Colorado Springs welcomes back award-winning chef | Table Talk

Jun. 7—Welcome back Mark LeFebvre, the former executive chef who, in 2016, was the opening chef for Cerberus Brewing Co.

The 2008 graduate of the prestigious Culinary Institute of America in New York has returned to the Springs to fill the position of executive sous chef overseeing banquets at Garden of the Gods Resort and Spa. He had left Cerberus to return to his Montana hometown where he opened his own pizza parlor.

"My wife is from Colorado Springs," he said. "She has a home here that we decided to return to and fix up."

While at Cerberus, the award-winning chef made his smoked brisket grilled cheese sandwich, a signature dish on the brewery menu. At the Garden of the Gods, he will no doubt be pulling out his other culinary talents to deliver elevated gourmet dishes presented in showstopping plated presentations. Visit gardenofthegodsresort.com

Waterfalls, chipmunks and gourmet dining

Having missed the media preview of the reopening of The Broadmoor's Restaurant 1858 at Seven Falls in early May, I was eager to check out the new menu and much anticipated chipmunk display.

The eatery has been closed since 2019 because of the pandemic. This year marks the 140th anniversary of the opening of the park, which is a fitting time to celebrate both occasions.

In honor of the anniversary, third graders around El Paso County were invited to work together and paint Chester the Chipmunk in a way that represented the history and beauty of Seven Falls. The 10 finalists did an amazing job decorating adorable 4-foot chipmunk statuary. To see the cute woodland critters is worth a visit to the park. Members of the public can vote for their favorite Chester at the Falls all summer long. On Sept. 16 the winning school will be announced.

Come to admire the children's artistic talent but stay to dine at Restaurant 1885. Rita Paez Perez, head chef for the dining room, is doing a masterly job of executing the new menu, which is a collaboration of The Broadmoor culinary team.

The eatery is cozy with a rustic log cabin vibe and polished refinement of a five-star resort. The menu highlights Colorado cuisine with seasonal veggies from The Broadmoor farm and meats from the hotel ranch prepared from scratch on a wood -ired grill. The a la carte lunch favorites include the signature wild boar green chili, Pikes Peak or Bust nachos, Prospector's Colorado Bison Burger and a vegan option, The Pillars of Hercules ancient grain bowl.

A three-course prix fixe dinner includes appetizer choices like wood -grilled, 1858 barbecue-glazed and bacon-wrapped large prawns and house-smoked Colorado trout dip. Entrée choices include wood fire charred 12-ounce Certified Angus Beef New York strip steak, and seven different preparations of Rocky Mountain red trout. For dessert pick from a shortbread cookie-like lemon strawberry crumble cake, 1858 malts (vanilla, strawberry, chocolate or cookies and cream), Palisade Colorado Sundae or Stagecoach S'mores Brookie (chocolate chip and brownie bar) topped with vanilla marshmallow. Visit sevenfalls.com/dine/restaurant-1858 for tickets and details.

Casa Bonita to open — soon

In late May, a gang of media eagerly awaited the much-hyped sneak peek of the revived Pepto Bismol-colored Casa Bonita, 6715 W. Colfax Ave., Lakewood. Small groups of news hounds were whisked inside with strict directions of no photos or videos allowed except in two designated areas — at the cliff divers and the famous (because they were about the only thing edible back in the day) sopapilla kitchen.

By way of background — Casa Bonita, the pink lady, was founded in 1974, and has long been a belved local landmark. It closed in March 2020 due to COVID-19 before Matt Stone and Trey Parker, the locally raised creators of the "South Park" TV show, purchased it out of bankruptcy in 2021.

In December, the duo announced Casa Bonita would open sometime in May. Throngs of fans have signed up to be the first in line when the pink palace makes its grand re-debut. Although the media tour was fast and furious, it was obvious on the quick walk through that the work to restore the building is amazing. It will be worth the effort to get in line for the experience when it does open. The official opening date and ticket prices are still unknown.

The food alone has promise of vast improvement under the guidance of four-time James Beard-nominated Denver chef Dana Rodriguez. Rodriguez's restaurants include Super Mega Bien, Work & Class and Cantina Loca.

Those who had visited the family fun eatery will not be disappointed to know that the complimentary sopapillas — sprinkled with sugar and drizzled with warm honey — will be back, along with the little red flags on each table that guests can raise to summon more. Raise your hand if you remember timing how long it took for the hot fried pillows of goodness to hit the table after raising the flag.

To get on the list of hopefuls for the Casa Bonita experience, visit casabonitadenver.com

Call for artists

The Winery at Holy Cross Abbey, 3011 E. U.S. 50 in Cañon City, is holding its 13th annual art competition for advertising and promoting its 21st annual Harvest Fest.

The artwork, chosen by winery staff, will be used to create wine labels, posters, invitations and other media to advance and promote the harvest festival and The Winery at Holy Cross Abbey. The winery will have all rights of usage of the selected artwork. Reproduced prints, cards and posters of the original artwork, which the artist will retain, are sold throughout the year in the tasting room.

Digital representation of the artwork, along with the artist's bio, must be emailed to harvestfest@abbeywinery.com no later than July 24. Please include in the subject line, Harvest Fest Artwork Submission. Portrait positioning is best and a harvest theme is preferred. Judging will be held on July 26. Artists will be notified of the winner no later than July 28.

The winning artist will receive $750 and a complimentary booth at the Harvest Fest where signed Harvest Fest posters will be sold. The winning artist and their guest will also be the winery's guests at the Winemaker's Dinner on Sept. 22.

So long pierogi kitchen

Married couple Dominika Mills and Zachary Short have closed their Mika's Pierogi Kitchen, 4657 Centennial Blvd. They announced the closing of the restaurant May 24 on Facebook. After opening in December 2020, they were on a mission to prepare the best pierogis while hiring employees laid off because of the pandemic. Mika more than succeeded in delivering excellent pierogis, but the couple did not make sound business decisions to meet payroll costs. They could not surmount their climbing debt.

"Mika and I cannot adequately express in words how much your support, love, and patronage has meant to us over these past 3 years," Short wrote in the Facebook post. "For so many of you, your family has become a part of our family. This experience has meant the world to us, and it is all thanks to you, our dearest friends."