wino66 wrote:

Ralph Wiggum wrote:If you want to be entertained with a goofy place, you need to go to Casa Bonita. ...food is standard "family-style Mexican."

Sorry, your memory must be faulty. I got dragged to Casa Bonita about 20 years ago under protest. The food is light years below "standard family style Mexican." It's more like frozen dinners in a microwave. Probably not as good. However, if your idea of a great time is standing in line with screaming kids, waiting in line to order, waiting in line to pick up your tray of cardboard tortillas and ground prairie dog and eating in a dark room with some guy diving into a pool, then by all means drop everything and head to CB. For a really special night then you could go to Chucky Cheese.

Andy's Better Brother wrote:

wino66 wrote:

Ralph Wiggum wrote:If you want to be entertained with a goofy place, you need to go to Casa Bonita. ...food is standard "family-style Mexican."

Sorry, your memory must be faulty. I got dragged to Casa Bonita about 20 years ago under protest. The food is light years below "standard family style Mexican." It's more like frozen dinners in a microwave. Probably not as good. However, if your idea of a great time is standing in line with screaming kids, waiting in line to order, waiting in line to pick up your tray of cardboard tortillas and ground prairie dog and eating in a dark room with some guy diving into a pool, then by all means drop everything and head to CB. For a really special night then you could go to Chucky Cheese.

Yes, that sounds about right...anyway, it's a cheesy place, but might be fun just for kicks...

This is off current topic, but just for anyone who might be looking through this for recs - I lived in Den for a few years. If I went back, there would be no way I could leave without going to:
Broadway China restaurant for sesame tofu.
3712 S Broadway, Englewood
(303) 789-4601
==========
Sunnyside cafe on like 17th and Pearl. Ok, so in the am, the booths were filled with people slumped over, and I could swear someone was shooting up in the men's room one time. (I heard a bunch of tapping in a stall, and then I heard a piece of rubber stretching around skin) - but they had the best pancakes I've ever had in my entire life. BY FAR.
===========
Chubby's for a breakfast burrito with green chile. Oh who am I b.s.ing. TWO breakfast burritos with green chile.
============
Sushi happy hour in any of the good spots in lodo.

wino66 wrote:Yes, that sounds about right...anyway, it's a cheesy place, but might be fun just for kicks...

Might've been fun about 40 years ago when I was doing acid.

Andy's Better Brother wrote:Might've been fun about 40 years ago when I was doing acid.

What? You did acid? I'm shocked, mortified, and disappointed. Wait till I tell mom!

Okay, I got the name of a great place that I went to a few years ago...my sister lives in Denver and had to remind me of the name.

Highland Gardens Cafe

Excellent food in a converted house, they have their own garden as well.

She also said this: "Some others I'd also recommend for variety purposes are Barolo Grill (Italian), Mizuna (locally renown chef, smaller place, a little more spendy), Duo (American gourmet, in our 'hood), Z Cuisine (tiny but excellent French food in our 'hood) and Tamayo (gourmet Latin food)."

Barolo Grill
3030 E Sixth Ave
(303) 393-1040

Mizuna

Duo

Z Cuisine

Tamayo

I have not been to any of these others, but my sis has good taste like me!

I had a great meal today at Chopsticks, a Szechuan place located on Federal Boulevard at Mississippi. The house Chongqing chicken sounds a bit like Tony's 3 Chili Chicken in its description. But, it is entirely different. Imagine having a great Chinese style roast Chicken or duck served hacked and served on the bone with Chili oil, chopped and whole dried chilis mixed in. The result is a wonderfully pungent and spicy dish that was quite satisfying for a Sunday Lunch when paired with some extremely well prepared bok choy stir fried with bamboo pith.

The take away menu tells the story of how culturally diverse Federal Boulevard is in that it is in Chinese, English and Spanish. Other items of interest on the menu, which has well over 100 items, are simmered spicy beef tendon served cold, Soup with Pork Stomach and Winter Melon, Black Pepper Beef,Steaming Pork with Preserved Cabbage,Chinese Cabbage with dried baby shrimp, Braised prawns with spicy Szechuan sauce, Sea Cucumber with Egg crab meat and a Szechuan Style Dan Dan Dan Noodle.

Don't let the Mall Chinese name of this place fool you. It's the real deal (and, perhaps, the only deal) for Szechuan in Denver.

Chopsticks
2990 W Mississippi Ave. (at the corner of Federal Boulevard)
Denver CO 80219
303-936-1506

Ralph Wiggum wrote:Hi folks,

Does anyone have any good brewpubs or gastropubs to suggest for an upcoming Denver trip?

We're heading to Frasca the next night, so a low key dinner in a bar'ish atmosphere sounds like a nice complement for the Friday prior.

There's a TV show called Beernutz which made Wynkoop Brewing Company look good, but my buddy who's out there told me the food is fairly mediocre. Vesta Dipping was on the same show but there's something about the premise that reminds me of local churrascarias. For those who have been, am I off on that?

Any suggestions? thanks.

As unlikely as it is that you haven't yet done the Denver trip, I'll throw out a rec just in case. If you're a bit leery about Wynkoop (which is not a bad place, and in a neat part of LoDo), I would recommend the superior Wazee Supper Club, at the western edge of downtown (not far from Wynkoop). It's decorated with recovered pieces and adornments from 20s & 30s bars and restaurants. A real cool space, with both bar and restaurant seating, great juke box, great beer selection. It has decent sandwiches and salads (for under ten bucks), but the thing to get is beer and pizza. Not your carry out variety, of the seven years I lived in Denver, it definitely made my top three pizzas. I recommend the pepperoni and green chili pie, accompanied with either Guiness (winter) or Fat Tire (winter, and every other season). Nice area to walk around, too, to work off some of that food with some exercise before ending your night.
Also, it was a welcome surprise to see Ethel's Soul Food mentioned in this thread. I lived right around the corner from there, and I'll always have nice thoughts for that woman for all the nice memories associated with meals had there.

Here's a link to Wazee Supper Club...

http://www.wazeesupperclub.com/Home.htm

It's taken me a while to post this, but my wife and I visited Denver for a week back in November. The main focus of the trip was to check out the wide variety of breweries the Denver/Boulder/Ft. Collins areas had to offer, but excellent food was also a desire. Taking examples from various threads here and other online recommendations here is a recap of all of the places we visited.

Breakfast/Brunch
We mainly ate leftovers from our dinners for breakfast, but we did have a couple of places that we went to for breakfast/brunch.
Snooze
700 N Colorado Blvd
Denver, CO 80206
http://www.snoozeeatery.com/brekkie.htm

3 egg omlete with sausage, jack cheese and green chili
The green chili was pretty good. I was not a fan of the inside out hash browns, they just weren't crispy enough for me.

Breakfast Tacos filled with scrambled eggs, shredded hash browns, sausage, and ranchero sauce
We also went again on our last day as this place was close to our hotel and I just had some pancakes which were solid. Overall Snooze was a hipster type breakfast joint that was solid, but I probably wouldn't wait though some of the wait times it looks like the place has at peak times.

Lola
1575 Boulder St.
Denver, CO 80211
http://loladenver.com/

Table side guacamole
A good version, nothing special about it.

Pecan Crusted Smoked Trout sandwich – Pecan Crusted Smoked Trout, Applewood Bacon, Pear Aoli, Arugula & Grape Tomatoes with Olive Oil, Sweet Potato Fries
This was a really good sandwich. I only had a bite as it was my wife's, but all of the ingredients really worked well together.

“green eggs & ham” benedict - sweet potato biscuit, chive-serrano hollandaise, chorizo syrup
I'm not widely experienced when it comes to eggs benedict, so I don't have a lot of versions to compare against. This was the best version I've ever had. The hollandaise was rich and spicy. The biscuits were not too dense.
Lola was a really great place to eat, probably the 2nd best of the places that we visited.

Lunch
Bones
701 Grant St.
Denver, CO 80203
http://www.bonesdenver.com/

BBQ Beef Short Rib Egg Rolls
The beef was a little dried out in the egg rolls, so they weren't the best.

Steamed Buns: Suckling Pig
Unlike the beef in the egg rolls, the pork in the buns was moist and tender. I could have eaten about a dozen of those buns.

Udon Noodles: Slow Cooked Pork Shoulder from Salmon Creek Farms, Poached Egg
This dish was excellent. The broth was flavorful, the noodles were toothsome and the egg added a wonderful richness to the broth.

Tacos Junior
1951 S Federal Blvd
Denver, CO 80238

Tacos al Pastor
We picked this location due to the pictures of the pastor wheel on yelp. The tacos were good, but I think the timing of our visit did not coincide with the best that they could have been. We went pretty early, so there wasn't as much crisp on the meat as we prefer. The tortillas were freshly made. In addition to making tortillas there was also a man freshly making bread.

We also stopped at the Cherry Cricket one day for lunch, but I didn't take any pictures that day. I had a green chili cheeseburger and my wife had green chili enchiladas. Both were pretty good.
Cherry Cricket
2641 E. 2nd Ave.
Denver, CO
http://www.cherrycricket.com/

I'll move onto dinner places in my next post.

Denver Trip 11/2009 cont.

Dinner

We went to Dry Dock Brewing Company in suburban Aurora and on the way back to the hotel we stopped at Kim Ba for pho.
Kim Ba
2495 S. Havana St.
Aurora, CO
http://www.kimbavietnamese.com/

GOI CUON - Spring Roll Fresh cooked shrimp and pork with lettuce and rice noodles rolled in rice paper. Served with black bean peanut sauce.

CUA LOT - Marinated soft shell crab. Deep fried in light batter, served on a bed of lettuce. Topped with cilantro.

PHO TAI - Sliced beef tenderloin on rice noodles, topped with cilantro and onion. Served with chili sauce, black bean sauce and bean sprouts on the side.
Everything here was really solid. I haven't had a ton of vietnamese and none of the big Chicago spots so I can't compare to that, but it was the best pho I've had.

Potager
1109 Ogden St.
Denver, CO 80218
http://www.potagerrestaurant.com/Menu.html

WARM PACHAMAMA FARM CABBAGE SALAD with bacon, pecans, croutons, goat cheese and sherry vinaigrette

WILTED CURE FARM SAVORY GREENS with garlic, lemon and extra virgin olive oil

SLOW ROASTED HERITAGE PORK SHOULDER over braised cabbage and potatoes with caraway butter and apple sauce

ROAST WISDOM FARM SAGE CHICKEN wood fired, with an autumn panzanella salad of arugula, pickled mushrooms, salami, winter squashes, apples, pecans, currants, and pan juices
Overall Potager was a nice restaurant. The salads were good. The entrees were both delicious and huge portions. The chicken was really great. Moist, juicy, crispy skin. Just really delightful. We got 3 meals out of the chicken.

Rioja
1431 Larimer St.
Denver, CO 80202
http://www.riojadenver.com/

Amuse from kitchen - Fried halibut with roasted red peper relish and arugula

Rosemary Cheddar Biscuit - The server presented us with a giant tray full of various breads and biscuits. It was hard to choose.

fresh bacon, cardamom spiced Kurobuta pork belly, Madras curry scented fresh garbanzo bean purée

Grilled Colorado lamb, rosemary rubbed sirloin, creamy mascarpone polenta, quince and black mission fig mostarda, arugula

Menu description was Tasman King salmon, served two ways: grilled, apple vanilla purée. Pomegranate house cured salmon, celery root crème fraîche roulade. Pictured dish was modified to be dairy free and gluten free for my wife.

Hand made sorbets, lace cookie “plate” Banana, grapefruit and strawberry

Sugar coated mint leaf
We were able to sit at the chef's table overlooking the apps and desert station, so that added to the overall experience. I would have to say this was easily the best restaurant we ate at in Denver. All of the food was excellent and the service was top notch. It's not always easy to go out with my wife's dietary issues (gluten and dairy free), but Rioja made it simple to adjust the dishes she wanted so that she wasn't stuck in a small box of choices.

Tamayo
1400 Larimer St.
Denver, CO 80202
http://www.modernmexican.com/tamayo/index.htm

SOPA DE TORTILLA chile guajillo broth / queso panela / avocado / crispy tortilla strips

ENSALADA MEXICANA corn tostada / napa cabbage / pico de gallo / roasted corn
black beans / avocado vinaigrette

COSTILLA DE RES slow cooked beef short rib / vegetable escabeche / crema fresca potato puree / chile habanero-guava sauce

MOLE POBLANO pan roasted chicken breast / plantains / mole sauce

We are definitely spoiled by the wonderful collection of upscale Mexican food we have here in Chicago. Tamayo can't really hold a candle to many of the places that I've been to Frontera, Mixtecto, Salpicon. The flavors at Tamayo were really muted and even dull. The short rib dish was tender, but just really lacked any bright flavors that you would expect from a guava and habanero sauce. The mole wasn't complex. To add on the prices were pretty high with 2 apps and 2 entrees reaching close to $80.

Vesta Dipping Grill
1822 Blake St.
Denver, CO 80202
http://www.vestagrill.com/

Brown Sugar Grilled Pork Chop with bacon home fries, pickled onion salad. 3 sauces: green chili gastrique, miso, coconut milk masala. Potatoes were badly undercooked
My wife took that picture. The other two pictures I took were super blurry due to us going to Vesta after a long visit at Falling Rock just across the street. The other two dishes were: Bacon, Egg Salad with a caramelized onion vinaigrette and Colorado Lamb Loin - fig-port glazed, goat cheese campanelle pasta, cucumber yogurt raita. 3 sauces Smoked Habanero Sauce, Spicy Ancho, Dried Berry Chutney.
The meats were good, but not great. The sauces were interesting. It's an interesting concept.

Oskar Blues Homemade Solids & Liquids
1555 South Hover Street
Longmont, CO 80501

We started with fried pickles, but I forgot to take a picture of them. They were awesome.

Pork Spare Ribs with fresh cut fries and santa fe roasted corn with green chilies

Colorado Red Chili - Venison, Elk and Buffalo served with Corn Bread
The beer was the star here, but the food was better than it needs to be. The ribs had good smoke and were not too tender. The chili was good, but I would have preferred chunks of meat rather than it being ground up.

Hope these posts can help those that visit Denver in the future. It's a really nice city.

Thanks for the recs, Wimperoo! My sister lives just a couple blocks from Lola, I've walked by a few times and noticed it. Will have to ask her about it and the other places.

My husband and I lived a few blocks from Potager for three years and it was our favorite date-night place. One of their signature dishes in the seasonal souffle. (I just checked their menu, they are still serving it, sigh). We would sit out in the lovely patio, order the souffle, a seasonal salad and split and if we were rather hungry, split an entree. Have a glass of wine. Or two. We were never, ever disappointed. (And now I long to go back!)

bjt

the wimperoo wrote:Denver Trip 11/2009 cont.

<snip>

Hope these posts can help those that visit Denver in the future. It's a really nice city.

Thanks. They definitely do. I really appreciate the detailed posts.

We're heading out in mid-June for about a week (4 days in Denver, 4 in Colorado Springs), so if anyone else has any current information, we'd love to have it.

Thanks,

=R=

I am going to Denver/Boulder next week and my sister and brother-in-law are very, very connected to the food industry there (my BiL is a farmer and caterer) so I will ask them what's very good these days in Denver. I'll ask my pop about Co Springs. He and my mom have a favorite place for gooey French Onion Soup . . .

bjt

bjt wrote:I am going to Denver/Boulder next week and my sister and brother-in-law are very, very connected to the food industry there (my BiL is a farmer and caterer) so I will ask them what's very good these days in Denver. I'll ask my pop about Co Springs. He and my mom have a favorite place for gooey French Onion Soup . . .

bjt

Awesome, thanks!

=R=

Ronnie,

I've been going to Denver for biz and on the way to ski for years but have never been able to make it to Domo -- a quirky Japanese "country kitchen" run by a guy who seems to do things according to his own peculiar vision. Please go and report back.

http://www.domorestaurant.com/

JeffB wrote:Ronnie,

I've been going to Denver for biz and on the way to ski for years but have never been able to make it to Domo -- a quirky Japanese "country kitchen" run by a guy who seems to do things according to his own peculiar vision. Please go and report back.

http://www.domorestaurant.com/

Thanks, Jeff, for the lead. It looks very interesting and unless I get waylaid, I plan to check it out.

=R=

Domo was initially on our list of places to go, but with a pregnant wife we ended up skipping that one. Everything I've read sounds excellent though.

Domo is (or was) a very special place. I have no idea of its current state but when we went, man, it was a totally magical and kind of a push you out of your comfort zone place for Japanese food. The sake is served cold in wooden box-like cups and you sit at these uber-rustic communal tables (on stumps! but nice stumps) and everything is just more "country" than what we think of as refined Japanese food. Plus, while you are eating there in the constant thump! of the real Dojo next door. I believe the restaurant is a 501 C-3 non profit thing supporting the Dojo. Or it used to be. We have nothing like it in Chicago so I encourage anyone to check it out. And maybe report back on the food. When I went I had a Bento box with like 17 sections, it was wild. But I loved it.

bjt

Some of the highlights from my bachelor party weekend trip to the Denver area.

I went to Falling Rock Tap House twice over the weekend. It’s right next to Coors Field and is my favorite beer bar in the country. They have over 80 beers on tap, with a heavy slant towards Colorado and west coast beers. The staff really knows beer, they have a beautiful porch area where you can enjoy beer in a relaxed and comfortable environment, and the lines are perfectly clean. I loved the Eric’s Ale which is a sour from New Belgium. They served it in an oversized wine glass that I think really enhanced the beer. I also enjoyed a Pliny the Elder (Russian River) and a couple different beers from Odell. I never miss this spot when I visit Denver.

We were going camping in Rocky Mountain National Park (it was spectacular, and icy!) so we needed some good camping food. For meat we stopped by Continental Sausage. It's a charming little shop with german music playing and a good selection of encased meats and cold cuts. The sausages were definitely high quality. We picked up a good variety including elk, buffalo, veal, pheasant and of course plenty of pork. They tasted excellent cooked on a camp fire, though it would’ve been nice if Continental offered more in the way of buns. The buffalo was particularly well spiced with a big, meaty flavor that stood up to the standard camp fire flavor. Also they have a good mustard selection.

On the way up to Estes Park, we stopped by the Tasty Weasel Tap Room in Longmont. That’s the tasting room at Oskar Blues Brewery and it’s around the corner from their brewpub. The tasting room was everything a tasting room should be. Buckets of peanuts to snack on, plenty of space to spread out and a couple of table games to keep people entertained. The beer was fresh and they offered some specialties on tap, including the Stranahan’s barrel aged Ten Fidy (Imperial Stout). I’m a big fan of their beer and it certainly didn’t disappoint. The secondary reason for stopping there was to pick up a bunch of their beer to take camping with us. Something cool about Oskar Blues is that they sell everything in cans, so it’s ideal for camping. I highly recommend this stop on the way up to the park, if you’re looking for quality Colorado beer to bring with you. My favorites are the Ten Fidy (I preferred the non-aged actually) and the Gordon IPA, and the Dale’s Pale Ale and Mama’s Yella Pils are excellent session beers.

After camping we made at stop at the Avery Brewery in Boulder. For 20 dollars a head (less if you have more people), you can rent out their back room and enjoy all you can drink beer for three hours. Also we had pizzas delivered from Jalino’s, which wasn’t half bad. Spongy crust, interesting toppings though a little overwhelmed with cheese. But I digress. The Avery staff couldn’t have been better. They served us round after round without delay. I love that they offer tasting sizes, because when I’m at a brewery I’d like to sample many of their beers before slamming my palate with a 10% beer (or 16% as is the case with some of the beer at Avery). The Reverend was a completely different beer when served on tap (deep and malty yet surprisingly smooth for such a monster) and the Maharaja was a day old hop goddess. They also offered a couple beer cocktails. One was a mix between the Salvation and the humorously named (to me anyway) Testa Pils, and the other was a cross between the Beast and the Out of Bounds stout. I think this is a rising trend at breweries and I think it’s cool, though I’m not sure I’ve tasted a beer cocktail that I think surpassed the originals. The highlight of the tasting was the Out of Sight coffee stout. I don’t think they bottle that one. It was easily the best coffee stout I’ve tasted. It had a deep roasted coffee flavor with a touch of malt on the finish. Simply superb. Avery put on an outstanding show. It’s a fun spot to visit even if you’re just a couple people looking to sample some good (and strong) beer, but for a group looking to cut loose and have some fun, it couldn’t have been better.

After most of the group took off, I got a chance to try a couple of restaurants in the city. It was memorial day, so our options were limited, but I was still able to enjoy two pretty good meals.

The first stop was Super Star Asian Cuisine for dim sum which isn’t far from downtown. We showed up at about 10:30 and all they had was a single cart of steamed dishes and most of the tables were empty. We were starving and in a little bit of a hurry so we dug in. Pork buns, shrimp dumplings, shui mai, chicken feet, they had most of the classics. And they were done quite well. Also there were some interesting options like scallop dumplings and tripe. After the first round we looked around for more carts and only saw the steam cart so we got second helpings of a couple dishes. Foolish. At about 11 the place started to fill up and all of a sudden cart after cart of new dishes went by. At first we were snagging every cart that went by but eventually we were just too full to continue. Things ramped up big time. Crispy pork buns, taro cake, fried shrimp balls, roast duck, it went on and on. We were too full to try the crispy noodles or the mango pudding. Damn shame, they looked terrific. By the time we left at 11:30, the place was full (90% Asian), and the carts were in full force. They had an impressive variety of dishes that ranked amongst the most I’ve ever seen. There were no real clunkers, though some dishes were better than others. Still this was a very fun dim sum experience and I wouldn’t hesitate to return.

Before heading to the airport we had a little time to grab a quick bite, so we swung by Pho 95. it was 4 in the afternoon and the place was full. I was looking forward to some nice, light Vietnamese fare and I was surprised to see such a small menu. They have a handful of vermicelli dishes, a couple appetizers and an entire page of pho options. I wasn’t really in the mood for pho, but I had no choice given the dearth of options. We started off with spring rolls and Vietnamese eggrolls. Both were solid, as good as I’ve had anywhere. Fresh ingredients, lots of herbs, bright but not too sweet dipping sauces. Then the pho came. Good thing I ordered the small bowl, there was a ton of soup. And I’m really glad I got the pho, because it was the best I’ve had. The broth was very well balanced. Not too much anise flavor and definitely not greasy or salty like some others I’ve had. The noodles were very tender, I didn’t realize these noodles could actually taste fresher than what I was used to (they’re just dried noodles right?). And the meat was leaps and bounds over past phos I’ve enjoyed. Moist, medium-rare brisket, big hunks of tendon, this was truly stand out pho. The side plate had lots of thai basil and asian cilantro to put in the soup. As we were leaving I saw tables had raw meat that people were cooking in the broth like shabu shabu, I didn’t even know that was an option. It’s an unassuming little place in the middle of dozens of other Vietnamese restaurants, and I can see why it’s the one that gets all the buzz.

Falling Rock Tap House
1919 Blake Street
Denver, CO 80202
(303) 293-8338

Continental Sausage
911 East 75th Avenue
Denver, CO 80229-6401
(303) 288-9787

Tasty Weasel Tap Room (@ Oskar Blues Brewery)
1800 Pike Road
Longmont, CO 80501-6794
(303) 776-1914

Avery Brewing Company
5763 Arapahoe Avenue
Boulder, CO 80303-1350
(303) 440-4324

Jalino's Pizza
1647 Arapahoe Avenue
Boulder, CO 80302-6381
(303) 443-6300

Super Star Asian Cuisine (Dim Sum)
2200 West Alameda Avenue
Denver, CO 80223-1947
(303) 727-9889

Pho 95
1002 South Federal Boulevard
Denver, CO 80219-4102
(303) 936-3322

YourPalWill wrote:I had a great meal today at Chopsticks, a Szechuan place located on Federal Boulevard at Mississippi.

Thanks for the rec. This looks perfect, even geographically given where I'm stayin on a consulting gig, and in return, I bequeath to you and the board:

Cowboba's!
The bubble tea steakhouse
2991 Evans
(ie, Evans & Federal, just a few blocks from Chopsticks)
Denver, CO

That's right, a Korean bubble tea steakhouse with linoleum tables and vinyl benches, in a rundown stripmall in a Mexican neighborhood - steaks are good, side orders various but all that I've tried hvae been good, bubble tea is excellent.

And if you've got errands to run, the store next door offers:
a) quick calls to Mexico at bargain rates
b) freshly chopped meat cut to order
c) electronics repair
all in the same versatile small storefront!

Ok, the store is a little goofy, but Cowboba's is worth a stop.

I'll try to check back with a fresh review of the Chungqing chicken in a while.

***** EDITED - to say that sadly, Chopsticks has closed, despite it's 55 recommendations in Yelp. I went instead to the Yabby Hut and slathered hot sauce all over my face in the course of eating crawfish. Good times, good food. The decor is interesting - hardwood booths and a scattering of tvs for sports fans, though you can definitely get away from them if you try. Well worth a stop if you like shellfish. The yabby is apparently an Australian crustacean, though I didn't notice anything Austrailian about the place.

As a first-time poster, but long time reader of the boards, I wanted to mention Sushi Den, my favorite restaurant in Denver. Terrible name but fantastic sushi. Despite Colorado location, would be great anywhere. Brother of owner has sister restaurant on Japan's southernmost island, Kyushu Island, and much of fish apparently sourced from local fish market there. Do recommend that for omikase you request one of the more senior chefs.

Sushi Den
1487 S Pearl St
Denver, CO 80210-2226
(303) 777-0826

m_g

Time for an update on Denver, Boulder, Colorado Springs please! Been a few places this summer and have yet to enjoy a great meal, so for this 20th anniversary trip with my hubby, the chow is definitely at the top of my list. He's not very adventurous which limits things somewhat. A few of the places mentioned on this thread sound great, will try to get them into the rotation, but one, Domo, got rejected by my anti-virus software so I didn't get to look that up.

Thanks in advance!

During a recent conference in Denver, I think I ate every breakfast at Snooze.

Nothing fancy, uber laid-back vibe and lots of sweet and savory options.

http://www.snoozeeatery.com/

ronnie_suburban wrote:

JeffB wrote:Ronnie,

I've been going to Denver for biz and on the way to ski for years but have never been able to make it to Domo -- a quirky Japanese "country kitchen" run by a guy who seems to do things according to his own peculiar vision. Please go and report back.

http://www.domorestaurant.com/

Thanks, Jeff, for the lead. It looks very interesting and unless I get waylaid, I plan to check it out.

=R=

Domo was indeed great and I'm a bad person for never having posted about our trip last June. Three other places in the Denver area that I'd confidently recommend are Root Down, Snooze an A.M. Eatery (mentioned just above by lawoman) and Superstar Asian Cuisine (also mentioned upthread).

=R=

Root Down
1600 W 33rd Ave
Denver, CO 80211-3507
(303) 993-4200
http://www.rootdowndenver.com/

Snooze, an A.M. Eatery
2262 Larimer St
Denver, CO 80205
(303) 297-0700
http://www.snoozeeatery.com/

Domo Restaurant
1365 Osage St
Denver, CO 80204
(303) 595-3666
http://www.domorestaurant.com/

Superstar Asian Cuisine
2200 W. Alameda Ave
Denver, CO 80223
(303) 727-9889
no web site that I could find

Got a reservation for Monday night's tasting menu/chef's table at Frasca in Boulder...I'm SO excited. Will definitely report back when we return. Guess we'll need to find something cheap for Sunday!

Final bump in case anyone has been meaning to reply....

Euclid Hall - kind of a trendy, over-the-top, gluttonous concept of wacky poutines and such, but the sausages, in particular, are quite excellent and ought to be washed down by any number of beverages from the beer wonderland that is CO.

Euclid Hall
1317 14th Street
Denver, CO 80202
303.595.4255
http://euclidhall.com/index.html

Ronnie - do you think that a two-year old would be a welcome presence at lunchtime at domo? We're flying into denver thursday at the noon hour with Jonah and I'm wondering what my best bet is for lunch en famille.

Seth Zurer wrote:Ronnie - do you think that a two-year old would be a welcome presence at lunchtime at domo? We're flying into denver thursday at the noon hour with Jonah and I'm wondering what my best bet is for lunch en famille.

Yes, definitely. As is posted upthread, it's part of a larger facility/museum/cultural center that is very family-friendly. We ate our dinner outside in their beautiful courtyard, which was a perfect fit for our family. That said, I'm not sure if they're open for lunch.

Enjoy!

=R=