Email Author Laura Shunk

2012 Stories by Laura Shunk

• Charlie's Ice Cream Social opens today

  published May 25, 2012

  Just in time for a long, sunny weekend, Denver's about to get another ice cream parlor: Charlie's Ice Cream Social, a '30s and '40s-themed soft-serve spot, will throw open its doors today, offering fr... More >>

• Imbibe launches today with deals on drinks, food and Denver-centric experiences

  published May 25, 2012

  Imbibe, an experience-oriented deal site that's not related to the publication of the same name, was born of Casey Berry's desire to help people get the most out of Denver. "You know that feeling you ... More >>

• Gluten-free food cart, Thyme To Eat Now, will soon roll into downtown

  published May 24, 2012

  When Nancy Weagant gave up her three-decade dental career five years ago, she decided to head into the kitchen. "I grew up in San Francisco, and I watched my mom cook forever," she says. "And I studie... More >>

• Photos: Gabrielle Hamilton at Frasca Food & Wine

  published May 24, 2012

  Gabrielle Hamilton has been on top of the culinary world for the past couple of years. In 2011, she landed a James Beard Award for Best Chef in New York City for her simple fare at Prune, besting Apri... More >>

• Photos: Tarasco's New Latin Cuisine, the subject of this week's review

  published May 23, 2012

  This week's review took me to Tarasco's New Latin Cuisine, a strip-mall spot where the walls are covered with English and Spanish words of wisdom and the menu is a mile long. It took me some time to u... More >>

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  FEATURED STORY

  Old vendors protest new rules on the 16th Street Mall

  published May 23, 2012

  The Downtown Denver Partnership has revved up its vendor program on the 16th Street Mall, with more mobile food carts and expanded hours. But the new rules are threatening to drive some of the old car... More >>

• Tarasco's New Latin Cuisine offers a taste of Michoacan on Federal

  published May 22, 2012

  This city is overflowing with Mexican restaurants, everything from green chile joints to taco trucks to gringified burrito-mongers. And from the outside, Tarasco's New Latin Cuisine, stuck in a South ... More >>

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  Tarasco's transports you to Michoacan and beyond

  published May 24, 2012

  One side effect of being a restaurant critic is that you can't help analyzing every bite that goes into your mouth. It's automatic. At dinner I... More >>

• Scoop up the best cone in town at Skoops Ice Cream & More

  published May 22, 2012

  Skoops Ice Cream & More didn't make our list of the best ice cream parlors in Denver, mostly because we gave precedence to spots that make their own ice cream.Still, the shop, which opened in the Capi... More >>

• James Lee back at the Bitter Bar full-time

  published May 22, 2012

  A year and a half ago, award-winning bartender James Lee gave up his post as bar manager of the Bitter Bar and beverage director of the Big Red F restaurants to embark on a journey that took him first... More >>

• Dragon Palace opens in the former home of Al Bae Nae

  published May 21, 2012

  Though Korean barbecue joints are everywhere, Korean fried chicken is surprisingly hard to come by in this town. So I was really excited to sing the praises of the glorious, crisp-skinned Korean fried... More >>

• Tara Curry takes over the bar at Ghost Plate & Tap

  published May 21, 2012

  Ghost Plate & Tap has one of the most unique bar programs in the city, thanks mostly to the Coupe Bar, a second bar inside the restaurant where any local bartender can work a guest shift. And their co... More >>

• Pasquini's will open a pizzeria and bar in the old J.R.'s space

  published May 18, 2012

  Three months after the Uptown Pasquini's turned into a Serioz, the Denver Business Journal announced that Tony Pasquini had inked a deal on the old two-story Uptown building that most recently held J.... More >>

• Patrick Creager ramps up Follow That Cart, a mobile soda fountain

  published May 18, 2012

  Someday, Patrick Creager and his wife, Ari Murdock, would like to open up a soda fountain. "I love the concept of a modern soda shop," he explains. "I really delved in behind the bar at Olivea, and I ... More >>

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  FEATURED STORY

  Denver's five best Thai restaurants

  published May 17, 2012

  Denver may have an abundance of Thai restaurants, but most of them serve food that's a far cry from what you'll actually find in that country, one of the best in the world for eating. If you know wher... More >>

• Photos: Phat Thai, the subject of this week's review

  published May 16, 2012

  This week's review took me to Phat Thai, the restaurant that chef Mark Fischer opened in Cherry Creek North, extending his empire east after opening the original Phat Thai in Carbondale, where he also... More >>

• Level 3 pool bar at Four Seasons reopens tomorrow

  published May 16, 2012

  Last summer, the Four Seasons unveiled Level 3, a poolside bar open to the public once a week on Thursday nights, luring patrons to the deck with the promise of waterside drinks and a swanky "Miami vi... More >>

• Who wants to be the new food critic at Westwordr

  published May 16, 2012

  Three and a half years ago, I arrived back in the Mile High City with nothing but a crazy (to my parents, at least) plan to give up my cushy finance job and work, somehow, in the wine and restaurant i... More >>

• Thai Monkey Club doesn't monkey around with its food

  published May 17, 2012

  After the grim green curry at Phat Thai, I decided to try Thai Monkey Club, a tiny spot that Kong Phom, a native of Thailand, opened in... More >>

• Phat Thai doesn't need to be authentic, just good

  published May 17, 2012

  I never expected Phat Thai to be an authentic Thai restaurant. When Mark Fischer opened his spot in Cherry Creek in December, it... More >>

• Phat Thai brings Mark Fischer's cooking down the mountain

  published May 15, 2012

  When Phat Thai went into Cherry Creek North last year, it took over an address that had seen a string of restaurant failures in a neighborhood that was on the verge of losing its dining edge. But if s... More >>

• With Masala Xpress, Ashim KC returns to the Denver dining scene

  published May 15, 2012

  When we noticed that a restaurant named Masala Xpress had set up shop in the Aurora Mall, our first hope was that it might be a quick-service outpost of Masalaa, the restaurant on South Parker Road th... More >>

• Parsley juices up the Golden Triangle

  published May 15, 2012

  I like to think I'm fairly equal-opportunity in my love of all things edible, but I've got a list of hard-wired obsessions, and I spend an inordinate amount of time thinking about them, talking about ... More >>

• Noah Heaney: Show up early

  published May 14, 2012

  In this interview, Noah Heaney, Big Red F beverage purchasing agent and bartender at Boulder's Bitter Bar, weighs in on the business card takeaway, the most unconventional thank you he's ever received... More >>

• Indulge Wine Bar now open in Golden

  published May 14, 2012

  Last week, when we crowned Denver's ten best patios, we included Indulge Wine Bar, a spot deep in the heart of Highlands Ranch that, in addition to a sizable by-the-glass and bottle list, boasts a swe... More >>