The Fourmile Canyon fire inspired Boulder’s restaurant community to rally in support of those affected by the blaze, feeding firefighters and evacuated homeowners for free and throwing impromptu benefits to support organizations like the Red Cross. The inferno has been reduced to ashes, but fire departments are still dealing with…
One of the challenges of being a vegetarian is finding a place where you can kick back and relax with old friends, maybe make some new friends. Carnivorous folks take their hospitable hangouts for granted; we don’t have that option. While WaterCourse and City, O’ City are great spots for…
Who planted the hops vines that cover the hillsides around Central City? And when? Could they simply be a native species, or were they introduced by the beer-loving denizens of Central City after the Gold Rush of 1859 put the town on the map? Buddy Schmalz and Dave Thomas don’t…
There’s already been plenty of noise about Madison Street — and the restaurant at 1222 Madison won’t officially open its doors until 3:30 p.m. today. Madison Street is the brainchild of Larimer Associates — the group that also created Ernie’s Bar and Pizza, LoHi SteakBar and Billy’s Inn — and…
Four of Colorado’s biggest and best-known craft brewers, Avery, Breckenridge, Odell and Oskar Blues, were shut out of last month’s Great American Beer Festival awards ceremony, while several other major brewers in the state barely made the cut. In fact, of the 41 medals awarded to Colorado beer makers, Odell,…
Cugnette. Steen. Pineau de la Loire. Vouvray. What do these four wine terms have in common? They’re all synonyms for chenin blanc, a stunningly drinkable white wine so worthy of your affection that you may find yourself tempted to consume it in abundant quantities shortly after reading this post (and…
A new Peet’s Coffee & Tea outlet opened today in the Sheraton Denver Downtown Hotel, at 1550 Court Place — and from 1 to 3 p.m., the hotel will be giving 100 percent of the proceeds from all Peet’s sales to the Pink Tie Affair, a November 6 event benefiting…
Aaron Youngblood Executive Chef Dixons Downtown Grill 1610 16th Street 303-573-6100 www.dixonsrestaurant.com This is part one of Lori Midson’s Q&A with Aaron Youngblood, exec chef of Dixons Downtown Grill. Part two of the interview will run tomorrow. Aaron Youngblood needed a job. Any job would do, as long as it…
There have been some discordant notes over at Wild Ivories, the dueling piano bar that opened in June at 1400 Market Street, in the former home of Buca di Beppo. On the day the club opened, Tim Kirkland, one of the partners in the venture, says he got an anonymous…
According to our resident Beer Man, Jonathan Shikes, pumpkin beers are best consumed at temperatures below 70 degrees. With a high of 63 predicted for today, this is the perfect time to stop by Avery Tap Room, 5757 Arapahoe Avenue in Boulder, for the Rumpkin Imperial Pumpkin Ale Release Party…
Top Chef Masters winner Rick Bayless is spending the day in the Denver ‘burbs, starting with an exclusive lunch at the Old Blinking Light Kitchen & Cocktails, 9344 South Dorchester Street in Highlands Ranch…
My grandma Judy discovered Big Bill’s New York Pizza by sheer dumb luck. She was on an errand in the County Line strip mall that houses the pizza parlor and decided to take my mother a carry-out lunchtime calzone. This single act of generosity forever changed our family’s dining-out habits…
When Big Bill’s New York Pizza opened in 1995, it was a second outpost of Lil’ Ricci’s New York Pizza, then located in a strip mall off Hampden Avenue. Although Bill Ficke pulled out of the partnership and renamed his place within a year, Lil’ Ricci’s has continued to grow,…
When I sat down at Japoix and took my first sip of the Electric French Kiss ($11), made with Ty Ku Liquor, lemonade and a Szechuan button, I was shocked — for myriad reasons. The most obvious was the Szechuan button (sometimes referred to as an electric or sansho button)…
Early in 2009, Alex Seidel, chef/owner of Fruition, 1313 East Sixth Avenue, bought a ten-acre parcel of earth that sits off a dirt road, just outside Larkspur, and named it Fruition Farms. From the beginning, Seidel, along with Verde Farms founder Josh Halder, cultivated herbs, greens and vegetables, the bounty…
Sometime in the late 1990s, my family stumbled upon Big Bill’s New York Pizza, 8243 South Holly Street, a dark parlor that specializes in thin-crust pies. Because the southern suburbs weren’t exactly awash with other options, this spot quickly became our go-to dinner joint, and we spent several evenings a…
Two weeks ago, we reported that Zona’s Tamales, the blue and orange mainstay at 713 East 26th Avenue that’s inhabited a Five Points corner for forty years, would close on October 15, sending 85-year-old Zona Moore into retirement after she pleaded guilty to a misdemeanor count of theft by receiving…
Bertrand Bouquin, executive chef of the Penrose Room and Summit at the Broadmoor in Colorado Springs, and Broadmoor wine director Timothy Baldwin have a date in Jerez, Spain, in January 2011 — when they’ll compete against international chef and sommelier teams for the Copa Jerez title. They won the chance…
Breckenridge Brewing plans to roll out its second canned beer, Lucky U IPA, by the end of the month, adding it to Avalanche Ale, which it began canning last year. “We got the cans on Friday,” says Breckenridge brewmaster Todd Usry. “Distribution will be limited to begin with, just Colorado…
This past Saturday, the Larkburger at 8000 East Belleview Avenue offered $2 burgers — for one day — as a thank-you to the Greenwood Village community. And what a thank-you: The lines stretched out the door, and before the day was done, the store had served up 1,700 Larkburgers…
James Rugile, executive chef at Venue, which opened in 2008 at 3609 West 32nd Avenue, is vacating that kitchen at the end of the month to join Frank Bonanno’s kingdom of restaurants — specifically, the kitchens of Luca D’Italia and Mizuna, the two Bonanno restaurants, along with Bones, that share…
Fruition executive chef/owner Alex Seidel is making ricotta cheese from his farm just outside of Larkspur, and several Denver restaurants are pimping dishes, including the one in the above snap, that feature the magnificent cheese, which frankly, deserves a plate of its own. Can you guess where I’m eating? Special…
