Food & Drink

A few weeks ago, when I interviewed Patxi Axpiroz, the chef-owner of Patxi’s Pizza, our conversation moved from pizza to balls — meatballs, of course, which are popping up on menus at several local restaurants, including Cafe Bar, Gaetanos, Slotted Spoon and Spuntino. Some of those meatballs are funky and…

Jon Robbins, the chef de cuisine at Mizuna, who shares the line with chef/owner Frank Bonanno, is departing that kitchen after four years to open his own. Robbins, whose last day cooking with Bonanno is March 9, is leaving to pursue a pop-up supper club called Gypsy Kitchen. See also:…

Announcement! We have a winner of our Meet the Masters contest, in which we asked Cafe Society readers to guess how many gluten-free margherita pizzas Marco’s at Inverness served during the month of February. The correct answer is 178. The person who came the closest to that number without going…

Suffice it to say that I eat out more than the general population, unless, of course, the general population can catalog more than 450 restaurant meals in a year — which is about the number of breakfasts, lunches and dinners that I stomached in 2012. Pathetic, isn’t it? But all…

On a recent visit to McDonald’s I spied a Hello Kitty toy in a Happy Meal, and I was almost inspired to order a kid’s meal myself. The McDonald’s Happy Meal was by far the most brilliant marketing idea to ever light up the golden arches — luring kids, and…

I like French fries, and I like sandwiches, and while there are some people who seemingly like French fries on their sandwiches, I haven’t quite embraced that combination…but I’m working on it. Can you guess where I’m eating? Special bonus: Anyone who gives the first correct answer to a Guess…

The long-promised remodel of McCormick’s Fish House & Bar in the Oxford Hotel was completed last month and celebrated at a pair of parties this week, where a few innovations were revealed in the legendary Cruise Room. We understood that the original marble floor was a hazard, and the replacement…

The Denver Department of Environmental Health is responsible for inspecting over 3,500 brick-and-mortar food establishments — as well as mobile food trucks and events. Some restaurateurs think that the department went too far in recent years, when the fines assessed eateries soared. And after a year of discussions between health…

This place is hot — especially since it makes a delicious barrel-aged Manhattan with St. George Breaking & Entering Bourbon. Can you guess where I’m eating? Special bonus: Anyone who gives the first correct answer to a Guess Where post is entered into a pool — and every week, we…

In this week’s review of Azitra, I write about dishes with names you might not never have heard of, such as kaali mirch ka murg or chicken hariyali lazzatdar. But even if you know your chana from paneer, you still might need help pinpointing the spices that give your favorite…

Big Mac and Little Lu’s Seafood Market and Grill opened last month at 2851 West 120th Avenue in Westminster. Owners Ashley and Paul Brock had moved to Colorado from Florida, and decided that this state really needed more fresh seafood. As a result, the restaurant does not have a freezer…

Yazoo Barbecue Company has won several Best of Denver awards since Don Hines opened his barbecue joint in a 700 square foot bunker at 2150 Broadway a decade ago. Since then, Hines has opened a second location an East Arapahoe, and his places are so popular that Yazoo is a…

Too many people. Waits that stretched up to an hour. Butt-to-butt bumping because of the tiny confines. A kitchen that required new equipment. Those factors — and more — contributed to the recent remodel and expansion of China Jade, arguably one of the city’s best Szechuan Chinese restaurants, especially when…

TJ Hobbs Ghost Plate & Tap 800 18th Street 303-297-1738 www.ghostdenver.com This is part two of my interview with TJ Hobbs, chef of Ghost Plate & Tap; part one of our interview ran yesterday. Favorite Denver/Boulder restaurant(s) other than your own: I’m a fan of Bittersweet. Chef Olaf has such…

When was the last time you’ve uttered these words: “Thank effin god for the Colfax Avenue Taco Bell?” Probably never, and I’d never said them myself — until yesterday, when I learned that this location at 1775 East Colfax was one of the rare locations that actually had the new…

TJ Hobbs, who now heads the kitchen at Ghost Plate & Tap, was raised in rural Minnesota, and his first job was working on an organic farm — so he understands the farm-to-table concept. And he’d like to see the “farm to table” moniker disappear in 2013. “Not the use…

The group in the car knew me well, but on that particular night, I had a hard time swapping stories and laughing along. I was distracted, pondering what I’d find when we finally got to Azitra, an Indian restaurant that opened near FlatIron Crossing in 2011. According to the website,…