Jul 22, 2010

Mountain Air Gourmet Co. sells a smorgasbord of regional food productsBy Karla SluisDurangoHerald.com

If you are what you eat, then we are what we produce.

A glance at a new store’s shelves reveals that Southwest Colorado is a unique blend of communities sprinkled with zesty subcultures. There’s something for everyone: granola with hemp for tree-hugging liberals, traditional jams for conservative ranching families, elk sausage for rugged outdoorsmen – even curry-coconut peanuts to satisfy big-city transplants.

Mountain Air Gourmet Co. opened in late June at 600 Main Ave. under The Balcony Bar & Grill – arguably the busiest tourist corner in town. The business features gourmet foods from Colorado with a focus on the Durango area. Co-owner Richard Burk sees himself as a culinary ambassador for out-of-town visitors.

“We don’t want to be a grocery store,” he said. “We want people to get a sense of the flavor of Durango.”

Burk shares ownership of the store with his wife, Lenda, and Eric and Kay Kiesel. The original idea for the store was to create a business around manufacturing foods locally, but it didn’t pan out.

“There’s a lot – and such a variety – of really good food here, we decided we could sell that instead,” said Burk.

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