Chef Patrick Dupays is in the kitchen. I can see him through the big four-pane window at the end of the line, working a pan with one hand, giving directions with the other — his fingers loose, his arm moving like a conductor’s trying to keep a runaway orchestra on…
There was a time when I would’ve argued that Johnson’s Corner (I-25 at exit 254, north of the Berthoud exit) was the perfect diner, better than the Peppermill in Vegas, the State Diner in Ithaca, that joint on Telegraph Road in Detroit where I almost got mugged but ended up…
How much wood can a woodchuck chuck? When I walked into Via to meet friends for a drink, I immediately noticed two things: wood and smokin’ hot guys — and in that order, surprisingly. Venanzio and Anthony Momo are responsible for both. Owners of Cucina Coloré in Cherry Creek and…
The recent Institute of Drinking Studies excursion to Madison, Wisconsin, had nothing to do with the much-publicized Halloween riots. I swear. We were there on an educational fact-finding mission, looking for ways to turn Denver into an even better drinking town. Of course, the foundation of any research project is…
Back in the day — and I’m talking six months, maybe a year ago — Le Central had a taste that was all its own. Put three orders of escargot in front of me, three orders of anything in béarnaise sauce, three orders of lotte au basilic, and I, with…
The last time I was at Sabor Latino, I heard a recorded pan-flute rendition of the Titanic love theme so sappy that it silenced an entire dining room — except for the laughter. An order of arepa fell just as flat: The white-corn pancake was so nasty, thick, heavy and…
So much news — good news, bad news, ridiculous news — keeps coming out of Steak au Poivre (231 Milwaukee Street), I sometimes wonder when they find time to cook. Chefs have come, chefs have gone, a consulting chef has come and will go after the holidays, menus have been…
Ça c’est bon. Is there anything more charming than finding a quaint French bistro in a neighborhood where you don’t expect it? Mais non! A decade ago, any restaurant that dared to open in this part of town had to feature chips and salsa on its menu; two decades before…
Several members of the Institute of Drinking Studies — all definite throwbacks — met recently at a very manly and friendly throwback of a tavern, the Pub on Pearl (1101 South Pearl Street). This small bar is nestled on a corner near where Pearl Street meets I-25, conveniently close to…
I was sitting in the dining room at Milagro Taco Bar scratching hieroglyphs into the mole with my fork: hearts and squiggles, my initials. It was a good mole — dark and glossy, thickened enough to stick, with a flavor like coffee beans and charcoal and bitter chocolate and fire…
achlan Mackinnon-Patterson is a busy guy. He’s chef/owner (along with partner Bobby Stuckey) of Frasca, the restaurant at 1738 Pearl Street in Boulder that’s one of the best in Colorado. And one of the busiest: He’s running a killer crew in a kitchen that gets slammed night after night. He…
Who’d think a shot called Don’t Name Your Fucking Kid After Me would lead to a tongue-in-cheek throw-down? After I wrote about that concoction a few weeks ago, I heard from Carl Johansen, the good-natured fellow who says he not only invented the shot when he was at Herman’s, but…
The other night I ducked into Target to get some razors made of a rare metal that dulls after one shave, despite a per-ounce price that’s higher than platinum. While struggling through aisles of cheap lingerie that still grab any guy’s eye (don’t tell me you don’t look) to reach…
While my meals at Milagro Taco Bar (see review, page 59) left me with mixed feelings, my opinion about another Frank Bonanno operation remains unwavering. Mizuna was Bonanno’s first restaurant (with late partner Doug Fleischmann), and it remains his best. Ever-changing, impeccably serviced by a thoroughly professional floor staff and…
We argued right up to the front door about how I ought to dress for dinner. What shoes to wear. Jacket or no jacket. Tie or no tie. I’d climbed into the car wearing everything: white button-down and dress slacks, my best tie (meaning the pleasingly muted and abstract one,…
A round noon, my phone rings. “Is this Jason Sheehan?” “Yes.” “You’re the restaurant guy?” “That’s me. What can I do for you?” “Man, I don’t know if you’ve been there yet, but I’ve got to tell you about this…” About this new sushi restaurant, about this little Mexican place…
Only a few weeks ago, I besmirched champagne cocktails, questioning a man’s sexuality because he’d ordered a “girl drink.” Now, however, I must drink my words, because not only is Corridor 44 the swankiest, most posh and glamorous spot to hit Denver in the past year, but it’s come up…
Has anyone seen an escaped monkey? I’ve been scouring the papers for such information since a night at Brix (3000 East Third Avenue), when the little simian that has plagued periods of my drinking career was on the loose, relieving himself in my mouth after I passed out. (I’ve heard…
When I stopped by the new, improved Mickey’s Top Sirloin for lunch last week (a few months ago, it had moved from its decrepit, decades-old home across the parking lot to a shiny, family-friendly, cookie-cutter space with bright-green corrugated siding), the strangest thing about it was the pictures of the…
Eels and tofu, sweet raw shrimp and tuna head and giant clam — I eat it all. Flying-fish eggs, as alien to a suburban rust-belt brat as eating asbestos or living on freon and Pixy Stix, are now a regular part of my diet. They get caught in my teeth…
The Chen brothers didn’t just take on an awkward strip-mall space when they made their break from the chain and opened the renegade Fontana Sushi in Littleton (see review). They also picked up one of the more unusual Sushi Basho locations — a former old-school IHOP at 2188 South Colorado…
Childless by Choice. I don’t hate children. In fact, at times I find them as cute as puppies. I love my niece and nephew even when they are terrors, and I’ve developed relationships with some of my friends’ children that are so enjoyable, I’d actually consider taking care of them…
