Best Seafood in a Steakhouse 2005 | Capital Grille | Best of Denver® | Best Restaurants, Bars, Clubs, Music and Stores in Denver | Westword
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Maybe it's the wonderfully pretentious presentation of the lobster bisque, the bowl brought by a soft-footed server who laces the top of the soup with decanted sherry for a fine, sharp, smoky alcohol hit. Or maybe it's the liquid velvet texture and strong lobster flavor of the bisque itself, an ideal balance between creamy richness and big buttery whacks of lobster that proves that the kitchen knows more than just how to grill a steak. We're not sure why we love the lobster bisque at the Capital Grille. But we do know that we never miss a chance to order it.

Everyone knows about the great seafood at McCormick's: the daily airlifts of fresh fish, the weekly and seasonal specials, the talented kitchen that's there to put everything together, the terrific dining room and bar spaces tucked into the corner of the classic Oxford Hotel. But one of the lesser-known winners on this decidedly fishy menu are the burgers, which are everything a meat-lovin' man needs: a soft, chewy bun, fresh fixings and a good-sized patty that doesn't turn to boot leather, even at medium-well. Making a good burger better yet is the price, if you happen to hit McCormick's during one of its two daily happy hours. From 3 to 6 p.m. any day, and from 9 to 11 p.m. Sunday through Thursday and 10 p.m. to midnight Friday and Saturday, the burger is offered as one of the dozen-plus items on the $1.95 bar menu.

Everyone knows about the great seafood at McCormick's: the daily airlifts of fresh fish, the weekly and seasonal specials, the talented kitchen that's there to put everything together, the terrific dining room and bar spaces tucked into the corner of the classic Oxford Hotel. But one of the lesser-known winners on this decidedly fishy menu are the burgers, which are everything a meat-lovin' man needs: a soft, chewy bun, fresh fixings and a good-sized patty that doesn't turn to boot leather, even at medium-well. Making a good burger better yet is the price, if you happen to hit McCormick's during one of its two daily happy hours. From 3 to 6 p.m. any day, and from 9 to 11 p.m. Sunday through Thursday and 10 p.m. to midnight Friday and Saturday, the burger is offered as one of the dozen-plus items on the $1.95 bar menu.

Best Seafood Restaurant for You and Ten of Your Closest Friends

Go Fish Grille

Larry Herz and his crew at Go Fish Grille have created a seafood restaurant with zero pretension but a worthy goal: to fill its coolers and freezers with the finest product that can be wrangled out of suppliers who still think of Denver as a B-grade market (at best). We wouldn't suggest this as a romantic destination -- too many wooden fish sculptures and bright colors for that. And it's probably not the spot to close a million-dollar business deal -- unless the signatories have some sort of weird Finding Nemo fetish. But it's a place to go with friends, lots of friends, because the one-from-column-A, two-from-column-B, Tom Colicchio-style choose-your-own-adventure menu is deep enough to please even the pickiest, fish-phobic of your friends. For those nights when you're looking for a fun place to greet and eat, we guarantee that Go Fish Grille is quite a catch.

Best Seafood Restaurant for You and Ten of Your Closest Friends

Go Fish Grille

Larry Herz and his crew at Go Fish Grille have created a seafood restaurant with zero pretension but a worthy goal: to fill its coolers and freezers with the finest product that can be wrangled out of suppliers who still think of Denver as a B-grade market (at best). We wouldn't suggest this as a romantic destination -- too many wooden fish sculptures and bright colors for that. And it's probably not the spot to close a million-dollar business deal -- unless the signatories have some sort of weird Finding Nemo fetish. But it's a place to go with friends, lots of friends, because the one-from-column-A, two-from-column-B, Tom Colicchio-style choose-your-own-adventure menu is deep enough to please even the pickiest, fish-phobic of your friends. For those nights when you're looking for a fun place to greet and eat, we guarantee that Go Fish Grille is quite a catch.

We know that Zengo is not so much a seafood restaurant as a restaurant that happens to serve seafood in addition to a lot of other things. But that doesn't matter. When you're after great fish, nobody handles the creatures of the briny deep quite like this kitchen -- and with a Latino-Asian twist, at that. Whether you order an antojito of tuna cut into perfect slabs and served with a ponzu sauce, a crisp and bitingly fresh ceviche, an entree of whole grouper dusted in ancho chile powder or the best piece of black cod you've ever tasted, we guarantee that your meal will go swimmingly at Zengo.


We know that Zengo is not so much a seafood restaurant as a restaurant that happens to serve seafood in addition to a lot of other things. But that doesn't matter. When you're after great fish, nobody handles the creatures of the briny deep quite like this kitchen -- and with a Latino-Asian twist, at that. Whether you order an antojito of tuna cut into perfect slabs and served with a ponzu sauce, a crisp and bitingly fresh ceviche, an entree of whole grouper dusted in ancho chile powder or the best piece of black cod you've ever tasted, we guarantee that your meal will go swimmingly at Zengo.

Somethin' Else, Sean Kelly's neighborhood tapas joint, takes the fancified crustacean from the rarefied level of special occasions and anniversaries and returns it to everyday eating, where it belongs. Here the lobster tail is served without fanfare alongside all the other great small plates -- but at fifteen bucks, this perfectly prepared lobster is a big deal.


Somethin' Else, Sean Kelly's neighborhood tapas joint, takes the fancified crustacean from the rarefied level of special occasions and anniversaries and returns it to everyday eating, where it belongs. Here the lobster tail is served without fanfare alongside all the other great small plates -- but at fifteen bucks, this perfectly prepared lobster is a big deal.

Mac-and-cheese may be the best survivor of the comfort-food trend that swept the food world a few years ago, then mercifully departed. And we'd like to keep Mizuna's mac-and-cheese around for a long, long time. Butter-soft lobster-claw meat, perfectly poached, comes mounted on pasta robed in smooth mascarpone cheese that's about as far from out-of-the-box-Kraft as you can get. Baby, it doesn't get any better than this.

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