Mongolian Barbecue beckons locals

by Barbralu Cohen

BOULDER ? In the 12th century, after a hard day on the job, Ghengis Khan’s warriors gathered around the campfire, threw some meat and veggies on shields placed over the fire, stirred it up with their swords and chowed down.

In the 21st century, Boulderites can now enjoy the same Mongolian cooking ? with a glass of chardonnay and a salad bar ? thanks to the opening of BD’s Mongolian Barbecue this month at 16th and Pearl streets.

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Billy Downs, fresh from Michigan State University’s hotel, restaurant and institutional management program, first envisioned what he calls the Mongolian concept at a London restaurant where he worked in 1988. Downs brought the concept back to Michigan, where he opened his first restaurant inn, the Royal Oak, in 1992.

Today there are BD’s throughout Michigan and in Maryland, Illinois, Ohio, Indiana, Kansas ? and a location in lower downtown Denver, which opened in 1998. But Boulder is “where we’ve wanted to be for so long,´ said Roxanne Fish, owner and operator of the Colorado locations.

The restaurant is 5,500 square feet, seating 150 plus 20 more on the outdoor patio when the weather turns nice. They began renovating in the fall. “We’re looking forward to creating a new generation of Boulder Mongolian warriors,” Fish said.

Fish began her restaurant career as a waitress during college at Wayne State University in Detroit. “When I went to work at BD’s in Detroit, I thought it was the last restaurant job I’d ever have before I began my real career,” she recalled.

Fish earned a degree in sociology, but six months later she was promoted to manager of the restaurant. In another two years, she was general manager and then a partner. “The fun sucked me in,” she said. “We’re such a different company than I ever worked for before.”

The difference is reflected in the BD’s mission statement: friends taking care of friends. The emphasis is upbeat and fun, all the way through the company, and including its customers, Fish said.

The minute you walk in the door, grab a white bowl and fill it with meats or seafood and 20 or so vegetables. Choose an oil and your selection of sauces and spices. Then head to the 3,000-pound, 600-degree, six-foot circular grill, where a maniac or two wielding three-foot chopsticks (reminiscent of the Khan’s swords) will stir-fry your selection, while you get a chance to bang on the Mongolian gong. A little flag will warn the cook if you’re a vegetarian or have allergies. Add rice or tortillas, and there’s your lunch ($9.95 for all you can eat or $6.95 for one bowl). Dinner is $11.95 for all you can eat or $4.99 for kids. There’s also a soup and salad bar.

It’s fun, it’s healthy, “it’s all about choices,” Fish said. “You could eat something different here every day.” A mathematician calculated that BD’s offers something like nine billion combinations. That should be enough choices, even for Boulder.