Food & Drink

As a countdown to the Best of Denver 2010, coming April 1, Cafe Society is serving up a hundred of our favorite dishes in Denver. Send your own nominations to cafe@westword.com…

This is part two of my interview with Kyle Fitzgerald. To read part one, click here. Culinary inspirations: I wish I had some great story about my mom’s kitchen, or the way I would watch my grandma bake, but my kitchen was never that put together growing up. Most of…

The way things are looking right now, the new Ali Baba (which is just waiting on permits, according to the manager) might manage to get open before the end of December. Failing that, though, the fallback date is January 1. That’s what I wrote at the beginning of December, from…

No one ever said the restaurant business was easy. Most people (the smart ones) would actually say that, short of becoming a medical guinea pig or hand-grenade catcher, the food service-industry is one of the toughest out there. Fun, sure. Exciting. But not the easiest way in the world to…

We parked the car in the snow and walked gingerly down the icy ramp. The wind was bitter, and Cherry Creek lived inside a snow globe of swirling flakes glittering like chips of diamond as the gusts whipped them, scarving from rooftops and frozen iron railings. Laura slipped and I…

As mentioned earlier this morning, my final book-signing in Denver (at least for the foreseeable future) is scheduled for 7 p.m. tonight at the Broadway Book Mall (200 South Broadway). That hasn’t changed. I’ll still be there, in the flesh, signing pen in hand. I’ll probably read a bit, shake…

A recent LA Times business article about Denver-based Mary Jane’s Relaxing Soda has given the company the buzz that CEO Matt Moody was looking for, but it also revealed his plans to close the Denver office by the end of the year and consolidate operations in California, where business is…

Very few mixed drinks include Scotch on their list of ingredients. That’s convenient, since I don’t really love Scotch — but I do enjoy a good Blood and Sand, and this one was great. You shouldn’t need coaching to answer this: Where was I drinking? Special bonus: Anyone who gives…

Calling all young chefs: If you think you’ve got what it takes to be the next Best Teen Chef, then sharpen your knives and fill out the entry form here by February 5. The contest starts April 17 at the Art Institute of Colorado, 1200 Lincoln Street; at the cook-off,…

As a countdown to the Best of Denver 2010, coming April 1, Cafe Society is serving up a hundred of our favorite dishes in Denver. Send your own nominations to cafe@westword.com…

“I haven’t had lunch yet,” sighs Kyle Fitzgerald, plopping himself down on a stool. Soon a vase of flat tubers fried in duck fat arrives at the bar with three dipping sauces. “The duck-fat fries have always been popular,” he says, but “we’re always trying to make them better.” He…

I first met Matt Franklin through his cuisine…I wrote in April of last year, when I first visited Franklin’s then-new restaurant, Farro. Under the neon, tile and blue Miami Vice lights at 240 Union in Lakewood, he made me amazing lobster corn dogs, served in a plastic basket with homemade…

What’s so great about Trader Joe’s? That’s a hard question to answer if you haven’t been there, and a rhetorical one if you have. Over the past decade, the California-based grocery chain has built a rabid following with its healthy bent, quirky products and typically low prices on everything from…

We find ourselves saying goodbye a lot these days. To Jason Sheehan, who’s moving on to our partner paper in Seattle. To Bump & Grind and Buenos Aires Grill and Ha Noi Pho and Chez Jose and all the other restaurants that closed last year. And now we’d like to…

“This might be the last time, you know?” Laura said. “Our last chance.” And she was right. While Curt and Deicy Steinbecker and Ondo’s might just be starting out in Denver, we were finishing up, doing last things, handling final details before aiming ourselves west and making for the distant…