Carson City landmark restaurant Café at Adele’s up for sale

After 40 years of business, the historic Café at Adele’s restaurant is up for sale.

Owners Charlie and Karen Abowd are looking toward retirement and have put the restaurant and the real estate — an historic Comstock-era Mansard-roofed Victorian home built in 1864 — up for sale.

“We have been so blessed by the tremendous support of our staff and our community," said Chef and Owner Charlie Abowd. "As much as I love what I do, working the line day in and day out is physically and mentally demanding. Karen and I are ready to slow things down a bit — once the right buyer comes along.”

Andie Wilson of NAI Alliance Carson City and Brad Bottoset of The Liberty Group of Nevada are handling the sale of the Carson City landmark, located at 1112 North Carson Street.

“Paul and Adele Abowd created something special back in 1978 when they opened Adele’s Restaurant and Lounge,” Bottoset said. “Charlie and Karen picked up the torch when they took over the business, putting their own spin on things and making improvements along the way. Now someone else has the opportunity to step in to an established business, add their own touches, and take it to the next level.”

This year marks a milestone for the family, a historic building and a community. Paul and Adele Abowd established the Café at Adele’s 40 years ago in a historic Comstock-era, Mansard-roofed Victorian home built in 1864 in the Nevada state capital.

The Abowds will honor the restaurant’s 40th anniversary this fall at a redux of the dinner Chef Abowd prepared at the prestigious James Beard House in New York City in 2005.

While living in the Bay Area where Paul was a notable chef, he and his wife Adele became enamored with Carson City and decided to semi-retire there. They moved to their new Nevada home and purchased the property that would become Adele’s Restaurant in 1977. At the time, it was a popular bar and antique store called the Music Box. A third-generation chef in a family originally from Lebanon, Paul brought his own spin on San Francisco-style cuisine to share with Carson City. His wife Adele contributed her name, aesthetics and business acumen.

They both quickly established themselves, becoming leaders in the community and attracting devoted customers with Paul’s talents in the kitchen. In 2001, Adele was the first woman in Nevada to be honored as the Nevada Restaurant Association’s Restaurateur of the Year, and was then presented with a Lifetime Achievement Award by the same organization posthumously in 2016, which her son Charlie accepted on her behalf.

At the helm of the Café at Adele’s kitchen today is award-winning, fourth-generation Chef Charlie Abowd. His wife Karen, an interior designer and Carson City supervisor, updated the Victorian-influenced interior with tributes to the couple’s global travels and support of local arts, while also keeping the décor and ambiance true to Adele’s original vision. A veranda was also added to expand the space and offer al fresco dining. The result is an inviting, elegant establishment that honors the structure’s original era as well as the modern community in which it resides, with menus reflecting Chef Abowd’s internationally influenced, gourmet culinary prowess and focus on using sustainable, locally sourced ingredients.

“In some ways, we’re old-school in that I keep to the traditions of Adele’s while adding new and innovative styles and preparations,” says Owner/Chef Charlie Abowd. “There are many items on my menu that reflect the early days with my dad, and other items that explore new preparations that I created yesterday. I try to keep it loose and fun.”

Long a supporter of local food purveyors, organic fare and free-range, humanely raised meats, Chef Abowd’s featured menu items have enticed locals and visitors to the fine dining experience at Adele’s for decades. Dinner offerings range from appetizers such as Dungeness Crab Infused Tater Tots and Escargot en Casserole, to entrées like Stuffed Filet Étouffée featuring Bently Ranch beef, Duck Two Ways and a medley of Fruits of the Sea.

Other diverse dishes were inspired by the Abowds’ world travels, incorporating techniques and ingredients from Japan, Mexico, Europe and the Middle East, among others. These include sashimi and Thai-style prawns, a Lebanese Lamb Chop made with Borda Ranch lamb, a variety of house-made, global-style sausages and Charlie’s Signature Chili Relleno. Adele’s gourmet pizzas crafted in the Portofino-style are also popular menu items. Chef Abowd concocts a bounty of daily specials to further his gastronomic skills and share the results with his guests, as well.

The Abowds will celebrate the restaurant’s milestone year with specials and events, while also commemorating another landmark: the meal Chef Abowd was invited to prepare at the James Beard House. Come autumn, guests are invited to taste a redux of the decadent, multi-course meal which Abowd will re-create for their 40th anniversary.

“Preparing dinner at the James Beard House was one of the most exhilarating and humbling experiences in my professional career, if not the most,” exudes Chef Abowd. “In the world of culinary traditions, James Beard represents the Academy Awards for cooking and chefs. An incredible honor to this day, and an event I’m really looking forward to replicating.”

Open Tuesday through Sunday from 8 a.m. until close, breakfast, lunch, mid-day cuisine, dinner, desserts and a full bar comprise the offerings at Café at Adele’s. Its all-occasion ambiance welcomes everything from business meetings to romantic dinners. The Abowds are also avid supporters of area nonprofits and regularly host benefit events in support of them, including the annual Harvest Dinner fundraiser for the Greenhouse Project, of which Karen is the founder and president. In summer, the restaurant also plays host to the Concerts on the Veranda outdoor music series.

Café at Adele’s is located at 1112 North Carson Street. For reservations and more information, call 775-882-3353 or visit adelesrestaurantandlounge.com.