Meet Karrie Williams | Co-owner, Colonel Mustard’s Sandwich Emporium

We had the good fortune of connecting with Karrie Williams and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Karrie, how does your business help the community?
Our community is vitally important. In addition to offering shop discounts to first responders, military and teachers, we host a monthly cribbage tournament and donate all proceeds to a local nonprofit.

Can you give our readers an introduction to your business? Maybe you can share a bit about what you do and what sets you apart from others?
Covid was certainly a big challenge for everyone. Supply chain was severely impacted as was staffing. Unlike sit-down restaurants, we were able to pivot from counter service to curb pickup and that helped us survive the global pandemic.. Our branding? We’ve embraced a quote by musician Warren Zevon: “Enjoy Every Sandwich!” It’s so true! We sell quality sandwiches and we have fun doing it! In January, we salute the King of Rock and Roll with our seasonal Elvis sandwich (PB & bananas). We offer a muffuletta for Mardi Gras, a corned beef sandwich for St. Pat’s and a Major Tom thanksgiving tribute (turkey, Monterey Jack, stuffing and our cranberry relish on toasted sourdough). We support other local food providers – from coffee roasters to cookie bakers. We care about our community and sponsor monthly cribbage tournaments for charity. Military, first responders and teachers always get a discount and are thanked for their service.
In addition to being a fun place to dine, our staff is genuinely happy to serve. One of our front—of-the-house employees was recently recognized with an Industry Spotlight Award by the Colorado Restaurant Association.

Let’s say your best friend was visiting the area and you wanted to show them the best time ever. Where would you take them? Give us a little itinerary – say it was a week long trip, where would you eat, drink, visit, hang out, etc.
After lunch at Colonel Mustard’s Sandwich Emporium, we’d take a short hike up Helen Hunt Falls in Cheyenne Canyon. We’d go see the Starr Kemp kinetic sculptures then grab a fancy cocktail at the Broadmoor resort. For dinner, creekside at Amanda’s Fonda, the patio at Crystal Park Cantina or a planet burger at Adam’s Mountain Cafe. Nightcap at Lumin8 rooftop bar or a Drunken Botanist at Homa. I also enjoy the Olympic Museum and Hillside Gardens’ summer concert series.

Shoutout is all about shouting out others who you feel deserve additional recognition and exposure. Who would you like to shoutout?
Big shoutout to SCORE, a retiree-based group that is funded in part through a Cooperative Agreement with the U.S. Small Business Administration. It’s terrific to learn from those who have spent their careers mastering their skills. The group helped us iron out a business plan, plus shared equipment and food budgeting ideas and staffing suggestions . They were terrific (& free!). Chefs, general managers, CPAs, vendors and other small business owners also were helpful consultants,
We quickly learned how important it is to make every guest in our shop feel welcomed. In addition to a cheerful greeting, we routinely pass samples — be it a dab of mustard or a slice if a new sandwich we’ve created. Folks truly like tasting our signature mustard ice cream, too! It’s rare to see other small shops pass samples; they should! Samples help move product.

Website: Colmustardsandwich.com