From Apple
Cider to Gooseberry Pie: The Goose Berry Patch
By Desirée Jensen
A
family-run, family-oriented diner, The Goose Berry Patch, brings visitors
to the small town of Penrose from miles around. Owned by Tim and Barbara Martin,
the Goose Berry Patch is your typical, run-of-the-mill, country-dining establishment,
with a few exceptions. The first
exception, of course, is the famous gooseberry pie. The gooseberry pie is only one of nearly
thirty homemade desserts on the menu at the Goose Berry Patch.
My friend Joe and I chose a blustery day in March to sample a couple of the
desserts for ourselves. Even
though the strawberry cheesecake really looked tasteful, for the sake of this
article, I chose the famous gooseberry pie and Joe chose the Chocolate Lover’s
Spoon Cake. Not being a fan of
berries in general, nor a writer for a magazine, Joe kept his fork to himself.
I, however, helped myself to a healthy bite of the delightful chocolate
cake and vanilla ice cream. The
pie was also excellent; I ordered mine plain, à la mode was an option,
and it is no wonder to me why people have traveled so far for these desserts.
Besides featuring gooseberries on the menu, there are other things
that make this restaurant special. The Goose Berry Patch is run from a farmhouse,
straight out of a Thomas Kincaid painting.
A neon “Open” sign in the front window and a petition on
the front counter to build a skate park in town were the only items that struck
me as out of place in this painting.
In the 1930's the house was converted to an eatery, then called the
Cider Inn. The Cider Inn was so named because of
the fruit and cider stand that had taken up a lean-to in the front yard of
the cottage before the establishment of the restaurant; it served hamburgers
and fries.
The
Martins bought the house and restaurant in 1987 and renamed it the Goose Berry
Patch. Renovations since then
have taken it from a one-room diner with seating for 14 guests to a three-room
establishment seating 90. A model
train runs along the perimeter of the main dining room and murals depicting
Southern Colorado serve as scenery for the miniscule passengers aboard the
tiny train.
Today,
the former hamburger and French fry joint of the 1930s and 1940s serves a
full menu starting with the staple breakfast selections; bacon, ham or sausage
and eggs, pancakes, and even grits.
The lunch menu includes a variety of hot and cold sandwiches and the
bill of fare concludes with between fifteen and twenty dinner selections ranging
in price from $9.99 to $13.99, many of the meals served with an order of hush
puppies on the side, another Goose Berry Patch rarity.
Also available, for the especially hungry customer, and those who just
can’t make up their minds, there is an All-You-Can-Eat buffet set up
all day, with breakfast items until 11:00 a.m. and dinner items until closing. The dinner items featured on the buffet
range from veggies and salads to barbequed chicken to spaghetti, with something
to please everyone.