Best Greek bakery 2000 | Omonoia Bakery | Best of Denver® | Best Restaurants, Bars, Clubs, Music and Stores in Denver | Westword
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Best Greek bakery

Omonoia Bakery

For nearly two decades, the Omonoia Bakery has been a Sunday must-stop for the area's Greek Orthodox practitioners, who pick up a traditional church cake to share with other members after services. And who are we to argue with tradition? But once a week is not enough for enjoying all of Omonoia's other specialties: sticky, honey-saturated baklava; kourambiedes, rosewater-sprinkled butter cookies similar to Mexican wedding cookies; or a few dozen other Greek pastries. Owner/baker Dino Karas also makes six or seven different breads -- including a wonderful French baguette and fruit-filled loaves that resemble huge hot cross buns -- as well as moist cakes, which he'll custom-bake. But since Omonoia is also a coffee shop, you don't have to get everything to go. You can also linger, savoring all this goodness over a cup of joe.

Best après-ski coffee shop

Inxpot

After a long, hard day on the slopes -- or an even harder day hitting the Silverthorne outlet shops -- the Inxpot is the perfect place to relax. Located in the middle of Keystone's River Run "neighborhood" at the base of the gondola, the coffee shop is filled with cushy couches and other invitations to relax over that cup of warm cocoa (or something harder). There are also shelves of books, tables topped with board games, and the endless amusement provided by people-watching: first-time skiers tripping over their boots; women in school-bus-yellow ski ensembles; boarders who you pray are never above you on the hill.

Best après-ski coffee shop

Inxpot

After a long, hard day on the slopes -- or an even harder day hitting the Silverthorne outlet shops -- the Inxpot is the perfect place to relax. Located in the middle of Keystone's River Run "neighborhood" at the base of the gondola, the coffee shop is filled with cushy couches and other invitations to relax over that cup of warm cocoa (or something harder). There are also shelves of books, tables topped with board games, and the endless amusement provided by people-watching: first-time skiers tripping over their boots; women in school-bus-yellow ski ensembles; boarders who you pray are never above you on the hill.

Best place to drink a latte while eavesdropping on state legislators

Penn Street Perk

Just two blocks from the State Capitol, Penn Street Perk is the perfect place to get the inside scoop on upcoming legislation. It's where Democratic representative Tom Plant goes to read bills when he wants to escape the bustle of the Statehouse, and it's across the street from Hays Hays & Wilson, the biggest lobbying firm in town. But it's also a great neighborhood hangout. The style is eclectic living room (plush couch, comfy chairs, exposed brick walls, Christmas lights in the shapes of gingerbread men, horses, cows, chili peppers and cacti, and Titanic posters, in honor of the nearby Molly Brown house), and the coffee is more powerful than a lobbyist's checkbook. You can also order off of a list of cold drinks that includes the granita, an orange-flavored slushy; the icebergaccino (a fancy name for a cold cappuccino); and the orange dream, basically an orange julius without the egg. For all this and more, Penn Street Perk gets our vote.

Best place to drink a latte while eavesdropping on state legislators

Penn Street Perk

Just two blocks from the State Capitol, Penn Street Perk is the perfect place to get the inside scoop on upcoming legislation. It's where Democratic representative Tom Plant goes to read bills when he wants to escape the bustle of the Statehouse, and it's across the street from Hays Hays & Wilson, the biggest lobbying firm in town. But it's also a great neighborhood hangout. The style is eclectic living room (plush couch, comfy chairs, exposed brick walls, Christmas lights in the shapes of gingerbread men, horses, cows, chili peppers and cacti, and Titanic posters, in honor of the nearby Molly Brown house), and the coffee is more powerful than a lobbyist's checkbook. You can also order off of a list of cold drinks that includes the granita, an orange-flavored slushy; the icebergaccino (a fancy name for a cold cappuccino); and the orange dream, basically an orange julius without the egg. For all this and more, Penn Street Perk gets our vote.

Best coffeehouse

St. Mark's Coffeehouse

Cassandra Kotnik
Once upon a time, the coffeehouse was where you went to drink your fill of an authentic, big-city experience. You might be served by someone sporting a nose ring and tattoos, and you could eavesdrop on the couple with matching purple hair sitting near you or brood in the corner and write poetry for hours. Then came the corporate cloning of the coffee experience, and suddenly even Rotarians in Littleton were slurping cappuccinos on their way to the mall. Thankfully, St. Mark's -- both the LoDo original and its slightly less big-city sibling -- keeps serving up true coffeehouse flavor. The staff is reliably eccentric but always manages to put the right amount of foam into the lattes. The work of local artists adorns the walls, and at the Market Street spot, many of the tables and chairs are themselves works of art. The 17th Avenue location has huge picture windows that open onto a sidewalk patio, and the outdoor action never disappoints. (Your cup will soon be even fuller on 17th, since this St. Mark's is expanding into the space next door, adding a bar and more food choices.) All of which goes to show that when it comes to character, locally owned places like St. Mark's will always trump chains run by corporate coffee-bean counters.

Best coffeehouse

St. Mark's Coffeehouse

Once upon a time, the coffeehouse was where you went to drink your fill of an authentic, big-city experience. You might be served by someone sporting a nose ring and tattoos, and you could eavesdrop on the couple with matching purple hair sitting near you or brood in the corner and write poetry for hours. Then came the corporate cloning of the coffee experience, and suddenly even Rotarians in Littleton were slurping cappuccinos on their way to the mall. Thankfully, St. Mark's -- both the LoDo original and its slightly less big-city sibling -- keeps serving up true coffeehouse flavor. The staff is reliably eccentric but always manages to put the right amount of foam into the lattes. The work of local artists adorns the walls, and at the Market Street spot, many of the tables and chairs are themselves works of art. The 17th Avenue location has huge picture windows that open onto a sidewalk patio, and the outdoor action never disappoints. (Your cup will soon be even fuller on 17th, since this St. Mark's is expanding into the space next door, adding a bar and more food choices.) All of which goes to show that when it comes to character, locally owned places like St. Mark's will always trump chains run by corporate coffee-bean counters.

Best teahouse

Gemini Tea Emporium

Tea-drinking turns over a new leaf at Gemini Tea Emporium. Owners Brad Cavender and Abdulkadir Omar get extra credit for opening their ultra-hip shop in the heart of Five Points on Welton Street. Gemini is a sign of faith in the neighborhood's capacity for revival, but this shop would be equally welcome in any other part of town. The chic, airy interior is full of plants and richly colored in purple, yellow, lime and red; the atmosphere is as conducive to conversation as it is to contemplation. Or poetry: On Friday nights, Gemini hosts Cafe Nuba, a poetry and spoken-word set from 9 p.m. to midnight. And then, of course, there's the tea -- more than 160 varieties from spots around the world, including China, Japan, Brazil and India. Drink a cup here, or take some leaves to go; either way, Gemini has tea-drinking in the bag.

Best teahouse

Gemini Tea Emporium

Tea-drinking turns over a new leaf at Gemini Tea Emporium. Owners Brad Cavender and Abdulkadir Omar get extra credit for opening their ultra-hip shop in the heart of Five Points on Welton Street. Gemini is a sign of faith in the neighborhood's capacity for revival, but this shop would be equally welcome in any other part of town. The chic, airy interior is full of plants and richly colored in purple, yellow, lime and red; the atmosphere is as conducive to conversation as it is to contemplation. Or poetry: On Friday nights, Gemini hosts Cafe Nuba, a poetry and spoken-word set from 9 p.m. to midnight. And then, of course, there's the tea -- more than 160 varieties from spots around the world, including China, Japan, Brazil and India. Drink a cup here, or take some leaves to go; either way, Gemini has tea-drinking in the bag.

Best authentic English tea

The Gift Box

Along with cards, ceramic figures, earrings and ornaments, the Gift Box has always boasted several shelves lined with English jams, biscuits, chocolates, condiments and even cleaning supplies, along with a freezer crammed with crumpets, sausage rolls, pasties and bangers; homesick Britishers have been known to visit just to smell the Dettol. But owners David and Carole Scribner always envisioned something more: a genuine English tearoom. So this year, when they moved into a larger location a few doors down from their original shop, they added tables, chairs and china and placed lacy curtains over the windows. And in April, the Gift Box began serving tea -- a real English tea. The scones here are nothing like the huge, sweet, triangular pastries familiar to most Americans; they're small, warm ovals, waiting to be slathered with butter or jam and Devonshire cream. The assortment of crustless finger sandwiches includes cucumber on brown bread, of course. There are woolly tea cozies on all the teapots, inside of which the tea is properly brewed, fine and strong. And should you have any question about which goes into the cup first, the tea or the milk, Carole will be happy to enlighten you. This isn't the ineffably elegant tea served by big hotels and accompanied by harp music and obsequious servers, nor the display of mimsy tidbits favored by certain society hostesses. It's just what tea is supposed to be: a nice mid-afternoon pick-me-up; a proper cuppa with a bit of something savory, a bit of something sweet.

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