Café Aion opens in Boulder

When Burnt Toast closed last December, on the day before Christmas, Boulderites mourned the loss. But the mourning was short-lived, because owners Buddy Kring and Ellen Dale sold the joint to Dakota Soifer, one of their chefs. Soifer, whose past gigs include an executive chef stint at The Kitchen [Upstairs],…

Fighting for the American way — but not fueled by American fast food

There’s a saying that war is not won on an empty stomach, but American officers on the battlefields of Afghanistan seem to have forgotten that adage, since Reuters reports that some American eateries have been stricken from the menu there. Kandahar, the location of our biggest base in that opium-based…

Tavern Downtown uncovers its colossal rooftop patio

“I don’t worry about what they think, I worry about what I think,” answers Frank Schultz when I ask what the owners of Lodo’s Bar & Grill, located directly across the street from the new 9,500-square-foot rooftop patio that Schultz unveiled earlier today above the Tavern Downtown, say about what…

Star Bar is now shining on Larimer Street

It didn’t make it by the promised April 1, but close enough: The new, improved Star Bar at 2137 Larimer Street opened its doors on Friday, April 2, with new owners (after more than fifty years) but some of the same down-home, divey atmosphere…

Guess where I’m eating?

Over a succession of several different dishes at a restaurant whose soundtrack is more Sinatra than Sound Tribe Sector 9, the scampi puddled in a buttery white wine broth scented with garlic and studded with Italian parsley, was the runaway favorite. Can you guess where I’m eating?…

Vietnamese noodle bowls at the new KimBa Grill

For the past 25 years, Ba Forde has been the matriarch behind Kim Ba, the excellent Vietnamese joint at 2495 South Havana that’s been the recipient of numerous Westword Best of Denver awards, including Best Vietnamese Restaurant, a prize it snagged every year between 2005 and 2009. And now her…

Cafe Society: Week in review

What you may have missed this week on Cafe Society, while bickering over whether Argyll, Colt & Gray, Olivea or TAG should have walked away with the Best New Restaurant award in this year’s Best of Denver 2010 (Argyll, if you didn’t already know, won that award):…

Your child wants a toy — slathered in butter

The United States government thinks your child is an obese, junk-eating machine. How to put a stop to this? The best idea the feds have come up with is to remove the toys from fast-food meals — because the meals contain so many calories and the toys contain lead from…

Food Ink: Matt Selby’s tatts

As part of an upcoming photo essay project spotlighting Denver restaurant pros whose tatts are as prevalent as their dissections, burns, blisters, knife slashes and stabs, we promised that we’d post some of the best on the Cafe Society blog. Earlier this week, we posted the food ink of Brandon…

Sugar High: Bear Claw at Buffalo Doughboy Bakery

We swung by Buffalo Doughboy Bakery, which just won our Best of Denver Best Bakery award, early Thursday morning to see what was on offer. The pastry case overflowed with fat danishes and hefty croissants, making it hard to decide what would best accompany that morning cup of coffee. Though…

Guess where I’m eating?

While the service can be brusque — even rude — at this quirky neighborhood feeding hole, the kitchen doesn’t miss a beat, turning out plate after plate of excellent food, including a comforting chicken pot pie fashioned with biscuits, to appreciative crowds squeezed into the vividly painted dining room. Can…

Who has the best green chile in Denver? El Taco de Mexico

Green chile could well be this state’s major contribution to the culinary canon. Unlike the stew of green chiles, and sometimes just green chiles, served in New Mexico, Denver’s various green chiles can feature pork, tomatoes, even beans. We thought we’d tried them all (and loved most of them) until…

Hot dog! Bernie’s is now pouring beer

Bernie’s Hot Dog Co., Joe Zemla’s year-old joint at 1601 Mayberry (in the Highlands Ranch Town Center) in Highlands Ranch, introduced a new menu last month. Now it has another treat on tap: beer! Bernie’s just got its liquor license, and will begin selling beer today. To mark the august…

Arvada Novo Coffee location to close at the end of April

Denver-based Novo Coffee roasts some of the best beans in the city from their Larimer Street roasting facility, and while the company’s three Novo coffee bars located in the Denver Art Museum, Hamilton Building and Duncan Pavilion and Museum residences are all doing well, the Arvada location will stop percolating…

Guess where I’m eating?

I love a good tamale, and at this Denver stalwart, the tamales, smothered in a piquant green chile, are just as good now as they were back when Westword bestowed them with a Best of Denver award. Can you guess whose tamales have withstood the test of time?…