Family style dining
Baon Supper Club's Katie Fisco, on juggling kids and cooking; organic grab-and-go with Chelle's Daily Dish; new openings; a pivot; and a first (promising) look at Perriteaux's Cajun Restaurant
This is the second installment on the subject of childcare and the hospitality industry, written by Lauren Hug, a.k.a. sidedishsidekick. If you missed the first, catch up here.
Story by Lauren Hug
Conversing with Katie Fisco, a Colorado Springs-based Filipina-American chef, is a journey for the mind and senses. She effortlessly segues between history, culture and culinary expertise, bringing experiences alive through vibrant descriptions of sights, smells, tastes and textures. Her company, which hosts monthly Filipino pop up dinners, is named Baon Supper Club — Baon means “food for the journey” in Tagalog.
When we meet to talk about childcare and the hospitality industry, she approaches the topic with the same thoughtfulness and awareness of cultural nuance. She has recently returned from the Philippines and reflects on the intermingling of parenting and culinary work she witnessed in food culture there.
“I saw plenty of street vendors where the kids are stirring the oil as mom’s dropping the fish balls in, and the other kid’s making the change,” she says. “They’re making a living for their family and they’re teaching their kids how to be entrepreneurs and run the business.”
She notes what is gained from that kind of co-located work and parenting experience: “Kids gather culture and knowledge and emotional intelligence by being in that environment. While I feel like the perspective here in the States would be ‘that’s child labor.’ There’s so much that we, in American culture, compartmentalize and separate.”
Chef Katie’s observations echo those of London-based researcher Georgia Norton in her work on childcare and co-working (discussed in more detail in the first story in this series): multiple benefits result when children are proximate to their parents during work, like children developing a more rich understanding of the world of work and less stress and worry for parents about being away from their children.
A few weeks after our conversation, I see a warm, familial scene reminiscent of Chef Katie’s descriptions of Filipino street vendors when we stop by the One Table Asian Pop Up Market that she’s organized.
Her children are present at Baon’s vendor table, taking payments and chatting with customers about the special dish the business is serving. Katie’s husband Eugene ceremoniously marches it out of a prep area, shouting “taho! …. taho!” to market guests and fellow vendors. Chef Katie explains it’s a popular morning street food snack in the Philippines, composed of homemade silken tofu, tapioca pearls and burnt brown sugar syrup.
Chef Katie doesn’t romanticize the merging of work and child-rearing. But for her, it’s preferable to not being with her children at all during the 10 to 12 hour days her culinary business requires.
“I don’t want to have to shut out all the people in my life and be siloed and by myself all day to make it work,” she says. “I’m a person too, and I need connection too.”
Currently, she works out of a commercial kitchen with a side office space where her children do their homework while she preps, cooks and packages.
“They can see me working, and I can see them,” she says. “They can open the door and say, ‘I don’t know what three plus three is.’ I accept the challenge of being able to be present and work-minded with having my children nearby.”
Before becoming a parent, Chef Katie pursued professional excellence with a devotion common among chefs aiming to execute at the highest industry standards. She worked at upscale and fine-dining establishments like Nosh and Craftwood Inn and trained under chefs like Brother Luck and Shane Lyons.
“I was all in,” she says. “I was the first one in, the last one out all the time. I was obsessed with work. There were no birthdays, no weddings I attended. I didn’t go to holiday things. That level of excellence takes abandonment of other things in your life.”
Chef Katie first noticed the difficulty of balancing culinary work and family life when she and her husband began the process of becoming foster parents. Her heart broke for kids in need of a home, and she wanted to make real impact in their lives. Preparing to foster, though, turned out be “a whole other job on top of my job job. I noticed quickly I couldn’t be all in at work anymore.”
As mush as she loved her culinary career, parenting two children through fostering and adoption required a level of devotion incompatible with that career’s demands.
“I went back and forth for a few months,” she says about deciding to pause her career to prioritize being the primary caregiver for her children. “I would work for six months then say, ‘I need to take a break.’”
But her love of food and hospitality always called her back.
On a break from restaurant work while pregnant with her third child, Chef Katie launched a culinary business selling homemade sourdough bread: “As weird as it sounds, I missed baking and cooking and being on my feet all day.”
She returned to restaurants and catering while still breastfeeding her little one, adding another layer of complexity to juggling work and parenting: her workplace had no dedicated space for nursing moms.
“I was pumping milk in bathrooms or after a catering event in my car. People attending the event are passing my car, watching me pump milk in my chef coat.”
“It made me feel resentful toward some men I knew who were cooks,” she continues with a laugh. “Because they could just shower, slap clothes on, work their shift, go home, and do it all over again. But I had to figure out when and where to pump milk, make sure my kids had what they needed for school, attend to all the therapy things the kids needed for the week … and also be a good cook.”
Finding childcare was a challenge as well.
First there were the trust issue. “My kids come from hard places. Two of the three of them are special needs,” she says. It was hard to leave them with people she didn’t know.
Then there were the non-traditional hours. “Childcare ends at a certain hour and hospitality starts when everyone’s partying at nighttime,” she says. “Thankfully, we had a great base of friends and family that we trusted to care for our kiddos a couple hours at a time.”
In many communities, care provided by friends, family and neighbors (FFN) fill gaps where licensed care is unavailable, unaffordable or incompatible with how people actually live and work. According to the Colorado Department of Early Childhood, more than half of Colorado families with young children rely on informal FFN care arrangements at some point during a typical week. This type of care is heavily utilized by families working evenings and weekends — the exact hours that define the hospitality industry — and for children with additional needs.
Finally, the cost of childcare was also a consideration in how Chef Katie chose to continue her culinary career after becoming a parent.
“My husband has a great job and works really hard to provide all the things for us, so I’ve been able to pursue my dream,” she says. “But childcare still isn’t affordable for us. Do I go to work just to pay for childcare and a bag of chips? That’s literally what I can afford. Or do I pursue [my own business] and get more value out of it for myself? It might not be more money-wise … but more fulfillment.”
So Chef Katie birthed Baon Supper Club. In part because it would allow her to be more present with her children than when working for someone else. “Birthed” is an appropriate word because she sometimes worries about her children seeing her business as “the other kid” who gets her time and attention.
“It feels in some ways like I’m abandoning my family to do the thing that I love,” she says.
But she also sees the potential for building something special: “If the business is successful in the way that I’ve structured it so that I can be with my family, I’ll have a successful business that my family is a part of.”
It truly is a family business. She schedules meetings and culinary events on days Eugene isn’t working so he’s available to care for their children. Sometimes he helps with culinary events while Katie’s brother-in-law stays with the kids.
One of the servers Chef Katie hires is also a childcare provider, so whenever there’s an event where servers aren’t needed, Katie hires her for childcare. “It has been a lifesaver,” she says.
Securing reliable care for her children requires coordination, communication and careful planning — additional duties on top of everything else she juggles as a mother and a business owner. And it’s impossible to schedule everything perfectly. She has to say no to things she’d love to do. Family life doesn’t always fit neatly into her culinary career.
“It’s weird to me to me that this is an industry that revolves around hospitality, but the people inside of it find it hard to be nourished and have care for their family,” she says.
When faced with limited childcare options, people with expertise and passion end up leaving the culinary scene.
“Do you want longevity?” Katie asks rhetorically. “Do you want people to stay in the industry? Do you want people with wisdom and knowledge to pass down this legacy? Or are you just going to keep bringing in new people who are single and available?”
Valuing what is lost when seasoned hospitality professionals leave the industry and creatively experimenting with ways to make hospitality more hospitable to parents could make a difference in how the industry as a whole — or even individual restaurants — address the childcare crisis. Chef Katie imagines a scenario where a restaurant provides childcare vouchers to their employees or establishes a childcare site nearby where employees can visit their children on their break.
Had an option like that been available, she might not ever have started her own business, she says. When she did, though, she centered it on a concept of hospitality as care. “I don’t know how to run a business and not care for people,” she says. “I don’t want to run a business where I don’t care.
“It’s not worth it to have something that’s perfect and pristine if it doesn’t have warmth and heart behind it,” she says. “I’m not aiming for Michelin by any means. What’s important to me is that we’re doing everything we can to be excellent and to represent what is good about our community, and that the community feels part of what we do.”
Five Questions with Michelle Pollick, owner/head chef of Chelle’s Daily Dish
What is Chelle’s Daily Dish and who’s behind it?
We launched in August, 2025. We’re an organic, grab-and-go meal producer. It’s me — my nickname was “Chelle” as a kid — my partner Clay Bidwell, who’s my sous chef and distribution guy, plus my daughter Morgan.
What should people know about your organic approach?
We buy most of our ingredients from Natural Grocers. We haul in our own filtered water to prep our food at Chef’s Kitchen. We cook with extra virgin olive oil, avocado oil or sesame oil, and don’t use any preservatives or artificial ingredients. Our packaging is plant-based with a bio-based lining, and it’s compostable. We eliminate food waste by donating leftovers from food prep to Caring Matters Industries, a local nonprofit that serves people experiencing homelessness.
What meals do you offer? Walk us through them.
We sell five dishes: Garlic Szechuan Peanut Noodles; Japanese Udon Noodles & Snap Peas; Apricot-Glazed Chickpea Couscous; Mongolian Vegetable Stir Fry; and Vegetable Butter Grand Masala. All but the Masala are vegan and two are gluten-friendly, but I tell people they can easily add their own meat to any item; I like to add chicken to my udon noodles.
Every meal has something special about it. We use St. Dalfour apricot jam from France with the chickpeas. I buy authentic Japanese ramen noodles from Hakubaku for the Szechuan, and I use their udon noodles. I make my sauces from scratch, taking the time to open up the spices. The sauce and the bok choy are what really make the Mongolian stir fry special. I got my butter masala recipe from a coworker who’s from India. I cook down fresh tomatoes and tri-color bell peppers for it; it takes time.
The main thing I hear from people is ‘this tastes like a restaurant meal’ and not something from a grocery store. I want to project that hand-made aspect. Our meals tastes like real food should taste.
What made you want to start a wholesale, organic food business?
I’m also a respiratory therapist. I see sick people all day. It allows me to share basic nutrition information. I tell them people are often sick because of what they’re putting into their body.
The wheels started turning for me after a trip to Italy, where I ate pasta, pizza and anything I wanted, and still felt amazing. Their food system is cleaner than ours. That got me digging into my diet and making changes, becoming aware of what my body was telling me.
What got me started with Chelle’s is I was looking for a good grab-and-go meal without all the processed foods in it and couldn’t find one.
[Read more in Chelle’s “about us” section online, which details creating meals for her family, which turned into delivering to friends and colleagues, co-inspiring the eventual creation of this business.]
Where can people find your products?
Our items are at sold at Bread & Butter Neighborhood Market locally, as well as Lucky’s Market in Boulder and the Niwot Market. Our longterm goal is to get our meals into Natural Grocers.
Leftovers — three more tidbits I gleaned during this interview:
• Key players in encouraging Michelle to market were Stacy Poore and Aubrey Day at Bread & Butter. She’d shared her early concept of Chelle’s, and they essentially said “bring it here, let’s try it.”
• “I moved to Colorado 30 years ago, but I grew up on the East Coast. I’m super appreciative that I got home-cooked meals as a kid. My mom said we didn’t have the money to go out. She and my grandmother from Ukraine were my inspirations in the kitchen.”
• Michelle was also a bike mechanic at one stint, who worked at Timberline Cycles in Old Colorado City over a decade ago (before it closed years later).
Final editor’s note:
Thanks to samples provided, I was able to try (read: enjoy) each Chelle’s dish. It’s a toss-up for me between the udon and ramen noodles for a favorite. And I can confirm the sauces stand out in the other three dishes. All flavors pop and everything’s vibrant, feeling light in the belly, despite the carbs. I’ll probably adopt Michelle’s addition of chicken to the noodles next time, to up the protein. This is the kind of clean eating I’m into, and generally aim for at home when I’m not dining out for work.
Your homework assignment until the end of the month: Make you way through 10 downtown restaurants to sample their taco and tequila pairings. (Remember last year, it was the Weenies & ’tinis tour.)
I’ve thus far caught previews of two spots. First up, at Golden Hour at The Mining Exchange, Chef Noah Siebenaller has created the Golden Hour Glow-Up: a Raquelitas purple hibiscus corn tortilla, crispy Oaxaca & aged Cotija cheese “skirt”, mezcal-glazed Kurobuta pork belly, compressed mezcal-mango, golden berry & morita salsa macha, marigold petals, and 24k edible gold leaf. Finished tableside with an orange blossom & mezcal aromatic spritz. (Wow — that’s a mouthful figuratively and literally.) It’s superb, paired with a milk-washed, dual reposado (one smoked) tequila Golden Margarita with citrus foam.
And at T-byrd’s Tacos & Tequila, Chef Joel Blantz has created a Jalapeño Relleno Taco:
Fried Jalapeño stuffed with ground beef and asadaro, with fresh guacamole, pico, crema and cilantro on a warm corn tortilla. It’s paired with the Hibiscus Hottie created by bartender Allie Johnstone: house-infused cucumber-jalapeño mezcal and tequila (split base), hibiscus, passion fruit, lime, with a mango chamoy rim and a flaming jalapeño coin. (So good, with complementary flavors!)
Bites & Bits
• Crafton’s Summit Sourdough grand opens in Chapel Hills Mall May 16 at 11 a.m. (until sell out; it’s located in the Dillard’s Wing, directly across from the pickleball courts on the first floor). Co-owner Matt Crafton tells Side Dish: “This has been a huge family dream for us. I recently retired from the military after 20+ years and [my wife] Brittany left her corporate career to go all in on the bakery full time. Seeing the community support this journey has honestly meant everything to us.” (Here’s more info on them both.) Crafton’s will also be at the Backyard Market in Black Forest as well as the Acacia Park Sunday Market this summer. They make long-fermented artisan sourdough loaves and sell wholesale too. Check out their menu here.
• The Chamonix Casino Resort in Cripple Creek — which I visited and wrote about in mid 2024, calling it “a big ante” — recently opened a new eatery named Don Juan’s Cocina inside Bronco Billy’s Casino. According to a press release, “Don Juan’s Cocina is led by James Beard Award-winning Chef Johnny Iuzzini, the property’s Director of Food & Beverage and Executive Chef, and Chef Starlene Trujillo. The concept showcases a dynamic menu rooted in authentic Mexican cuisine while incorporating modern techniques and unexpected touches.” Iuzzini is a former TV personality and celebrated pastry chef, so Don Juan’s desserts are likely worth attention. The release lists churros with dark chocolate and passionfruit sauces, mango tres leches, spiced chocolate ice cream and chocoflan. The cocktail menu reads well too, listing drinks like a Oaxaca Old Fashioned, Mezcalita and Mango Chile Smash.
• The Margarita at Pine Creek says that “Pivot is the word of 2026.” While you may have thought that post-pandemic we were done with the word, turns out that’s not the case. “This weekend our restaurant was broken into, vandalized and robbed. Our phone lines, internet, and camera lines were cut leaving us without warning or service until 10 minutes before Mother’s day brunch, one of our busiest days of the year,” they wrote on Facebook. So, being the seasoned restaurant professionals they are, what did they do? “Our staff pivoted, they got the customers fed, the broken glass cleaned up and repaired, and the moms pampered… The Margarita makes it through anything that comes our way! #52yearsandcounting.”
• Visit COS released it’s 10th annual Crafts & Drafts Passport this week. Download the digital passport for free and take advantage of local BOGO deals across beer, wine, cocktail, coffee and even milkshake categories from nearly 20 businesses around town. The more you use it, the more chances you have to win swag, through Dec. 31.
• Axios reported that “Swig, a drive-through “dirty soda” chain, plans to expand to the Colorado Springs area, with the first location expected to open by year’s end, and a total of 10 planned for El Paso County.” Writer Glenn Wallace explains that “the Utah-based chain is making a nationwide push, fueled at least in part by its prominence in The Secret Lives of Mormon Wives reality show.” (Yes, these are non-alcoholic drinks.)
• Shake Shack just opened a second C. Springs location, at 7465 N. Academy Blvd., reports the Gazette. The first location opened off Interquest Parkway in late 2023, and is among the 10 company-owned spots in Colorado.
• “Sin entered into the world through food, and Satan doesn’t stop there. Food, for me, is really like a weapon of how I can fight back.” A Christian influencer discusses being a “biblical eater” in this New York Times story.
Side Dish Dozen happenings
Bristol Brewing Company: Grab a Compass and gear up for summer at our third annual Beers & Gear Expo on Saturday, May 30! Come out to celebrate all things outdoors, with beer and live music, gear vendors, local nonprofits and clubs, and axe throwing. Kicks off with a group trail ride in Stratton Open Space.
Four by Brother Luck: Book now for our six-region, six-course wine dinner, June 3, 6 p.m. Each course will feature cuisine inspired by a different region, paired with wines selected by Steve Sander to showcase the character and traditions of each destination.
Red Gravy: From our new menu, the branzino is a must-try, earning rave reviews already from our patrons. Also, catch this month’s Pastarama contenders: lamb ragù over pappardelle, and a steak and broccoli rigatoni.
Elephant Thai & Chaang Thai: Come in for our lunch specials, 11 a.m. to 3 p.m., Mondays-Fridays. Items are only $10.95 to $11.95. Choose between dishes like pineapple, Panang or yellow curry; Pad Thai; Thai-fried rice; and teriyaki chicken, beef or tofu. Finish with mango sticky rice!
Blackhat Distillery: Experience Blackhat Distillery, where American Agave Spirits meet disciplined craft and elevated Colorado hospitality. Through May’s end, readers can secure access to our guided tours at 50% off and our intimate Distiller’s Vault experience at 25% off. Advance resos required. Tours are booked online, and Vault experiences are arranged directly with our distiller.
T-Byrd’s Tacos & Tequila: Taco Tuesdays feature $3.50 tacos all day and $5 Margaritas and Swirls. Happy hours are 3-6 p.m. Monday-Friday and all day Sunday. Our $12.99 lunch special gets you chips & salsa, two tacos, rice, beans and a fountain drink; 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. daily.
Hoppenings of the week
Beer Events
National Mimosa Day Celebration at Urban Animal Brewing (Star Ranch). May 16, 10 a.m. Celebrate National Mimosa Day with $8 beer-mosas all day long.
3rd Annual Rescue Fair and Yappy Hour at Cerberus Brewing. 1 p.m. Meet adorable adoptable dogs, explore vendor booths with merch and giveaways, learn about rescue orgs like Rez Dawg Rescue, and enjoy exclusive yappy hour deals in our beer garden.
Beer Releases
Cerveza Mezcal at Gunslinger Brewing Co. Mezcal-inspired light lager featuring bold, smoky flavors.
Sandy Sunglasses Hazy IPA at WestFax Springs. Bright, juicy and ultra-crushable with big citrus and tropical notes. Releases May 15.
Orange Creamsicle Sour at Fossil Craft Beer Co. A refreshing 5.5% ABV patio sipper featuring bright candy orange upfront with a smooth creamy finish. Releases May 15.
For full listings of events and releases download the free Hoppenings app on Apple on Google.
Upcoming events
Through June 12: Pilgrimage of Pints 2026. A self-paced brewery crawl to earn perks and rewards, leading up to the Feast of Saint Arnold beer festival on June 13.
Visit your local farmer’s markets: Full listings here via Visit Colorado Springs.
May 16: Lolley’s Ice Cream grand opening celebration downtown. 12:30 onward.
May 16: 2nd annual Mrs. Roper Romp at Coati. Noon to 6 p.m. 20+ vintage vendors, flash tattoos, tooth gems, tarot, a photo booth, DJs, and Mrs. Roper Costume Contest.
May 17 (rescheduled): Patio Brunch Bash Sip with Schnip at Evergreen Restaurant. 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. $5 Goat Patch beers, bottomless mimosas, live music, pup-friendly patio plus a Breakfast Burger Special and one-day-only special Side Dish Mousse Cake, made with espresso from Kangaroo Coffee!
May 17: Paella on the Patio returns for the season. Seatings at noon, 2:30 p.m. or 5 p.m. $49 includes a wine, sangria or beer. (Next dates: June 14, July 19, Aug. 16, Sept. 20, Oct. 18.)
May 31: Happy Hour Donuts 2nd Birthday Bash. 7 a.m. to noon. Freebies, raffles and one-day-only donut and drink specials.
Parting shot(s)
Back in early March, I told you about the impending arrival of Perriteaux’s Cajun Restaurant — essentially a revival of Springs Orleans.
I caught a private preview on May 14 ahead of May 15’s opening. Chef Jason Miller, an Acadiana native, is going for authenticity here, especially with ingredient sourcing. Examples include Leidenheimer French bread from New Orleans for his new lineup of poboys. We got the Andouille Sausage one and enjoyed the hell out of it. We also started with awesome popcorn chicken bites with Creole remoulade dip (made in-part with Zatarain’s Creole Mustard) and Miller’s own Creole seasoning (which they sell retail). His collard greens are outstanding too.
For my entrée I chose the Bayou Sampler, allowing me to pick three items from a Cajun & Creole Classics list. I went with the jambalaya (possibly my favorite), shrimp & crawfish étouffée and chicken & Andouille gumbo. Each has its highlights, like the creaminess and generous crawfish bits in the étouffée and deep roux spice in the hearty gumbo. Miller also gave me a sample of his new vegan gumbo — a long work in progress that he’s rightfully proud of.
There’s a lot left for me to try and I’m genuinely excited to go back, as is my dining companion and others in the industry I spoke with during our tasting. One other highlight, not to miss for nostalgia sake or just a refreshing drink on a hot day: Perriteaux’s Hurricane cocktail, which FOH personality Moe Serato tells me is made with a unique combo of dark, white and spiced rum, plus passionfruit, orange juice and of course grenadine for signature color.
If you’re going to be at Prospect Lake at all this summer, paddleboarding, swimming, fishing or whatever, you’re definitely going to want to stop by. This could be the anchor business to revive the long blighted edge of Memorial Park (ahead of the Printer’s Parkway project).