A critic’s voice is always an important factor in a mature restaurant scene. And restaurant critics are a hungry bunch, so Gretchen Kurtz, who reviewed nearly 200 restaurants between September 2012 and December 2015, has returned to Westword after an eight-month sabbatical that she initially thought would be a permanent…
On Sunday, September 25, Westword’s DISH, our annual celebration of the Denver dining scene, returns for its 22nd year. The festival of food will take over Sculpture Park at the Denver Center for the Performing Arts, where dozens of local restaurants will offer samples of their best dishes. Returning for the…
Pedal into the weekend, when Denver’s culinary scene will really get rolling. From Tour de Fat to the Denver Food & Wine Festival, the next three days are full of tasty events. Here are our fifteen favorites: Friday, August 9 Colorado Startup Brews will bring over thirty home-brewed beer startups to…
When I put away my wigs (as if!) and pseudonyms at the end of 2015, I thought I was retiring as restaurant critic. I loved the job, but after nearly five years of reviewing, both at Westword and a previous publication, it was time for a break. My kids needed…
The Monkey Barrel completed the initial stage of its move from 1611 Platte Street to 4401 Tejon Street by opening its bar and kitchen on Wednesday night. Stage two of owner Jimmy Nigg’s plan is to build on an additional wing in the coming months to increase dining space and…
No. 62: P & S Snack Mix at the Pig & the Sprout Everyone knows that the best part of the chicken is the skin — salty, glistening and crackly from the oven. At the Pig & the Sprout at 1900 Chestnut Street (back behind Union Station), you don’t need to…
You know the drill at the majority of Thai restaurants in Denver: You pick your entree and the server asks how spicy you want it. You can even call out a number from a scale printed on the menu in many cases. And at the top of that scale are…
What started out as a weekend shack at the BigWonderful in RiNo and then became a mobile kitchen — one good enough to win our Best Food Truck award — has found a permanent home in Parker. Jozi’s Kitchen & Shebeen is now the only South African restaurant in the…
Westword writers — and many other people who live and work in the Golden Triangle — are losing their home away from home. At the end of the month, Rooster & Moon, the classic coffeehouse (and bar! ) that moved into an old VFW post at 955 Bannock eight years…
The Broncos are back! The reigning Super Bowl champs kick off the 2016/2017 season tomorrow against Cam Newton and the Panthers here at home, starting at 6:30 p.m. That means it’s time to kick back, grab a cold beer and some hot snacks, and enjoy the return of football season…
Ryan Fletter started working at Barolo Grill in 1994 — the year it opened — and took ownership of the Cherry Creek stalwart just over a year ago, after putting in nearly twenty years there (with a few brief stints away from the restaurant). Now, for the first time in…
No 63: How the West Was Won, or Biscuits and Gravy at Dozens Restaurant Before delving into this delectable dish, it should first be noted that the Dozens Restaurant in Aurora is not exactly the same as the other Dozens downtown. In fact, it’s been its own entity for 22…
Ever since Denver Deep Dish stopped slinging pizza at the Bar Car at 819 Colorado Boulevard just over a year ago, the watering hole’s tiny kitchen has been getting by with basic bar food. But now you can pick up a little something porky to go with your PBR: A new…
What do you get when you combine home brews, entrepreneurship and charity? The answer is Colorado Startup Brews, a quintessentially Colorado networking event. Here’s how it works: Participating startup companies each home-brewed a beer that was then judged last month by numerous beer experts, writers and credentialed beer judges (including…
I’m from the East Coast. From Maryland, to be precise. I realize this may impact my credibility with some Denver natives but I have been living here more than years so at least I think that gives me at least a few Denver points. Being from elsewhere, I do appreciate…
Juan Padro Highland Tap & Burger 2219 West 32nd Avenue highlandtapdenver.com Sloan’s Lake Tap & Burger 1565 Raleigh Street, Unit 100 sloanstapandburger.com Juan Padro, co-owner of Highland Tap & Burger and Bar Dough, swears that his initial foray into the restaurant industry was a mistake. He and his wife, Katie…
The block of Wazee between 17th and 18th streets downtown seemed to be crying out for a new restaurant — a counterpoint to the aging McCormick’s Fish House, something a little more glamorous than the other casual eateries on the same stretch. A cavernous office space at 1550 Wazee seemed…
When a second location of Black Eye Coffee opened last year at 800 Sherman Street, the owners knew they wanted to expand the scope of the popular Black Eye at 3408 Navajo Street. While the original spot is cozy and arty, this second spot is sleek and contemporary, with expanded hours…
Later this month, Black Shirt Brewing will bring four canned beers back to the market with a new look, new names and updated recipes. The four-year-old brewery had been forced to pull out of stores last year because it couldn’t get cans from its supplier in a timely way. But…
The U Baron Group, which operates a string of Silvi’s Kitchens and Etai’s Bakery Cafes throughout Denver, rebranded the Silvi’s at 2250 East Colfax as the Good Son in March 2015, bringing Detroit-style pizza and a long beer menu to the Lowenstein Theater complex. But the group has now sold…
When I travel, I plan my days around meals, not sights. Doesn’t a lemon granita, with lemons plucked from a nearby grove and turned into a tart slushie, say as much about the gentle breezes of Sorrento —and the lifestyle of those lucky enough to call it home — as…
Chef Stephen Kleinman, a mentor to many a talented cook in Denver over the years, opened Pop’s Place at 2200 Lawrence Street in April with Jim Pittenger, owner of Biker Jim’s Gourmet Dogs. The two took over the restaurant space vacated by Lower48 Kitchen late last year, hoping to lure neighbors from…
