Photo credit: Sunrise Ranch
Article written by Rhonda Macier Lathen, excerpts from SunriseRanch.org
If you find yourself dining on healthy ingredients that have been plucked from our earth by people who have a commitment to healthy living in mind and spirit, then it’s hard to deny that something bigger than ourselves plays a part in nourishing our bodies.
Kimberly Foster, Global Community Marketer at Sunrise Ranch, recently moved to Loveland, Colorado after spending most of her life in California. She was kind enough to share a tour of the ranch with Culinary Latitudes Travel, including an unexpected and “beyond-organic” dining experience at their Pavilion. The 5-acre farm goes above and beyond USDA organic regulations. “The ranch is proud of the fact that since 1945 we have never used chemical fertilizers or pesticides.”
Photo credit: Sunrise Ranch, Celia feeding chickens
Ms. Foster introduced us to the Executive Chef Barret W. Barth , and we learned that his wife and 3 daughters live on the premises with him in exchange for his farm-to-table culinary creations. An off the cuff interview with their chef provided us with an inside look at dining experiences offered at Sunrise Ranch. “I don’t like to follow a recipe. I just use what ingredients are at hand and create something new every day” states Chef Barret. From large metal hooks for hanging aged-dried meats to a refrigerator bigger than most homeowner’s bedrooms, he has everything an experienced chef would wish for to run a full kitchen.
Chef Barret shares a few tips with Culinary Latitudes, llc owner, Rhonda Macier Lathen
As a young boy, Barret would ask to be excused from the table at restaurants so he could spy on the kitchens and watch the chefs work. This fascination was just the beginning as 11-year old Barret requested an omelet pan for his birthday, not Legos or a skate-board as most boys his age would like. His family would awake to the smell of breakfast being prepared every morning. His first paying job in the food industry was bussing tables and doing food prep at age 12 in a Jersey Greek restaurant. At age 15 he and his father moved to the Mountainous region where they purchased and ran a place called the Stew Pot, currently the oldest restaurant in Snow Mass, Colorado. Under their management, this restaurant became the highest-grossing business per square foot in the Roaring Fork Valley.
At age 17 Barth’s he joined the U.S. Navy and was stationed in San Diego, California, aboard the USS Long Beach CGN-9. He cruised the Pacific for almost three years as a cook where he was allowed to pursue his love of the culinary arts. “My time in the Navy was where I got my culinary training” shared Chef Barret.
Back in Colorado he met his wife and they decided to move to Florida where he worked at Ophelia’s on the Bay. Sarasota was good to him and he was quickly noticed as one of the top 200 chefs in Florida while working at this award-winning restaurant. The chef's journey in the culinary world allowed him to consult for restaurants, work in hospitals including Meals on Wheels services, and brought him to his current position at Sunrise Ranch.
With his staff cut in half due to the pandemic, guests still claim one of their favorite parts of staying at the ranch is the food! When asked what the chef would like his guests to know about him he shares “My desire to serve and glorify God." His experience at the ranch has been nothing but positive.
Travel to distant places is not on Chef Barret’s mind. Today he would just like to travel “anywhere in the U.S. …. maybe Hawaii”. His time in the Navy filled his need to explore further.
You might want to visit Sunrise Ranch or check out the Fort Collins or Loveland farmer’s market to purchase some of the same organic vegetables, grass-fed meats, and other pantry items the chef uses to prepare gourmet meals at Sunrise Ranch.
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If you are thinking about distant places and would like to chat about booking a 2021 experience, contact us with your information and we’d be happy to assist you!