Colorado Real Estate Journal - July 15, 2015
Honor Society Handcrafted Eatery, a new fast fine dining and lifestyle brand, is opening its first restaurant this summer in Lower Downtown Denver at 1900 16th St. The restaurant’s interior aesthetic – designed by Rowland+Broughton Architecture and Urban Design – will combine natural reclaimed surfaces with clean, contemporary sight lines, a look comparable to upscale fine dining. In addition, Honor Society, which will be one of the few non-chain restaurants to be LEED certified, will use recycled and repurposed packaging materials in the restaurant, will seek out environmentally conscious vendors and suppliers, and will use consciously sourced products. The 3,300-square-foot restaurant will feature handcrafted menu items, fresh juices, local craft beers, wines and specialty cocktails. It will be open daily for breakfast, lunch and dinner with dining room and bar seating. Honor Society also will provide catering and delivery service, and deploy a full suite of digital assets for mobile ordering, menu downloads and nutritional information. “Honor Society is based on the idea that great food has the power to unite people and provide a path to a healthier lifestyle,” said Jonas Tempel, one of Honor Society's founding partners. “It's our humble belief that a productive life starts with your food and food choices. Our vision was to combine the best of fast-casual conveniences with the excellence and comfort of fine dining.” Four partners with diverse professional backgrounds – Tempel, Rob Alvarado, Ian Smith and Justin Brunson – created the Honor Society concept out of their shared desire to create a restaurant that serves high-quality, healthful food in a comfortable, inviting environment. The partners brought in local restaurant entrepreneur Ben Kaplan of Oak at Fourteenth in Boulder and The Source in Denver, and Frank Schultz, CEO of Tavern Hospitality Group, as founding investors and advisers; as well as Glenn Pollak, manager at Oak at Fourteenth.