I love the fact that my day goes by so fast,” says Craig Dixon, chef/manager at Cafe Options. That day starts plenty early: Dixon is at the fast-casual restaurant at 1650 Curtis Street by 6 a.m. every weekday, to unlock the doors and greet the customers who start coming in…
We weren’t really looking to do a second restaurant, but everything just kind of fell into place,” explains Bill Blake. Along with business partner Jason Parfenoff, he’s just signed a lease on the long-vacated Village Inn space at 222 Columbine Street, where he’ll open a second outpost of Toast, the…
Ever since I saw Grover waiting tables on Sesame Street, I knew I wanted to work in restaurants,” says Paul Reilly. And he didn’t waste much time following in Grover’s footsteps, considering that he got his first taste of restaurant life while washing dishes in a German joint at the…
In case you haven’t noticed, I’ve been missing from both these virtual pages and the actual dead-tree pages of Westword for the past couple of weeks. And while I’m sure that some of you out there in Hotcakesland have rejoiced in thinking that finally someone over here came to his…
For nearly a dozen years, the space at 1531 Stout Street was home to Juan’s on Stout, a Mexican joint that was allegedly renowned for its green chile. Juan’s is gone, but the space has now been resurrected as Cilantro Fusion, and the green chile, a thick, gelatinous blob that…
The lights were off on Monday, and the listing suddenly disappeared from the upcoming hearings schedule at the Denver Department of Excise and Licenses — but by all accounts, the liquor-license hearing at which the city will consider whether to expand Zaidy’s license to allow live entertainment at the Writer…
I HEART Harvest week. If there’s one week to go out to eat, it’s this one. The harvest menus available at your local independent restaurants are exceptional — and the cocktails are great, too. In fact, the cocktail in the above shot was so good that I actually forgot to…
Our former Cafe Society intern just decided to chuck college in favor of a real education: as a sous chef. In Under Fire, he chronicles his daily trials and tribulations in the kitchen. Stir the sugar. There’s the secret key to making caramel. That’s it. No advanced degree in rocket…
There are few things that piss me off more than restaurants that serve frigid tomatoes. I’m only going to say this once: Your walk-in, refrigerator — whatever — is a tomato’s mortal enemy, its murderer of flavor, its slayer of scent. Ever wonder why the flesh of a tomato is…
The sandwich: Rare Roast Beef What’s on it: Rare roast beef, grilled red onions, lettuce, tomato, horseradish havarti and aioli on a baguette Where to get it: Cafe Options (1650 Curtis Street, 303-573-0733) How much: $7.25 Do you believe in second chances? I do. That’s why I’ll probably try a…
“Ever since I saw Grover waiting tables on Sesame Street, I knew I wanted to work in restaurants,” says Paul Reilly. And he didn’t waste much time following in Grover’s footsteps, considering that he got his first taste of restaurant life while washing dishes in a German joint at the…
I took my judging job seriously during the DeKuyper Mix Master Bartender Contest at Saturday’s Denver Food & Wine event, tasting eight cocktails. Really tasting eight cocktails, since these were complex concoctions (a DeKuyper product had to be part of the mix) that demanded my full attention. The ultimate victor:…
Jax Boulder exec chef and Top Chef New York winner Hosea Rosenberg isn’t hanging out a whole lot in the People’s Republic of Boulder these days. His Facebook page says he’s “heading into San Fran to find the city’s best Bloody Mary,” but presumably he’ll accomplish that goal before 6:30…
Feel like a road trip tonight? Head to A Grande Finale Patisserie, 489 North Highway 287, Suite 100, in Lafayette, at 6:30 p.m. for a Dessert & Beer Pairing. Pastry chef Nicole Hedlund and New Belgium Brewery’s Matt Furlong will satisfy your sweet tooth and your inner barfly simultaneously for…
With entrees like coffee-rubbed Kurobuta pork chops and horseradish crusted salmon, 1515 Restaurant, located at 1515 Market Street., has long been one of Denver’s premier fine dining establishments for New American cuisine. But don’t forget about the wine.1515’s wine list has received Wine Spectator’s “Award of Excellence” nine years in…
You no longer have to lug your own butt cushion to the Empanada Express Grill, which up until three weeks ago was a simple freestanding trailer peddling Venezuelan street snacks — empanadas, arepas and cachapas — from an asphalt landing strip in Golden. Its new location at 2600 East Street…
September is Hunger Action Month, and department store giant Macy’s is partnering with Feeding America and food banks across the country to fight hunger here at home. Macy’s will launch its “Come Together” awareness and fundraising campaign, which aims to feed 10 million people suffering from hunger, from 6-8 p.m…
Don’t let the camera angle fool you. That’s a GIGANTIC margarita, made with well tequila and sweet and sour straight out of a gallon jug. Is it delicious? Nope. Not even close. But this venue has been serving these golden jugs for years. And the crowds can’t seem to get…
Holly Hartnett has been a fixture on Denver’s restaurant scene for a long time, working at Table 6 and its previous incarnation, the Beehive. Last October, she finally opened her own place, Venue, at 3609 West 32nd Avenue, and with that came a new set of challenges for Hartnett, including…
Our former Cafe Society intern just decided to chuck college in favor of a real education: as a sous chef. In Under Fire, he chronicles his daily trials and tribulations in the kitchen. If tiny beads of fat begin to dawn on the surface of a Hollandaise, I know the…
Colorado lamb: It’s what’s for dinner, at least this week — Harvest Week — when nearly forty metro restaurants are offering special menus focusing on ingredients local to Colorado. Like lamb paired with french fries (my favorite in the city), jus and drunken horseradish made with Stranahans Colorado whiskey. This…
Interstate Kitchen & Bar made its debut on Thursday, September 10, at 901 West Tenth Avenue (the former Santa Fe Tequila Company space). It’s a kitschy urban roadhouse bedecked with utilitarian shelving — a la Home Depot — and a psychedelic robin’s egg blue paint palette. In the back, by…
