Subject: Fruits and Vegetables

• The Market Report, May 30

  Summer is just around the corner, and it shows at the market. While the selection is still focused on vegetables of the lettuce variety, warmer-weather vegetables are beginning to peak through. But that wasn't the highlight of my visit to the market Saturday. No, the highlight was a conversation inspired by a previous Market Report. After reading that blog, Bunny Henderson, who runs a stand at the market, told me to stop by some Saturday to learn about composting.

  June 1, 2009

• Veggie Girl: Spicy Pickle

  If it seems like I'm obsessed with soup in the wintertime --maybe I am. One of my favorite soups comes from the Spicy Pickle just a block from the Westword offices at 988 Lincoln Street. On a cold day, nothing is more tempting than a cup of the Pickle's Corn and Green Chile Bisque. And while the chile isn't very spicy (I'm a vegetarian green chile connoisseur), it does add a nice warmth. I like to order the Double Dilly-Yo combination, so I can pair a cup of soup with a half-sandwich for $6

  December 11, 2008

• Veggie Girl: Parsley

  A few months ago, Adam Cayton-Holland wrote a blog about an organic sandwich and salad place called Parsley that had just opened at 303 West 11th Avenue. I was intrigued not only by a lineup that seemed very vegetarian-friendly (with four vegetarian sandwiches and four salads), but also by the promise of fresh, organic soup soon to be added to that menu. I'd since walked by the place a few times, but I couldn't tell if Parsley had actually added soup, and the website didn't mention anythin

  January 15, 2009

• I'm totally DUG-ing this idea

  Denver Urban Gardens is a nonprofit that helps create urban gardens around Denver. To date, DUG has supported more than eighty community gardens and open-space parks throughout the metro area. Now, with a $70,000 grant from Denver's Housing and Neighborhood Development Services department, it's helping a free seed and transplant program take root.  With this new funding, DUG will dole out seeds and transplants to applicants who qualify under low- to moderate-income restrictions. "Last year

  January 20, 2009

• Our Weekly Bread: Dinner Roll at Smiling Moose

  The Sandwich: Dinner Roll What's on it: Turkey and roast beef, melted white American cheese, grilled onions and creamy horseradish on a giant Kaiser roll with a side of au jus for dipping. Where to get it: The Smiling Moose Deli (727 Colorado Boulevard, 333-3354) How much: $6.69 A smiling moose is a tricky animal. First of all, it's a moose, and animals, as far as I know, don't really have facial expressions. And then there's the fact that it's smiling, which makes me wonder what it is smili

  February 4, 2009

• Veggie Girl: Il Vicino

  Like Little Anita's, Il Vicino is one of the few Albuquerque chains to survive the trip to Denver. But while Little Anita's has never been a top-tier spot back home (though it has some of the best chile I've found here in Denver), Il Vicino has always been one of the better fast-casual places in either town. I've been frequenting the Italian restaurant's first outpost in Albuquerque's Nob Hill for most of its fourteen years. During my college days at the University of New Mexico, we craved it

  February 12, 2009

• Our Weekly Bread: Ba Le Sandwich

  The Sandwich: BBQ Pork and Special Combo What's on it: Pork and other meats, cilantro, cucumber, carrots, peppers Where to get it: Ba Le Sandwich, 1044 South Federal Boulevard, 303-922-2129 How much: $2.75 each Back away from the pastrami, sir. And step off the turkey and Swiss. It's time to try to something different -- and for that, I went to Ba Le Sandwich, a hole-in-the-wall storefront nearly undistinguishable from 10,000 other little hole-in-the-wall storefronts on South Federal Boulevard.

  February 18, 2009

• Our Weekly Bread: Summerhill Market

  The Sandwich: Italian Sub Where to get it: Summerhill Market (5614 East Cedar Avenue, 303-377-2979, www.mysummerhillmarket.com) What's on it: Capicola, ham, salami, provolone, lettuce and tomatoes, mayo, oil and vinegar, roasted peppers and sweet merlot onions on a baguette. How much: $5.99 There are those who say size doesn't matter and others who claim it's the motion of the ocean, but when a sandwich is as big and as packed with tasty ingredients as this one, the results are, well, orgasmic.

  March 4, 2009

• Veggie Girl: O's Steak and Seafood

  Being a vegetarian sometimes means feeling like you're always a bridesmaid and never the bride. Sure, that gnocchi entree is delicious, but meat eaters who go to to Italian restaurants get to order both primi pasta dishes and secondi meat dishes for a full three- or four-course meal. I've always wanted to try molecular chef Ian Kleinman's creative cooking at O's Steak and Seafood, but as the restaurant's name implies, the menu there is geared almost exclusively toward carnivores. Still, I kep

  March 5, 2009

• Our Weekly Bread: Vert Kitchen

  The sandwich: Tortilla Española Where to get it: Vert Kitchen (704 South Pearl Street, 303-997-5941, www.vertkitchen.com) What's on it: potato omelet, aioli, manchego cheese, lettuce and tomato How much: $8 It takes a lot to open a new eatery and even more to offer menu items far from the norm. But Vert Kitchen seems to have pulled it off -- and in an absolutely tiny space. The owners, Noah Stephens and Emily Welch, met in culinary school in France, and that shows on the menu, in the decor (a

  March 11, 2009

• Veggie Girl: Pasquini's Pizzeria

  Some days just beg to end in the back of a bar, hunched over a beer or two. There are plenty of Denver spots that will serve this purpose, but when your stomach also happens to be begging to be fed, a good bet is Zio Romolo's Alley Bar, where you can get a Pasquini's pizza, salad or calzone while also getting your fix of bad '80s rock, country music and hippie jams. Zio Romolo's is situated right beside the Pasquini's Pizzeria at 2400 West 32nd Avenue, and the dark back booths are the perfec

  March 12, 2009

• Veggie Girl: Saigon Bowl

  It was early Sunday evening when my husband and I arrived at Saigon Bowl, 333 South Federal Boulevard, and I was surprised to see the place already packed. Some large parties were gathering, and a few massive dinner parties were under way. Unsure if we'd even get a spot, we joined the line -- and five minutes later, we had a table. They sure know how to turn tables quickly at Saigon Bowl -- but then, with prices so low and food so fresh, they need to be able to accommodate the crowds. We'v

  March 19, 2009

• Larkburger alert in Boulder

  Shortly after returning home from lunch today at El Taco de Mexico (Friday afternoon habit), I got an email from a friend alerting me to good news on the restaurant front, namely that earth muffins Boulderites have a new burger barn to fry them to the moon. Only it's not just any burger barn: It's Larkburger, the second offshoot from owner Thomas Salamunovich's righteous, planet-conscious burger shack, which started in Edwards and will soon become a trio of hamburger hamlets when the third outpo

  March 20, 2009

• Shazz has a seriously bad name, and seriously good food

  March 12, 2009

• SAME Cafe: The restaurant where you pay what you can

  February 26, 2009

• When not in Rome, you can still eat great Italian food at Locanda del Borgo

  February 5, 2009

• Lala's is a shining light in a former black hole

  January 22, 2009

• Ooh la la! This bistro is a beauty

  December 18, 2008

• Happy Noodle House is trying — sometimes too hard

  June 4, 2009

• White Sangria at Sketch

  April 23, 2009

• Veggie Girl: Arada Ethiopian

  The first time I tried Ethiopian food, I was visiting my friend, Mat, in Montreal. We'd met the previous summer on a train headed to Berlin, and since we were both backpacking solo around Europe and trying to get to Prague, which had just suffered a flood, we found ourselves staying in the same hostel waiting for the rain to end. Neither of us made it to the Czech Republic, but we did share many a street falafel and tofu curry. And it was exciting to have another new culinary experience with M

  April 16, 2009

• Denver's urban gardeners are digging their backyard farms

  April 30, 2009

• Chef Matt Franklin trades fusion for Farro, his wonderfully weird take on strip-mall Italian

  April 30, 2009

• The Market Report, April 25

  Three Boulder Farmers' Markets so far, and I've seen the sun only one time more than I've seen Rush Limbaugh. The first was sunny, the second snowy (and cancelled), and this past Saturday's? Drizzly. It was still pleasant, though, sort of a natural version of a supermarket's attempt at playing God, when the store sprays misters on all the veggies and blares thunder from the speakers in the produce section -- except that the store always sprays it on the bagged stuff, too, drenching the plast

  April 27, 2009

• The Market Report, May 2

  April showers bring May showers. That's how that saying should go, since the Boulders' Farmer Market is now four for four for rain (or snow) on Saturdays. But cold, damp weather won't keep locavores from their feast ingredients. My shopping was a little lighter this round, since it's finals week and my diet is portioned as follows: 50% Red Bull, 49% coffee and 1% bacon (it's a little-known fact that bacon has over 100% of every major nutrient and vitamin, and in the presence of pretty girls,

  May 4, 2009

• Hospoda: Czech it out!

  May 7, 2009

• Cracovia is no small potatoes when it comes to Polish food

  May 7, 2009

• The List: 'fo schnitzel

  I fell in love with Cracovia this week.Then, a few days later, I fell in love all over again with the schnitzel and potato pancakes and green chile at Hospoda. So is it that I'm some kind of restaurant slut, going all head over heels for any joint that catches my eye?  Or do I just have a weakness for the heavy-handed Eastern European flavors that both these places excel at capturing?Personally, I think I'm just a grub slut. But the lure of Eastern European food is undeniable. For more rest

  May 8, 2009

• The Market Report, May 9

  How do you kick off the first day of summer? (Yes, some people say it starts in late June -- but I say it's after the last day of finals!). Failing in my goal of waking up face down, possibly naked, and definitely hungover somewhere in Boulder, I went to the farmers' market.I wasn't the only one, either, as this was by far the busiest day so far. Finally, the sun was shining, leaving me awkwardly shimmying through Boulderites as they picked over the increasing selection the market offers as we m

  May 11, 2009

• Our Weekly Bread: Jersey Mike's

  The sandwich: Club Supreme What's on it: Roast beef, turkey, Swiss cheese, bacon, mayo, lettuce, tomatoes, vinegar, oil and spices Where to get it: Jersey Mike's Subs (555 Broadway, 303-825-1744) How much: $6.95 for a regular It was 1990, and I needed a job. Togo's, the ubiquitous and well-loved California sandwich chain, had just announced that it was opening a new store on the campus of the University of California at Santa Cruz, where I was majoring in Anthropology. A big fan of Togo's (e

  May 14, 2009

• The Market Report, May 23

  Jason Sheehan's favorite festival is messin' up my market. On Cafe Society's Twitter account, Sheehan expressed his love for the Boulder Creek Festival: "With any luck, I should be posting pics of giant turkey legs and damp hippies from the Boulder Creek Festival this weekend. Stay tuned." Well, that made my weekly trip to the Boulder Farmers' Market like the journey to the center of the earth on May 23. Before I could reach the actual market, I had to journey through merry-go-rounds, giant tr

  May 26, 2009

• Lucy has new menu, new patio

  Lucy, the restaurant that made its debut last fall when Comedy Works South opened at 5345 Landmark Place in Greenwood Village, has made some changes for spring. Just in time for the Memorial Day weekend monsoons, it opened its patio. And also last week, chef Jeff Stoneking introduced a new lunch and dinner menu for the warm months ahead. Taking what's billed as a "From the Earth to the Table" approach, the new menu focuses on using ingredients from Colorado farms and gardens whenever possible.

  May 26, 2009

• Our Weekly Bread: A Hi*Rise sandwich orgy

  Roast Beef The sandwich: Roasted Veggie What's on it: Mushroom, fennel, tomato, radish sprouts, all roasted and served with hummus, feta, balsamic vinegar on rosemary yam focaccia bread Where to get it: Hi*Rise (2162 Larimer Street, 303-296-3656) How much: $6.95 I got a chance to try five - yeah, five! -- different sandwiches at once this week when Hi*Rise, a new breakfast shop, bakery and deli in the poppin' Ballpark neighborhood -- brought them to the Westword test kitchen for sampling pur

  May 27, 2009

• Door to Door makes local food easy

  A Flickr Photo I didn't make it to the Boulder Farmers' Market this weekend, and to clear my karma I just may have to call Door-to-Door Organics. This local company has offered delivery of organic food for a while now, but in July it will reintroduce its "All Local" box, with delivery of all-local produce available in two sizes: one for $23.66 and the other for $33.66. "Door to Door Organics is committed to buying 'local first,' working with Full Circle Farms, Lippis Farms, First Fruits and o

  June 8, 2009

• Top Denver chefs play with fire for charity tonight at Elway's Cherry Creek

  Real food. Sharp utensils. Big fire. A good cause. And Denver's top chefs. That's what's on tap tonight, from 6 to 9 p.m., at Elway's Cherry Creek, 2500 East First Avenue, when eleven of the town's top cookers - Tyler Wiard (Elway's, Cherry Creek); Sean Yontz (Mezcal, Tambien and Sketch); Justin Cucci (Root Down); Jamey Fader (Lola); Troy Guard (TAG); Jennifer Jasinski (Rioja and Bistro Vendome); Brian Liard (Barolo Grill); Elise Wiggins (Panzano); Goose Sorensen (Solera); and Matt Selby and

  June 10, 2009

• Parisi rolls out a new summer menu and four Denver restaurants rally for charity

  Parisi, 4401 Tennyson Street, marks the real start of summer tonight by introducing a four-course, hot weather menu at Firenze A Tavola: panzanella salad; tagliatelle pasta with asparagus, wild mushrooms and truffles; Milanese breaded pork chop with lemon aioli; wilted arugula with grilled fennel, pickled onion, carrots, artichokes and peppers; and lemon sorbet with drunken stone fruit, all for $30 per person. The dinner is held downstairs at the community table, and dishes are served family-st

  July 1, 2009

• Our Weekly Bread: Tony's Market

  The sandwich: Italian Sub What's on it: Mortadella, capocollo, Genoa salami, tomatoes, olives, banana peppers, red onion, lettuce, provolone and Parmesan on a demi baguette with Italian vinaigrette. Where to get it: Tony's Market (950 Broadway, 720-880-4501) How much: $7.99 with chips and cookies; less without Tony's Market opened to great fanfare (especially in the Golden Triangle) in late May, bringing not just another top-notch butcher to central Denver, but its reputation as a great market

  July 15, 2009

• This week: Seven days of Yelp Eats! on the cheap

  Yelp.com Yelp, a well-known website where opinionated voices discuss and review restaurants, bars and other local businesses, is kicking off Yelp Eats!, a seven-day dining celebration, which begins today and continues through Sunday, July 26 with fifteen metro area restaurants offering multi-course dinner menus for $25 per person, exclusive of tax and tip. Reservations aren't required, but if you want to cash in on the deal, you'll need to ask for a "Yelp Eats" menu. Participating restaurants a

  July 20, 2009

• The Market Report, July 18

  Based on the picture above, you're probably thinking, "This week's Market Report is fruiter than Lloyd on Entourage." And you would be absolutely correct!After a quick sweep of the Boulder Farmer's Market, I found four fruits for sale, three of which I bought (the other being apricots). I figured I'd do a first review of our highly acclaimed Colorado fruit, which are beginning to come into season.

  July 20, 2009

• Karma tempts fate with its fusion menu but triumphs.

  August 6, 2009

• Civic Center Eats: Forte Farms

  David Huska bags some Colorado peaches at Civic Center Eats.​ Native peaches belong on a short list of the best things about Colorado. The Forte Farms stand has other things as well -- plums and tomatoes -- but the peaches are the real draw. In the five or ten minutes I was standing there at last Tuesday's Civic Center Eats, David Huska sold a couple plums, one tomato and about a dozen peaches. These shoppers knew what was good for them. Huska is a journalism student from Serbia. He's in

  August 11, 2009

• Organixx may be green, but that's not what makes it great

  August 13, 2009

• Urbavore's Dilemma: Fort owner Holly Arnold Kinney uses her garden to dig into her past

  Joel WarnerHolly Arnold Kinney and neighbor Matt Slater in Kinney's greenhouse​Urbavore's Dilemma is an ongoing web series detailing city dwellers' commitment to urban homesteading. From May through September, Westword writer Joel Warner will get his hands dirty, covering everything from backyard chickens to front-lawn gardens, from greenhouses to co-ops and food-sharing. Check out the full series here. Holly Arnold Kinney is as close to Colorado culinary royalty as you can get. She was l

  August 18, 2009

• Golden's Empanada Express Grill graduates from a trailer to a restaurant

  Lori MidsonPabellon Criollo empanada from Empanada Grill​You  no longer have to lug your own butt cushion to the Empanada Express Grill, which up until three weeks ago was a simple freestanding trailer peddling Venezuelan street snacks -- empanadas, arepas and cachapas -- from an asphalt landing strip in Golden. Its new location at 2600 East Street isn't exactly fancy, the narrow space sparse with just a few tables and seats and a glass case filled, quizzically, with folded men's shirts t

  September 15, 2009

• Taste of Thailand has the cure for the flu -- and the cure for boring food

  October 1, 2009

• A Tuscan-style lamb soup to fall for from Jing chef Jay Spickelmier

  Lori Midson​At last week's Mile High Chef Competition between Argyll Gastropub cooker Sergio Romero and Jing exec chef Jay Spickelmier (who emerged victorious), the hit dish of the night was Spickelmier's Tuscan lamb and white bean soup, the recipe of which he was happy to share with us. It's the perfect soup for fall. Tuscan-style lamb and white bean soup Ingredients: 1 pound lamb top round sirloin 3 strips bacon 1 shallot, peeled and diced 2 cloves garlic, peeled and minced 1/4 cup d

  October 2, 2009

• Guess where I'm eating?

  Lori Midson​ You know that autumn's in the air when restaurants start cooking hearty casseroles, soups and stews tumbling with root vegetables -- carrots, turnips and parsnips -- which is exactly why the shepherds pie, pictured in the above snap, immediately caught my attention. I totally dig root vegetables.Hearty, restorative and piping hot, a killer shepherds pie, made in classic peasant style, is exactly what I want on a chilly day. This shepherds pie, in particular, was bolstered by stewe

  October 7, 2009

• On the ranch with Elise Wiggins of Panzano

  Lori Midson​Last weekend, Elise Wiggins, executive chef at Panzano (909 17th Street), held a cooking class at Bear Mountain Ranch, home on the range to the Black Angus steer that ranch owners Debbie and John Medved are raising for Wiggins, who is using the beef at Panzano. The cooking class, which also included a fantastic lunch with sliders, tomato and mozzarella soup and focaccia, focused primarily on Wiggins's recipe for pappardelle bolognese, which was also the star of the lunch. If

  October 15, 2009

• Fuel fall with Rioja's new autumn menu

  Lori Midson Spinach veloute soup and chestnut soup with foie gras terrine from Rioja ​ Jennifer Jasinski, chef-owner of Rioja, 1431 Larimer Street, is renowned for both her use of local ingredients and seasonal menu changes. And her most recent iteration, a lovely autumn board of fall vegetables, rustic meats, sweetness and spice, earthiness and comfort, is no exception.

  October 16, 2009

• What's cooking: Pete Marczyk rolls with risotto

  Lori Midson​Pete Marczyk and Barbara Macfarlane do not leave their work behind when they leave Marczyk Fine Foods and head for their great old Denver house with the big, new kitchen. They often bring some of their market's choicest ingredients home with them, and cook up a feast. This is the second in a series of dinner-party recipes; they'll add one a week until they have a complete, multi-course fall menu. For week one, Pete made mushroom rugula, a savory mushroom mixture that's rolled

  October 28, 2009