Not long ago, it was considered risky to open a restaurant past a certain block on Larimer Street. With all the construction dust in that area, though, these days the risk lies in other neighborhoods, such as Park Hill, where noted chef/restaurateur Sean Kelly recently opened Desmond Bar & Grill…

Hawaii might be an island paradise, but when opportunity came knocking for Robert Juan, he didn’t hesitate to swap the ocean for the mountains. “I miss the sand and the sunrise on the beach,” says Juan, who joined Zengo as chef de cuisine this fall. “But if you have to…

Restaurant empires are only as good as the chef in charge of day-to-day operations. Justin Brunson — who’s poised to extend his own empire with Masterpiece Kitchen — knows this, which is why he tapped the talented Amos Watts to be executive chef at Old Major. Watts joined the team…

As word got out that I would be ending my work as Westword restaurant critic at the end of December 2015, all anyone could ask was “Why?” Friends who know me best put it another way: “Are you crazy? You’re being PAID to eat out, and you’re choosing to leave?”…

When I first walked into Revelry Kitchen, there wasn’t much revelry going on. No one was laughing over mimosas or micheladas, as they would’ve been on a busy weekend morning. No one was even waking up over coffee, which had yet to be made. Steel stools at the bar in…

When did decaffeinated coffee become so fancy? When I dropped by Honor Society Handcrafted Eatery one recent morning for this week’s review of Honor Society, I heard the girl at the counter tell a customer that the restaurant doesn’t brew decaf. “The reason we don’t make ‘fancy’ coffee,” she said, pausing…

Justin Brunson wasn’t an obvious addition to the founding team behind Honor Society Handcrafted Eatery, a fast-fine restaurant that opened this summer in a new office building behind Union Station. If you’re looking for a charcuterie whiz, he’s your guy. If you’re craving a three-pound pork chop and pork-fat fries,…

In the restaurant business, lines are growing fuzzier all the time. Crafted food that once would have been the stuff of fine kitchens is dished out of cafeteria-style lines, and fast-food chains have dabbled – largely unsuccessfully — in higher-end experiences. Fast food vs. fine isn’t the only binary distinction…

A year ago, Grant Williams, then bar manager at the Coral Room in West Highland, decided to buy the restaurant from his boss, who was putting it up for sale after ten years. Williams and longtime friend and now co-owner Raymond Childs had visions of a neighborhood bistro that emphasized…

I don’t normally review restaurants where placemats are decorated with pictures of what I’m eating. But there I was, sitting in a red trolley at The Old Spaghetti Factory, a plate of Spaghetti Vesuvius before me. “WARNING,” the placemat cautioned in all capital letters ringed by a red box. “This…

At this time of year we’re always trying to figure out  ways to feed a crowd — not just on turkey day but in the busy weeks ahead. Of the many spots that cater to big groups, one restaurant might not come to the top of your mind — even though…

When I left New York more than a decade ago, foodies (as they were known then) felt a little sorry for me. What was a food writer to do in a town known for steakhouses and omelets? But who’s sorry now? Today this Colorado cowtown is on the national food…

Given Denver’s restaurant boom, you might say there are a lot of cooks in the kitchen. But earlier this fall, when Christopher Cina of Breckenridge-Wynkoop found himself looking for a new executive chef for the Farm House at Breckenridge Brewery (the previous chef had moved out of state just a…

A month ago, the food world stopped spinning for a few seconds as people paused to absorb Danny Meyer’s big announcement: tipping would be phased out at all restaurants in his Union Square Hospitality Group. But it’s not as if Meyer is traveling through uncharted territory. Restaurants across Europe include…

The last time I ate a piece of fish at 5375 Landmark Place, I had to work for it: I chopped and sautéed vegetables, mounded them over the fish, then maneuvered the tucks and folds of the papillote around it. I enjoyed that fish immensely, having made it with my…

Authors like Michael Pollan (The Omnivore’s Dilemma) and Eric Schlosser (Fast Food Nation) changed the way we think about food. How were the animals treated? How were the vegetables grown? How much corn is hidden in that meal? Now Danny Meyer is changing the conversation about who makes and serves…

This summer saw its share of big food stories. The opening of Fire, an elegant restaurant in the Art Hotel, wasn’t one of them. Indeed, the restaurant was so far off the radar that unless you followed the food scene closely — or were a hotel guest who grabbed a…

If you’re a football fan, you know what’s riding on this weekend’s game between the Broncos and the Green Bay Packers: bragging rights. By Sunday night, only one team will have that prized zero in the loss column. But regardless of who wins, you can have bragging rights in the…

I’ve heard of many secrets to long life, from not smoking to eating a bowl of ice cream every day. But the one on the menu at Uncle Joe’s, a Hong Kong bistro that opened early this year across the street from the Colorado Convention Center and the Denver Performing…

I’ve always loved food, so it’s not surprising that many of my memories are in some way related to food, whether eating it in restaurants, bakeries, ramen shops, creperies and even on street corners, or standing in various kitchens with grandmothers, aunts, college friends, parents, in-laws and my own children…