Jonathan Shikes

Reader: Let's get rid of that disgusting zombie horse

GABF week kicks off with beers, balls and a message from the Falling Rock's Chris Black

Great American Beer Festival week kicked off, as it has for the past fifteen years, at the Falling Rock Taphouse on Monday, when the clock hit 000 00 00 00.0 But things were a little different this year, says Chris Black, who owns and runs Denver's most famous craft-beer bar. "Some people thought we ... More >>

Reader: Cafe Options has a great chicken cutlet sandwich

Politics aside -- if you can set politics aside -- Chick-Fil-A has lots of fans of its sandwiches. For those who are boycotting the chain for its anti-gay-marriage stance, yesterday Jonathan Shikes served up five chicken-sandwich options in town. Turns out we missed one: at Cafe Options, a terrific ... More >>

A handful of restaurants offer up Opening Day deals

Opening Day at Coors Field may as well be a holiday in the Mile High City -- Denver's residents descend on downtown en masse, kick off the baseball festivities early and keep partying until late. Earlier today, Jonathan Shikes, aka Colorado Beer Man, divulged a list of spots to find craft beer as yo ... More >>

Reader: My driver's license just got put under restraint for an unpaid ticket from 1986

The Internet may not be forever, but it's a pretty damn long time. Witness the continuing life of Jonathan Shikes' 2008 post about being notified about an unpaid ticket from six years earlier. This tale struck a chord with one reader, who was recently hit with a parking-ticket blast from the even mo ... More >>

The ten best moments in Denver arts: 2011

​It was the best of times, it was the worst of times. Okay, It actually wasn't either of those things -- but 2011 was pretty okay in its own right, and at certain times it was downright awesome. Because we're in the business of thoroughly cataloging things, we've cataloged the definitive best ... More >>

Homemade mole and smoked pork overwhelm Ska's latest Local Series beer

​I've always loved mole for its spicy, chocolatey uniqueness. In fact, if I were forced to pick a favorite sauce, it might very well be mole (though Hollandaise holds a special place in my heart). Making it has always seemed like a daunting task, but the more I cook, the more I crave a challen ... More >>

Reader: Good luck proving that cops like those in Hooters bust lie 90 percent of the time

​Jonathan Shikes's Shmuck of the Week post about an undercover bust at Hooters has spurred some lively back-and-forths. Here's one exchange involving a person who thinks most police officers lie and a succinct rebuttal.

Reader: Taco Bell's Colorado Rockies deal -- less meat for more money

​Yesterday, Jonathan Shikes wrote about the diminishing returns of Taco Bell's Colorado Rockies deal, which would be less impressive even if the Rocks weren't mired in an offensive slump. Not that one reader is actually salivating at the thought of a bargain bite.

Boulder Sourfest: Hundreds of beer lovers puckered up at Avery on Saturday

​Hundreds of beer geeks gathered at Avery Brewing Company on Saturday to enjoy one of the strangest, most inaccessible beer styles in the world -- and they loved every funky minute of it. The second annual Boulder Sourfest attracted 37 breweries, who poured nearly 75 beers - all of them brewe ... More >>

Happy Friday: Here's a good place to find a date

Jonathan ShikesThe patio at Ale House at Amato's is usually packed.​In the Best of Denver 2011, we named Common Grounds the Best Coffeehouse for Finding a Date, thanks to the constant crowd of young professionals who mingle over cappuccinos. And because we're big proponents of ditching online ... More >>

American Craft Beer Week: Special brews news

​American Craft Beer Week is in full force, and it seems all of Denver is flowing with beer -- which makes sense, seeing that we're right in the middle of the Napa Valley of it. With all the specialty tappings going on around town, it's difficult to to taste everything, but I've been doing m ... More >>

Beer calendar: American Craft Beer Week edition

Jonathan ShikesSka Brewing's malted goodness.​American Craft Beer Week is a beer drinker's paradise, a week that celebrates small (and a few not-so-small) independent brewers around the country. There are a huge number of events going on this year in the Denver/Boulder area -- not to mention ... More >>

Last night for Oysters and Beer, but Colorado Beer Week continues for a few more days

Jonathan ShikesThere's nothing fishy about Oregon specialties.​More than 900 oysters arrived at the Cheeky Monk yesterday on an overnight flight from the Oregon coast -- all of them destined to be consumed with Rogue beers. That comes out to a dozen each for the 75 people who bought tickets t ... More >>

Denver's five best burgers

Lori MidsonThe American Classic Burger at Tarbell's.​Denver is a burger-loving town, and you can find excellent versions all over: beefy patties, oozing juice, coated with cheese and served on tasty rolls. The very best? The American Classic Burger at Tarbell's, which won the award for Best Bu ... More >>

Tonight: Celebrity Chili Cook Off at Denver Press Club

​Westword's own Beer Man, Jonathan Shikes, will defend his title at the annual Celebrity Chili Cook Off at the Denver Press Club, 1330 Glenarm Place, from 6 to 8 p.m.; admission is $15 to $20, and proceeds benefit the Women's Bean Project. For more details, go to www.womensbeanproject.com. Fo ... More >>

Outside the box of chocolates: A few Valentine's Day gifts we're pretty sure won't be creepy

Dressing up like this is not a half bad idea.​If you've been in your relationship for a while, chances are your Valentine's Day can be a pretty laid-back affair -- a rose will suffice, or a nice card, just something to show her that you're thinking about her and you care. If your relationship ... More >>

Reader: Scott Gessler was honest about his inability to live on $68,000 Sec. of State salary

Gessler.​Our own Jonathan Shikes named Secretary of State Scott Gessler Shmuck of the Week in part for deciding after being elected that he couldn't live on the office's $68,000 salary. Plenty of commenters seemed to agree with this designation. But one reader offered a defense of Gessler's ho ... More >>

Ten beers to stop drinking at age thirty

​Cheap beer. It's a libation that most of us down during our late teens and twenties. But like all childish things, there comes a time to banish these cheap cans and brands forever. We argued over which beers should and shouldn't be included on this list, but we eventually came to a consens ... More >>

Governor Hickenlooper mounts up, rides the beer wagon to his inauguration party

Jonathan ShikesJohn Hickenlooper on the beer wagon.​While the party was just getting started at the Fillmore Auditorium, Governor John Hickenlooper arrived in the gritty parking lot of a Blockbuster store about a block away to begin the ride of a lifetime. Or at least the ride of the night. ... More >>

Off Limits: No offense!

Reader: Westword Beer Man is right to say Portland is a better beer city than Denver

​Jonathan Shikes, Westword's Beer Man, recently visited Portland -- and was amazed at what he found. "Portland is a better beer town than Denver," he confessed. "As a Denver native, it pains me to say that, but after having visited Beervana for the first, time, there is no getting around it. W ... More >>

Tonight: Rumpkin Imperial Pumpkin Ale Release Party at Avery Tap Room

​According to our resident Beer Man, Jonathan Shikes, pumpkin beers are best consumed at temperatures below 70 degrees. With a high of 63 predicted for today, this is the perfect time to stop by Avery Tap Room, 5757 Arapahoe Avenue, Unit B1, in Boulder, for the Rumpkin Imperial Pumpkin Ale Rel ... More >>

Mysteries of Sheehan's Desk: Day 11

I display this to keep the other aliens away...​ It's funny. I've been writing about food for going on ten years now. I've won awards. I've written a book. And yet, the one piece of mine that's actually been picked up and given wide (although unusual) distribution in national magazines a ... More >>

Candy Girls: Chocolate-covered bacon

Liz Kellermeyer​ There's little left that hasn't been baconed.  Mints, vodka, lip gloss, gum, ice cream: all products upon which the salty meat flavor has been imparted.  Adding chocolate to the mix seems, for some, an inspiration from the heavens, while for others the mere thought of ba ... More >>

Columnist chronicles Denver's New Urbanism conference on the Huffington Post

Photo by Jonathan ShikesThe new-urbanist enclave of Highlands' Garden Village. Last week, the Congress for the New Urbanism held its annual conference in Denver -- an event we commemorated with examinations of Bradburn Village, Highlands' Garden Village and several other New Urbanist developments i ... More >>

Jimmy John's Gourmet Sandwiches brings its Italian Night Club to Wash Park

Lori MidsonWestword's Jonathan Shikes, who keeps all you serious bread heads in the know with his sandwich chat each week, doesn't give a baguette's butt that Jimmy John's Gourmet Sandwiches, which started its sandwich monopoly in Illinois in 1983 and now has sixteen locations throughout ... More >>

John Hickenlooper and the case of the vanishing F-bombs

The video above, promoting Hick Town, a proposed documentary/reality series by director George Hickenlooper starring his cousin, Denver mayor John Hickenlooper, has been available on YouTube for months. Most of the footage was shot during the Democratic National Convention -- hence the presence of ... More >>

Rockies Opening Day 2009: The ill-advised live blog

One of these shirts is not like the other. Read from the bottom up. Or not at all. 4:15: So I'm sitting here with one of those guys who wears his own team hat to a game even though that team is not playing. What I mean is that Joe is wearing a Cardinals hat even though the game is between the Phi ... More >>

Go green at 8 a.m. today

If you can't find fun today, you're not looking. A good place to start -- and end -- your St. Patrick's Day celebration is Katie Mullen's, the new - and giant - Irish pub at 1550 Court Place, which will be bringing in Irish entertainment all day after opening at 8:30 a.m. But beating Katie Mullen's ... More >>

Live blogging St. Patrick's Day from the Fainting Goat: Happy Birthday to me!

This from a guest bar blogger: Hey all, we're having a great time here in Denver!!! We're discussing social networking and demographics, the future of journalism, and politics. Woo!!! We have found out that the 18-25 age demographic isn't as brain-dead as previous thought. They may actually have som ... More >>

The Westword.com blog shortcut, March 17 edition

Westword managing editor Jonathan Shikes celebrates his fortieth birthday by getting loaded on the job. Nice work if you can get it. What the hell does "begorra" mean, anyway? Today in Cafe Society: • Live blogging St. Patrick's Day from the Fainting Goat: Happy Birthday to me! • Centro dinner ... More >>

My new obsession: Glayva Scotch Liqueur

"Here. Try this." I handed over the small, green Jagermeister bottle and grinned. Because he's a good sport (and, like me, completely susceptible to even the weakest sort of peer pressure), my comrade-in-arms Jonathan Shikes screwed off the top without question and made a move to drink the myster ... More >>

Baby born at Denver Public Library truly is Unique

Jonathan Shikes' January 27 blog "The Downtown Library's New Due Date" was the first to tell the story of a woman giving birth at Denver Public Library's main branch, at 10 W. 14th Avenue Parkway. Yesterday, Channel 4 correspondent Raj Chohan filled in the details via interviews with proud mom Dom ... More >>

Our Weekly Bread: The Market Restaurant's muffuletta

The sandwich: The muffuletta What's on it: Bologna, pepperoni, provolone, Greek slaw on a French roll. Where to get it: The Market Restaurant (1445 Larimer Square, 303-534-5140) How much: $7.65 The word muffuletta sounds cool no matter how you pronounce it. Moof-a-letta! Moof-a-lotta. Whatever. S ... More >>

Beer and Cheer: Alaskan Smoked Porter

Alaskan Smoked Porter Alaskan Brewing Company It's really quite simple. Alaskan Smoked Porter is one of the best beers ever made. It is like a rare gem in a field full of sandstone, a shooting star, a pearl in the oyster that is my local liquor store. I read about this seasonal beer many years ago ... More >>

Beer and Cheer: Celebration Ale

Celebration AleSierra NevadaThis is a beer that I sometimes dream about during the summer months; it's the only thing that makes me look forward to cool weather. It's also the first beer I think of when I consider the holidays -- and the first one I buy. Although it differs from most holiday b ... More >>

Beer and Cheer: Snowbound Ale

Craft breweries in Colorado and around the country make seasonal beers all year round, but my favorites come out in the fall. I call them holiday, or Christmas, beers. Often dark and with a higher percentage of alcohol, these big beers are the bad boys of the microbrewery world. Colorado makes some ... More >>

Waits for early voting: a preview of tomorrow?

The Westword.com blog shortcut, October 22 edition

No thinking allowed at the Denver parking office

Phillip Bailey to be inducted to East High School Heritage Hall

Letters to the Editor

From the week of July 18, 2002

Letters to the Editor

From the week of January 10,2002

Letters to the Editor

From the week of August 9, 2001

The Prize Patrol Returns

Westword winners

Letters to the Editor

From the week of July 12, 2001

Off Limits

Suite irony...

Off Limits

Why are there no cameras rolling in Denver?

Off Limits

A snitch in time...