Café 36 Returns

Garden of the Gods’ Gourmet assumes management of FAC restaurant

Read the complete press release here.
 
COLORADO SPRINGS (Jan. 12, 2012) – The Colorado Springs Fine Arts Center is pleased to announce that its restaurant, Café 36, will reopen on Jan. 17 with Garden of the Gods’ Gourmet at the helm.
 
Café 36 has a unique and historic setting; the Fine Arts Center was built in 1936 and is listed on the National Registry for Historic Places. Adjacent to the SaGāJi Theatre, home to the award-winning Fine Arts Center’s Theatre Company, the cafe offers patio seating with breathtaking views of Monument Valley Park and Pikes Peak. The Colorado Springs Independent wrote, “Café 36 boasts the undisputed best restaurant view in the city from its stunning terrace.” In 2009, The Gazette named the cafe its “Most Romantic Restaurant.”
 
The restaurant will be open for lunch on Tuesday-Sunday from 11 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. and for pre-theatre dining beginning in February. Sunday’s lunch menu will also include several brunch items.
 
Reservations can be made at 719.477.4377. Menus can be viewed here.
 
Garden of the Gods’ Gourmet was named the “Gold Caterer” in the Colorado Springs Independent’s “Best of 2011” issue. The caterer managed Café 36 from August 2007 to May 2010. They replace Amuze at the FAC and owner Bill Sherman who directed the space from June 2010 to November 2011.
 
“Culinary arts are our specialty, and we’re eager to add them to the Fine Arts Center’s innovative, educational and multidisciplinary arts experiences,” said Lynn Schlemeyer, Owner and CEO of Garden of the Gods’ Gourmet. “We look forward to enhancing the patrons experience at the center with excellent food, presentation and service.”
 
The staff will include General Manager Justin Trudeau, the former Executive Chef at NOSH; acclaimed Executive Chefs Amy Pontius and Larissa Warner and Chef Gennae Brooks.
 
Trudeau oversaw the food service at the Fine Arts Center’s 2007 Extremely Grand Opening Gala, which served nearly 700, during the reopening of the FAC following the $28.6 million renovation and expansion. In 2010, Pontius and Warner earned the ‘Peoples’ Choice’ award at the 25th Annual Chef’s Gala and then won ‘Best Overall Champion de Cuisine’ at the Colorado Restaurant Association’s 15th annual Pikes Peak Hospitality Expo at the Broadmoor.
 
“Chef Amy and Chef Larissa will provide the culinary inspiration behind every meal served at the Fine Arts Center,” said Schlemeyer.
 
The lunch menu will include artful and delicious offerings, including their very popular various soups and sandwiches, like the Kalua Pork and Curry Chicken Salad ... fresh flavors made from scratch ... in many cases at their Old Colorado City Market location. The theatre night dinners will be three-course prix fixe fare.
 
“We are delighted to have Garden of the Gods Gourmet back at the Fine Arts Center,” said Sam Gappmayer, FAC President and CEO. “Whether it’s a quick afternoon soup and sandwich or a gourmet dinner before theater, I’m confident our patrons are in for a real treat.”
 
Garden of the Gods’ Gourmet joins Picnic Basket, Food Designers and Summit Catering as the Fine Arts Center’s preferred caterers.
 
Read the complete press release here.