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 1930s 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.
