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Best Service

Briarwood Inn

When your water glass has been empty for an hour and you're eating steak with a spoon, when your second course arrives a half hour after the first and your check is set down before dessert, remember this: You could be sitting in the elegant Briarwood Inn, sipping champagne and celebrating the kind of ser-vice this town hasn't seen on a consistent basis since servers started getting 401(k) plans. At this 21-year-old bastion of good taste, many of the staffers have been here from the start -- where else would they want to be? -- and the veterans train the new hires. As a result, everyone understands that genuine cheerfulness, efficiency and decorum -- rather than condescension, laziness and eye-rolling -- are essential service elements, and warmth and professionalism permeate the Briarwood experience. Until the economy tanks completely and people start begging for service jobs, diners can take heart in the knowledge that they'll be treated well at the Briarwood.

Best Service

Briarwood Inn

When your water glass has been empty for an hour and you're eating steak with a spoon, when your second course arrives a half hour after the first and your check is set down before dessert, remember this: You could be sitting in the elegant Briarwood Inn, sipping champagne and celebrating the kind of ser-vice this town hasn't seen on a consistent basis since servers started getting 401(k) plans. At this 21-year-old bastion of good taste, many of the staffers have been here from the start -- where else would they want to be? -- and the veterans train the new hires. As a result, everyone understands that genuine cheerfulness, efficiency and decorum -- rather than condescension, laziness and eye-rolling -- are essential service elements, and warmth and professionalism permeate the Briarwood experience. Until the economy tanks completely and people start begging for service jobs, diners can take heart in the knowledge that they'll be treated well at the Briarwood.

Best Place to Score With a Twenty-Something Whose Parents Still Pay the Rent

California Pizza Kitchen

After a hard day of shopping at the Gap, world-weary twenty-year-olds with more disposable income than the average office worker head to the CPK, as the California Pizza Kitchen is known by those in the know, to bond over barbecued-chicken-covered pizza and chopped salads. Look for them in groups of giggly blondes (at the tables) or Goth wannabes of either gender (at the counter), and then watch as they pick up their valet-parked used Audis and drive off in search of meaning. Food of choice: anything with cheese.

Best Place to Score With a Twenty-Something Whose Parents Still Pay the Rent

California Pizza Kitchen

After a hard day of shopping at the Gap, world-weary twenty-year-olds with more disposable income than the average office worker head to the CPK, as the California Pizza Kitchen is known by those in the know, to bond over barbecued-chicken-covered pizza and chopped salads. Look for them in groups of giggly blondes (at the tables) or Goth wannabes of either gender (at the counter), and then watch as they pick up their valet-parked used Audis and drive off in search of meaning. Food of choice: anything with cheese.

Best Soft Serve

CJ's Frozen Custard

Coney Island is known for its thrills, and its most thrilling accomplishment may have been the invention of frozen custard back in 1919, a confection that later reached its peak popularity in the Midwest. Neighbors Cathy Haug and Joy Gunderson so missed the frozen custard of their youth that they decided to open CJ's Frozen Custard, in the process giving all of Denver a sweet treat. The main difference between frozen custard and regular ice cream is the butterfat content (10 percent for custard, as opposed to ice cream's 35 to 50 percent) and the amount of air (up to 90 percent less in custard). That makes for a creamy, creamy texture and a rich eggy quality; since the confection is only frozen to 23 degrees, it's also softer eating. Compared to this frozen custard, that stuff spouting off at Dairy Queen might as well be chilled milk. CJ's offers chocolate and vanilla every day, along with a third flavor that rotates (the root beer float is weird and wonderful). Cool!

Best Soft Serve

CJ's Frozen Custard

Coney Island is known for its thrills, and its most thrilling accomplishment may have been the invention of frozen custard back in 1919, a confection that later reached its peak popularity in the Midwest. Neighbors Cathy Haug and Joy Gunderson so missed the frozen custard of their youth that they decided to open CJ's Frozen Custard, in the process giving all of Denver a sweet treat. The main difference between frozen custard and regular ice cream is the butterfat content (10 percent for custard, as opposed to ice cream's 35 to 50 percent) and the amount of air (up to 90 percent less in custard). That makes for a creamy, creamy texture and a rich eggy quality; since the confection is only frozen to 23 degrees, it's also softer eating. Compared to this frozen custard, that stuff spouting off at Dairy Queen might as well be chilled milk. CJ's offers chocolate and vanilla every day, along with a third flavor that rotates (the root beer float is weird and wonderful). Cool!

Best Tea Service for Tots

Country Gardens Tea House

The side business of a flower shop tucked away on a dusty stretch of south Broadway, the Country Gardens Tea House isn't fancy -- which makes it the perfect place for an adult tea party with little girls Monday through Saturday (Sunday is reserved for parties). At the top tea price of $9.99 per customer, no matter the customer's size, you get all the tea you can drink in charming mismatched cups and saucers, a tray of finger sandwiches (cucumber, egg salad and turkey on marble rye might be included), scones with potted cream and jam, cakes and a red rose. The service can be a tad slow, but everyone's so charming that your tots are bound to feel like little princesses.

Best Tea Service for Tots

Country Gardens Tea House

The side business of a flower shop tucked away on a dusty stretch of south Broadway, the Country Gardens Tea House isn't fancy -- which makes it the perfect place for an adult tea party with little girls Monday through Saturday (Sunday is reserved for parties). At the top tea price of $9.99 per customer, no matter the customer's size, you get all the tea you can drink in charming mismatched cups and saucers, a tray of finger sandwiches (cucumber, egg salad and turkey on marble rye might be included), scones with potted cream and jam, cakes and a red rose. The service can be a tad slow, but everyone's so charming that your tots are bound to feel like little princesses.

Best Applesauce Doughnuts

Dutch Boy Donuts

All those Kremey-come-lately doughnut joints keep coming to town, but Dutch Boy Donuts stubbornly hangs on. It's been frying up terrific doughnuts for 52 years, and a recent facelift should make the place good for another 52. Fortunately, nothing's been changed about the applesauce doughnuts; they're still a sweet way to start the day.

Best Applesauce Doughnuts

Dutch Boy Donuts

All those Kremey-come-lately doughnut joints keep coming to town, but Dutch Boy Donuts stubbornly hangs on. It's been frying up terrific doughnuts for 52 years, and a recent facelift should make the place good for another 52. Fortunately, nothing's been changed about the applesauce doughnuts; they're still a sweet way to start the day.

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