Denver’s top ten dive bars

Sample one of Denver’s best dive bars at 8 p.m. Thursday, November 5, when Club 404, 404 Broadway, hosts a launch party for Westword Drunk of the Week columnist Drew Bixby’s Denver’s Best Dive Bars: Drinking and Diving in the Mile High City. A true dive can’t be manufactured. It…

Chef and Tell with Mary Nguyen of Parallel 17

“Food is the one thing that I grew up knowing would bring family and friends together, soothe wounds and mend hearts as well as improve any party or celebration,” says Mary Nguyen, chef-owner of the Vietnamese-French bistro Parallel 17. “I entered this profession because it’s the way I express my…

Tonight: March of Dimes Signature Chefs Auction

Tonight, the Colorado Chapter of the March of Dimes will host its annual Signature Chefs Auction at 6 p.m. at the Hyatt Regency Denver, 650 15th Street. Tickets to the event are $150 per person and include small plates from many of Denver’s top chefs, as well as live music…

Guess where I’m eating?

Long before pizza and fois gras joined the line-up on this street, there was green chile, offered both mild and hot and served over big, fat burritos. And while the dining in this neighborhood may be getting finer, that chile was just fine from the start. Guess where I’m eating?…

Tonight: Get a taste of Down Under at the Innocent Bystander Wine Tasting

Things are looking up Down Under, judging from the array of Australian wines you’ll be tasting at tonight’s Innocent Bystander Wine Dinner at Restaurant 4580, at 4580 Broadway in Boulder. The four-course dinner is paired with wines from Innocent Bystander Winery, and includes vegetarian and gluten-free options for each course…

Getting frisky at the Cheeky Monk

Here are some things I know about the Belgians: They invented French fries and waffles — two vital food groups — but the French stole both of them. Every other country in the world has had its national foods co-opted by the French, but for some reason, the Belgians never…

Frasca’s Bobby Stuckey kicks asphalt at the New York City Marathon

Of the 42,000 runners who killed themselves finished the New York City Marathon — the world’s largest — this past Sunday, Bobby Stuckey, the master sommelier at Frasca Food & Wine in Boulder, placed 283rd with a time of 2:47:23. That’s right: the guy who drinks, pours, studies and explains…

Guess where I’m drinking?

I only have a few rules for bartenders. The number one rule? When people come in the morning after Halloween for Sunday brunch, don’t make them wait fifteen minutes while you set up the bar. Serve them their drinks immediately, and then get your station in order. So where was…

City Council raises a toast to the Vine Street Pub

Last night, Denver City Council unanimously approved a request by the Vine Street Pub that would alter the zoning code and allow the place to brew its own beer on site. From here, the request will go to Mayor John Hickenlooper, possibly as early as Friday, says Paul Nashak, managing…

Tilted Kilt kick-off time delayed

The Tilted Kilt was slated to open this week in the former ESPN Zone space on the 16th Street Mall, but the official kick-off time has been delayed. “We are shooting for next Monday, but it could be a day or two after that,” says franchise owner Mark Voss. “There…

Under Fire: Act Three

There are a few signs that the holiday season is coming. The first is red cups at Starbucks, the second is seeing way too many jeans tucked into Uggs, and the third is Halloween. When you’re a kid, by the time you come out of the candy daze, the turkey…

Guess where I’m eating?

No, it wasn’t the greatest fish fry in the world, but it sustained me while the snow blew outside and the drifts piled up. It came fast; it came hot. The batter was lacy and delicate from the fryer, and the fries were crisp and herbed and nowhere close to…

Win a face-to-face pow-wow with Anthony Bourdain from Tony’s Market

If you think you have the ingredients to make food hustler Tony Bourdain a memorable dinner, then Tony’s Market wants to hear from you. Bourdain, as you may recall, is cruising around the country, stupefying audiences with his real-life tales of eating warthog ass, fermented shark and lutefisk. And he’s…

Egg-ceptional egg dishes in Denver

“With an egg on top.” Ooh. You just stepped up your food game. You uttered those five words to the server, and suddenly everyone at your table perks up. It’s not just a sign that you’re starving. It shows you’re a risk-taker. Someone who has had enough of diets and…

Tonight: Daryl Groom winemaker dinner at Mel’s Bar and Grill

Chad Clevenger, exec chef/owner of Mel’s Bar and Grill, 5960 South Holly Street, is hosting a five-course winemaker dinner tonight with Daryl Groom, the former chief winemaker of Penfolds and Geyser Peak, who’s now representing and making his signature private label, Groom. Groom focuses on three main varietals: sauvignon blanc,…

Behind the Bar with Vince Martinez of Maloney’s

Vince Martinez of Maloney’s Tavern nabbed first place at the Hpnotiq bartender competition at Suite Two Hundred in September, beating out eight other local bartenders. Each had to create a drink that featured Hpnotiq, a liqueur made from a blend of vodka, cognac and tropical fruit juices. Martinez got top…

Last call for Mojitos Cuban Bistro

Mojitos Cuban Bistro, which opened last year at 1120 East Sixth Avenue (in the former home of Mel’s, and Montecito, and Piscos, and Chives, and Dudley’s…), has poured its last mojito. The restaurant is locked up tight, and a sign on the door announces, “We are closed…sorry for the inconvenience.”…

Dive in to Denver’s Best Dive Bars this week

Drew Bixby, Westword Drunk of the Week columnist, has dedicated countless hours — and his liver — to researching the town’s true dives.The result is a new book, Denver’s Best Dive Bars: Drinking & Diving in the Mile High City, which will be toasted at a series of events this…

Guess where I’m drinking?

I headed out to one of usual hangs on Sunday to watch the Donkeys get dicked over my daily dose of football, but there were apparently far fewer hangovers from the night before than I had envisioned, because my choice bar was ridiculously, impossibly busy. I ended up less than…

Chopsticks & Sushi closed for now…and maybe for good

The lights are on and the Open sign still hangs by the door at 1630 Welton Street, but that door is locked tight and the phone, which no one answered last week, is now disconnected. Looks like Chopsticks & Sushi is officially closed. But then, owner Yan De Yang is…

Lights are out at BB O’Reilley’s

Brad Brallier gave it a good shot with BB O’Reilley’s Bar & Grille, which took over the space formerly occupied by Your Neighborhood Grille at 1500 West Littleton Boulevard in the Woodlawn Shopping Center. But the neighborhood watering hole dried up in less than six months…