by Cailéan Anderson
After owning and managing restaurants for 22 years, Jamie and Alisa Young opened Toasted, their café in the heart of Manitou Springs, in May 2022.
Before coming to Colorado, the couple had lived in Albuquerque and their businesses in the area — the Stella Blue music venue, Sandia Crust gourmet pizza, Rockin’ Taco gourmet street tacos and North Modern Bistro fine dining — won multiple awards.
The Toasted staff is small, just the Youngs and part-time employee Jordan Johnson. But this has not stopped the two trained chefs from focusing on locally sourced ingredients and making their food from scratch as much as possible.
For example, Jamie utilizes his mother’s recipe for their banana bread, they roast their own roast beef and their handmade lemonade starts with 7 Minute Spring water, as well as all natural fruit purées. In an eight-week period they had sold about 1,100 bottles of their lemonade.
Alisa pointed out that they focus strongly on attention to detail, but in her words, “everything we cook and bake is made with love. The first bite is just as good as the last.”
That can be a tall order to live up to day in and day out, but considering how popular the small establishment has been, it’s obvious this team of three consistently pull it off.
When I visited, I ordered the eggs Benedict, which came with a side of fresh fruit and country-style potatoes. The portion you receive is absolutely worth the money and you might end up leaving with a box for later.
Although one egg was poached a bit longer than the other and the yolk wasn’t as runny, the two eggs were still very soft and delicate. You get a slight bite from the vinegar from the poaching water, but the overall flavor is what you would expect from a well-cooked egg.
The hollandaise sauce was bright and flavorful with a strong lemony punch, which Alisa said is how she prefers it. You can tell it’s a house-made sauce because it completely lacks the grittiness you might get from a packet. It was incredibly smooth and complimented the eggs well.
The English muffin was well-toasted and held up to the sauce and eggs. They didn’t become soggy and ruin the texture of the entire dish. The ham was seared nicely and the flavor pairs well with the overall dish without the natural sugars overpowering any other component.
The fruit obviously didn’t arrive at Toasted pre-cut; they put a lot of effort into cutting the fruit fresh and quality checking it every day to ensure no one sees something off-putting on their plate.
The potatoes could have used a touch more salt (but that’s easily solved) and maybe a bit more time in the pan to ensure all sides were crisp, but this is something that comes down to preference.
Overall, I would give this restaurant a 4.7 out of 5 stars. The Youngs really know what they’re doing and their food shows how much they care. Not just about the end result, but every step from start to finish to give you the best experience possible.
They might not be working with the most expansive menu, as some of their competitors might be, but the smaller menu means a better chance of quality control.
So, if you are looking for a spot to get some breakfast in Manitou, but want the best bang for your buck, then Toasted just might be it.
If you go
Toasted, 720 Manitou Ave., is open 8 a.m.-4 p.m. every day but Wednesdays. Information: 719-820-0021.