Uncork and unwind

Village Cork customers unwind with restaurant’s new entrees

Kristin Pazulski, DDN Staff Writer

Friday, March 26, 2010

INVITING, RELAXING AMBIANCE — Village Cork, 1300 S. Pearl St., features an inviting and relaxing ambiance. Denver Daily News photo by Emily Mehring.

When 23 years ago, a couple walked into the former restaurant Falcones and asked of Lisa DeAnn Lapp, then a bartender, if she knew of a place to get a good glass of wine and a plate of cheese and fruit, they didn’t know that they planted a seed that would bloom into Village Cork.

Village Cork is a quaint restaurant on the corner of Pearl Street and E. Louisiana Avenue in Platte Park that specializes in a small menu of quality wine, shared plates and, recently, entrees.

The dŽcor is rustic, warm and homey with dark maroon walls, curtains and deep wood and wrought iron furniture. A wall, covered in corks from bottles of wine sold since Village Cork’s opening in 2001, stands testament to its dedication to a great glass of wine. And so does the wine list.

Lapp, who has bartended and worked in Denver’s restaurant industry for years, never wanted to cement herself in the restaurant business. But after that first request for a shared cheese plate and good glass of wine, she heard the same request more and more.

“I knew it was something I could create,” she said.

The idea nagged at her for years, and she developed a business plan that she edited continuously until, in 2001, she found herself in the position to make it happen.

Having the funding and an excellent education in wine, she sought a location. Her first interest was a location on 17th Street, which at that time had been The Biscuit. But the business owners of the restaurant Aix, which closed last year, beat Lapp to the opportunity.

When her friend mentioned a small ice cream shop in Platte Park was available, she checked it out and at first, she said, she was disgusted. She just felt bad vibes in the location. But she visited a second time.

“I sat in my car, literally in the middle of the street, and stared at it,” she said, and eventually came to like the location.

Lapp bought the ice cream parlor business, which was part of the deal to get the space, and ran the parlor for three monthsŃthrough the summer of 2001. Once fall hit, she shuttered the corner space and worked on her dream, opening the doors in December 2001.

For years, the restaurant specialized in sharing plates and wine. Lapp would man the kitchen, which consists simply of a small convection oven, a toaster oven and a microwave and is located behind the Village Cork’s wineglass-lined bar.

But this year the restaurant has adopted a slight change in mission.

As in 1987, when that couple started an amazing journey by mentioning their need, Lapp once again opened her ears to her customers.

Lapp said she would have people come in to Village Cork, dine on a shared plate and then leave for dinner.

“They would say, ‘We’re going to have dinner,’ not realizing that they could have dinner right here,” she said, explaining that the shared plates could serve as meals. “So I felt it was time to evolve.”

And that evolution has come in the form of Samir Mohammad, Village Cork’s new chef.

Mohammad, 25, was raised in Taos, N.M., where he developed and love and talent for cooking and creating dishes. He studied at the Le Cordon Bleu in San Francisco and the Culinary Institute of America’s Graystone Restaurant in the Napa Valley, and traveled the world as a member of the U.S. Coast Guard. He worked in various restaurants between his studies and Village Cork, including Arizona’s Nautical Beachfront Resort and Denver’s Pesce Fresco.

“When Samir came in, there was just no turning back,” said Lapp, who chose only four chefs out of more than 100 applications to interview at the restaurant.

Each interview consisted of one night of work, and Lapp’s only request was to use chicken.

Mohammad walked in at 2 p.m., and using the chicken and ingredients surrounding him, he created a dish of chicken roasted with olive oil and herb over polenta with port mushroom ragout as well as a second plateŃa poached shrimp over butternut squash risotto.

Since the Village Cork’s menu is based on seasonal produce and locally grown products, many of which come from Lapp’s plot in the community garden a few blocks from the restaurant, Mohammad’s ability to walk in and use what was in front to create impressive dishes was important to Lapp.

“He’s a natural,” she said.

Mohammad will also be involved in the gardening for the restaurant; he and Lapp are planting lettuces this weekend. Lapp also grows the herbs used in the restaurant.

With the addition of Mohammad, Lapp isn’t in the kitchen anymore, but noting the importance of community, makes it a point to be present at the restaurant and works as a server.

“That makes all the difference in any business,” she said. “People love to talk to the owner. It brings more intimacy.”

With a unique menu, full of quirky dishes, now including entrees, Lapp said she wants people to come dine with an open mind.

“I want them to be open minded, not just at Village Cork but when they go out,” she said. “They should go out without expectations.”

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