by Shannon Squires
The Climb Elevated Eatery (Climb) is the first obvious restaurant drivers see when they round the bend towards Lake City’s cottonwood tree-lined main street while heading south on Colorado State Highway 149. Formed by Linda Lovegreen and her husband Jerry Johnson in 2016, Climb has been a seasonal purveyor of upscale food and beverages, steadily creating a reputation for themselves as Lake City’s top establishment for date nights, family events, anniversaries, and other special occasions. Longtime locals and summer residents alike anticipate Climb’s Spring opening, so in 2022, when word began to percolate that the eatery was going to be up for sale, the natives were understandably restless.
Fortunately for the fine dining community in Lake City, a plan was coming to fruition between front of house leader Razvan (Raz) Armeanca and seasoned Lake City chef Tyler Crump. The proposal had a third party, Craig Suiter, a silent partner in Arizona; however the day-to-day operations of Climb would be for Raz and Tyler to manage. Linda Lovegreen and Jerry Johnson would assist with a transitionary period for the month of June, beyond that the two would be on their own. However, Lake City is home to both men, and they are well-respected members of the food and beverage communities here. The challenge was readily accepted.
Raz Armeanca is the person you look forward to seeing at your table when you come to Climb, where he has been serving and bartending for the last several years prior to the change in ownership. Always warm and knowledgeable about what the days offerings might be, Raz embodies fine dining competence, whether he’s behind the bar expertly preparing one of Climb’s curated craft cocktails, or at your booth explaining how a particular fish of the day is prepared. If you’ve been to Climb a handful of times, Raz likely knows your drink of choice and how you prefer your steak, which isn’t surprising given Raz’s long history of service in Lake City where he first came as a J1 student from Romania in 2012. At that time, Raz worked for Bruno’s, a now long-gone French Restaurant where Silver Slice Pizza is today. Raz moved permanently to Lake City in 2016, married his wife Bianca who graduated from college during that time, and has been serving upscale food and beverages to locals and summer visitors ever since.
In 2021, Raz sat down at one of Climb’s back tables with Tyler Crump and had a prophetic talk about the two men’s future with the restaurant: “Give me three years” Raz told his someday business partner, and three years later his vision is happening.
Tyler Crump has been working in food and beverage since 2009. He has done many things to feed people in this time, from a small chain of frozen yogurt shops in Texas, to MelTy’s mobile grilled sandwiches, to cooking and catering with Southern Vittles in Lake City. He first came to Lake City in 2012 with his wife Melody, whose family owned Chillin and Southern Vittles at the time. Tyler promptly fell in love with the region and moved full time in 2016. He and Melody are raising their children here and enjoy building on Melody’s long family ties to the town.
Tyler knows how to feed people; he can orchestrate a team in Climb’s kitchen and produce your plate to excellence, then replicate that for every individual that comes in to dine that night. Tyler is happy to talk about his plans for Climb’s first summer season under new ownership. The menu didn’t change dramatically; Tyler has chosen to remain true to Climb’s previous commitment to high quality proteins, the freshest sourced vegetables and top-class ingredients for all menu items from appetizers to entrées on into desserts and cocktails. Looking forward to summer 2025, there are few anticipated changes for the menu. The biggest alterations that Tyler envisioned at the end of June 2024 were the addition of a lunch menu on Wednesdays through Sundays, and occasional brunch. The first brunch celebrated Father’s Day, which was very successful, serving over 80 people.
With summer 2024 closing swiftly, Raz and Tyler have been able to look back on their first season operating Climb on their own. The two were confident that their professional experience, business management skills and the support of their community would be enough to have a great opening season, and they were right! Raz says that there were no major surprises, and that they navigated staffing challenges, such as housing their J1s in the bunkhouse Linda and Jerry had used in years past. In fact, the restaurant managed the season in such a way as to be able to take their staff on a team building raft trip down a local river, providing lifelong memories for the seasonal staff including their J1 students that are here helping to make the summer such a success.
At the official start of the off season, Raz and Tyler plan to take some time off to relax and be with their families, but the intention is to be open throughout most of the year. Times, days, and menu will be announced by Raz and Tyler as the season changes. In addition to staying open as much as possible for dining room service, the restaurant will also be providing catering around any off-season closures. Interested parties should contact Raz and Tyler at The Climb for more information about catering.
