Farewell To Herb Kauvar; Former Owner of The Sink

Herbie, and his sons Jim, and Rick Kauvar characterized on The Sink wall.

Herbert Kauvar, the former owner of The Sink and beloved figure in the Boulder Community, passed away October 24, 2020, at the age of 93.

Herb and Gilda Kauvar

Herb grew up in Geneva, Ohio. In August of 1960, he moved his wife, Gilda, and three children, Rick, Gigi, and Jim to Boulder to help his brother-in-law, Floyd Marks, with a new business. A few years earlier, Floyd and his father bought the oldest restaurant in Boulder, a local college hangout, from John Pudlik. Pudlik purchased it from its previous owners in 1940 and gave the restaurant it’s official name, The Sink.

In 1974, Herb changed the name to Herbie’s Deli. At the time, there was a big cultural change happening on the Hill. It was hugely a hippie culture with loads of people hanging out and few people dining in. Herb thought a deli would be better suited for the times. Thanks to his notion, many of the things The Sink is iconic for is rooted in the time that he owned the building.

Herb and Floyd introduced the now-famous Sinkburger, and its signature Sink Hickory Sauce to Boulder. Enjoyed by generations, this popular burger has lasted through Herbie’s Deli and the many phases of The Sink. The original caricatures that are on the walls today were painted by a friend of Herb and Floyd's—Llloyd Kavich. Some of the unique and timeless artwork includes the trademark Sink Angel & Devil and the “Sinkstine Chapel” on the ceiling of the entryway, which shows God handing a Sinkburger to Adam, and a brilliant re-creation of Michelangelo’s “The Creation of Man.”

Herb also owned Tulagi in the 1970s. This music venue on The Hill brought acts like Harry Chapin and Bonnie Rait to Boulder.

In 1989, at the urging of his sons, Herb remodeled the deli and The Sink was resurrected. That year, they installed a full bar and took the panels off the walls to reveal all of the iconic artwork from years past.

On September 20, 1992, the legacy was passed on to another family. Herb sold The Sink to James, Mark, and Chris Heinritz, and Cameron Stainton. Mark recalls that day, "We gave Herbie Kauvar a check (basically all the money we had) and signed a note for a whole lot more. We were between 24 and 28 years old with no restaurant experience and James having the only business experience. 'You would have to be a real idiot to screw this up!' Herbie said to me. And that became our guiding light. Don’t screw it up. His straight forward opinions were rooted in the decades of experience and fun he had with The Sink." Mark and Chris Heinritz are still the owners and operators of The Sink today.

There isn't a living CU alumni who attended the university before there was The Sink in its many incarnations. (If you enrolled at CU in 1923 at the age of 18, you would be 115 years old.) Thanks to Herb Kauvar and his legacy, The Sink has continued to be a welcoming space for shared experiences amongst five generations of Buffs.

Former Sink Manager, friend, and Colorado music promoter, Chuck Morris, shares some thoughts about his time with Herbert Kavaur:

"Herbie Kauvar gave me the break that changed my life. I was a 20-year-old graduate school student at CU going for a Ph.D. in Political Science. Although I did well in graduate school becoming a T.A. in my second year and well on my way to a doctorate, I decided I loved music more than anything and I dropped out of school trying to get a job in the club business."

"In my 2 years at CU, I used to leave Norlin library after studying and would drop by The Sink, usually spending some time conversing with my buddy Herbie over a beer. Even with an age difference, we both enjoyed the conversations we had. When I broke the news to Herbie that I had dropped out of school and was looking for a job he said the manager of The Sink had just left and I would make a great manager. I actually argued with him that I never managed any business, let alone the most successful college bar in the state... and he argued with me that I was a real bright kid! Everybody at The Sink really liked and respected me and thought I’d make a really good manager. I took his advice and started almost immediately."

"I found my niche in managing a bunch of college kids, selling 3.2 beer, and started my real passion for booking bands. The first band I booked at The Sink was a bunch of CU dropouts who were just getting started called Flash Cadillac and The Continental Kids. They had been rehearsing down the street, and after being blown away by their rehearsal, I offered them "all they could drink" in exchange for a free show. (I think the second show they ever did.) They played the backroom during FAC (Friday Afternoon Club) and broke every record at the Sink in beer sales ever."

"One of the great times in my life was managing and booking music at The Sink. That started my 50-year career in promoting music, running clubs, and working with the biggest acts in the world. Without Herbies' belief in me and educating me in a great legendary business, as well as learning how he treated people, I never would have had a chance at such a long wonderful, successful career working with the biggest and finest bands in the world. A lot of people, and many in Boulder, are really going to miss Herbie, especially me." CHUCK MORRIS

Read Herb Kavaur’s obituary in the Daily Camera