Till owners hope to spread farm-to-table dining concept to 3 more locations from Colorado Springs to Denver
The owners of the 2-month-old Till restaurant in north Colorado Springs hope to duplicate the packed houses they have generated at three more restaurants they envision downtown and in Old Colorado City and Castle Rock.
Altitude Hospitality Group, which also owns Garden of the Gods Market and Café and The Pinery, is looking at other sites to replicate the locally-sourced, all-natural menu it has created in the Briargate area, said Eric Allen, the Springs-based company’s vice president and chief operating officer.
Altitude wants to open a second Garden of the Gods Market and Café downtown, a restaurant similar to Till in Castle Rock and another concept in Old Colorado City.
“We want to spread our wings not just in Colorado Springs but to Denver. We think this concept of showcasing great food is needed,” Allen said. “We are trying to bring the feel and quality of the Napa Valley in California to Colorado so you feel like you’re not in Briargate, but in California or Seattle.”
Altitude bought the 2.6-acre Briargate site a year ago for $1.78 million because the area is served by relatively few upscale locally owned restaurants, Allen said.
Altitude spent $13 million to open Till, which specializes in farm-to-table casual dining. It has been packed virtually every night since it opened June 27, said Sheamus Feeley, chief culinary officer and a partner in Till and Altitude. The 17,000-square-foot restaurant, which employs about 100, also includes a retail market called Till Mercantile that sells breads, meats, gelato and prepared foods as well as a meeting and event space that can accommodate 120 people.
“We want to offer good, casual food and showcase the best of what Colorado has to offer,” said Feeley, who started as a consultant to Altitude Hospitality nine months ago before later joining the company as a partner. “We believe that great ingredients and great technique yields a great product.”
An Arkansas native, Feeley previously had helped open Sacre Bleu in Denver and Mateo in Boulder and had been an executive with Hillstone Restaurant Group, a California-based operator of nearly 50 upscale restaurants, and helped start Farmstead at Long Meadow Ranch in Napa Valley. He modeled Till after Farmstead, and serves as much Colorado-grown or -bred food as possible. The menu features lamb meatballs, beet salad, green chili grits from Milberger Farms in Pueblo, sourdough pizza, oak-grilled trout and grass-fed beef.
“Usually new restaurants are packed for the first two weeks and then the crowd thins out. Our sales have been remarkable – we have been full every night,” Feeley said. “We are finally starting to hit our stride on both food quality and service. The last two months have given us a chance to adapt and make everything better.”
Altitude was started about 10 years ago by Allen, who has a career in the food and beverage industry, and Mitch Yellen, a former investment adviser. They spent $13 million in 2013 turning a former fish restaurant into the event center Pinery at The Hill, west of downtown Colorado Springs, and that same year acquired Garden of the Gods Gourmet, a small restaurant and catering company. The company also operates Taste café at the Fine Arts Center and a floral business.
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Till Restaurant and Bar is pictured on Tuesday, August 23, 2016. Photo by Stacie Scott, The Gazette
Pastries at Till Restaurant and Bar are pictured on Tuesday, August 23, 2016. Photo by Stacie Scott, The Gazette
Till Restaurant and Bar is pictured on Tuesday, August 23, 2016. Photo by Stacie Scott, The Gazette
Till Restaurant and Bar is pictured on Tuesday, August 23, 2016. Photo by Stacie Scott, The Gazette
Till Restaurant and Bar is pictured on Tuesday, August 23, 2016. Photo by Stacie Scott, The Gazette