Thank
you for your inquiry regarding the Boulder Cork. We have provided
quality food and excellent service since 1969. The restaurant is
now one of Colorado's most renowned dining experiences. Our casual,
yet attentive atmosphere is the perfect place to spend a special
evening, be it to relax with friends or to entertain business associates.
We offer a nice dining room experience, or for a lighter side we
have our café bar area. Both are open Monday through Friday
for lunch, and we are open 7 nights a week for dinner. Reservations
are recommended, but not necessary. Our banquet facilities service
groups from 15 to 150 with the quiet proficiency and superior quality
that has become the hallmark of The Boulder Cork. We are confident
that the professional staff of The Cork will complement the food,
the wine and the setting with our commitment to your satisfaction.
"The prime rib is a banquet of beef
in Blazing Glory"
-The Boulder Planet"
"Customers at the Boulder Cork can
enjoy both a uniquely rustic atmosphere
above, and Steaks and Seafood below"
-The Daily Times Call
"Even a grouchy liberal can appreciate
the benefits of good service,
and The Cork has that"
-Boulder Weekly
"The successful evolution of The Cork's
menu makes dining here
as pleasant today as it was years ago"
"It's old time Boulder dining and it's
still churning out
some of the best meals in town"
"Renowned as Boulder's best steak
house for years"
-Daily Camera
Wine Spectator Award of Excellence for
8 consecutive years
The Boulder Cork Restaurant has provided quality food
and excellent service since 1969. The restaurant is now one of Colorado's
most renowned dining experiences. Our casual, yet attentive atmosphere
is the perfect place to spend a special evening, be it to relax
with friends or entertain business associates. Our banquet facilities
services groups up to 150 with the quiet proficiency and superior
quality that has become the hallmark of The Boulder Cork.
The food at The Boulder Cork is an impressive display of creativity
and variety, masterminded by our chef, Jim Smailer. Chef Smailer
has created an enticing offering of steaks, prime rib, chicken,
pasta and fresh fish selections; all on the cutting edge of culinary
delight. The food is as fresh as the market allows. We frequent
local farms for our produce, purchase only the freshest fish,
and spare no expense on our beef, pork and lamb. The true epicurean
will agree that our effects are apparent to both the eyes and
palate, from the appetizer through the handmade desserts.
The Wine Spectator has recognized The Boulder Cork's wine list
as one of the best in the nation. From Premier Cru to a glass
of our house wine, we offer a selection to match every taste and
budget.
Alan Teran, Owner
Bio coming soon!
Jim Smailer, Executive Chef
Jim
Smailer and his passion and respect for food has inspired him
through his career as chef at the Boulder Cork Restaurant. Smailer
strongly believes that all ingredients are gift from the earth
and the people who, with love, tend them. It is the chef's responsibility
to prepare the food in a way that retains its integrity from source
to table. Food is a reflection of our relationship with the natural
environment.
Throughout his childhood, Smailer was strongly attracted to food
- it's varied colors, textures, and flavors - as well as the actual
activity involved in attaining the food. Growing up in eastern
Pennsylvania and spending a lot of time in neighboring states,
Smailer was accustomed to picking wild raspberries and blackberries,
growing all types of produce, foraging for mushrooms, fishing
in the Atlantic and crabbing in the Chesapeake.
Smailer's love of nature lead him to a Biology degree. It was
during his college years that he became involved in ceramics.
In his work as a pottery student and later as a instructor of
ceramics he became interested in searching out and processing
natural clays, following and creating recipes for glazes, and
firing his work in low and high heats. This creative process as
a ceramicist has many parallels to his work as chef.
Accompanying his wife, Kate, he moved to Boulder in 1981 so that
she may attending the University of Colorado and earn a graduate
degree in Piano. Smailer hoped to get a job with the National
Forest Service. Government freezing on hiring lead Smailer to
pursue work in another area for which he had skills: the preparation
of food.
Jim has been chef at the Boulder Cork Restaurant for the past
20 years. Over this time he has insisted on using the freshest
ingredient. The menu continues to change and reflect the growing
demands and culinary sophistication of the Boulder market. Whereas
many long time favorite menu items will never leave the Cork,
new menu items and specials, often time inspired by Smailer's
travels, continues to keep the menu fresh and interesting. There
is a flavor for all. The menu might include chanterelles from
Scotland, heirloom tomatoes and figs from California, fresh wasabi
and black trumpet mushrooms from Oregon, organic buffalo from
Nebraska, chilies from New Mexico, and peaches from the western
slopes of Colorado. In summer months Smailer picks up most of
the restaurant's produce, often organic, from local farmers and
markets. Fresh picked asparagus, cucumbers, and beets. Peppers,
eggplants, summer squashes, warm field tomatoes, and sweet corn
fill the restaurant and become part of nightly specials.
Although the Cork's initial reputation grew from it's excellent
beef preparations, Smailer and his genuine love of the ocean first
introduced fresh fish to the Cork's menu 20 years ago. Delicious
sea inspired menu items and specials continue to be an important
part of the Cork's offerings. One might be offered wild striped
bass from New England coastline, wild salmon from Alaskan and
pacific northwest waters, Nantucket bay scalps, fresh gulf shrimp,
red snapper from Florida, opaka paka from Hawaii, or soft shell
crabs from the Chesapeake.
Another interest of Smailer is in wine. He is respected throughout
the wine community for his true knowledge in this field. He has
built an extensive cellar which has received the Wine Spectator
Award of Excellence. His wine experience includes hoasting and
designing wine dinners with numerous large and small wineries
from around the world: Chalk Hill Simi, Beaulieu Vineyards, Jordon,
Beringer, Trimbach, Joseph Drouhin, Catena, Vega Siscellia to
name but a few.
Smailer is an avid bicyclist, micologist and ornithologist in
his time away from the restaurant.
History