The Matchcover Storyteller

Any time I see a business, particularly a restaurant with someone’s name on it, I want to know “who was this person?  Was he “anybody”?  (You know what I mean…)

Cliff Young was a “somebody” but not in the Hollywood or sports celebrity sense.  He was a Colorado-born restaurateur in Denver, Colorado often described as a cultural icon or legend.   Essentially, Coloradans credit him with revolutionizing fine dining there in the ‘80s.

Cliff Young’s Restaurant existed from 1984 to 1993 just a few blocks from the state capital building.  Denver had fine dining, but you really couldn’t get things like fresh fish or a cappuccino  —  Cliff changed all that and his establishment was described as “ a beautiful place with beautiful people eating beautiful food”!

He closed the restaurant in 1993 and eventually wound up in France for several years, before returning to Denver to open his French-influenced CY’s Steak House in 2009.  It closed in 2018

An interesting sidebar tied to more recent news. One report on the closing lamented that Stormy Daniels would not be able to dine there when she brought her “Make America Horny Again” tour to Denver’s Diamond Cabaret.

Cliff Young died much-lamented in 2021; he was 75.

This search was triggered by a lipstick box (pictured).  I know of one other box and a blue-on-white 20-strike cover as well.