Wynkoop Holdings buys Rocky Mountain Diner, scrambles to fill it

Just a few weeks after they joined forces, the Breckenridge and Wynkoop breweries have taken on an unexpected challenge: slapping together a new concept to fill the former Rocky Mountain Diner space at 800 18th Street, which closed last month after a twenty-year run. The two companies, which are run…

Max MacKissock, the Squeaky Bean and the culinary cutting edge

When I reviewed the Squeaky Bean nine months ago, I was amused and delighted by what Max MacKissock was dreaming up in his tiny kitchen, playing with classic American dishes and making them into something new and unexpected. A reimagined shepherd’s pie, light enough for a summer evening. Sweetbreads made…

Rialto Cafe’s Robert McCarthy on cooking better than a second-grader

Robert McCarthy Rialto Cafe 934 16th Street 303-893-2233 www.rialtocafe.com This is part two of my interview with Robert McCarthy, executive chef of Rialto Cafe. Part one of that interview ran in this space yesterday. Favorite restaurant in America: Lupa, Mario Batali’s restaurant in New York. It’s really simple, straightforward food…

Eat like the Thai: family-style…and with a fork

Without exception, during every visit I made to Thai Flavor for this week’s review — and during the lunch I ate at US Thai Cafe for this week’s Second Helping — I overheard at least one table ask for chopsticks. I’d venture a guess that those diners thought they were…

Reader: Come on, brewers, can’t we all just get along?

Comments have been pouring out over the news that Dry Dock Brewing in Aurora (one of our “Top ten places to drink like a pirate”) has to change the name of its acclaimed Seven Seas Double IPA after getting a “nasty” letter from a lawyer representing 7 Seas Brewing Company…

Today: The Delectable fuels a book drive with green eggs and ham

This weekend, everyone should like green eggs and ham. The breakfast dish from Dr. Seuss’s book of the same name is central to a festive, philanthropic effort at the four locations of the Delectable Egg around Denver. The restaurants will be serving Sam I Am’s favorite dish today through March…

Today: Dixons Downtown Grill scores with March Meat Madness

St. Patrick’s Day isn’t the only game in town. In honor of the NCAA Men’s Basketball Tournament playoffs now at the Pepsi Center, Dixons Downtown Grill has introduced the March Meat Madness Platter: blackened chicken, sliced strip steak, jalapeno cheddar bratwurst, hot links and Polish sausage, served with sides and…

The Panang curry is a hot item at U.S. Thai

Of the three dozen or so Thai restaurants scattered around the metro area, I can think of only one that rises to the curry occasion as triumphantly as Thai Flavor, and that’s U.S. Thai Cafe in Edgewater. Ma Vue, a Laotian, opened the eatery in 2006, with native Thai chef…

Piece, Love & Chocolate opens in Boulder

Sarah Amorese fell in love with chocolate when she lived in Amsterdam. “My boss used to bring Belgian chocolates back to the office,” she says. “And my husband — boyfriend at the time — and I did a lot of business trips through Europe. We used to visit every pastry…

Guess where I’m eating?

Whenever I’m desperate for a breakfast burrito fix, I normally make the trek to the Taco Wagon in Lafayette, but that could soon change, because I recently discovered a taqueria closer to home that satiates my yearnings. Bonus: Excellent tamales and green chile, too. Can you guess where I’m eating?…

Sputnik a late-night haven for plant-based diners

It’s not hard to see why Sputnik is so popular. At 8 p.m. on a Tuesday night — a time when most restaurants would see guests trickling out the door — the Baker-neighborhood joint is still packed, with every table occupied and almost every seat at the bar hosting a…

Organic Pizza Co. now open in the Spire

Last fall, the folks behind Organic Pizza Co., a nascent local chain, threw an introductory party in the top-floor party room of the spiffy Spire, where they demonstrated their commitment to top-notch ingredients and innovative pies. But there were delays in the build-out of the spot planned for the ground…

Cooking with Pete and Barb Marczyk: Southwest sausage jambalaya

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. Pete and Barb…