess — the airy crumb style is a tactile treat and unique to the Springs.)
While I’m on site, I meet owners Jennifer and Joe Clark, who happen by delivering supplies. Joe tells me he retired out of the Army after 26 years and became coffee-interested while stationed in Bosnia and Germany, realizing he wanted to own his own shop someday. Jennifer loves coffee and also owns 10-year-old, nearby Zenner Yoga & Healing. They live in Fountain and are proud to employ local baristas, so it’s a true, small-town family enterprise. Their teenage kids are even co-owners of the shop.
As for choosing the craft route with Loyal Coffee, Jennifer says “their values line up with what we try to do here — community and hospitality are number one.” She doesn’t view Olde Town as competition for Valley or MoGlo, instead noting “we’re competing with Dutch Bros and two Starbucks as well as a Dunkin’ location.”
Fountain Creek Winery & Eatery
Fountain Creek Winery opened two years ago as the next iteration of what was The Sweet Elephant at Vino Colorado Winery. That spot had sustained some fire damage from a tenant above it co-owner Susan Quintana tells me, also noting that rent was rising, so they decided to leave 12 years of business in Old Colorado City behind. So they sold their home in the Broadmoor area and moved to fountain, buying a home in the area and purchasing the large, creekside building FCW now occupies.
Inside, they blend and label their own wines from barrels they buy, mainly from Colorado’s Western slope area, but also from other national viticultural areas. Quintana purchases fruits from Palisade, from her sister’s company named C&R Farms, and FCW has become known for its wide array of light, sweet and easy-drinking fruit wines. Susan’s husband Don is the self-taught winemaker, who’s also a general contractor. She says he “has a knack and palate for wine, and can blind-taste and pick out grapes.”
By way of trends, Susan says they sell more red wine here than they did in OCC, owing to tourists preferring sweet wines there. She believes Fountain has a “more mature crowd” due to many ex-military residents who are well traveled internationally. She and Don also have superfans who drive regularly from Kansas and even Texas to bring cases home, as she no longer offers to ship products.
For my tasting, I decide to bypass the menu of sangrias, brandy-based cocktails, winetinis, spritzers and lemonade infusions, although some do look fun. With Susan’s guidance for a diverse sampling, I get a Bordeaux-style Bodacious 5 blend; the quad grape blend Rojo Lindo; the Pomegranate Red, being a mix of real pom juice and a Burgundy blend; and the seasonal cranberry-apple fruit wine. The Bodacious sips highly tannic, deep and rich, while the Rojo drinks lighter and softer from Pinot Noir influence, with a notable spice bite from included Zinfandel. The Pomegranate holds the juice’s tartness, starting a touch syrupy and sweet and finishing dry, as if observing juice turning into wine real-time across the mouth. The cran-apple too holds a bit of pucker, but balances that well with the apple sweetness; it’s round and slightly viscous texturally, blushing pink like a Rosé. She says it tends to host three different apple varieties from C&R.
I also eat lunch here, ordering a colorful and fresh mixed green salad with tomatoes, cucumbers, pickled onions, mild white cheese chunks and a really perky basil vinaigrette. But the real go-for item, above the wines even, is totally surprising and pretty stunning Sicilian sandwich with pepperoni, ham, salami, Swiss, pickled red onions and pickles (for awesome acidity), tomatoes and tomato aioli. The kicker is the fantastic asiago-basil bread it arrives on, baked at Denver’s Styria Bakery II. It’s so good she receives orders twice weekly and allows customers to buy loaves through her retail at FCW. Great bread alone doesn’t make a great sandwich, but it sure goes a long way, especially once everything for the Sicilian is warmed in a panini press, arriving to the table at a perfect temp, such that the cheese is sweating but not melted gooey, and the bread has a touch of toast to the crust but a nicely delicate crumb. This one’s a day-maker, and the Rojo in particular sips beautifully with it.
Peaks N Pines Brewing Company
Peaks N Pines opened a decade ago off Powers Boulevard and in mid 2019 they expanded into Fountain. Today, all the beer’s brewed here for both taprooms (and very limited distribution) by father and son Paul and Jonathan Vieira, the brewmaster and head brewer respectively. Paul’s wife Teresa is GM and of course there’s other key members on their team, including the very welcoming people who staff the taps.
I’m told the Powers location just underwent a big patio renovation, and the vibe here in Fountain is very outdoors-friendly as well, with a long front patio and big roll up doors that turn the main drinking and dining area into a sunny summer spot. Peaks N Pines operates its own Brewside Eatery food truck that sells burgers, pizza, wings, sandwiches and the like.
I order a four-brew tasting paddle, actually an on-brand thick segment of a tree trunk, some bark still attached, with holes drilled for small glassware. I get the Brewer’s Choice DDH Hazy, peach tart blonde ale, the Dubbel Trubbel Raspberry Belgian Dubbel and peanut butter mocha porter. Jonathan tells me a little about each as I sip through, starting with the Hazy. They rotate hops and sometimes finishing fruit adjuncts (blended post-fermentation) with their Brewer’s Choice lineup, he says, noting a total of eight hops for this batch, including Galena and El Dorado in both the mash and a dry hopping. Other intentional, tropical-toned hops lend a bright pineapple aroma and it’s surprisingly bitter at only 20 listed IBUs. I like it.
Next to the peach tart, a light, low-ABV sipper at 4.3%, he says they add a little fruit purée post fermentation. It holds a medium pucker like a mild kettle sour, and finishes nice and dry, so approachable. The Dubbel, topping the ABV scale at 7.9%, follows the brewing guidelines of a tripel, he says, aging for three months and acting almost like a fruit wine. It gets raspberry purée for sweetness to balance and accent the Belgian yeast’s natural clove, coriander and peppercorn notes. It too finishes dry and quite food-friendly I suspect.
Lastly, the peanut butter mocha porter, returned to the seasonal menu after a couple years hiatus, is made with peanut butter powder added to the boil “for mouthfeel” and a water-soluble extract on the back end. Also after ferment, they mix cold brew coffee (so yes, this has caffeine) for the mocha element that rides beautifully on the roasty character of the porter style. It’s a bit of dessert in a glass, and I’m not complaining.
Olde World Bagel & Deli
Olde World Bagel & Deli originally opened (under prior ownership) in 2000 at 1670 E. Cheyenne Mountain Blvd. This new Fountain location — inside the heavily corporate Markets at Mesa Ridge shopping center — just launched in early February of this year, celebrating its grand opening on Valentine’s Day. It’s operated by sisters Christina Buckles and Jen Moreland, who have a military connection, hence a partnership with Mt. Carmel Veterans Service Center (to provide complimentary breakfasts at funeral services of fallen heroes, plus give a 10% military discount).
It’s great to see a local compete with a Starbucks across the parking lot by offering high-quality, locally roasted Building Three Coffee products. There’s a batch-brewed drip coffee station set up near the entryway, so I pay to fill my travel mug (I’m always trying to save another cup and lid from the landfill) and mix my own half-and-half sipper of a medium-roasted decaf and lightly dark blend; the result, with a dash of cream, has gorgeous milk chocolate notes riding on deep earthy undertones and mild nuttiness.
But hey — we’re actually here for the main attraction, the bagels. First we must patiently wait through the line that stretches to the door, proving the owners’ insistence in an earlier press release I saw that there’s “a need in Fountain for a bagel and coffee shop.” But also, to be fair, Olde Town Coffee Shop as noted above, does sell great Springs Bagel Co. products, and Sliced Bagels & More on Main Street in Fountain ships New York Bagels in overnight. Neither are making their own bagels like at Olde World though.
We decide to skip the alluring bagel sandwiches (as I’m headed to another lunch soon) and keep things somewhat classic and simple. That looks like a pumpernickel bagel with specialty dill cream cheese, a sensation on its own and perfect pairing for the dark rye bagel. Together they nail a true Old World, Eastern European flavor profile. Next, a multigrain bagel with added egg scramble cost $72 (I’m kidding! That’s a timely egg-pricing joke - ahem) and becomes an “Eggwich” as a pretty self-explanatory portmanteau. Alone, the egg is pretty dry and moisture-sucking to the mouth, so I take advantage of a bottle of Cholula nearby to douse it down and add chile oil to the experience, which I find always friendly in the morning with coffee.
Luchals Soulful Seafood
Luchals started as a catering enterprise nine years ago, originally launching a food truck. Then came the expansion into COATI food hall as one of its original vendors. They just left that space at January’s end to focus full-time on their nearly nine-month-old Fountain location at 6436 S. U.S. Hwy. 85/87. It’s huge, seating up to 200 for regular service or special parties, like military hail and farewells. There’s a full bar (with a few allocated whiskies in sight on the top shelf) wrapped stylishly in black subway tile and highlighted by the neon glow of under-lighting. TVs around the space happen to be showing Deadliest Catch when I’m in, and pretty artworks adorn walls throughout.
Owner/Chef Chantal Lucas happens to be in when I stop by and touts their weekend brunch service with a DJ, Wednesday karaoke nights and other special events on Saturdays. Though the menu sports some new items — like fish and shrimp rolls, stuffed catfish and bourbon-glazed scallops — she guides me to some of the OG staples that have remained their bestsellers over the years when I ask what I should buy. That means the fried green tomatoes with house Piink Sauce (yes, spelled with two i’s), which is a customized remoulade. And the crab cakes which I ask for with the other two house sauces, the garlic aioli and Flamingo Sauce, said to be spicy, but more just zesty and a little garlicky.
Lucas touts no filler in the Southern-style crab cakes (fried not grilled), made with blue crab, other than a little panko binder and the cornmeal exterior. All the house panko is gluten-free, and Luchals has dedicated friers to keep things separate for those sensitive; other than pastas, just about everything on the menu is gluten-free. I can quickly see the attraction to all the sauces for their own reasons, subtly different from one another but uniquely complementary to the cakes and tomatoes. The crispy exterior on both lends the first textural treat, while the juicy tomatoes pop with acidity. That and a lemon wedge on the crab cakes help cut thru it and the sauces’ creamy richness. I like the Flamingo best with them, I think, for the added spice, but it’s also hard to argue against the Piink for its tartar-like sour-piquant element.
Other Fountain spots I didn’t make it to for revisits or first-time looks:
• The other coffee shops and bagel shop already mentioned above.
• The Local Table (in Security-Widefield), specializing in American comfort food.
• Established places like Korean Garden, Arashi Sushi, Rookies Taphose and Eatery, and Roll Up
Side Dish featured by UCCS Economic Forum
Thanks to Program Director of the UCCS Economic Forum Bill Craighead — a Side Dish subscriber and supporter — for inviting me on the College of Business’ Weekly Economic Snapshot segment. In the short, 10-minute chat, we discuss recent restaurant closures and pressures on the food and drink industry. We also look into the impacts on workers (both negative and positive) and quickly touch on a couple other timely topics. Check it out and give their YouTube page a follow:
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Bites & Bits
• The former Speedtrap coffee cafe at 84-02 Highway 105, Palmer Lake, changed hands around the turn of the new year, giving way to Lake & Lantern courtesy the Garcia family. It grand opened Feb. 26 and maintains daily hours from 6:30 a.m. to 3 p.m. The spot’s tagline is “Life Lit Differently” — a double entendre given the spot proudly serves zero-proof mocktails and N/A beers in addition to coffee and tea drinks. The small food menu features a handful of breakfast plates like burritos and pancakes; a few sandwiches including a Hot Ham & Swiss; a couple salads and limited pastries. Coffee beans come from Denver’s Wagon Coffee Roasters, a social enterprise business, women-owned, that employs women in addiction recovery. Lake & Lantern in its own marketing promotes an “inclusive community for all.”
• The new Jake & Telly’s Greek Taverna neighborhood retail market that I told you about here in late January will open its doors for service at 10 a.m., March 3. Stop by and show them some early love, and pick up some feta, olives, hummus, dressings, cured meats, sweets, or something else from their array of housemade and imported products.
• Springs Magazine reported on the planned opening of Sonoma County Wine Country-inspired 707 Pizza Co. at Colorado College’s Ed Robson Arena sometime in April, tentatively. It’s coming via the Bradley family, who own Penrose Pizzeria & Pub 45 minutes south of Colorado Springs. (I love the spot, and last wrote about it here in early 2024, having initially visited in 2021.) The family tells Springs Mag’s Jeremy Jones that 707 will be more elevated than than Penrose, featuring fine wines from friends’ vineyards back in California. Read the article to find out about another unique attraction to the space that will be a first for C. Springs. And while you’re on site at Springs Mag, Jones also has a rundown of Colorado James Beard Awards Semifinalists.
• Rocky Mountain Beignets, who started as a food truck in 2019 before opening in Manitou Springs in 2021, announced this past weekend that they’re opening a second location — this one at 26 E. Kiowa St. in the former T-Byrd’s location that was most recently Haole Hawaiian Grindz. I snapped the photo below when passing by.
• Cowboy Star Restaurant & Butcher Shop reopens on Feb. 28 after a roughly two-week closure to remodel the space. With the relaunch, they’ve extended happy hours (to begin at 3 p.m., running to 6 p.m.). The butcher shop component, open from 11 a.m. to 7 p.m., will now feature a grab-and-go sandwich option. One new purveyor at the restaurant and shop is 2024 Side Dish Dozen member The French Kitchen, who’s now selling their locally baked breads to Cowboy Star.
• Atrevida Beer Co.’s Facebook page appears hijacked over the weekend, and has been posting fake news celebrity stories and the like. Many commenters (i.e. discerning people) have noticed and called out the hack job, while others (i.e. less smart people) have said they are unfollowing the business, believing it to be responsible for the shitposting. I reached out for comment, but didn’t hear back from owner Jessica Fierro and her husband Rich, who became nationally honored for his heroic actions in late 2022 when he disarmed the Club Q gunman. Atrevida has an outsized following on its Facebook page (for a small brewery) thanks to supportive fans. They were here for us, so let’s be there for them and perhaps swing by for a pint this weekend or sometime soon to show them we still care, and have their backs.
• Hamsa Hummus is now operating as a pop-up kitchen out of The UTE at City Rock from noon to 3 p.m., Saturdays and Sundays. View their menu of hummus and Mediterranean salad bowls here.
• Summit at The Broadmoor will be offering a three-course A Taste of Spring menu from March 1-31 for $69 person. Guests choose between two apps, three mains and two desserts to build their own experience. Vegetarian options include a roasted carrot salad and farro risotto. Other alluring plates from a menu read are Colorado Striped Bass over couscous with turmeric-yogurt crema and an apricot Basque Cheesecake for dessert.
• Palmer Land Conservancy acquired a 620-acre farm in Pueblo County after nine years of studying it as part of their Bessemer Farmland Conservation Project. “As a test case,” they said in an announcement, “this farm plays a critical role in demonstrating these innovative tools and kickstarting the process of protecting 2,000 acres of prime farmland that are at risk of being dried up.” Read all about the project (and donate if you wish) here.
• “Colorado lawmakers advance bill to cut tipped minimum wage in Denver, Boulder,” reports Colorado Newsline (a nonprofit, Denver-based outfit started in 2020 as a division of national company States Newsroom). Read the article for the full details, but the gist is the bill is focused on aiding the restaurant industry by adjusting how much employers can subtract from tipped worker minimum wage in these spots who raised minimum wage beyond the state requirement. The Colorado Restaurant Association and other groups who advocate for restaurants are for the bill, while “workers, labor unions and progressive groups.. say the bill is a misguided, and potentially counterproductive effort to help an industry that faces a variety of economic headwinds,” write author Chase Woodruff.
• KRDO covered the story of a food truck owner in Pueblo who has been forced to sell his business due to disabilities he now has due to a hit-and-run accident in 2023, when his truck was rear-ended by someone suspected of being under the influence. Sam Hernandez is the owner at the heart of the story; he operated Sam’s Street Tacos as a continuation of his mother’s longstanding brand, The Porkchop Lady.
Side Dish Dozen happenings
Edelweiss: Book early for limited seats to our Hoch Deutsch Pairing Dinner on April 3, with five wine-paired courses for $85/person.
Rasta Pasta: Rasta Pasta is proud to support our local community, including catering sponsorship of Meadowgrass Music Festival.
Allusion Speakeasy: At the downtown location, come for the Baby Mandrake with chocolate-mint bourbon, or the zero-proof Parseltongue, made with Cerocero N/A juniper and lemongrass gin, jalapeño, matcha, honey and ginger beer.
Kangaroo Coffee: Spring seasonal drinks include the Strawberry Banana Bliss Italian Soda, Iced Black Tea with Blueberry & Honey, and Cherry Blossom Cold Brew: White Chocolate Macadamia Nut with Cherry Cold Foam! Stop in, drive thru or DoorDash!
Goat Patch Brewing: Bleating Heart Night benefitting CASA, 5-9 p.m., March 4. Therapeutic Thursday Adult Coloring Night, 6-8 p.m. March 6.
Odyssey Gastropub: New menus are out. Enjoy our flounder banh mi, miso mussels or Korean pork belly bites, among many other freshly created plates.
Red Gravy: Sunday Supper Club on March 9 will celebrate one of America’s only original cuisines: Cajun/Creole. This special Mardi Gras menu will feature items like blackened red fish, chicken & andouille gumbo and Bananas Foster.
Bristol Brewing Company: Have you sampled CJ’s new signature brisket rub at Spark BBQ? Try it with one of our World Peace Death Ray IPAs – available soon in a mixed 12-pack that includes our new limited release West Coast IPA.
Eleven18: Seats remain for Chef Brother Luck’s Mardi Gras Cooking Class at 6 p.m., March 4. Our new cocktail menu by mixologist/bar manager Jacob Pfund and team is now rolling out.
Ascent Beverage: Find our excellent products at your favorite bar or fine liquor store. We distributing regionally made brands like 1874 Distilling, Apple Valley Cider, Jackson Hole Stillworks and Backwards Distilling.
The Seared Steer Steakhouse: Make a reso for Saturday nights and enjoy hand-cut steaks, slow-smoked and seared over live fire. All fried options use beef tallow and all sides, sauces and desserts are made from scratch.
Upcoming events
March 1: The Mumbo Jumbo Gumbo Cook-Off in Manitou Springs.
March 4: Mardi Gras at Jax Fish House & Oyster Bar. NOLA-style food and drink specials all day.
March 5: City Council District 3 Candidate Forum at Jack Quinn’s Irish Pub. 5-7 p.m. $10 tickets include light snacks; cash bar.
March 5: Colorado Pint Day. Collect the annual commemorative glassware at participating breweries. $1 from each pint benefits the Colorado Brewers Guild.
March 8: Small Brew Saturdays launch at Local Relic Artisan Ales, from noon-4 p.m., weekly; with drinks and small bites available for purchase.
March 16: ACF Culinary Passport 2025 at the Broadmoor’s Cheyenne Lodge. Proceeds benefiting the Springs Rescue Mission and its Culinary Training Program.
Parting shot(s)
I judged the Westfax Springs Chili Cookoff & Tasting this past Saturday, a contest open to the community. I had to do a bit of a dine-and-dash, so I wasn’t able to stick around to meet the winners. But for funsies I can tell you my favorite chili names were the punny “Hatch me if you can” and the hilarious “Ooh she thick.” My chosen winner was boringly named “Pork green chile” but damn it was spicy goodness, with deep flavor underneath the burn. Its listed recipe, also spurning more-local Pueblo chiles, was: “Hatch chiles, pork, jalapeños, habaneros, garlic, onion, stock and seasoning.” Also, if you missed it prior, here’s our Tap&Table segment with brewer/owner Anthony Martuscello last year, filmed when they were just opening.
Next up, on Sunday, I co-hosted the All-Day Happy Hour Sip with Schnip at T-Byrd’s Tacos & Tequila. Thanks to all the Side Dish subscribers who joined us! To those who didn’t: You missed out on your free pours of two allocated whiskies (Blanton’s and Eagle Rare 10-year bourbons) and the stellar Tepache Latte (actually a house-horchata-based sipper, sans espresso) that was many weeks in the making (from fermentation time). The good news is you can still take advantage of the taqueria’s all-day-Sunday happy hours when you please, to get bangin’ deals on margaritas, nachos, tacos and more. I’ll soon announce next month’s Sip with Schnip plans.
Matt wrote the first Peaks N Pines Review ten years ago right after we opened our Tutt location. His latest Fountain Fancies article and review, coincidentally released on our 10th anniversary year, was just as enlightening and uplifting as that first critical review. Matt took the time to present an earnest look at the community impact, corporate culture and genuine personality of Peaks N Pines. Hats off Matt - a heartfelt 10-year anniversary THANK YOU from Peaks N Pines!