Today: A crash course in becoming a restaurateur

So, you think you want to open a restaurant or food business? Before you pour your life savings — and then some — into the idea, make a much smaller investment. The Cook Street School of Fine Cooking, 1937 Market Street, has teamed up with the Accounting and Business School…

Woody’s Chicago Style wants to give away a franchise

The company behind Woody’s Chicago Style hot dog stands wants to give away the store — or at least one of the stores. CEO Kristen Meyer has created a contest that will give away a franchise as a prize. “Our intent is to just grow our business on behalf of…

Twisted Pine seasonals keep things interesting

“Gimme your best seasonal on tap,” I request as I belly up to the handcrafted bar at Twisted Pine Ale House (3201 Walnut Street, Boulder). Bartender Jody Valenta slides a sample of her favorite seasonal, Hoppy Man, across the planks and I can see why she digs it. (Check back…

In the kitchen with Samir Mohammad, chef of the Village Cork

Samir Mohammad, exec chef of the Village Cork, and the mouthpiece in this week’s Chef and Tell interview, has spent the last few months expanding his menu, which now includes, among other winners, a slow-cooked tomato and garlic salad with scratchmade ricotta. “It’s an incredibly easy recipe that you can…

Rage drummer Brad Wilk signs bottles of Olade this weekend

“I was on tour with U2 in 1997, and I woke up one morning and I had lost my eyesight by like 50 percent,” remembers Rage Against the Machine drummer Brad Wilk. “I just felt horrible — like I had a hangover, but I hadn’t been drinking.” When he finished…

Wynkoop Brewing Co. celebrates beer and cheese with Kegs & Curds

Tomorrow from 1 to 4 p.m., Wynkoop Brewing Company, 1634 18th Street, presents Kegs & Curds, a tribute to beer-and-cheese pairings which seem to have suddenly become rather popular. There will be samples of 25 Colorado, U.S. and Belgian beers thoughtfully paired (by the brewers) with twenty gourmet cheeses, courtesy…

Sugar High: Après Dessert Bar at Generous Servings

For proof that there’s no such thing as too many dessert bars, look no further than Après Dessert Bar at Generous Servings, a Highland confectionery at 3801 West 32nd Avenue. Sisters Jill and Mary Brinig opened Generous Servings a little over two years ago as a small cafe and community…

Denver International Beer Festival set for June

Denver is a lush when it comes to beer, but that doesn’t mean the city’s been cut off. The producers of the Denver International Wine Festival & Competition for the past six years plans to hold a Denver International Beer Competition this May, followed by a June dinner that will…

Tonight: Learn to cook from scratch at Heirloom Gardens

Everyone knows that food tastes better when it’s made from scratch — but unless you had an older relative teach you the secret behind that flaky pie crust or savory chicken soup, you might not have the know-how necessary to put such killer foods together. Heirloom Gardens to the rescue…

Tonight: Help Randolph’s pick its spring and summer menus

How much control do you want over the meals you eat at restaurants? If your answer is “a lot,” then you’ll love tonight’s dinner at Randolph’s, 1776 Grant Street. Stop by at 5:30 p.m. to taste-test eighteen items over seven courses, and help determine what the restaurant will put on…

U.S. Department of Labor takes on Denver’s restaurant industry

The U.S. Department of Labor plans to conduct investigations of the local construction and restaurant industries throughout the year, with an emphasis on overtime pay and child-labor regulation violations. Chad Frasier, district director for the labor department’s Wage and Hour Division in Denver, says that the restaurant industry has been…

Amazing but true: Taco Bell robbed of food

An incredible story out of Charlotte, North Carolina, where a Taco Bell was robbed — not of money, but of food! Who knew that Taco Bell even served edible items? A car with three men had pulled up to the drive-thru window when one of the men pulled out a…

Guess where I’m eating?

You know the other night when we got that wet, sloppy snow disturbance that amounted to little more than nothing? Right. Anyway, much to my chagrin, several neighborhood bars and restaurants shuttered early, which is never good news to a lush in search of her next liquor rush, or to…

What’s Cooking? Pete Marczyk and David Bumgardner do choucroute

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. “This is really…

Part two: Chef and Tell with Samir Mohammad

Samir Mohammad The Village Cork 1300 South Pearl Street 303-282-8399 www.villagecork.com This is part two of Lori Midson’s Chef and Tell interview with Samir Mohammad. To read part one of that interview, click here…

Die, Bunny: An ode to crappy Easter candy

Everyone has their least favorite Easter treat–you know, the stuff you find in your basket year after year despite never liking the stuff, never eating it, and even leaving ol’ Easter Bunny a note kindly suggesting he spend a little more time on the candy aisle next year, or risk…