Persephone Grae's Cafe — Restaurant in Manitou Springs

In the middle of the Manitou Springs tourist glut called "the Loop" is this unassuming cafe in a prime location, North facing patio is out of the sometimes direct and intense sunlight. Its easy to think this place is called the Barker House cafe because it comprises the ground floor of the Barker House apartments, but closer inspection of the signage identifies as Persephone Grae's cafe with an every day happy hour beginning at 2pm. This equates to $1 off alcoholic beverage or a free serving of homemade chips with purchase of 2 alcoholic beverages. I only saw beer and wine on the menu, so don't be expecting a full bar. The location and large 'seat yourself' patio tables at this casual place reward visitors blessed with good timing with a great (and shaded) view of the parade of classic cars, motorcycle clubs, and wandering tourist families that are a constant spectacle during nice weather weekends. If you visit, you MUST get the generously sized bowl of green chile! It is larger than expected and so delicious! Available in vegan or with pork, they are famous for this regional specialty that they stew for 72 hours before letting it be served. Worth the wait, I tell you! The staff here and the order at counter service give an air of being like a collective or volunteer organization, only two people working to cover the register, serving, and preparing food on a busy Sunday. Everyone was really friendly and had good vibes that I know I personally would have a hard time maintaining in the face of an endless stream of Sunday tourists. You are to be commended, all of you, for your great attitudes and service! The food was excellent and very reasonably priced for such a touristy concentrated area where across the street they are gouging the public with $8 ice cream scoops and $3 cans of soda. We had the green chile with pork that was shredded and stringy (instead of the traditionally chunky) inside the most uniquely flavorful chile soup that I've ever tasted, and I've had green chile all over the four corners! We also had a roast beef and cheddar sandwich with horseradish sauce on a terrific roll that was everything described on the menu, delicious! Topped off with two cans of Laughing Lab Scotch Ale got us those free happy hour homemade chips, and that was totally worth it! Crisp and light, not overseasoned, my son inhaled practically the entire bowl. This is the second place in as many days that I visited that is pushing the local Red Leg brewery beer, and I am just not a fan. Glad they had an alternative choice in the other local fav Laughing Lab. All in all this place was a hidden gem that we were happy...

I would be leaving a 5 star rating had we not revisited twice more. This was the first place we tried for lunch upon arriving to Manitou Springs and loved it. We went back for breakfast the following day and did not have the same experience. The guy taking the order got the whole thing wrong. We asked the eggs be cooked to order since it was a sandwich and didn’t want yellow runny mess all over our plates, and also asked that the bacon be cooked to request. The server was polite and took care of the request though she was not responsible for the mistake. No big deal. The sans switch was okay.We went back two days later to enjoy the sandwiches we had tried the first time, but the order was wrong again. This time they put a cranberry jelly on the Miss Piggy sandwich. They put stone ground mustard on my turkey (supposed to be a Thanksgiving-style sandwich). The VERY small side of home fries came out after half our meal had already been eaten. I decided to leave a 2 Star, rather than a one, because the first visit was a good one. However, we will not be returning due to these oversights with our orders. Also, this place is extremely expensive. It’s ~$15 per sandwich! And that is for a small sandwich. These sandwiches are not shareable- they are definitely single portions. For this sort of pricing, there should be more consistency and...

I will admit that I was hangry before I got here. I was tired, and just flew in from Texas the night before, so I hadn’t gotten the opportunity to eat dinner or breakfast. The atmosphere was very nice. I enjoyed looking at the paintings for sale and thought it was such a nice touch that they included the artist and description for some paintings, alongside a QR code!

The workers were pleasant, although I didn’t have much interaction with them myself! They were always productive and with a smile on their face!

The wait time was more than I would’ve hoped for, especially with the fact that I was already really hungry. I was with 3 other people and I think the wait was about 20-30 minutes. But the food was delicious!! The pancakes tasted like cake, the fruits were fresh, and the bacon was seasoned and cooked phenomenally.

Overall, I had a very nice experience. The only thing I wish could have been different is the wait time and that the butter that came with the pancakes was warm, rather than cold and from a box. I would come here again, and the next time, I’ll try the chicken wrap which my sister thought...