Colorado Springs has new reasons for visiting popular Briarhurst Manor Estate

Teresa Farney, The Gazette (Colorado Springs, Colo.)
·4 min read

Oct. 26—The Briarhurst Manor Estate, 404 Manitou Ave., Manitou Springs, has a new chef, William Glowacki, and pastry chef, Megan Reeves.

Glowacki is a student at Paragon Culinary School and will graduate in June. Reeves is a former student at Paragon and has worked at several restaurants in Manitou Springs, Colorado Springs and Green Mountain Falls. The chefs are busy creating a new menu and Reeves, in addition to doing desserts, is eager to start making breads for the eatery, too.

"Meagan has been out of school for a while," said Victor Matthews, founder and dean of Paragon Culinary School. "I am very proud of everything she has accomplished."

Matthews has high praise for Glowacki, too.

"Billy is what you call the classic go-getter," Matthews said. "An Army vet, talented, focused, a natural leader, and he has been working tirelessly, to make some good things happen at the Briarhurst."

Glowacki is excited to be at the Briarhurst.

"When I saw the Briarhurst, I knew I wanted to be the chef here," he said. "I love all the history associated with it. I don't know Sigi Krauss, but I have found some menus from when he owned the building, and they look amazing. This is a great establishment, and it would be wonderful to meet Sigi to learn more about the Briarhurst."

The Briarhurst Manor Estate is open 5 p.m. to midnight Tuesdays through Sundays. Details: 719-685-1864, briarhurst.com

Party starters

Check out Graze Craze — Charcuterie Boards & Boxes, 6942 N. Academy Blvd. (formerly Chef Sugar's in Woodmen Plaza) when you need some help entertaining. The franchise is owned by the husband-wife team of Brad and Sandra Akers. Brad Akers is an active member of the U.S. Air Force with plans to retire next year. The couple was looking for a business to do together and zeroed in on a Graze Craze for Colorado Springs.

The boards are beautifully prepared with high-quality meats, cheeses, crackers, breads, fruits, chocolates and condiments. There are several options available for ordering: Small boards serve four to six, medium boards serve six to eight, and large boards serve eight to 10. There are grazing boxes for single servings and a picnic box for two to four people.

"We'll be selling single-serve boxes at Falcon games for-grab-and-go," Bard said. "We also have The Graze Crave Game Day Board with meats and cheeses arranged like a football in the center of the tray. They're great for tailgating parties."

Hours are 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. Mondays through Saturdays and 8 a.m. to 3 p.m. Sundays. Details: 719-387-1333, tinyurl.com/2p88c4rv

Hispanic Top Chef

The Hispanic Restaurant Association, a Denver-based nonprofit, held several events during Hispanic Heritage Month, Sept. 15 to Oct. 15. The second Hispanic Top Chef cooking contest was one of the events, which was held at the CSU-Spur Terra Building in Denver on Oct. 15.

Six chefs from across the U.S. competed for the title including Mario Viguié, the Tavern at The Broadmoor; Roberto Reyes, Milagros Cocina Mexicana, Colorado Springs; Jorge Quirarte Garcia, Picos Restaurant, Houston; Santiago "Jimmy" De La Cruz, Woodlands Resort, Houston; Amalia Moreno-Damgaard, award-winning author, Minneapolis, Minn.; and Zuri Resendiz, Shanahan's Steakhouse, Denver.

The chefs and their sous chefs planned a three-course menu, shopped at the pantry provided by the organizers and started cooking. Numbers were drawn for rotating times for chefs to present their appetizers, entrées and desserts to the judges. At the end of the day the judges named Garcia as the 2022 Hispanic Top Chef and De La Cruz as the runner-up.

CurderBurger is back

Cheesy drumroll, please! Culver's restaurants brought back the popular ooey-gooey CurderBurger and will serve it through Monday or while supplies last!

It debuted Oct. 15, 2021, and was only served that day in honor of National Cheese Curd Day. Fans of Culver's loved the creation so much they pleaded for the chain to bring it back. Culver's listened and did just that on Oct. 15 again for the national observance of cheese curds.

And what's not to love about a fried cheese crown for the burger patty made of a blend of yellow and white cheddar cheese curds, surrounded by crispy seasoned breadcrumbs? It's the perfect crunchy, cheesy topping for the chain's classic ButterBurger. There are three locations in the Springs to grab one until Monday.

Visit culvers.com.

Contact the writer: 636-0271.