The Growing Restaurant Group That's Paying Homage to the Past While Planning for the Future

“You just kind of roll with the punches,” says Owen Olson, CEO and founding partner of the Recess Family restaurant group, which includes Recess Beer Garden and a new addition, fieldTRIP, as well as Campus Lounge. And there have been quite a few punches over the past two years.

Olson had spent time working in Japanese restaurants, including the now-closed Japon on South Gaylord Street, before opening Recess with a group of friends in late 2015. The beer garden, at 2715 17th Street in LoHi, has since become a go-to for good times, thanks in part to its ample outdoor space. “People move to Colorado to be outdoors and to experience all four of the seasons, so I want that to be the majority of the space,” Olson says of the Recess design, which he and his team did themselves — a rarity for most restaurants, which typically outsource design and remodeling projects.