A chicken-fried burrito at Elway's? Be still, my arteries

When Elway's opened in Cherry Creek, it immediately set itself apart from other steakhouses by adding an unusual element: fun. Not cut-your-tie off steakhouse fun, but fun in the way food was presented, putting Elway's a cut above the other upscale meat-and-potatoes joints around town. (New sibling Elway's Downtown is...

By Patricia Calhoun

January 31, 2009

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When Elway's opened in Cherry Creek, it immediately set itself apart from other steakhouses by adding an unusual element: fun. Not cut-your-tie off steakhouse fun, but fun in the way food was presented, putting Elway's a cut above the other upscale meat-and-potatoes joints around town. (New sibling Elway's Downtown is sadly lacking in the fun factor, Jason Sheehan determined in his recent review.)

And with chef Tyler Wiard in command of the kitchen at the original Elway's. the fun just keeps coming. Consider a new item on the Saturday-Sunday brunch menu: the Chicken-Fried Steak Burrito.

Here's the delicious description: "Prime tenderloin, breaded and fried crisp, two eggs cooked any style, hash browns, cheddar cheese, green chile; wrapped in a tortilla and smothered in a pork sausage gravy." Be still my arteries!

The tenderloin is cut in chunks, then fried -- which makes it a lot easier to roll that tortilla. And while the price is a hefty $16.50, this is one hefty burrito, good not just for brunch, but for lunch at home the next day. And you'll want to save some room for a side of Wiard's green chile, another unexpected, porkorific find at a steakhouse.

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Patricia Calhoun is editor-in-chief of Westword, the alt-weekly she co-founded in September 1977. She’s been inducted into the Colorado Press Association Hall of Fame, the Association of Alternative Newsmedia Hall of Fame and the Colorado Restaurant Association Hall of Fame. She’s also received dozens of local, state and national awards for writing, including first place for feature writing and first place for column writing with the Society of Professional Journalists. Patricia is a weekly commentator on Colorado Inside Out, PBS 12's public affairs roundtable, which has won two Emmys.

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