Zen and now

Zen Ultra Lounge opened last week — but it’s not related to Zen Asian Bistro & Sushi, one of several restaurants suddenly springing up in the northern suburb, in this case, in Westminster at 11940 Bradburn Boulevard. Zen Ultra Lounge took over the space at 940 Lincoln Street that had…

Vote: It’s the only way to get free s*#t

Free!?! God Bless America. Sure, it’s your civic duty to vote, and the future of civilization just might depend on it. But that doesn’t mean you shouldn’t milk some free stuff out of it. Here’s an Election Day meal guide to all the freebies offered around town. (Hold on to…

Paella as you go: where’s the rice nice in Denver?

A pal called in search of a place in town that serves paella. Our longtime favorite was at Don Quixote, but that Spanish spot at First and Federal quit tilting at windmills a decade ago. A couple of miles away at 1575 Boulder Street, Lola offers a Sunday night, family-style…

The reason for the season: beer

All the food groups. All I want for Christmas this year are some delicious, warming Christmas beers, and all I want for Hanukah is a place to find out which ones are available in Colorado. What’s that you say? Hanukah Claus has answered both of my wishes already? Oh, merry…

Gordo’s now being served at 44th Avenue Grill

Gordo’s, that longstanding Mexican joint that stood over Sixth Avenue at Sheridan for decades, recently closed up that location and started serving at a new spot — with a new name.The 44th Avenue Grill, at 44th and Wadsworth in Lakewood, is acting as a satellite location of Gordo’s — serving…

Geek in the Galley

I am a serious science fiction geek. And while, in the food world, I generally contain my geekery to zombie movie references, Starblazers jokes, Blade Runner allegories and a recent, minor obsession with the high-tone weirdness of molecular gastronomy, lately I’ve been thinking about some of the other foodie promises…

Milking It: Boo Berry

Boo Berry General Mills Rating: Three spoons out of four Cereal description: Whole-grain-corn cereal pieces featuring triangular eyes — the better to see you with, my dear. They’re accompanied by purple, pink, blue and white marshmallows shaped like bats, ghosts and other spooky stuff. If that sounds similar to Frankenberry,…

Looking for a good restaurant? You’re in the ballpark…

The Ballpark neighborhood is hot. Last week I raved about Marco’s Coal-Fired Pizza, at 2129 Larimer Street. And just up the street at 2233 Larimer, in the old home of Kokopelli’s (and Manny’s Smokehouse before that), the lower-cased twelve restaurant will open on Tuesday, November 4. The chef/owner is Jeff…

Doing what comes naturally at Naturally Boulder Days

On day two of Naturally Boulder Days 2008, the city’s fourth annual celebration of the $62 billlion natural-foods business, we put down the bread, ate all the chocolate and began with the real substance. Chef Ann Cooper offered the keynote, speaking about her passionate attempts to change the way children…

Ten foods we love even though they taste wrong

In the great Venn diagram of foods, there’s a circle of foods we love, and a circle of foods that just don’t taste right—and then there’s the wonderful, sometimes surprising, always guilt-inducing delicious area where the two cross over. Yes, some foods just don’t taste like they’re supposed to. Let…

Candy Girls: Giant Chewy Nerds

We’d been hearing about these fun Giant Chewy Nerds for awhile, but we couldn’t seem to locate any until a recent trip to Kmart. We’re both fans of Nerds, but we’re not necessarily OK with how the Nerds factory makes you commit to just two flavors per box. These candies…

A dazzling deal at Dazzle

Where’s my bailout? It could be at Dazzle, 930 Lincoln Street, when Dazzle’s Halloween party will reward those in the most frightening financial situations. Before then, you’re invited to post your most horrifying utility bill, terrifying credit card balance, or unbelievably scary 401K loss (with personal info blacked out, of…

La Sandia is a room with a view — both inside and out

Placido Domingo and Richard Sandoval at the new La Sandia. La Sandia Mexican Kitchen & Tequila Bar opens to the public today, but it already got a workout last night, when hundreds of people flocked to the stylish space at the edge of the Vistas at Park Meadows. La Sandia…

A chile welcome for Barack Obama

Good enough for the Oval Office. Barack Obama can’t get enough of Colorado. On Saturday afternoon, he’ll be in the Union Avenue Historic District in Pueblo – on his second trip to the Centennial state in just seven days, and his fourth since the Democratic National Convention in August. Last…

Veggie Girl: Osteria Marco

I enjoy dining at nice restaurants as much as the next person. Two problems: not only am I usually broke, but it’s also hard to find a satisfying vegetarian meal at many of this town’s finer estbalishments. While I’d love to try Fruition, the idea of paying $21 for what…

Lime finally squeezes an opening date out of Landmark

The Landmark development in Greenwood Village is a strange kind of place, a “European-style village,” according to its website, springing from the ground like a weird, sci-fi bubble-city in the middle of what used to be a strip-mall-and-office-park nowhere. But not springing up too fast; the project has undergone numerous…

Marco’s Coal-Fired Pizzeria is hot!

Wednesday night, I had a pizza. Doesn’t matter from where — let’s just say it was from a well-known chain, well-known for serving halfway-decent ingredients atop cardboard crusts to drunken frat boys, suburban families and, occasionally, lazy restaurant critics. Let’s just say the name rhymes with Papa Juan’s. Friday night,…

Komanawanaleia at Earls

What would Chelsea Handler do? I’m a huge fan of Chelsea, and recently saw her at a benefit performance for NewGenesis, a wonderful organization that provides a transitional community for the homeless (www.panhandlingsucks.com). Although I’m not nearly as funny as Chelsea, we have other things in common. For example, we…

The Squire is one of Denver’s greatest dives

The cops are everywhere by the time we roll up to the Squire Lounge (1800 East Colfax Avenue) just after 8 p.m. — two squads blocking (and facing) eastbound traffic, another pulled halfway onto the sidewalk, all of them screaming red and blue, all of it a familiar and strangely…

Armando’s is in a state of reddiness

Just as Marco’s Coal-Fired Pizzeria presents an uncompromising take on authentic Neapolitan pizza, with its magical pizza ovens and transplanted pizza man, Armando’s Ristorante in Aurora (one of three metro locations) presents an uncompromising take on another Italian-food experience. Here it’s a museum-quality reproduction of the classic (and, some would…