105 Social House — Restaurant in Palmer Lake

It's been a long time since we had a meal out that I would consider excellent from start to finish and all dishes were exceptional. We live in Palmer Lake and had never visited the old location so were excited when 105 Social House took over The Depot, where we'd gone several times.

The decor is dark with stamped metal tiles on the ceiling. It feels a bit like an old bordello, but perhaps that is the look and feel they are going for. There are old photos on the walls going back as far as the 30's and then through the decades to the 50's and 60's. There was a small LED lamp on the table to help us old folks with bad eyes. Menus were simple printed sheets of paper. The menu changes regularly, so this saves on printing costs.

The menu is fairly small but that just means they are focusing on what they do well, rather than trying to offer a hundred options. I had the fish and chips. I grew up in the UK, so I am particular about my fish and chips and it's hard to find good options when you're hundreds of miles from the ocean. These were really good. The batter is hand dipped and fried super crispy. If you like a softer batter, you might not like this. (I like it both ways.) The fish was nice and firm. The fries could have used a couple more minutes in the frier, but were well seasoned. The tartar sauce is some of the best I've ever had, and the slaw was decent. It needed a bit more flavor. Paired with a Guiness, it was pretty much a perfect meal.

My wife had the chicken fried steak, and it was the best I've tasted in a long time. Usually the meat doesn't have much flavor besides the breading, but this meat actually had some seasoning. The coating was good - not too thick and nice and crunchy, and held up well to the thick tasty gravy. The mashies were also some of the best we've had out in a long time. Plenty of seasoning, and a nice hint of garlic. The roasted corn was a bit too pepper-y for her liking, but she doesn't like any kind of heat.

My son had the Tuscan Chicken which was amazing. Perfectly cooked chicken breast, nice and juicy with a lovely, delicate sauce, and more of the excellent mashed potatoes.

Value - with tax and tip, one beer and one soda, we were at about $110, which seems good value for the quality of food. Service was cheerful and attentive.

This has to be one of the best restuarants in the whole Tri-Lakes area, including north Colorado Springs. If they aren't careful, they are going to become very, very popular! We will...

SKIP IT IN ANY AND TERRIBLE FOOD AND SERVICE!

Let’s start:

Call in 6:05pm “do you have an open table for two” sweet wonderful hostess: “we do” us: “see you in 5min”

The restaurant: 6:10pm Lime green everything. No sense of design. No sense of direction inside the restaurant. Sat (absolutely no mention of a 45 person private party)

Wait 10 min to been talked to or anything. Then an over tanned manager/owner comes over barking at us what we want. (Still no mention of private party)

Just a soup and salad for us and try to order desert now. Barked back at “no desert now we will do that later” (absolutely surely no mention of 45 person private party)

Got our beer.... and wait..... and wait.... and WAIT.... AND WAIT.... two tables get outraged and one just leaves. The other gets up and is ticked and then magically the food comes out. They said it was 1 hour and 30 min.

Anther older couple. Asks us how long we have been waiting and we’re only 55 min at this time. They were 1 hour 20 min.

Annnnnd wait.... and wait.... and wait... but don’t forget wait...

At this same time the hostess (very sweet and was trying to help) but had the bartender and another waiter standing behind the bar as the old man busses. Takes orders. And barks along the way.

The older couple only half there meal comes out. 1 hour 30 min later.

Finally..... the room is complaining about it.

And get this... they are still SEATING PEOPLE. Not telling them anything about them being 1 hour 45 min behind.

Finally have to say “man we only had soup and salad where is it” nothing like “hey sorry about that let me check and hey let me make it better or hey what can we do to make it better” all I get back “there is a 45 person party......” sooooo short sighted.

Then we get our food as if it’s been siting there forever. Soup is actually cold. SERIOUSLY. Cold. So it’s been sitting there.

Finish meal. A bigger man would say “sorry about that we want to have you back and we should have closed the restaurant with a big party (like EVERY RESTAURANT DOES FOR A BIG EVENT)” get the check to us and says “BEST OF LUCK” deeeeeeeaaaarrrr lord. Learn some BASIC customer service. So special.

Other tables complaining when we left without desert. The food was terrible. The overly tan arrogant man was terrible.

Do not!! DO NOT feed into a person or like green restaurant like this ever....

Was hoping for more, in general...

The short: Meh. Food was ok, had the brisket sandwhich, service was good, and the atmosphere was pretty loud, given that there were only 7 or 8 people in the whole place.

The long: The area around Monument, Palmer Lake, and Black Forest enjoys the great sense of high country, with a smattering of conveniences that are close enough. But, and it's slowly getting better, there isn't much in the way of standout spots or exceptional food/drink (there are a few places). Perhaps this community/demographic isn't as supportive as it could/should be, or the demand won't support the shifts needed to bring that kind of resaurant/bar in. It's too bad, we have that small mountain town charm available, "just off" the interstate, and there are plenty of other model towns in CO that have totally capitalized on their charm (I know, I know, not exactly a 'mountain town,' but, close enough, and still charming).

I had hoped that this spot would be part of that shift, and, at least with one visit, not sure it hits the mark, despite the potential.

Had the feel of a place for "regulars," which is great, but sometimes that can leave 1st-timers feeling a little like they're at a party they weren't enthusiastically invited to. My take on small, personal restaurants is that they have every opportunity to spread a sense of inclusion and welcoming - because they're small. To be clear, I wasn't neglected or ignored.

I'll probably give it another shot at some point, but the place just feels as though...