The Passenger

It was a true pleasure to spend Valentine's Day weekend writing poetry at The Passenger. Since COVID, something's been lost in restaurants - passionate people and hospitality. Everything I saw, heard, and watched, showed me that The Passenger is dedicated to those two truly lost arts. Your customers and community too, displayed joy. They all were amazing to interact with, and I'm so thankful for the opportunity to work with both you and them to create art. Additionally, I was lucky enough to try numerous dishes, all thoughtfully prepared featuring unique but balanced flavors. I will surely be back again when I am "off-the-clock."

From the moment you walk in the vibe The Passanger gives off is clear: This is a "New World" meets "Old World" kind of place, with a clear emphasis on World. The owners pay homage to the building's historic roots as being both a bank on the first floor and an opera house on the second floor. On the first floor where the restaurant is located there is ample seating across the many rooms (including inside the old bank vault!) and outdoor patio, at the center of which is a beautiful wooden bar with that old town kind of charm. My wife and I had gone for brunch. First off, let me say that the service was superb. Our host was attentive, kind, and accommodating; so much so that he even gave us a tour of the old auditorium upstairs after our dining experience. However, in terms of food, it was a little underwhelming. The presentation of the dishes were phenomenal; each one inspired by an equivalent dish from a different part of the world, but the flavor/texture was a miss more than a hit. I ordered the breakfast tacos, and the tortillas were somehow both overcooked and stale, my wife ordered the frittata and it was a bit on the dry side. The best dish by far was the spinach and goat cheese crepe, we'd absolutely order that again! As far as price goes it's certainly competitive for the area, but one thing that irked me a bit was the extra charge for the back-of-house staff -- I completely understand why some restaurants choose to do this, but I wish they'd just increase the prices on their menu and pay their staff appropriately rather than both virtue signal to their customers and passing those costs onto them. As they say in French: "C'est la vie" Will we back to The Passanger? Sure, and especially for a drink or three, but when it comes to the food and the overall experience our expectations will certainly be more tempered.

I was looking for a dinner spot for the hubby and me and came across The Passenger. Didn't look at the reviews since we were pressed for time. When we walked in we were hesitant as we were the only ones in the restaurant, not a good sign! Our sever Shayla was friendly and super sweet, she took our drink order, we had a glass of wine. She returned with our wine and told us all about the building and the restaurant and a little about the owner. She said we could walk around and explore so we took our glasses of wine and explored the different rooms, pretty cool place! The menu is eclectic, foods from around the world. I ordered the beef chimichurri and the hubby got the ghost burger. Both were delicious! We were pleasantly surprised. We will be back, possibly for their mystery dinner, we were told not two are the same!

My partner and I were so excited for a special date night— the Mystery Blindfold Dinner by Chef Madhoo — and it exceeded our expectations. It was a fun-filled, exciting, one-of-a-kind experience. We are still talking about it weeks later, each course was inspired by cuisine from different country or part of the world. We have traveled a lot and some of the dishes brought us back to places we have visited and the flavors they embody. The staff was tentative and passionate as they guided us through the evening and helped support each guests to navigate eating blindfolded. Very grateful for all the knowledge and insight Chef M shared with the group at the end of the event. We left feeling inspired! Will definitely be back to enjoy more special events at The Passenger Restaurant and plan to hire their catering team for my job’s company events!

Ok, I just have to write about this place. I've visited three times in the past months and the food was delicious, interesting and thoughtfully prepared. I said several times, "the chef really knows what they are doing". Trying new things is what The Passenger is all about and they have an internationally-inspired menu so come ready to try something you've never had. Also, this is EXACTLY what Longmont needs in a sea of American or Mexican fare. First visit I had an entree and second visit our table shared tapas which I highly recommend and were appropriately priced for portion size (most of them could be split for 4 people to try). I had the pleasure the second time to have met one of the owners (Vipul Seth) who was very much engaged in making sure we were enjoying our meal, pointed out their fun mini passport that you can have stamped and earn discounts .. and had an infectious passion for what they are doing there. I'd been wanting to do the blind food tasting (mystery menu) event and a friend and I ended up going last night and it did NOT disappoint. Chef Madhoo Seth plated each dish then came out to speak about her experiences and travels and walk us through what we might be tasting prompting fun discussion and then described each dish after we completed it (she shows you the complete dish). (You wear a blindfold and it's actually pretty fun to try to eat with one on, had us giggling.) Chef clearly loved what she was doing and that love came out in her presentation and flavors. It was PLENTY of food (in fact, I was actually stuffed afterwards and should have taken the "we can box this up for you" advice, but I was having way too much fun and scooping deliciousness into my mouth.) Thanks for a great experience, we are already planning on who we can bring to do the tasting event again.