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Union – An American Bistro
CASTLE ROCK'S NEW EATERY WAS CREATED BY SIX
EXPERIENCED OWNS YIA YIA'S IN THE DENVER TECH CENTER. THEY HAVE A COMBINED 100 YEARS OF EXPERIENCE -- AND IT SHOWS When Union, An American Bistro opened on February 9 in downtown Castle Rock, its location was not a random choice based on available space and price. It was a conscious decision by the restaurant's six owners. "We come to Castle Rock because it has a community sense to it and we want to be part of that community and contribute to it," says Dennis Dickey, one of Union's partners. In fact, among the company's stated goals is "providing the resources for our staff to be involved with making a difference in the community" Union will donate a portion of all collected corkage fees to local non-profit organizations. Another of its business goals is to "exceed the expectation of guests," and on that front Union is already succeeding admirably especially with its menu. Like the "new traditional" picket-fenced neighborhoods springing up across the Front Range, Union melds a classic ethic with a distinctly modern touch. "Dishes your grandma might have made, " says Dickey "are created with an updated twist" Old-fashioned pork pot roast for example, is paired with exotic mushroom and leek hash browns ($15). Union's BLT-ROC sandwich combines applewood smoked bacon, lettuce, tomato, red onion, herb mayo and cheddar cheese on foccacia ($7.50). One of the restaurant's most popular dishes, served at both lunch and dinner (in eight ounce and 16 ounce sizes, respectively), is the double thick, brine-cured pork chop ''with creamy hominy and cider whole grain mustard glaze ($10.50/$ 19.50). For seafood lovers, Union offers salmon at lunch and dinner. The lunchtime salmon salad is a twist on a traditional spinach salad, featuring baby spinach, hard-cooked egg red onion, and herb croutons with a creamy applewood smoked bacon dressing ($10.50): The grilled salmon dinner entree comes with summer vegetable risotto, red-wine butter and basil oil ($18). There's also a seared scallops entree served with fried basmati rice and white cheddar, scallions, cilantro and pineapple ($27). Union's six owners two chefs among them — are a hands-on group, personally overseeing every aspect of the restaurant, "There are always three of the six owners here, making sure that everything is perfect;" says Dickey ““You'll see us behind the bar, out on the patio, up front in the restaurant." The two chef owners are also in house at all times and that, says Dickey, makes a difference in the quality of food that arrives at the table. "It shows on the plate," he says. In keeping with both its local and American focus, Union features only Colorado and other American-made products. "We're very grounded in staying true to products that are local, regional and national, "says Dickey. We want to support the local and national economy" To that end, guests dine on Colorado lamb, Haystack Mountain goat cheese (made outside of Boulder) and sausage made right in Castle Rock by Colorado Sausage Company. All of the beers and wines served are domestic. Cozy imamate and upbeat by design, Union. is the quintessential neighborhood restaurant, inviting to locals and visitors alike, to singles, couples and families and to folks in every age demographic. "From tennis shorts to tuxedos, everyone is welcome at Union; that's what makes dining out great for our guests but fun or us," say the partners. Reservations are accepted, but only 50 percent of the restaurant will be reserved at any given time. Union's owners want guests to feel welcome to walk in and enjoy themselves, whether for a quick bite or a long, relaxing dining experience_ Patrons looking for a great place to enjoy happy hour after a game of golf or a day at the office need look no further. Monday through Friday from 2:00 to 6:00 pm, Union offers $2 well drinks, house wine, domestic bottled beers and a fresh-squeezed lime margarita, plus six appetizers ranging in price from $5 to $8. Happy hour is available in the bar and on the upper patio, and like the rest of the restaurant; the bar is designed to foster friendship and community. An under-lit onyx community table glows down the center of the room, with seating for twelve. It has already become a popular gathering spot. A place where groups of friends can convene or where one or two people can sit, have a drink and a bite and meet new friends. Union is at 3 Wilcox in downtown Castle Rock It's open Monday through Friday for lunch from 11:30am - 4:00pm pm. Monday through Thursday for dinner from 4—9 pm. and until 10 p.m. on Fridays Saturday dinner hours are 5-10 pm Union is closed on Sundays but available for private parties. For more information or for reservations call 303-688-8159 or email unionbistro@comcast.net Christine Loomis is staff writer and editor with Colorado Golf Magazine
TABLE TALK: Fine bistro comes to Castle Rock More good eats The little hamlet of Castle Rock is becoming the Mecca of fine dining. Case in point: Union An American Bistro, 36 Wilcox. There we caught up with Chef Tom Lee, for whom we gained an appreciation on a visit to C Lazy U Dude Ranch near Granby last summer. He and a few friends have formed the Connection Restaurant Group, and Union is their first venture. The restaurant is divided into a bar area and a dining room. Both spaces are cozy and invite you to linger over Lee's talented cooking. We were glad to see some of the dishes he made popular at the ranch — namely the lobster, tater tots ($10.50) appetizer and the fried baby lobster tails ($24) entree. The tater tots are a whimsical take on mashers that have lobster chunks folded in and then are fried crisp. The dish comes drizzled with leek butter sauce and meaty strips of applewood smoked bacon. It could make a meal with the addition of a salad. Because we were familiar with the twin cornmeal-fried baby lobster tails, we moved on to the lamb shank ($19). It was a huge portion of braised lamb that had been stripped from the bone and served with white bean succotash and a fabulously rich lamb reduction.
The restaurant is open 11 a.m. to 9 p.m. Monday through Thursdays; 11 a.m. to 10 p.m. on Fridays and 5 to 10 p.m. on Saturdays. Call 1-303-688-8159 for reservations.
fontellapappas@kw.com www.douglascountyhomefinders.com Restaurant Review - Union Union is a new restaurant that made its way into Castle Rock with a little different style last month. When you walk in, it is a dimly lit room that is very opened and full of contemporary style. There is plenty of seating for busy times and when the weather permits there is also patio seating. The restaurant is opened for lunch or dinner, and the menu is very reasonably priced. If it is just a drink you are interested in, there is a big bar with a flat screen television that makes a great place to meet friends. I was able to sample the dinner menu. It has such a wide variety on it I tried the Tenderloin Flatbread. It consisted of marinated beef tips, Maytag blue cheese, caramelized onions, roasted peppers with tomato arugula salad. The caramelized onions provided the perfect sweetness to make it really tasty. Another great appetizer on the dinner menu is the duck. It is confit of duck with potato pancakes and cider port syrup. People who ate this said it was one of the best appetizers on the menu and they would definitely order it again. The second item I enjoyed was a spinach salad. The creamy bacon dressing made the usual spinach salad have a little zest to it . The soup special that night was lobster bisque. I f you go to this restaurant and it is a night that it is being served, get it. It was perfect. It looked and tasted a lot like tomato soup with a few extra seasonings and lobster. My entrée was the salmon with asparagus, zucchini risotto, and red wine butter and basil oil served on a bed of rice. This was very tasty. However, I must say that the signature item on the menu is the pork chop. I was lucky enough to sample this because my husband ordered it. It is a double boned 16 oz roasted pork chop topped with a cider whole grain mustard glaze and served with white cheddar noodles and cheese. It was seasoned perfectly. If you still have room for dessert, there is pastry chef that creates her own desserts from scratch. We shared a cookie dough pie, and it was very satisfying to the sweet tooth. Hungry yet ???
For a clean, comfortable atmosphere with great food and great service, try Union. It is located at 3 Wilcox Street, almost across from the Phillip S. Miller Library or the town of Castle Rock building. For more information call (303) 688-8159.
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