Twin Peaks celebrates the holidays with new uniforms and giveaways

Twin Peaks is celebrating the holidays by offering patrons the chance to stuff a stocking with a free $20 “Man Card” — for every $100 gift card purchased, a diner will be rewarded with that present. Additionally, employees of the breastaurant-chain will “bust out their jolliest Santa outfits” throughout the…

Ace scores with action, drinks and decor; food is a tie game

Cheers erupt from the back table. A thirty-something, slightly sweaty in dark jeans and collared shirt, pumps his fist, Tiger-style, celebrating a zinger that caught the corner and kept on going. High-fives are given, drinks are spilled — but in the rush of victory, no one cares, just as no…

Ace: A taste of this week’s review

Cheers erupt from the back table. A thirty-something, slightly sweaty in dark jeans and collared shirt, pumps his fist, Tiger-style, celebrating a zinger that caught the corner and kept on going. High-fives are given, drinks are spilled — but in the rush of victory, no one cares, just as no…

Mountain Standard opens in Vail, near sibling Sweet Basil

While restaurateurs in Denver are scrambling to open new spots before the end of the year — and the end of all that holiday business — the founders of 35-year-old Sweet Basil in Vail just opened Mountain Standard today. Mountain Standard — which is around the corner from Sweet Basil…

Yard House taps an exclusive beer from California’s Firestone Walker

Yard House is celebrating a mutual sixteenth anniversary with Firestone Walker Brewery — both California-based businesses got their start in 1996 — by tapping a limited-edition IPA brewed exclusively for the beer-centric restaurant. The “hopped-up” ale — which is made with seven varieties of hops — is currently available at…

Ten of the best (and highly giftable) wines of 2012

Last week, we poured out a little guidance on what you might sneak under the tree (or Festivus Pole, or whatever) that would add a little splash of joy in the lives of any wine lover on your list. But we failed to include any actual wine in that grouping,…

Cooking with Pete and Barb Marczyk: Stifado

Pete Marczyk and Barbara Macfarlane do not leave their work behind when they leave Marczyk Fine Foods and head for their great old Denver house with the big, new kitchen. They often bring some of their market’s choicest ingredients home with them and cook up a feast. “People, people, people:…

Twenty foodie gifts from Cost Plus World Market

Cost Plus World Market is usually a one-stop gift shop for foodies, but during the holiday season it becomes a wonderland of seasonal edibles, drinkables and everything to create and serve them, including winter-themed cookware and dishes that you’ll only use once a year. The prices are reasonable for imported…

Reader: The McRib contains the same ingredient used in yoga mats

The McRib has been resurrected for the holiday season, and Jenn Wohletz celebrated its reappearance yesterday in her Merry McRibness ode. But not everyone is celebrating its return (or another fast-food post on Cafe Society). See also: – Merry McRibness! A holiday poem -The McRib is back, and Denver’s got…

Vesper Lounge hosts Operation Sandy Rescue tonight

Denver has been very, very good to some New Jersey transplants — and now they want to give back to the state where they got their start. From 5 to 11 p.m. tonight, they’ll gather at Vesper Lounge, which Frank and Jacqueline Bonanno opened this past Saturday, to “raise a…

Where to eat, drink and keep your guests merry this holiday season

With out-of-town guests beginning to trickle in for the holidays, it’s a relief to know you won’t have to house, feed and entertain them all by yourself. Well, make that “yes” on house, but with restaurants that double as entertainment zones, there’s plenty of help in the other two areas…

Our favorite local culinary gifts for foodniks: EatDenver Dining Deck

All this week, I’m featuring my favorite culinary stocking stuffers and presents for the fervent foodnik, cook and restaurant fiend in your life (yesterday’s pick was the indulgent hot chocolate and salted caramel marshmallows from Spuntino). These are all gifts that are available locally — and locally made or produced…

Guess where I’m drinking a hard-to-find Abyss Imperial Stout?

Never mind that the guy behind the bar, a self-described beer geek since 1995, had never heard of sour beers. Weird, but forgivable, particularly since he suggested I try The Abyss, an inky special reserve Imperial stout, from Deschutes, with hints of caramel and licorice. Get it now, before I…

Tarasco’s New Latin Cuisine is hot for veggies, too

It’s not that easy to find vegetarian-friendly (let alone vegan-friendly) Mexican food; between lard in the refried beans and chicken stock in the rice or green chile, there’s no telling what animal products might be lurking in the foods you order. That’s why we just love places like Tarasco’s New…

Merry McRib-mas! A holiday poem in celebration

Yesterday marked the glorious return of America’s favorite onion-ed, pickled, sauce-slathered, probably-pork sandwich. Much to my delight, the McDonald’s location at 505 East Colfax Avenue is now serving the McRib sandwich — and thanks to McDoo’s extremely persuasive “Get a second McRib for $1,” I not only got one McRib…

Reader: Forget Jax — what’s the World of Beer?

Jax is about to add a fourth location, in the new City Set development in Glendale, behind the Hilton Garden Inn at the corner of Colorado Boulevard and Cherry Creek Drive — an area definitely shy of good restaurant options. Jax isn’t the only eatery going into the project: Udi’s…