Gretchen Kurtz loved almost everything about Solitaire when she reviewed the new restaurant in Highland, but some of our readers have taken issue with the service there, as well as the big price tags on of small portions. In response to one such Solitaire comment, David says: Yes, another example of tiny portions for full…
The restaurant space at the corner of South Federal Boulevard and Cornell Avenue has been accumulating layers of paint in recent years. Not too long ago, it was decked out in the bright red flames and graffiti art of Bubba Chinos. Next came the royal blue and white of Boost…
Over the years, I’ve come to think of Justin Cucci as a mad genius, twirling his thumbs and cackling as he ponders what dominion to conquer next. Who else could take a gas station and some vegetables and make Root Down one of the coolest seats in town? Who else…
Four Barrel Bar & BBQ opened last month in a former Texaco station on the edge of Olde Town Arvada. Although there are four barrels that serve as beer taps built into the bar back, the name actually comes from four-barrel carburetors that the former service station once installed in high-powered…
Dae Gee, a Korean restaurant that won fans in Westminster, opened a second spot at 827 Colorado Boulevard a year ago, and quickly made even more fans. “We’re letting them know what Korean food is about,” 33-year-old chef/owner Joseph Kim told Gretchen Kurtz when she reviewed that location seven months…
Native Kentuckian Sheena Ferguson opened the Bluegrass Coffee & Bourbon Lounge in Olde Town Arvada over the weekend, bringing a taste of her home state to the Denver suburb. The Bluegrass opens early for coffee and breakfast sandwiches and keeps the Southern charm flowing into the evening with a well-stocked…
For years Odell Brewing was a holdout, but now Colorado’s third-largest craft-brewer plans to start canning beer in November. “It wasn’t so long ago that I totally dismissed the can idea,” says Wynne Odell, who founded Odell Brewing in 1989 with her husband, Doug, and Doug’s sister Corkie. “But then…
Chris MacGillivray just started as executive chef at the Squeaky Bean in May, but he’s already an old hand in the LoDo kitchen. That’s because he’d been there before, having worked under Max MacKissock before the opening chef departed two years ago. MacGillivray stayed for a short time under MacKissock’s…
The Baron family hit it big with its Udi’s brand of breads and bakery cafes, but ever since they sold their gluten-free line of products to Smart Balance for a reported $125 million, things have been a little tough. First they had to rename all the cafes and bakeries that…
El Tejado…
If you’ve ever seen someone on TV or on the silver screen open a bottle of Champagne with a sword and thought, “damn that’s a cool party trick,” Sarto’s is here to help you impress your friends and live out your swashbuckling, sword-wielding fantasies. Sarto’s new brunch is one of…
Koan Goedman and Jonathan Power know Larimer Street; they both worked at Crema Coffee House and went on to open businesses a few blocks away — Goedman with Huckleberry Roasters and Power with The Populist. They had wanted to collaborate on a new project in the neighborhood and had been…
Solitaire opened in April in the space that once held Highland’s Garden Cafe — two Victorian homes surrounded by lovely gardens. When Gretchen Kurtz visited Solitaire for her latest review, she found that the gardens were still lovely and the new owners — Mark Ferguson and his wife, Andrea Faulisi Ferguson…
From the outside, there’s not much to distinguish one Denver taqueria from many of the others around town: a low-key storefront in an out-of-the-way strip mall, a simple sign, maybe some hand-painted lettering on the windows to advertise specials. The list of tacos may not give much hint as to…
No. 29: Gnocchi Maison au Canard Fume at Z Cuisine Sometimes you come across a dish where every component is so pitch perfect, every bite so enticing, that you just want it to go on forever. Z Cuisine’s smoked duck and gnocchi is just such a composition of elements —…
July was a hot month — for restaurant openings as well as the weather. Avanti Food & Beverage turned up the heat in Lower Highland with seven kitchens and two bars under one roof, while Rebel Restaurant — with a worldy menu and a street-smart vibe — took over a…
The block of retail spaces on Lincoln Street between Ninth and Tenth avenues have been difficult for restaurants — and the curse of the Beauvallon building continues. Jura’s Modern Asian Kitchen — which served an eclectic menu of Thai, Vietnamese, Chinese, Korean and Japanese dishes — didn’t even make it…
The heat of the great green chile debate of June has subsided somewhat, but according to a report this week by the Associated Press, New Mexico’s green chile crop is in trouble. “As this year’s harvest begins, labor shortages, shrinking acreage, drought and foreign competition have hurt production in the…
With the success of LoHi pork palace Old Major, the focus on chef-owner Justin Brunson’s career of late has been on his haute cuisine, so much so that it’s easy to forget his Denver debut as a restaurateur: a humble, counter-service sandwich shop called Masterpiece Delicatessen. There are two of…
They call her The Cookie Lady. She has a name — Debbie Kuehn — and so does her hidden cookie shop: Santa Fe Cookie Co, an underground storefront in the shadow of the Republic Plaza building on the 16th Street Mall. But the business-casual clientele coming through the shop, pressing their…
We know many fans of the thirty-year-old, homegrown Anthony’s Pizza & Pasta chain (especially the flagship store on Colorado Boulevard and the spot by the University of Denver). Now Anthony’s is rolling out major updates of all 25 locations in Colorado, even adding bars to several of them. But some…
The gardens at Solitaire – which I review this week — are stunning, with winding pathways, a fountain and blossoms of every color providing an unparalleled backdrop to chef-owner Mark Ferguson’s artistic, seasonally-inspired cuisine. But the flowers aren’t just pretty to look at; they provide oft-overlooked inspiration in the form of edible garnish. Curious whether…
