The Aspen Grille, a student-run restaurant located in the Lory Student Center, reopened for both dine-in and takeout on Sept. 14. Open for lunch Tuesday-Friday, the restaurant has an entirely made-from-scratch menu focused on local and sustainable ingredients, which makes the food some of the best on campus.
Brooke Hagelin, from Louisville, Colorado, is an undergraduate student majoring in hospitality management who currently works in the kitchen of the Aspen Grille.
“I really like working in the back of the house,” Hagelin said. “I feel like I now know what goes on in every aspect of a restaurant.”
The Aspen Grille serves as a learning lab for students studying hospitality management. The students take the semester-long class, which is focused on all aspects of running a restaurant, to hone their cooking, food prepping, serving, and management skills.
The menu of this restaurant has changed significantly since last semester, while still retaining some Ram favorites from the past two years, and offers new items including Kimchi-queso French fries and a Spinach Miso salad. To find out what else is new, check out the Aspen Grille menu.
Often, the Aspen Grille creates special menus during months that are dedicated to celebrating a diverse group’s heritage. For Hispanic Heritage Month, the Aspen Grille has cooked up a Latinx-inspired menu that will be available on Sept. 28 and 29 in place of the regular menu.
The Latinx menu is as follows:
First Course:
El Salvadorian bean and cheese Pupusa (stuffed griddle cake)
Second Course (patrons may choose from the following):
Brazilian Moqueca Baiana (fish stew)
Argentinian Humita (vegetarian tomales) with stuffed tomatoes
Panamanian garlic chicken with rice and beans
Third Course:
Peruvian Alfajores (cookies stuffed with dulce de leche)
To find out more information, including the restaurant’s hours, and to make a reservation, visit the Aspen Grille website.
The Department of Food Science and Human Nutrition is a part of CSU’s College of Health and Human Sciences.
