Estes Park board approves liquor license for Kissing Moose Cafe and Saloon

The Estes Park Town Board voted Tuesday to approve a new hotel and restaurant liquor license for Mountain Berry Bakery LLC, doing business as Kissing Moose Cafe and Saloon. The license covers a restaurant and bar planned inside the hotel property at 1701 North Lake St., a site previously licensed as the Rocky Mountain Hotel and Conference Center until that license expired in October 2020.

Town Clerk Frank Lancaster said the application was filed May 14 and reviewed concurrently because the location had been licensed before. He said the property sits near the edge of town, so staff used a 5-mile neighborhood boundary for the hearing, and no communications had been received about the application.

Applicant Vicki Hahn, owner of Mountain Berry Bakery, said she plans to expand her Kissing Moose business by partnering with the hotel property to open a restaurant and bar there. Hahn said she has worked in hospitality for years, including at Taharaa Mountain Lodge and Twin Owls Steakhouse, and started Kissing Moose Cafe as a food truck three years ago. She said the hotel owners had been upgrading the building and event space and that she hoped the partnership would create a venue attractive to tourists.

During the public hearing, Trustee Bill Brown said the community should be concerned about the number of places serving alcohol and said he would like to see information on arrests involving intoxicated people presented when new establishments seek licenses. Brown also said the town should be mindful of the amount of alcohol served in public and the risks of drinking and driving.

Hahn responded that alcohol service can be a liability but said training helps staff watch for overindulgence. She said she was taking a class the next day and that her bar manager was scheduled to take one the following Thursday. Lancaster had told the board earlier that the training had been scheduled.

Trustee Mark Igel voiced support for the application, telling Hahn that her attention to her existing business gave him confidence in the new venture. After closing the public hearing, the board approved the license application as Resolution 79-26.