Food & Drink

Yesterday was a big day. On Monday morning, the first finished copies of my new book, Cooking Dirty, rolled off the presses in wherever it is that they print books nowadays.  That afternoon, one of the first (I like to think of it as the first) was dropped in an…

Okay, so it was never the greatest restaurant in the world. It was designed as a kind of culinary one-trick pony, hanging all its hopes and dreams on people’s uncontrollable craving for peanut butter on everything. But it still surprises me just a little that P.B. Loco (part of a…

If you’ve got three decades of serving experience under your belt, there just might be a position for you at a new greasy spoon opening its doors this month in Aurora, and currently advertising on Craigslist. And I stress might, since Howard — the gentleman doing the hiring – also…

As if Clint Hurdle’s recent dismissal by the Colorado Rockies wasn’t enough to piss off rabid baseball fans, now comes word that PETA, or People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals, has bestowed a decidedly unsettling honor on Coors Field — you know, home of the foot-long Rockie hot dog…

I love chicken fingers. And the drive-in. One of these loves is new-found and the other is a classic, but my adoration for both was renewed this week when I took a trip to Fort Collins. And since this is a food blog, let’s focus on the chicken fingers. My…

Each month this year, Gateaux, the elaborately whimsical bakery at 1160 Speer Boulevard, is donating a portion of its proceeds to a local charity — and this month, that charity is Work Options for Women, a nonprofit that offers a sixteen-week culinary program to impoverished women who want to work…

In the video above, WaterCourse Foods and City, O’ City get a nice little shout-out. The video comes from The Healthy Voyager, a woman who travels around the country trying out vegan spots. WaterCourse, of course, is the restaurant at which Jason Sheehan and Joel Warner had their momentous wing…

The sandwich: Market Roast Beef What’s on it: Niman Ranch roast beef, horseradish sauce, cheddar and arugula on rye Where to get it: Marczyk Fine Foods (770 East 17th Avenue, 303-894-9499) How much: $6.99 I love markets. They’re often expensive, but browsing through their awesome, gourmet stuff is part of…

Late last week, the big banner went up on the Sugar House, Scottie Ewing’s controversial club at 1395 West Alameda Avenue, proclaiming that as of June 1, it would be serving “Denver’s sexiest lunch.” What, a special on New York strip? Salad, hold the dressing?…

The Highland branch of Pasquini’s, at 2400 West 32nd Avenue, is going for a cabaret license so that it can offer live music at the restaurant, which has become quite the hipster hangout as well as a major pizza purveyor. The hearing is at 9 a.m. tomorrow at the Department…

I was in hot pursuit of a tow truck yesterday, which is neither here nor there, except that my chase landed me in Aurora, and whenever I’m in Aurora, I’m in taco country, and whenever I’m in taco country, I’m happier than a lizard lapping up flies. Today was no…

Luca D’Italia, 711 Grant Street, marks its six-year anniversary throughout the month with a march of visiting Denver chefs, including Wayne Conwell, exec at Sushi Sasa, 2401 15th Street, who will team up with Luca (and Mizuna, Osteria Marco and Bones) chef-owner Frank Bonanno tonight, June 3, for a five-course…

“I’m absolutely exhausted, and I want a bath,” declared Carla Stevens, co-owner of Giovanni’s Italian Cafe, at 3355 South Yarrow Street, when I caught her on the phone this afternoon. As reported here last week, Stevens and her husband, Salvatore Giacalone, had hoped to unveil their new space on the…

The noodle bar is big business these days. In Manhattan, David Chang has elevated the simple, neighborhood noodle bar to celebrity status (and turned himself into a minor rock star in the process) with his Momofuku brand. In Denver, we’ve got one of the originals — Oshima Ramen, straight outta…

News from Cherry Creek: The space at 287 Columbine Street that had been Java Creek, that neighborhood hot spot, then became C.R.E.A.M, is now turning into Café Colorado, and will be renovated to include a more complete kitchen…

The XO menu basically breaks down into four categories: ramen (in three varieties: duck, beef and seafood), semi-dry noodles (using about half as much broth as the ramen), dry noodles (mostly Korean, plus yakisoba and a chicken pad thai based on Guerrero’s time as a stagier in Bangkok), then rice…

 Calling all grape geeks: Tonight, between 5:30 and 7:30 p.m., Lala’s Wine Bar, 410 East Seventh Avenue, is uncorking five wines from several countries in the Southern Hemisphere — New Zealand, Australia, Chile and Argentina — which is as good a cure as any to wash away the rainy day…

The renovation of the second Trattoria Stella looks to be finally complete. The former Cafe Star at 3201 East Colfax Avenue has been split in two, with the Trattoria on one side and the Starlight Lounge on the other. “The lounge is all barn wood with a cherry bar,” explains…

James Mazzio had hoped that the Icehouse Tavern, the replacement that the Momo brothers are putting into the former home of Via at 1801 Wynkoop Street, would be ready to go by June 1. But the place is going through a complete overhaul — with award-winning chef Mazzio doing some…

Cheba Hut is coming to the 16th Street Mall this summer, bringing its “counter-culture” sandwiches, including Kind, Kush and Chronic. But according to Matt Clark-Johnson, co-owner of this store as well as the Boulder franchise of the Tempe, Arizona-based chain, Cheba is about more than pot references. “it’s juvenile, but…

View Larger Map Some dirty dogs tried to blow up the Fat Cat Sports Bar (aka, Fat Cat Pub, Fat Cat Inn) Sunday morning between the hours of 1 and 6:15 a.m. According to a police report about the incident at 5060 North Federal, “unknown persons started a fire involving…