In my best moments, I like to think of myself sitting alone at the bar with a fine, fluted glass, like James Bond just ten seconds before the girl walks in. In my worst, I fear I’m more like one of Candace Bushnell’s cosmo-skanks, getting giggly and paralytic after too many glasses, rolling the stem of a Riedel flute between my fingers and watching the bubbles ladder upward like my own private lava lamp.
Champagne… It has long been one of my weaknesses, one of my private indulgences and favorite methods for celebrating anything from parole to a Tuesday. And though I went on the record early (and rather brutally) against Larimer Square’s Corridor 44 champagne bar, there was always a part of me that hoped the place would find its footing and get a menu in place worthy of the bubbly in the cellar.
And now, it has. It took two years, several chef changes and menu changes and ownership changes. It took overcoming an unusual space and the sort of crowds on the Square who were more likely to walk into the ESPNZone for chili fries than Corridor 44 for a bottle of Veuve Clicquot. It took a lot of work, a lot of late nights and a lot of bad blood, but now it seems as though rewards are being reaped: small ones, granted, but rewards nonetheless. The menu is good, the space is lovely, the staff is…decent. And after two years, Corridor 44 is finally open for business.
You know who isn’t open for business? Milagro Taco Bar. You know who else? Chutneys out in Castle Rock. We’ve got a whole ‘nother rash of closings this week, and some inside dirt on the two years Corridor 44 manager and partner Brian Sifferman spent in the trenches trying to make his champagne bar pay. So crack a bottle, raise a glass and check it all out on Thursday, kids. It’s gonna be fun. -- Jason Sheehan