Our Story

One of the owners, Daryl Woodward, was born in the Philippines in a city called Iriga, in the Bicol region. He was adopted by his biological aunt and her American husband at the age of 2 and has lived in Colorado Springs since 1996. He grew up being exposed to both American and Filipino culture and food. Some nights it was Spaghetti with hotdogs and some nights it was Chicken Adobo. Some nights it was Macaroni and Cheese and some nights it was Lumpia and rice. But most importantly, all the nights were with his family. However, in 2013, his parents retired in the Philippines and the home cooked Filipino food disappeared along with the family dinners. For over 10 years, Daryl was searching food trucks, restaurants, fairs, and home catering for tastes that reminded him of his childhood and the food he tasted when visiting the Philippines.

Daryl realized that more than anything, he would love to share the food of his birthplace with the community he grew up in. At the time that Daryl was researching possible locations, Colorado Springs had only one brick and mortar Filipino restaurant and Denver had only two that advertised themselves primarily as Filipino restaurants. Filipinos represent the third largest origin group for Asian Americans behind Chinese and Indians and this is the same in Colorado. However, if you Google search for Chinese restaurants in Colorado Springs you are presented with over 50 results. A Google search for Indian restaurants in Colorado Springs yields 16 results, and a search for Filipino restaurants yields 1 restaurant and 3 food trucks. Pew research studies in 2021 and 2023 showed that Filipinos make up 19% of Asian Americans but only 1% of Asian restaurants in the United States serve Filipino food. Daryl decided that it was time for that to change.

Katelyn (Daryl’s Wife) and Shane (Daryl’s long time friend),  wanted to make sure this dream came true. Together, we brainstormed names, colors, branding, food, and atmosphere. Daryl’s mom provided some of the recipes and others were developed from our favorites and other popular dishes.

Sarap! is a name that we thought would be great for a Filipino restaurant. It means delicious in Tagalog (the Filipino national language). It’s simple, and it’s (hopefully) what you say when you take that first amazing bite of your Tita’s (Auntie’s) homemade food. The restaurant is casual, homey, and covered in murals and pictures that transport you to the other side of the world. At Sarap!, nothing would make us happier than seeing Coloradans enjoying our food and smiling and laughing while catching up with friends and family. So many memories are made and shared over meals – and we’d like it to be a part of them.