Fans of the wood-fired cooking of Leña have been missing the eatery’s Latin American menu since a kitchen fire closed the Broadway restaurant on March 30. But Leña reopened last night with new menu items to usher in it’s rises from the ashes. The restaurant posted this note on its…
No. 83: The Meatball Hero at Lil’ Ricci’s New York Pizzeria In 1999, there was one Lil’ Ricci’s New York Pizzeria, and it was located in a strip mall behind Tamarac Square on East Hampden Avenue. The original Lil’ Ricci’s is long gone now, as is the entire Tamarac Square…
Mornings grew a little sadder when the Kolache Factory closed on Wadsworth Boulevard three years ago. Fans of the baked buns stuffed with all manner of sweet and savory fillings made do for a time with the Kolache Cabin, which peddled breakfast and lunch pastries from a mobile hut at…
The news came earlier this month: big-hearted Jon Emmanuel is leaving Project Angel Heart to follow a dream and run a B&B in Missouri. Given how hard the chef has worked for the cause — which supplies healthy meals to people in metro Denver suffering from debilitating, often life-threatening illnesses — it…
Like many kids, Jesse Vega dreamed of being an astronaut when he grew up. Now the thought makes him shudder. “Space scares the hell out of me,” says Vega, who joined Central Bistro & Bar as a line cook in 2013 and took over as executive chef in November. “I…
An electrical fire closed School House Kitchen & Libations at 5560 Olde Wadsworth Boulevard at the end of February, and while no employees or customers were injured in the blaze, damage to the kitchen was extensive enough to keep the place closed since then. But repairs and inspections are finally…
Chef/Restaurateur Nobu Matsuhisa brought his eponymous eatery to Denver on the first day of April, unveiling a sultry, teak-lined dining room to guests lucky enough to score an early reservation. Matsuhisa, at 98 Steele Street on the ground floor of the Steele Creek luxury apartments, serves elegant cuisine with Japanese and…
Project Angel Heart, a non-profit organization that provides nutritious meals to clients coping with life-threatening illnesses, has become well known to Denver restaurant-goers and the food -service community for its high-profile fundraisers, Dining Out for Life and Taste for Life, which partner with many of the city’s best chefs and…
I’m always fascinated by the migration of specific dishes from one region to another and the transformations that take place ov er time and distance. A couple of weeks ago, I discovered the jajangmyeon noodles at P & Y Cafe, 2769 South Parker Road in Aurora. Researching the dish’s history,…
There’s a new place in town if you want to get treated coldly: Frozen Matter is now serving icy treats at 530 East 19th Avenue in Uptown. The ice cream shop was created by Geraldine Kim and Josh Gertzen, who installed a pasteurizer and full kitchen in the space so that…
Spring weather is finally upon us, and with flowers and cool breezes come new menus featuring fresh produce and light flavors. Here are three recent menu updates: from a Boulder Italian restaurant, a museum eatery and a Highland neighborhood gem. Arugula 2785 Iris Avenue, Boulder 303-443-5100 After a remodel at…
The culinary opinions of writer, chef and television personality Ruth Reichl matter; after all, she has been a restaurant critic for both the Los Angeles Times and the New York Times, in addition to writing ten books on food and cooking. So when she makes a stop between the coasts…
In January, we noticed a hand-painted sign reading “Lucia” at 1550 17th Street in downtown Denver, and learned that the space would soon become a new eatery from Urban Food Group, a team that currently operates five restaurants in North Carolina, including the original Lucia in Durham. It looks like…
There are many hot restaurant neighborhoods in Denver — including RiNo, home of Hop Alley, our Best New Restaurant in 2016 — but this is definitely Berkeley’s year, and we named that part of northwest Denver Best New Restaurant Neighborhood in the Best of Denver 2016. The construction on Tennyson Street is…
Coors Field has more beer offerings than ever — which is good, because fans might need to drink a lot in order to swallow the Colorado Rockies’ record thus far, with two losses at the ballpark and another game on tap for this afternoon. This year, Coors Field and Aramark…
How do you feel about the 16th Street Mall? That mile-long strip through downtown is bound to be jumping today, with gorgeous weather and a Rockies game tonight. But while some locals love it, others avoid it — and downtown boosters are in the process of revisioning the mall. “It’s…
This week, Gretchen Kurtz made a beeline for Abejas in Golden, where she interviewed chef Nicholas Ames about working a Toyota factory cafeteria and his love of ramen. Mark Antonation rustled up a few fried pork tenderloin sandwiches, a rarity in Denver but a big slab of comfort for displaced…
No. 84: Korean Fried Chicken Wings at Yong Gung The nondescript little storefront at 2040 South Havana Street that once boasted the name Yong Gung Dragon Palace Chinese Restaurant is now simply Yong Gung — a minor change that takes away some confusion, since the restaurant doesn’t serve Chinese cuisine…
It’s Opening Day, which means that bars and restaurants all over downtown, RiNo and LoHi will be celebrating the start of baseball season — which means lots of beer and brats. No sooner had we published our list of Ten Top Spots to Celebrate Opening Day, when we heard of…
For two decades, TheWrangler, a popular gay bar catering to a burly clientele, has held down the corner of 1700 Logan Street. But this summer it will move to Five Points, taking over the big building at 3090 Downing Street that was once a church, then home to Tosh’s Hacienda…
Chef Tim Payne may take his cooking inspiration from the Colorado soil, but the business model for his restaurant, Farmer Girl, is thoroughly modern. Payne started out with a food truck and catering company before signing a short-term lease in Avanti Food & Beverage, the restaurant incubator in LoHi, last…
The 16th Street Mall is one of the city’s major tourist attractions, but visitors don’t get much of a taste of homegrown Denver shops and restaurants along this stretch, where chains and souvenir stores predominate. There are some rare exceptions, including the I Heart Denver store in the Pavilions, our…
