When the Dillon Town Council selected Justin and Elissa Slezak’s proposal to become the new operators of the town’s lakeside tiki bar, the operating agreement would have had the owners of the Keystone Coffee Co., also known as STEEP Brewing and Coffee Co., take over in the summer of 2027.
The old operator, Pug Ryan’s Brewery, closed April 5 after owner Chris Locke agreed to sell its building to the town. Justin Slezak said the town approached him to ask if he and Elissa would take over the tiki bar operation a year early.
“They showed a lot of flexibility (on) when we’re going to open and that kind of thing,” Justin Slezak said.
The STEEP Brewing Lakeside Tiki Bar had a soft opening Memorial Day weekend, and Justin Slezak said it fully opened shortly after as it received the last of its needed permits and approvals from the county health department. He said it was an “extreme challenge” to get everything ready in about a month and a half.
“I called in a lot of favors,” Justin Slezak said. “Every day has been 10-12 hours a day working down here to get it open, a lot of sleepless nights, and a lot of weeks where you didn’t have a day off.”
STEEP brought a lot of employees from its other locations over to the tiki bar, including the manager and assistant manager, Justin Slezak said. The team’s experience, the Slezaks’ experience running other restaurants and the help of the Dillon Marina staff have made it possible to open in a tight timeframe, he said.
The work required to get the restaurant ready included revamping the decor, staining the deck, buying all new food and drink equipment, purchasing a new food trailer, installing a small stage for live music, acquiring the necessary permits and licenses and more.
New tiki-themed decor aligns with the new menu, which has several tiki-themed items, like the shrimp tacos, tiki burger and poke wonton nachos, which Justin Slezak said have been a “big hit.”
“We got Colorado grass-fed beef in here that is really high quality, so we’re trying to put together a really good burger concept,” Justin Slezak said. “The feedback we received last weekend … has been (the food is) a much needed improvement.”
STEEP has two brewery and coffee roastery locations in Keystone, and the Slezaks are bringing their company’s beer and coffee to the tiki bar. Justin Slezak said the tiki bar has six STEEP beers on tap and serves coffee from opening until around 4 p.m. each day.
“We’re doing some higher-end espresso drinks and some espresso cocktails as well,” Justin Slezak said. “They’re pretty popular right now with espresso martinis and stuff like that.”
The breakfast food menu includes breakfast burritos, tacos and sandwiches, and Justin Slezak said the restaurant plans to add more as the summer season picks up. All the food is available to-go, he said, for anyone looking to grab food before going out on a boat at the marina. The tiki bar also has canned cold brews.
The tiki bar also features pastries from Bad Bunnie Baking Co., which is a wholesale bakery in Dillon. One pastry, the island-style banana nut bread, is exclusive to the tiki bar.
Besides updated menus, the new version of the tiki bar is bringing live music to the lakefront restaurant. A stage will host acts regularly, Justin Slezak said, although the exact schedule has not been finalized. He said the restaurant will likely also have open mic or karaoke nights, and once it develops a schedule, it will post an event calendar on its website.
The tiki bar is working with the Summit Music Relief Fund, a nonprofit that helps local musicians in need, to book local artists. Justin Slezak said that Dillon Marina manager Craig Simson has also been helpful in finding interested acts.
“I think, right now, they have 48 people that want to play down here,” Justin Slezak said. “We’re trying to bring music at least a couple of days a week.”
A worker at the STEEP Brewing Lakeside Tiki Bar picks up food from the tiki bar’s food trailer June 2. The tiki bar opened recently under new management.
Kyle McCabe/Summit Daily News
New decor at the STEEP Brewing Lakeside Tiki Bar pictured June 2 emphasizes the tiki theme. The recently opened tiki bar offers coffee from Breckenridge Coffee Roasters, which is owned by the tiki bar’s new operators.
Kyle McCabe/Summit Daily News
Beer kegs and a statue sit in front of the blank back wall of the STEEP Brewing Lakeside Tiki Bar on June 2. STEEP owner Justin Slezak said a local artist will soon paint the tiki bar’s logo on the wall.
Kyle McCabe/Summit Daily News
A worker at the STEEP Brewing Lakeside Tiki Bar carries food from the food trailer to the bar June 2. The tiki bar opened recently under new management.
Kyle McCabe/Summit Daily News
Justin Slezak said part of the goal with having live music is to enhance the experience of those attending Dillon Amphitheater concerts by giving them a place to go before the show.
“(We can) have some opening shows where people can have some food, have some drinks, and then they can walk right up to the amphitheater right after,” Slezak said.
The tiki bar will have a grand opening on Father’s Day weekend, June 20-21, Justin Slezak said, which will be a hula party, complete with hula dancers and a pig roast courtesy of Highside Brewing & BBQ. The opening will also have dock dogs diving off the dock into the lake, specials and giveaways, he said.
“You know how Casa Bonita has the cliff diving? We’re gonna have have dock dogs,” Slezak said.
Justin Slezak said the tiki bar plans to have monthly luau events after the initial grand opening celebration.
The STEEP Brewing Lakeside Tiki Bar is open from 9 a.m. to sunset on weekdays and from 8 a.m. to sunset on weekends. It will close for the season in September.
‘ The preceding article may include information circulated by third parties ’
‘ Some details of this article were extracted from the following source www.summitdaily.com ’
