Restaurateur Robert Thompson’s Punch Bowl Social brand is growing quickly, with multiple new outposts planned to open around the country. To help maintain quality and give guests a fun dining experience to match the games and activities available at the restaurants, Thompson brought on chef Hugh Acheson as culinary partner…
Johnny Ballen, co-owner of the Squeaky Bean downtown, has made fine dining an entertaining prospect, with amusements like found-object decorations and a cocktail shrine to departed celebrities enhancing the dining room — all while maintaining a respect for seasonal ingredients, along with partner/farmer Josh Olsen and chef Chris MacGillivray. And…
Some addresses just seem cursed — at least until something comes along to create a little buzz and lure the neighbors. Such is the case at 2200 South Broadway, which has seen the South Broadway Grill, Hades Bar & Grill, Zocalo and El Olvido come and go in recent years…
The end of summer is a time of change — and that means new menu items based on seasonal produce. That’s the case as Spuntino, Zengo and Honor Society. But at the latter two, even bigger changes are afoot, including major remodels, a new chef and a new downtown brunch…
No 67: Spaghetti Alla Carbonara at Spatola In a city ripe with takes on spaghetti alla carbonara, it’s refreshing to find a simple execution of the classic Italian dish at the newly-opened Spatola in the Highlands. After all, what’s not to like about a plate of beautiful pasta intertwined with…
Roaming Buffalo Bar-B-Que was a near-instant hit when it opened on South Downing in early 2015, earning our award for Best Barbecue this year, and selling out of smoked meats daily well before the dinner hour. Owners Coy and Rachael Webb are capitalizing on the success of their tiny eatery and…
Zoës Kitchen, a fast-casual Mediterran concept, keeps expanding its fleet in Colorado. A Union Station North neighborhood location opens today, August 24, at 1970 15th Street, suite 120; this will be the first Zoës in Denver proper and the fourth in the state following locations in Littleton, Fort Collins and Westminster that…
The Indian restaurant that opened last fall as Mr. India’s BBQ at 3157 West 38th Avenue is now closed. In its place is the second metro-area outpost of Biryani Pot, under new ownership. This continues the trend of biryani rice specialists coming to the metro area. The Denver Tech Center…
Move over, spaghetti and meatballs. As a native of Sicily, Francesco Spatola knows there’s more to Italian cuisine than red sauce and pasta. “Sicilian cuisine,” he explains, “is the result of the cultural overlapping of Greek, Spanish, French and Arabic cultures over thousands of years.” At Spatola, the restaurant and…
Get ready for a big bash at the Tavern Uptown. Last Thursday, the Denver Planning Board recommended that a PUD be approved allowing the redevelopment of the 500 block of East 17th Avenue — a revised redevelopment plan that now calls for maintaining the facade of the one-story Tavern building as…
While the loss of classic Italian eateries in the Highland and Sunnyside neighborhoods was punctuated by yesterday’s lamentable closing of Patsy’s after 95 years in business, there is some cause for celebration in north Denver. Despite issues with obtaining a cabaret license from the city, the Monkey Barrel is gearing…
Driving east along Colfax Avenue from downtown is a bit like journeying from Denver south through Central America. As you leave the modern, redeveloped blocks and head past Colorado Boulevard, the population thins and the scenery becomes a little more gritty. But diversity grows, with a patchwork quilt of international…
Change and growth continue to define the neighborhood that new arrivals know as LoHi but that longtime Denver residents simply call the North Side. Most notable — for food and history buffs, at least — has been the steady loss of classic red-sauce joints that were the legacy of the…
Restaurateur Robert Thompson has made several moves over the last few months to position his Punch Bowl Social empire for future growth. The latest is his biggest move yet: Thompson has brought on celebrity chef and cookbook author Hugh Acheson as culinary partner to add the Georgia chef’s distinct take…
White Fence Farm keeps adding to its flock. When longtime restaurateur Craig Caldwell and Tom Piercy bought the forty-year-old White Fence Farm almost two years ago from owner Charlie Wilson, they saw the potential for building a farm team of fried chicken outlets around the metro area, as well as…
No. 68: Korean Fried Duck Wings at Chow Urban Grill Everyone knows about the fried chicken in the red-and-white bucket, and seekers of international tastes have discovered the other KFC — Korean fried chicken — at a couple of eateries in Aurora. But what about KFD: Korean fried duck? There’s…
Brunch is undeniably Denver’s favorite meal, and as people started lining up at the various Snooze outposts around town yesterday, we shared our video of people waiting to eat at Snooze — which inspired another outpouring of comments from readers. Says Naomi: Hey, the more people who like Snooze and choose…
On Saturday and Sunday mornings, people start lining up early to eat at Snooze, arguably Denver’s most popular brunch spot. But is it worth the wait? Videographer Dale DiMassi recently stopped by the Snooze at Union Station and the original Snooze on Larimer Street, and spoke with some of the people waiting…
The disappointing news that Osaka Ramen in Cherry Creek will be serving its last bowl tomorrow night was mitigated by the sounds of slurping still ringing loud and clear from the stairwell of the subterranean original in RiNo. That and the fact that chef/owner Jeff Osaka is resurrecting his celebrated…
Chef Kelly Whitaker, owner of Basta in Boulder, recalls sleeping on the floor of a pizza restaurant in Campagna, Italy, where he studied the traditional craft of cooking with a wood-burning oven. That experience has shaped his career, lending Basta its theme and centerpiece, inspiring his second project, pizza and…
Cherry Creekers didn’t know a good thing when it slapped them on the face with a noodle. Chef/restaurateur Jeff Osaka is turning off the burners at Osaka Ramen at East 3rd Avenue and Detroit Street after only a year. The final bowls will be ladled out on Saturday night and…
One of Capitol Hill’s neighborhood favorites, Barricuda’s Restaurant & Lounge, closed earlier this month for a remodel. Owner Jin Lee says he expects to reopen his bar on August 26 with a new paint job and new hardwood floors that will replace worn carpeting. Barricuda’s has been serving cheap drinks…
