And it feels that way when you enter a brightly lit dining room and order from a menu of home-made comfort food.
Carl brings 37 years of restaurant experience to the diner he named That Place In Dolores, a testament to his laid-back sense of humor.
“My wife thought of it as a joke, and I ran with it,” he said. “It’s so true, when people refer to a place to eat that’s how they usually do it.”
Carl describes the menu as “home-style with a little barbecue. Basically it’s the same menu as the Roundup,” which he previously ran.
That Place in Dolores serves breakfast and lunch Monday through Saturday, opening at 6:30 a.m.
To kick it up a notch, Carl plans to serve specialty dinners on Friday and Saturday evenings.
“They’ll be a little upscale,” he said. “Ravioli, elk medallions, quail, wild boar sausage, crab with risotto, to name a few. I’ll be flying in fresh fish as well.”
The regular menu is hearty and made daily.
Besides bacon and eggs, omelets, pancakes, breakfast burritos, and scratch-made biscuits, Carl has added eggs Benedict, huevos rancheros, and corned beef hash.
Lunch and dinner choices include burgers and steaks, chicken-fried steak, Philly cheese steaks, pulled pork sandwiches, BBQ pork ribs, brisket, pasta dishes, fish platters, and smoked jalapeño rope sausage.
“I’m told my green chili is the best around,” he adds.
The revived diner has brought five new jobs to Dolores, and will probably hire more as business picks up.
“I love this river town. The people have been welcoming,” he said. “My clientele is a mixture of the old Lewis-Arriola crowd and Dolores locals. I want That Place in Dolores to become a destination for great dining.”
The restaurant is located at 101 S. 11th St. in Dolores. The phone number is (970)676-0035.
jmimiaga@cortezjournal.com