Food & Drink

I keep threatening to break up with Top Chef, the Bravo reality show that pits “cheftestants” (Bravo’s word, not mine) against one another in a string of often ridiculous challenges and theatrically contrived snippets that force the chefs to look into a camera and say really stupid shit — things…

We’ve all heard the myth — the one that stipulates that because we live in a land-locked state, we’re too far from the deep blue sea to procure great fish. The sea scallops in the above snap prove otherwise. Can you guess where I’m eating? Special bonus: Anyone who gives…

Cafe Byblos Mediterranean Grill opened quietly at the end of October, and we dropped in this week for a quick look at the place. According to owner Sam Khechen, his wife, Roya Khajeaian, did all interior design work, and his father-in law, Abbas Khajeaian, is the artist behind all the…

With the passage of Amendment 64 — which legalizes recreational marijuana in the state of Colorado — I know I’m not the only one looking forward to the vast array and variety of weed-infused edibles that one day we’ll be able to prepare at home — and maybe even order…

Could there really be any confusion between Strange Brewing Company, a two-year-old microbrewery in Denver, and Strange Brew Beer & Wine Making Supplies, a shop in Marlboro, Massachusetts? That’s what the shop’s attorneys think, and they recently sent a letter to Strange Brewing warning that “your continued operation of a…

The lovely weather we’ve been experiencing this week is apparently coming to end this weekend, which, for me, means a warm bowl of soup, and the posole at this Mexican joint is exactly what I’d like to have in front of me when the flakes begin to fall. Can you…

Hideaway Kitchen + Bar may be tucked in an out-of-the-way location in Genesee, behind the Chart House, but locals have had no trouble finding it since it opened on November 1. “It’s going really well, with no promotion at all,” says executive chef Michael Powers. And he expects things to…

When 86-year-old newspaper columnist Marilyn Hagerty wrote her now-famous review of a North Dakota Olive Garden back in March, I wouldn’t say that her story changed the path of restaurant reviews everywhere — or even anywhere. But it did give food writers, myself included, an appreciation for the fact that…

Darrel Truett Barolo Grill 3030 East Sixth Avenue 303-393-1040 www.barologrilldenver.com This is part two of my interview with Darrel Truett, exec chef of Barolo Grill. Part one of our chat ran yesterday. What do you enjoy most about your craft? The instant gratification of pleasing a guest. I can prepare…

Colorado has an official State Dance (square), an official State Fossil (stegosaurus) and not one, but two official State Songs (“Where the Columbines Grow” and “Rocky Mountain High”). It has no official food — but Governor John Hickenlooper’s reference to favorite munchie snacks could soon change that. See also: -…

It’s been a good run, but at the end of November Heidi’s Brooklyn Deli will close its original spot in Highland. Brooklyn-to-Denver transplants Heidi and Steve Naples opened the place in the summer of 1997, and today a chain of franchised soup-and-sandwich Heidi’s outlets stretch from California to Maine. But…

In those sultry, late-August days before I started eating for a living, Westword’s former Cafe critics offered advice on how I should handle my new position. Kyle Wagner, now travel editor of the Denver Post, suggested I tell people I’m a pet sitter, because otherwise I’ll spend every minute of…

The tenth season of Bravo’s Top Chef starts tonight, with three Colorado chefs among the competitors: Eliza Gavin of Telluride’s 221 South Oak; Jorel Pierce, the executive chef of Euclid Hall; and Tyler Wiard, exec chef at Elway’s Cherry Creek and culinary director of the Elway’s group (which currently includes…