Audio By Carbonatix
As a countdown to the Best of Denver 2010, coming April 1, Cafe Society is serving up, in no particular order, a hundred of our favorite dishes in Denver. Send your own nominations to cafe@westword.com.
Number 51: Chicken-fried steak from Breakfast King
Denver has had a problem with diners for a long time. The problem? There just aren’t enough of them–or really, almost any by the classic definition of East Coast, Rust Belt diner aficionados. We have a couple, sure. And then there are a few more (rhymes with Schmenver Schminer…), which make some passing gestures in the direction of true diner style, but fail on almost every count once you get past the surface chrome and vinyl.
The Breakfast King, though, is a serious diner meant for serious diner fans. It is open all day and all night, every day and every night. During the day, it serves the community, filling up all comers with huge breakfasts, decent cheeseburgers and friendly hospitality. And at night, it is filled with the kinds of customers that diners are supposed to attract (long-haul truckers, construction workers, itinerant restaurant critics, angry loners, night creatures, drunks, loons and crazy-haired club kids gone sideways on horse tranquilizers) and staffed by a French Foreign Legion of floor crews capable of handling the friction when they rub up against each other.
And all of this is important. All of this adds to the flavor and the legend and the soul of the place. But the most important thing that every diner must have? One dish that it does better than anyone else in the area–one plate for which people will travel long distances, tolerate long waits and smile through any minor inconvenience. At the Breakfast King, this one champion menu item is the chicken-fried steak–a perfect vision of American comfort food, served to all those who’ve comfortably come to the understanding with their bodies that while what goes into them might kill them, they will go down smiling.
Hungry for more? The dishes in our countdown thus far are linked below:
No. 100 Chicken-fried steak from Lola
No. 99 Alaskan reindeer sausage from Biker Jim’s Gourmet Dogs
No. 98 Mac-and-cheese fries from Jonesy’s EatBar
No. 97 Soft egg ravioli from Prima
No. 96 Pho – any pho — from Pho 95
No. 95 Assiette de charcuterie maison from Z Cuisine À Côté
No. 94: Cheeseburger from Larkburger
No. 93: BBQ Masher from Cabin Creek Smokehouse
No. 92: Apple pancake from the Original Pancake House
No. 91: Burrata from Osteria Marco
No. 90: Eggs Benedict from Devil’s Food Bakery
No. 89: Chile Relleno from La Fiesta
No. 88: Deviled eggs from Steuben’s
No. 87: Corn-in-a-cup from Jack-n- Grill
No. 86: Enchiladas from Taco House
No. 85: Pupusas from Pupusas Sabor Hispano
No. 84: Baklava from Ali Baba Grill
No. 83: Masa-fried oyster shooters from Deluxe
No. 82: Tacos al pastor from Los Carboncitos
No. 81: Salsa bar from Tacos Y Salsas
No. 80: Dim Sum from Star Kitchen
No. 79: Green chile cheeseburger from Cherry Cricket
No. 78: Fries from Encore
No. 77: Shanghai-style dumplings from Chopsticks China Bistro
No. 76: Chile relleno burrito from El Taco de Mexico
No. 75: Fish fry from GB Fish and Chips
No. 74: Posole from Tarasco’s
No. 73: Sausage, ham and egg biscuit from Table 6
No. 72: Bacon flight from the Berkshire
No. 71: Tasty Treats from Gaetano’s
No. 70: French dip from Udi’s
No. 69: Panang curry from US Thai Cafe
No. 68: Pineapple upside-down pancake from Snooze
No. 67: Saag paneer from India’s
No. 66: Udon noodle bowl from Bones
No. 65: Grilled corn soup from Lola
No. 64: Sesame pockets from Lee’s Garden
No. 63: Whiskey-braised beef from Steuben’s
No. 62: House special from Viet’s
No. 61: Sultan Combo from Phoenician Kabob
No. 60: Cake and a shake from D Bar Desserts
No. 59: Caprese salad from Gaia Bistro
No. 58: Fried chicken from Tom’s Home Cookin’
No. 57: Molcajete a la Mexicana from El Paraiso
No. 56: Corned beef hash from Argyll Gastropub
No. 55: Aye Conyo from Buchi Café Cubano
No. 54: Fig n’ pig flatbread pizza from Encore
No. 53: Toro sashimi from Sushi Den
No. 52: Spinach pinwheels from Virgilio’s
