February 25, 2013 | Restaurants
There’s a lot going on in Denver restaurants this week – Denver Restaurant Week is actually a 2 week affair where local restaurants offer a multi-course meal for two for $52.80. If that seems like a weird price, that’s a nod to our mile high altitude of 5280 feet. So during restaurant week I figured it was a great time to roundup the Denver restaurants I’ve been to lately to share with all of you. First up, the newly renovated Tamayo.
I was invited to a media type of open house a couple of weeks ago to celebrate the extensive overhaul of the ten year old Richard Sandoval mainstay. I don’t usually eat much at these events, but rather go to socialize with other in the industry (and in this case to thank them for contributing to my cookbook, Tasting Colorado). However, I did fall in love with the margarita (the newly designed space features a tequila bar with just about every type of tequila know to man!) with the chile spiced rim, and did think the space was very cool looking. I’m sure the food is fabulous as their food always is. If you want to check them out for Denver Restaurant Week, here’s their menu.
Next up was Fourteen Seventy Two on Pearl St. in Denver, a new low country food joint that just seemed to call to us for brunch. If you’ve followed my brunch postings you know the omelet was mine – but in this case it was stuffed with peppers, onions, collard greens and goat cheese, so in fact did have a new taste for me. I always love mimosas with brunch, and got a kick out of the fact that these actually match the picnic table color perfectly. My husband, at my urging because I wanted to sample it, ordered the chicken and waffles that came with crispy applewood smoked bacon and a creamy maple sauce. Together, this was simply heaven on a plate, and far more than he could eat which meant I got my fill too. Can’t wait to go back to try their dinner menu. Here’s their restaurant week menu.
Slotted Spoon in as new meatball restaurant on the southern edge of Denver in the U Hills shopping center. If that sounds somehow limited, let me assure you, it’s not. They carry not only a variety of meat based meatballs, but also salmon and black bean. And you can get them in a salad, on pasta, in a bowl, in a sandwich – pretty much any way you want them – with your choice of about a dozen different sauces. Sides like salad and mac and cheese accompany the meal along with beverages. It’s a wonderful family spot, made even more wonderful in my mind because of their commitment to support Share Our Strength’s No Kid Hungry campaign to end childhood hunger. Check ‘em out – you’ll be glad you did!
One of the best parts of being an empty nester is being able to have any meal of any day of the week with any friends you like. Friday and Saturday dinners booked for the next month? No problem, how about we meet for lunch on Sunday? That’s just what we did recently when joining some of our very best friends for lunch at Hodsons at the Streets of Southglenn. We picked this spot because it’s conveniently halfway between where we both live and we both had to get on to Superbowl parties later that day. I’m not sure that I was expecting it to be this good, I must say. A great salad with apples and goat cheese, a wonderful salmon dish over quinoa with oranges, and fish tacos that met with approval. Keeping this one on my list to return to for sure, and not just because it’s conveniently located. Here’s their restaurant week menu if you’d like to check them out.
And finally, Barolo Grill. I don’t usually go out for Valentine’s Day dinner. It seems kind of like amateur night to me, and I don’t like getting told by the chef what I want to eat for that special occasion. Turns out that is unless the chef is the talented executive chef Darrel Truett. The menu offered a choice of 3 items for most of the courses, and I started with the prosciutto cotto appetizer – that’s cooked ham, not prosciutto crudo like you might be thinking of – and it was served with an apple slaw and some puff pastry pieces.
For the salad, I chose the arugula with duck confit. I know, that’s quite the trendy thing on menus these days, but having just gone through the effort to make it myself, I know how special it is.
Whenever I see rabbit on the menu at a fine dining establishment like this I order it. It’s mild, the chef usually does something interesting with it, and it’s not something that’s easy to get on my own. I could have eaten 3 bowls of this pasta with a simple rabbit ragu.
Same thing goes for pork – it’s probably my favorite meat, especially when it comes two ways, as in crispy pork belly along side a perfectly cooked loin or chop. Yum.
I had surrendered by the time dessert arrived as is usually the case with my eating patterns. But I couldn’t resist the paper thin crispy beet chips on the mascarpone mousse and of course had to have a dip into that lovely chocolate mousse. Barolo Grill, under the leadership of owner Blair Taylor, continues to put out fabulous, and fabulously authentic, Italian fare from northern Italy. If you’re lucky enough to get a reservation for restaurant week, here’s the menu.
[...] up a similar event too. Here are some great Denver and Boulder restaurant weeks round-ups from Cooking with Michele and Grace Boyle of Denver [...]