Top Ten Tasty Events on the Culinary Calendar, February 16-20

This is a big week for food fans. The good times will roll on Fat Tuesday tomorrow, then keep rolling through Chinese New Year on February 19, which ushers in the Year of the Goat. And you'll feel like a goat if you don't hurry to make reservations for Denver Restaurant Week, which starts on Friday, February 20. 

Here's a taste of this week's culinary calendar.

Monday, February 16

The fifteenth annual Soup for the Soul, a fundraising gala and auction for Porter Hospice, St. Anthony Hospital and Centura’s Butterfly Program, will ladle up gourmet soups, along with appetizers devised by chefs from top local restaurants, all in the name of charity. The gala will take place at the Sheraton Denver Downtown Hotel from 5:30 to 9 p.m. today. Tickets are $100 ($80 for young professionals); purchase them here.

Due to popular demand, Frasca Food and Wine has added a third night to its Istituto Frasca per Il Vino. The first class will run from 6 to 8 p.m. tonight, then repeat tomorrow, February 17 and again February 19, with Frasca co-owner and Master Sommelier Bobby Stuckey leading an in-depth look at the wines of the Rhone Valley through specially curated flights. Tuition for each class is $235 per person and includes the wine flight, workbook, class instruction and tax and gratuity. To save your seat — each class is limited to twenty guests — call 303-442-0608.

Tuesday, February 17   

The Seasoned Chef Cooking School is teaching you how to "Power Up" with super foods today from 6:30 to 9:30 p.m. Expand your repertoire with a menu of foods traditionally high in antioxidants and essential vitamins and minerals that are so beneficial for
the body, mind and soul. The menu features vanilla almond granola with sprouted grains and cocoa nibs, salmon fish tacos with creamy avocado dressing and kale-vegetable slaw, and much more. Class is $69; register here. 

Zengo's Chinese New Year celebration kicks off today with a special menu centered on luck, wealth, longevity and prosperity. But the real celebration comes on Thursday, when the restaurant will host traditional Chinese dancers  and every guest will receive a good-fortune cookie, with the possibility of something special inside. For more information, visit richardsandoval.com.

Wednesday February 18

Battle of the Beast continues today at Harman's Eat & Drink, where this month's competition will be the Battle of the Bird. The rumble will feature five chefs cooking poultry five ways, all paired with beers, wine and cocktails. Dinner is $52.80 per person; call 303-388-7428 for a reservation. 

Scott Gallimore, assistant professor in the Department of Archaeology and Classical Studies at Wilfrid Laurier University, will lecture on "The Role of Cretan Wine in the Roman Economy" at 7 p.m. today at the Paleontology Hall of the University of Colorado Museum of Natural History in Boulder. The lecture is free.


Thursday, February, 19

The 24th Annual Wine Festival of Colorado Springs kicks off today and will run through the weekend at the Broadmoor. The festival will highlight the wines of Italy through seminars, tastings, auctions, dinners and more. The event benefits the Colorado Springs Conservatory; for a complete schedule and tickets, go to Coloradospringsconservatory.org.  

Ring in Chinese New Year with the whole family at a cooking class hosted by the Seasoned Chef. "Family-Style Dining for the Chinese New Year" will teach you how to make three-cup chicken with sticky rice, Chinese hot pot, shrimp and vegetable pancakes with spicy tomato sauce, and Chinese moon cakes. Tuition is is $60 for the class, which runs from 6:30 to 9:30 p.m. To register, click here. 

Cook Street School of Culinary Arts will ring in the Year of the Goat with a class on classic Chinese cooking. Learn how to make a perfect steamed dumpling, dan dan noodles, the luxurious chili broth that's a perfect comfort food for a chilly February evening and homemade fortune cookies. Dinner will be served, paired with beer. Class starts at 6 p.m. and tuition is $89; register at cookstreet.com.

Friday, February 20

Denver Restaurant Week starts today. Restaurants all over Denver will be offering special, multi-course meals for a fixed price of $30 per person. The eating orgy runs through March 1; for more information, including menus and participating restaurants, head over to denver.org. 
   

For information on dozens of culinary events around town, visit our online Food & Drink listings — and if you have information for a culinary event you'd like included in our online calendar, send it to [email protected].

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