The Silver Lining Magazine

When Speakeasies See Sunlight

Explore the evolution of speakeasies in Northern Colorado during the pandemic. Fort Collins’ Social bar adapted by offering cocktails to-go and even launched an outdoor space, Social Above Ground, to keep patrons safe while enjoying crafted drinks. The Kress Cinema & Lounge in Greeley also pivoted, serving cocktails alongside charcuterie plates. With ongoing restrictions, these establishments exemplify resilience and innovation in challenging times. Discover how they maintain a unique cocktail experience while ensuring safety and comfort for guests.

Q. & A. with Sonia Riggs, CEO of the Colorado Restaurant Association: Taking a measure of today’s restaurant industry

We know we’ve lost hundreds of restaurants across the state. More pressingly, [after the CRA’s October Restaurant Impact Survey] 50% are telling us they will consider closing permanently within 6 months, no doubt because they are worried about ongoing restrictions on capacity and because they have not seen a second round of significant cash relief at the federal level. The Colorado restaurant industry was a $14.5 billion industry in 2019, but it is down billions of dollars in 2020 — we estimate it lost nearly $1 billion in April alone.

Little Zurich: An Open-Air Holiday Market in Fort Collins

The Little Zurich is an ethereal open air holiday market with warm fires roaring, and hundreds of twinkling lights adorning the four Swiss wooden vendor huts built by the owner, Todd Simmons and local legend Phil Benstein, with support from volunteers/regulars of the Wolverine Farm Letterpress & Publick House. Little Zurich is every Thursday-Saturday 4 pm-8 pm and Sundays from 12 pm-4 pm from now through the end of the year.

Stand like an Oak with Compassion and Strength

“Music can be a great equalizer…. bringing folks together across the boundaries of country, language, ideals, religions, rage, gender, politics, and everything else that can separate us. I believe, and have felt in the music that I love, a deepening of my own spirit when in musical spaces. A certain levity as well. Some could call it spiritual. Others may call it celebratory. Either way, art calls us into a very sacred space… outside of our heads and our to do lists. From that space, so many things can be built and reimagined. We need artists at the table of policy and design and education. Artists bring the charisma and magnetism that the world is drawn to. Without that, where is the intrigue?”

OZO Good: Planterra Foods Takes the High Road to Launch Plant-based Food Line-up

OZO Good: Planterra Foods Takes the High Road to Launch Plant-based Food Line-up

Planterra Foods, under CEO Darcey Macken, launched its plant-based OZO product line with a focus on sustainability and innovation. After an open letter controversy in the plant-based protein industry, Macken responded positively, highlighting the contributions of competitors. Planterra’s products, made from a proprietary blend of pea and rice protein fermented with shiitake mycelia, offer a unique taste and improved digestibility. With offerings like burgers, ground products, and Italian meatballs, OZO aims to attract flexitarians. The launch included a $1 million donation to food banks, emphasizing the company’s community commitment.

Big Trouble Little Dumpling Opens with Socially Distanced Driveway Soup Kitchen

If you ask Sam Graf, he’ll tell you dumplings are the perfect food. In fact, he’ll tell you he doesn’t think he’s met anybody who doesn’t like dumplings. This isn’t an idle statement. Graf will also tell you how the dumplings he cooks in his driveway never stick around for long.

Graf has spent ten years exploring dumpling houses. Growing up, he ate potstickers, typically the frozen ones. His first taste of an authentic Asian dumpling was in New York City, in a counter shop lined by steam tables filled with dumplings. You pick out a bunch and they go into a box. From Chicago dim sum to SoHo, Graf has sampled dumplings in big cities and dumplings cooked in shacks to experience the art form. Learning along the way, it reaffirmed he was on the right track but still had to taste more.

RamaMama restaurateur gets what he needs, if not what he wanted

After the pandemic’s arrival and abrupt shutdowns, Lawyer used the CARES Act Paycheck Protection Program to float payroll for his core employee base. But when the non-profit Homeward Alliance reached out with a plan to provide two meals daily to homeless people at the Northside Aztland Center in downtown FOCO, he found an opportunity to coordinate with the rescue mission and Catholic Charities to minimize the downtown FOCO homeless population footprint. For 68 day days straight — the beginning of April and into June —, he woke at 4:30 each morning to prepare individually boxed, ready to serve meals. A tight budget required menu creativity, and with little to no employees, he pulled it all together. Lawyer said he was lucky to have the equipment and the commissary — the hub of his company’s food truck and catering operations.

Snakes & Saints: What We Decide to Carry and Hold Onto

“We live in a world of snakes and saints. It’s hard to tell the difference these days” sings Treva Blomquist on a brand new song called “Strong”. The singer-songwriter hails from Nashville TN and just released an album called Snakes & Saints. “Navigating life in this world is not easy,” says Treva. “At the end of the day, the only thing I have control over is my own actions. Who will I choose to be? What are the ideas I will let carry and guide me? Will my voice and actions match my heart? I hope so.”

Make Believe at the Drive-in

“​Make Believe ​ is whatever your wildest imagination can dream up. It’s an unwavering commitment to that dream in order to make it reality,” said TGR co-founder Steve Jones. “Ultimately, it has been in the works for 25 years. Realizing all-time conditions in almost every location this past season, ​Make Believe ​showcases some of the most progressive athletes and riding on the planet. We are pumped to kick off winter with innovative worldwide screenings at locations such as Drive Ins, Outdoor Pop-up Theaters, private screenings, and more.”

The Juice, The Sauce, and The Love.

Love’s title track, The Juice (feat. Marcus King), is the quintessential part of the entire album. This is the most critical part of the work G. Love and Special Sauce is doing right now. “That song is a protest song about where we’re at right now, about the Trump administration, and his Presidency and kind of how I feel it needs to go.” The Juice is a rallying cry, offering some support to activists, and a call to politicians for change. “Juice is supporting people trying to get [Trump] him out of there and encouraging more people to vote, encouraging people with progressive agendas and liberal values. You know. Giving them some energy.”

Find your pathway with a pilot at FoCo StartUp/ArtUp week

Emily Satterlee is Founder of ItyDity, a one-of-a-kind Songboard™ technology. Emily is adding to her technology portfolio, by Co-Founding Pathway Pilot, with the first launch at Fort Collins Startup Week kick-off in a keynote. Attendees can download the Pathway Pilot beta to curate a relevant, unique, conference schedule.

The Lil Smokies on the road, longing for home in the desert

The snow is falling in Colorado. The wind is blowing. The mountain roads are horrendous at times as The Lil Smokies trek through promoting their third Studio Album Tornillo. Andy Dunnigan (vox and dobro) and I share a moment over a coffee and joke about the weather that forced the band an extra stop on i70. Dunnigan was in Frisco and happy for the daylight and the open pass so Fort Collins can share an evening with them at Washington’s Thursday, February 13.