If you’ve ever stopped by Blue Plate in Avon, CO, you may have noticed the words “An American Restaurant” printed on the sign under our logo. Similarly, if you’ve ever eaten at our lovely establishment, you may have thought to yourself, ‘American eatery? This menu is from all over the world!’
See, it’s sort of an inside joke between Chef Adam & owner Elli Roustom – yet once they explain it to you, it makes a lot of sense.
What an “American Restaurant” means to Blue Plate
I’ll be the first one to admit the “American Restaurant” part of Blue Plate’s identity can be confusing. I mean, with global dishes from Chef’s crispy Syrian falafel to Elli’s authentic Austrian schnitzel on the menu, the offering doesn’t necessarily scream “American Cuisine.”
However, Chef Adam & Elli insist on maintaining this description of their restaurant, and here’s why:
Chef Adam and Elli both have strong family ties outside of the United States. Many of Adam’s family members still reside in Syria, and he spent his childhood traveling back and forth between the east coast of the U.S. & Syria each season.
Elli grew up in Austria and traveled to the United States to pursue work & adventure. Most of her family still lives in Europe, so she loves have conversations with fellow German-speaking patrons to keep from becoming rusty. (I’m just kidding – her German will never be rusty. Don’t hurt me, Elli!)
That said, both Adam and Elli truly appreciate the original roots of American culture: to provide a place where people from around the world can come together, live together and learn from each other. They strongly value the idea of the United States being a “melting pot,” and they wanted to create a restaurant that reflects this ideal.
Hence, when you visit “Blue Plate: an American restaurant,” you’ll find a menu with variety. You’ll see a delicious half-pound burger slathered in Chef Adam’s Lucky Seven Sauce alongside a traditional Mediterranean chicken skewer plate. You’ll be able to choose from a gigantic portion of New England-style fish n’ chips or a [slightly smaller] plate of tempura-fried shrimp with a Chinese dipping sauce.
To Chef Adam & Elli Roustom, their eclectic & worldly medley of cuisine represents the epitome of what it means to be an American – and I must say, I cannot argue with that.
A Closer Look at Blue Plate’s Menu
Now that you understand the reasoning behind Blue Plate’s “melting pot” of cuisine (and I’m not just talking about their delicious fondue), let’s take a look at their myriad of dishes from around the world.
Popular Mediterranean Dishes
As I mentioned above, Chef Adam’s family hails from Syria, so he’s grown up cooking traditional Mediterranean foods. (Pro tip: If anything [even slightly] Mediterranean on the menu looks good to you, go for it. It IS good.)
Here are some of Blue Plate’s more popular Mediterranean offerings:
THE “MED” CHICKEN SKEWER
Mediterranean marinated chicken grilled with onion, tomatoes, and jalapeno. Served with jasmine rice, fatoush salad and Chef’s ‘secret’ garlic dipping sauce
DAMASCUS HUMMUS
CHAMY BEET DIP
Popular European Dishes
Elli Roustom grew up in Austria, so Blue Plate’s menu would be incomplete without a few of her family’s old recipes. If you have a sweet tooth, do not miss out on one of her traditional Austrian desserts.
Here are some of Blue Plate’s more popular European offerings:
AUTHENTIC SCHNITZEL
QUATTRO FIORIA LA VODKA
CLASSIC CHEESE FONDUE
Popular “American” Dishes
Chef Adam spent part of his childhood in Massachusetts, which is where he learned to appreciate traditionally American (or Americanized) recipes. If you’re a fan of fried fish, Blue Plate’s is the best in town.
Here are some of Blue Plate’s more popular American offerings:
NEW ENGLAND STYLE FISH N’ CHIPS
BLUE PLATE MEATLOAF
RHODE ISLAND CALAMARI
Popular Asian Dishes
Both Chef Adam & Elli have traveled around the globe, together and apart, but one of their favorite travels was visiting Vietnam and surrounding Southeast Asian countries. Chef likes to use inspiration from this trip to create Asian cuisine.
Here are some of Blue Plate’s more popular Asian offerings:
RED SHRIMP TEMPURA
ASIAN PORK OSSO BUCCO
VEGETARIAN DELIGHT
These dishes are just a few of the cultural medley options available at Blue Plate. Whether you’re looking for Italian, French, Austrian, Syrian, Greek, Moroccan, Vietnamese, Chinese, Thai, Indian, Mexican, Spanish, traditionally American (or other!) cuisine, look no further than Blue Plate.
Chef Adam & Elli Roustom believe there’s room for every taste & culture on their melting pot of a menu and in their American restaurant.
