Best Power Breakfast 2003 | Racines | Best of Denver® | Best Restaurants, Bars, Clubs, Music and Stores in Denver | Westword
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Best Power Breakfast

Racines

Someone should do a business-school thesis on how many big decisions have been made and how many million-dollar deals closed in the casual, funky Racines and its younger LoDo sibling, Dixons. The number is probably pretty high. For twenty years now, Racines has attracted movers and shakers, lawyers and lobbyists, artists and neighbors -- and while at first glance it might not seem like the sort of place where futures are being negotiated, all you have to do is look a little closer at the cell phones, fancy suits and expensive gold watches flashing around the pastel-colored dining room to realize that this neighborhood joint is the real deal. The power brokers at Dixons are a little more obvious, but the deal is every bit as real.

Best Power Breakfast

Racines

Someone should do a business-school thesis on how many big decisions have been made and how many million-dollar deals closed in the casual, funky Racines and its younger LoDo sibling, Dixons. The number is probably pretty high. For twenty years now, Racines has attracted movers and shakers, lawyers and lobbyists, artists and neighbors -- and while at first glance it might not seem like the sort of place where futures are being negotiated, all you have to do is look a little closer at the cell phones, fancy suits and expensive gold watches flashing around the pastel-colored dining room to realize that this neighborhood joint is the real deal. The power brokers at Dixons are a little more obvious, but the deal is every bit as real.

Best Power Lunch

Panzano

Kristin Pazulski
Thanks to chef Jennifer Jasinski, Panzano can accommodate both the power-hungry and the powerfully hungry. Panzano's elegant setting in the Hotel Monaco is the perfect place to conduct business away from the see-and-be-scene steakhouse crowd, and even when the deal goes south, Jasinski's northern Italian fare -- innovative, successful mergers of bold flavors and quality ingredients -- is sure to please.

Best Power Lunch

Panzano

Thanks to chef Jennifer Jasinski, Panzano can accommodate both the power-hungry and the powerfully hungry. Panzano's elegant setting in the Hotel Monaco is the perfect place to conduct business away from the see-and-be-scene steakhouse crowd, and even when the deal goes south, Jasinski's northern Italian fare -- innovative, successful mergers of bold flavors and quality ingredients -- is sure to please.

Best Power Lunch -- Liquid

CityGrille

Courtesy CityGrille Facebook
A three-hour liquid lunch? Why not? Anyone who's anyone has done some time on this pine, so just belly up to the bar and start working on it. CityGrille is the place to go when you want to see exactly how your local legislator or councilman behaves when there's not a TV camera being poked in his face. It's the place where smart lobbyists go to stake out their prey and where smart reporters hang out to try and catch a little of the hush-hush action going on in the booths along the walls. Whether you're stopping in for a solid burger, some of the gringo green chile or just to watch the wheels of city government getting well-lubed, you're certain to be in good company at City Grille.

Best Power Lunch -- Liquid

CityGrille

A three-hour liquid lunch? Why not? Anyone who's anyone has done some time on this pine, so just belly up to the bar and start working on it. CityGrille is the place to go when you want to see exactly how your local legislator or councilman behaves when there's not a TV camera being poked in his face. It's the place where smart lobbyists go to stake out their prey and where smart reporters hang out to try and catch a little of the hush-hush action going on in the booths along the walls. Whether you're stopping in for a solid burger, some of the gringo green chile or just to watch the wheels of city government getting well-lubed, you're certain to be in good company at City Grille.

Best Diner

Denver Diner

There's no better way to check the pulse of a town than to sit for a while in one of its diners. You hear the news, trade a little gossip and see how people from all walks of life come together when -- and where -- status is irrelevant. Taking a seat at the Denver Diner's long counter is a democratizing experience; you never know who might be on the next stool. Construction workers and councilmembers, bums and bus drivers: All men (and women) are created equal here. They all receive the same polite but hurried service and the same solid grub from a short-order kitchen that makes everything hot, fast and greasy, just the way it should be. The coffee is strong and plentiful; the chicken-fried steak is crisp, salty and veiled in wonderful, artery-clogging white country gravy; and the breakfast burrito smothered in green chile meal is enough for two. Whether you're dropping in for a quick cuppa joe with the morning paper, a big plate of fries to help you sober up on a Saturday night, or a discussion of the liberal Zionist media conspiracy with a total stranger, there's always room for you at the Denver Diner.

Best Diner

Denver Diner

There's no better way to check the pulse of a town than to sit for a while in one of its diners. You hear the news, trade a little gossip and see how people from all walks of life come together when -- and where -- status is irrelevant. Taking a seat at the Denver Diner's long counter is a democratizing experience; you never know who might be on the next stool. Construction workers and councilmembers, bums and bus drivers: All men (and women) are created equal here. They all receive the same polite but hurried service and the same solid grub from a short-order kitchen that makes everything hot, fast and greasy, just the way it should be. The coffee is strong and plentiful; the chicken-fried steak is crisp, salty and veiled in wonderful, artery-clogging white country gravy; and the breakfast burrito smothered in green chile meal is enough for two. Whether you're dropping in for a quick cuppa joe with the morning paper, a big plate of fries to help you sober up on a Saturday night, or a discussion of the liberal Zionist media conspiracy with a total stranger, there's always room for you at the Denver Diner.

Best Capitol Education While Noshing

Wolfe¹s Barbeque

Wolfe's Barbeque

Wolfe's Barbeque, a jewel-box-sized restaurant on Colfax, feels like a Southern lunch place. But head cook and bottle washer Louis Wolfe is a Kansan by birth and a Denverite by choice. So much so that his walls are lined with collectible postcards of area buildings that date back to the 1900s -- and he can tell the story of each one. The Section 8 housing at Colfax and Grant used to be the Grand Argonaut Hotel, for example, and Temple Emmanuel was stunning in its early glory. As Wolfe gives his colorful and entertaining history lesson -- served up with a slice of great pecan pie -- you can stick your head out the door and still see the remains of what he's describing.

Best Dive

Rodney's

Appropriate, isn't it, that the best dive in town is a subterranean spot? When you walk down the stairs into Rodney's, you know you're really going somewhere. This place is a landmark, the sort of joint that Charles Bukowski was talking about every time he opened his mouth. Rodney Utz, who opened his namesake spot over twenty years ago, makes sure the lights are dim, the drinks are strong, the steaks are cheap, and all those folks settled in around the rectangular bar are treated well. Although Rodney's may not be the place to bring a date, it's the perfect spot for forgetting how long it's been since you've had one. If you want to spend a little time with the beautiful, the bungled and the botched, look no further.

Best Of Denver®

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