Victor Matthews is a culinary force to be reckoned with.

Not only is Matthews an award-winning chef and distiller, he’s also the founder of a culinary school and a culinary nonprofit. Besides his passion for cooking and teaching, he has earned a doctorate in theology. Next up, he is planning to open an upscale eatery in Woodland Park in 2025.

“I seem to do things in 10-year increments,” he said in a recent interview. “First I opened Black Bear, then the culinary school, then the distillery and now a new restaurant.”

Here’s a look at the culinary trailblazer’s accomplishments since coming to Colorado in 1999 and opening his former Black Bear restaurant in Green Mountain Falls. It’s nothing short of astonishing.

Most notable today is that Matthews is the dean of Paragon Culinary School, which he founded in 2004. After the Waldo Canyon fire, he suspended the operation of Black Bear as a restaurant and transformed the space into the Black Bear Distillery.

Matthews never ceases to amaze with his exuberant enthusiasm for ambitious culinary projects. Not surprising, he was beyond excited to announce on Facebook that he and business partners had broken ground on the Tava House restaurant in late August in Woodland Park. However, Matthews first started talking about the Tava House restaurant project in early 2019. The facility would also become a new mountain campus extension of his culinary school.

“Tava House is named after the original Native American name of the mountain (Pikes Peak),” he said in an email. “It will be a two-story multi-use restaurant facility that maximizes the views and culture of Woodland Park. It is in the heart of town off Highway 24 and will be a draft house, a fine-dining steakhouse called Firebrand and event center.”

Back in 1999, when Matthews opened the Black Bear Restaurant, he was known regionally for his gourmet chef tables. He quickly became a popular chef, especially after winning The Governor’s Symposium in 2000. Later that year, he spearheaded the creation of Club 9, a nonprofit culinary chef organization. The exclusive club included what Matthews viewed as the top nine chefs in Colorado Springs at the time: John Broening (Primitivo’s), James Africano (The Warehouse Restaurant), Brent Beavers (Sencha), Chip Johnson (The Briarhurst Manor), Chris Adrian (La Petite Maison), Paul Jenson (The Penrose Room), Chris Bowie (Antonio’s Italian Restaurant), Ketel Larson (Phantom Canyon) and, of course, Matthews.

In 2000, Matthews also joined the Colorado Restaurant Association and served as vice president for two terms and then as president in 2003.

“As the president, I proposed a chef cook-off to be held at the CRA big event held at The Broadmoor,” Matthews said. “We called the live cook-off the Champion de Cuisine. Chefs competed for the coveted traveling trophy. Winning chefs would have their name added to the base of the trophy. The winning chef also had the honor of displaying the trophy at their restaurant for a year. It became a big deal to win the trophy.”

Matthews expects the Tava House restaurant project to be completed in 2025, “Hopefully June of 2025,” he said.

Filipino food and more

Lhea Muhammed, owner of Lumpia Lheas, has introduced Lumpia Lheas presents The Kamayan Hidaway by Orbit Lounge, 411 Lakewood Circle (in the lobby of the Satellite Hotel). The current menu is limited for the soft opening. A grand opening is planned for late October, which will have the full menu. She is serving breakfast, lunch and dinner.

“I will be making Filipino food as well as other cuisines,” she said.

On the evening we dined she recommended the weekly special — a large Greek gyro with french fries.

“Here is some ketchup, but try the fries plain first,” she said as she delivered the food. “I have a special fry seasoning that I think you’ll like — maybe better than ketchup.”

She was right. The seasoning is faintly sweet at the start and finishes with a nice, spicy-hot finish. The ketchup went unused.

Muhammed also recommended the Greek salad ($9.99) to go with the gyro. It was easily big enough to share. Honestly, it could be an entrée salad. The lettuce and chopped tomatoes are served on a platter-size plate topped with thin slices of gyro meat.

“Dig down to the bottom of the plate for the dressing,” she said. “I put the tzatzik dressing under the greens.”

That’s a great idea. When dressing is poured over the top of a salad, it covers the prettiness of the greens. Plus, there always seems to be too much dressing added and it turns the salad into salad soup.

Other entrée choices included Island BBQ chicken ($13.99-$18.00), Aloha shrimp ($14.99-$19.99), cheeseburger ($15.99) and carne or pollo asada quesadilla ($15.99). Sides choices are lumpia ($1.99), gyoza ($6.99), french fries ($4.99-$7.99), fried mozzarella ($7.99), jalapeño poppers ($7.99), torpedo shrimp ($15.99), and onion rings ($8.99).

The breakfast menu is basic American fare: eggs, bacon, biscuits and gravy. The hours are 7 a.m.-noon Mondays, 7 a.m.-11 p.m. Tuesdays through Thursdays, and 7 a.m.-2 a.m. Fridays and Saturdays. Details: 719-290-1945, tinyurl.com/mu9rt49w.

Lunch at a steakhouse

Cansano Italian Steakhouse, 1895 Democracy Point, is offering a lunch menu 11 a.m.-2:30 p.m. daily. Pete Moreno, executive chef, has designed a reasonably priced menu offering appetizers, soups, salads, pasta, pizzas, sandwiches and desserts. Details: 719-884-2865, facebook.com/cansanoitaliansteakhouse.

Catch the whole fish

For October seafood month, Jax Fish House & Oyster Bar, 11 S. Tejon St., will offer whole-fish specials weekly all month. Think crispy fried yellowtail snapper ($47) with sticky rice, green curry, pickled mushrooms and chile crunch. Or whole roasted branzino ($53) with fregola sarda, roasted tomatoes, oregano vinaigrette and fennel. Maybe a whole grilled Alamosa striped bass ($45) is more to your liking, with baba ghanoush, za’atar roasted carrots, charred broccolini and sweet tahini. Wrap up the month with Mexico-City-style pompano a la Contramar ($55), with chili rojo, salsa verde, black beans, tortilla and blistered jalapeño. For a visually stunning experience, give the October martini feature, “Ye Ole October Surprise,” a try. It’s a mixture of squid ink, Colorado vodka, glacé citron and saffron. The hours are 3:30-9 p.m. Sundays through Thursdays and 3:30 p.m.-10 p.m. Fridays and Saturdays. Details: 719-357-4554, facebook.com/JaxFishHouseColoradoSprings.