Foods

McDonald's new premium quarter pounders are decent -- but the bacon seems familiar

The golden arches have nixed their Angus third pounders and replaced them with three new specialty quarter pounders, one spicy, one with bacon (allegedly a new, thicker, Applewood-smoked bacon), and one with....lettuce and tomato. The new burgers are marked for the permanent-items list gracing the ... More >>

Reader: Looking forward to Pizzeria Locale Lite -- but would like the real deal in Denver, too

It's been in the works for years -- and, finally, tomorrow the crew behind Boulder's Pizzeria Locale (and, of course, Frasca Food and Wine) will open the doors on a Pizzeria Locale in Denver. But it won't be a carbon copy of the original in Boulder. For starters, it won't be a full-service, sit-dow ... More >>

Taita takes diners on an unexpected journey through Peruvian cuisine

See also: Behind the scenes at Taita

Reader: Can't we come up with something other than pizza and beer bars?

Although downtown just lost another pizza spot, Toppings, today Pizza Republica will make its debut on 14th Street, right in front of the Colorado Convention Center -- and this downtown version of a restaurant that got its start in Greenwood Village looks like more than a fair trade. And more pizz ... More >>

Slotted Spoon Meatball Eatery: Fast-casual is on a roll

See also: A closer look at Slotted Spoon

Black Star Chocolates tweaks truffle recipe for a win at the 2013 Colorado Chocolate Festival

Chocolatiers Andrew Starr and Jennifer Spielman of Colorado-based Black Star Chocolates weren't satisfied with the first version of their lemongrass-kaffir lime-coconut truffle -- specifically, how the chocolate overpowered the filling flavors -- so they made some changes in time for the 2013 Colora ... More >>

Toppings is tapped out in LoDo, but two more pizza places coming

A string of pizza joints opened in LoDo last year, in a neighborhood that already included the Wazee Supper Club and Two-Fisted Mario's, with Mellow Mushroom and Marco's Coal-Fired Pizzeria just a few blocks outside of LoDo. Wazee Wood-Fired Pizza was the first to open -- and also the first to close ... More >>

Little Anita's New Mexican Cafe is firmly entrenched in red and green

I had one of my first real New Mexican meals in New Mexico, at the Little Anita's location in Albuquerque...and I hated it. I was astounded that people would dump alternating layers of boiling-hot green pepper sauce and equally steaming, nose-running-hot red pepper sauce on everything and suck this ... More >>

Ondo's welcomes spring with a new menu, paella special tonight

Ondo's Spanish Tapas Bar, 250 Steele Street, is introducing a new spring menu this evening, and hosting a special paella night beginning at 4 p.m. today. For $28, patrons can choose up to four ingredients to create a customized paella dish, which feeds two to four people; call 303-975-6514 for reser ... More >>

Chef Justin Brunson and crew have plans to open a second Masterpiece Deli in Uptown

For years, Justin Brunson, chef and co-founder of Masterpiece Deli and Old Major, has promised to open a second outpost of his smashing LoHi deli, arguably one of the best sandwich shops in Denver, and late this summer, at 1710 Sherman Street, in the Wells Fargo Center, he, along with his partners i ... More >>

Karin and Rob Lawler, owners of the Truffle, opening the Truffle Table in the former Cellar Wine Bar space

Oh, it's a happy, happy Tuesday for those of us in the food world, and an even happier day for those of us wholly obsessed with cheese. Earlier this afternoon, Karin and Rob Lawler, the owners of the Truffle Cheese Shop (otherwise known as stinky paradise), inked a lease on the Cellar Wine Bar, whic ... More >>

Panzano chef Elise Wiggins makes the most of Colorado lamb

See also: Can Triple M Bar's flock create a Colorado lamb comeback?

Pho Lee: So pho, so good for this Greenwood Village restaurant

See also: A closer look at Pho Lee

Pho 96 keeps it warm and simple

In A Federal Case, I'll be eating my way up Federal Boulevard -- south to north -- within Denver city limits. I'll be skipping the national chains and per-scoop Chinese joints, but otherwise I'll report from every vinyl booth, walk-up window and bar stool where food is served. Here's the report on t ... More >>

Burger King's spring menu: "Game-changing" turkey burger scores a few points

I am always skeptical when anyone calls anything unrelated to sports a "game changer." And when the allegedly "game-changing" item is a turkey burger at Burger King, my eyebrow hits my hairline. I caught this description in a random Internet story about how, with its spring menu rollout, BK became t ... More >>

Is there room for Korean food in the growing fast-casual sector?

Jaedo Ryu has big plans for Bop & Gogi, the fast-casual Korean restaurant that he and his wife opened last fall in Centennial (and I review this week). His goal of opening five locations and ultimately franchising may sound ambitious, but who knows? As Steve Ells likes to say, he didn't set out to b ... More >>

Reader: Patxi's looks like it does Chicago-style pizza right

When Patzi Azpiroz decided he wanted to introduce authentic deep-dish, Chicago-style pizza in California, he spent two years experimenting with recipes in his San Francisco kitchen. Today there are a half-dozen Patxi's Pizza outlets in California, and this fall Azpiroz and his partner, Bill Freeman, ... More >>

Patxi Azpiroz, chef of Patxi's Pizza, on eating fried worms and pesto pizza proposals

Patxi Azpiroz Patxi's Pizza 3455 South University Boulevard, Englewood; 303-783-2000 185 Steele Street; 303-331-1000 www.patxispizza.com This is part one of my interview with Patxi Azpiroz, exec chef/owner of Patxi's Pizza; part two of our conversation will run tomorrow. Denver lays claim to an i ... More >>

Pig & Block Charcuterie closes and will reopen as a full-scale butcher shop owned by prodigies of Joshua Applestone

Jeff Bauman and his brother, Marc, have closed Pig & Block Charcuterie, their small but mighty cured meat and butcher shop, directly next door to Old Major, that opened in October of 2011 in Highland. Jeff, who also pimped wine, dried pastas, a collection of salts, salumi and fresh meat, including s ... More >>

Eating a dead horse: Five reasons why horse meat isn't such a terrible tragedy

By now we've all heard about the European horse-meat "scandal," with bits of Mr. Ed being discovered in processed frozen-beef products -- everything from Burger King hamburger patties to lasagna. But why the hell is everyone freaking out? It's horse meat, not poison, and if horse meat were sold at g ... More >>

Reader: This town's food does not impress me -- where's a great burger?

Denver diners love their burgers -- big or small, beefy or veggie, gourmet or greasy. Best Burger is always one of the most hotly contested categories in our Best of Denver Readers' Poll (find the Best of Denver 2013 poll here), and we've got our buns on the run testing our own candidates for top ho ... More >>

Photos: Molecularly engineered water has New York-style bagels on the rise at Gather

With the help of water that replicates the liquid assets coming from taps of New York City, Josh Pollack is now creating what could be the best bagels west of the Hudson River with his and his Rosenberg's Bagels at Gather, the full-service cafe that opened this month in Galvanize. See also: -Gathe ... More >>

New Smashburger has an updated design, an industry rock star and amazing fried chiles

Tom Ryan, Smashburger's founder and chief concept officer, yesterday hosted the official unveiling of the new, redesigned Smashburger location at 6305 East Hampden Avenue, walking guests through an eight-course menu of Smashburger items as well as a tour of the store. It was a blast, and I discover ... More >>

Red Lobster: Valentine's Day lunch might net your just desserts

It's a tricky time for plan-ahead, chain-dining daters. They have six weeks to figure out which where to make Valentine's Day reservations, and despite the fact that dining out on February 14 is way more hassle than it's worth (big waits even with reservations, crowded dining rooms, flustered staff, ... More >>

Joe Freemond walks from Cellar Wine Bar, citing a "long list of problems" -- and lands as the chef of DiFranco's

The writing was on the wall, says Joe Freemond, the soon-to-be former executive chef of Cellar Wine Bar, which lost three of its kitchen staffers last week -- Freemond included -- after what the chef describes as a "long list of problems" that the owners, including Brian Delgado, refused to address. ... More >>

At Kachina, the chiles pack heat -- but they can also be sweet

With a knack for the nuances of wine, sommeliers can taste caramel and a hint of peach when all the rest of us can do is sniff out oak. Oenophiles aren't the only super tasters around, though. Work with chiles long enough, as Patrick Hartnett has, and you learn to detect flavors far beyond mild, med ... More >>

Justin Brunson taps pastry queen Nadine Donovan to spearhead the dessert program at Old Major

Justin Brunson is happier than a pig in mud. The chef-owner of Masterpiece Deli recently launched Denver Bacon Company, he's on the prowl for a second location to open another Masterpiece, and in February of next year, he'll unveil Old Major, a seafood, swine and wine restaurant in Highland that bro ... More >>

Reader: Please don't dumb down Boulder's Pizzeria Locale concept for Denver

After searching for the right spot for a year, Bobby Stuckey and Lachlan MacKinnon-Patterson, the founders of Frasca Food and Wine, Pizzeria Locale and Caffe, all in Boulder, have found the space where they will put a second Pizzeria Locale -- this one at 550 Broadway in Denver. Readers responded ... More >>

Pizzeria Locale opening in Denver in the former Il Vicino space on Broadway

It took a year to find the ideal space, but after an exhaustive search, Bobby Stuckey and Lachlan MacKinnon-Patterson, the nationally-renowned owners of Boulder-based Frasca Food and Wine, Pizzeria Locale and Caffe, have inked a deal to open a second Pizzeria Locale in Denver. See also: - Best Piz ... More >>

In a world full of cheese makers, why is Denver's selection so limited?

We say Peter, not Pierre; we shake hands instead of kissing on the cheeks; and we drive instead of hopping on the metro. And yet, says Karin Lawler, co-owner of the Truffle, "When you ask someone to name a cheese, they're going to say Brie." This Gallic bias often translates to party trays and after ... More >>

Red alert! Charlotte Saenz's recipe for great red chile

With Christmas ads filling the airtime vacated by campaign commercials, the holidays must be upon us. But it doesn't have to be Santa season for a server to ask if you want a Christmas tree. In New Mexico, where folks are even crazier about chile than we are, diners can choose to have their food smo ... More >>

Curtis Park Creamery serves up Mexican comfort food in endless combinations

Photos: A Closer Look at Curtis Park Creamery

Jack-n-Grill's green isn't vegetarian, but other dishes will grow on you

Jack Martinez came to Colorado from New Mexico to sell chiles, a business that grew into Jack-n-Grill. The fare in this family place is New Mexican, and it's renowned for its green chile -- although there's no vegetarian version of the green. Still, there are plenty of options for herbivores at Jack ... More >>

Jax Fish House named one of the best seafood restaurants in the country

Jax Fish House & Oyster Bar doesn't need to fish for compliments -- the Denver location just keeps reeling them in. This second of the Jax restaurants (the original is in Boulder, and a third opened in Fort Collins two years ago) was named Best Seafood Restaurant in our Best of Denver 2012, and als ... More >>

Whole Foods partnering with local ranchers to serve organic meat in stores, schools

Whole Foods is providing Colorado with a whole lot of local beef these days. In Basalt, a newly opened franchise is teaming up with Crystal River Meats, a Carbondale-based sustainable food company, to provide youth in the RE-1 school district with natural ground beef for school lunches throughout th ... More >>

The meat-centric Red Star Deli is a rising star

Grower's Organic Awards will honor Denver's best organic restaurants, grocers and growers

"Organic" and "sustainable" are words that get thrown a lot these days. But being truly organic requires more than just buying the lettuce branded as such. And so the Grower's Organic Awards were created to give recognition to Denver restaurants, growers and grocers that are truly making an effort t ... More >>

Vegan green chile for a seasonal favorite on Meatless Monday

It's the time of year when dozens of chile stands pop up along Federal Boulevard, complete with roasters. Although some people insist that green chile must have pork, the chiles are really key -- and it's easy to make a good meat-free version. This recipe was adapted from the Sam's No. 3 Kickin' Gre ... More >>

Reader: Green chile is central to Denver's culinary culture

It's green chile season. In her advice for new Cafe critic Gretchen Kurtz, former restaurant reviewer Laura Shunk said that it was important to have a favorite green chile...and then served up her own: Chubby's. And while one commenter dissed the mean green, far more readers are fans of Colorado's ... More >>

Top five qualities of the best green chile stew

Green chile season is now upon us, and this means the pervading aroma of burning chiles will soon fill the air as parking lots fill up with eager chile-philes waiting patiently, burlap bags in hand, for their turn to watch the roasters work their rolling, smoking magic. This season also translates t ... More >>

Reader: Food writers who recommend crab and cheese wontons sound like hicks

New spots are popping up all over town, including Little Dragon, a Chinese take-out and delivery spot in Mayfair. Jenn Wohletz dropped by and picked up an order of hot-and-sour soup and allegedly healthy, baked crab and cheese wontons. Is it wrong to crave these wontons?

Cure Organic Farm veggies are manna from foodie heaven

This is the fourth in a series of pieces profiling Colorado-grown products...and what some local restaurants do with them. "I want to have a relationship with someone who's cooking my food," declares Paul Cure, co-founder of Boulder's Cure Organic Farm. One handshake at a time, Paul and his wife, A ... More >>

Coloradans are partial to Santiago's mean green

Also read: Santiago's founder Carmen Morales talks to Cafe Society

Round two with Josh Monopoli, chef de cuisine of Black Cat & Bramble & Hare

Josh Monopoli Black Cat 1964 13th Street, Boulder 303-444-5500 www.blackcatboulder.com Bramble & Hare 1970 13th Street, Boulder 303-444-9110 brambleandhare.com Part one of my interview with Josh Monopoli, chef de cuisine of Black Cat and Bramble & Hare, ran yesterday; this is part two. Favorite ... More >>

Red Robin's "Cry Baby" and "Fiery Ghost" burgers: Where's the fire?

Red Robin, home of the juicy, fried-egg and crispy bacon-garnished Royal Red Robin burger, is hot for two new burger styles: "Cry Baby" and "Fiery Ghost." Having already tried much of the Denver-based chain's lineup at Red Robin's Burger Works, I had to find out of these two hottie burgers would fan ... More >>

Top five chain-restaurant burgers -- completely naked!

A great burger needs to stand on its own, a Westword reader noted last week in response to my review of Red Robin's Burger Works, a new concept that the Colorado-based chain tried out at the Shops at Northfield Stapleton before rolling it outside Colorado state lines. That means the burger has to ... More >>

Stinky feet...or world-class cheese? Q&A with the Truffle Cheese Shop's Miguel Verain, a competitor in the Cheesemonger Invitational

Contrary to popular belief, cheesemongers do not actually cure cheese -- they handle it -- and tomorrow, at the third annual Cheesemonger Invitational in Long Island, New York, 45 of them from around the country will be tested on their handling skills, with the winner walking away with $1,000 in cas ... More >>

Which Wich? So many choices, and all the time in the world

It's hard to find a good cheese sandwich these days. Sure, plenty of delis, sub shops and even some fast-food chains are serving up sammies like they just became stylish, but few make a really superior cheese sandwich. The exception to this rule? Which Wich?, a diminutive sub chain out of Dallas t ... More >>

Five Star Burgers grills up a five-star veggie patty

Tomorrow is the first day of summer, also known as burger season -- and then, just around the corner, comes the green chile harvest. Celebrate both at Five Star Burgers, the New Mexico transplant that recently made its way to Broadway.

The wurst is the best at Karl's Deli in Centennial

Slide show: In the kitchen at Karl's Deli