If you are venturing to Denver, a few recommendations on places to go and eat. Things are always changing, but these are great as of this writing. Parenthetical equates to the Denver colloquial neighborhood.
Breakfast
- Snooze Union Station A delicious breakfast spot with its newest location in the renovated Union Station. (LoDo)
- Rosenberg’s Bagels Best NY-style bagel in Denver. Amazing lox selection.
Beer & Cocktails
- Hogshead Brewery These guy specialize in English style beers. Really well done. (Highlands)
- Williams & Graham A great speakeasy style bar. (LoHi)
IPAs
- Black Shirt Brewing Co. Great IPA – Red IPA. (RiNo)
- Epic Brewing Technically I guess they’re from Utah, but they have a good presence here in Denver. (RiNo)
Restaurants
- Sushi Den Yes, it seems crazy to get sushi in the middle of the country, but this place is really well done. (Platte Park / Washington Park)
- Fruition One of the early farm-to-table restaurants in Denver. Great service, very welcoming, and delicious food. A bit of a special occaison place. (Cherry Creek)
- Plimoth French inspired cusine. New kids on the block, super delicious. (City Park)
- Acorn at the Source Small plates, the vast majority are really scrumptious. Can get pretty expensive. The Source is somewhat inspired by the Ferry Building in San Francisco. (RiNo)
- Watercourse A vegan-only restaurant with creative takes on traditional fare. (Uptown)
- Cherry Cricket Hangover cure? Yes. Sports? Yes Great burgers, wings, bloody marys? Yes, this is the place. It’s one of the stalwart regular people places in Cherry Creek. (Cherry Creek North)
- The Mercantile Same owners as Fruition, but in the new remodeled Union Station. Excellent sandwiches at lunch, great dinners as well. (LoDo)
Espresso
- Crema Fantastic espresso-based drinks and food. (RiNo)
- Aviano Intelligentsia beans. ‘Nuff said. (Cherry Creek)
- Metropolis Well crafted espresso drinks. (LoHi, Golden Triangle, Baker)
Music (Blues and Jazz biased)
- Lincoln’s Roadhouse A somewhat dive-bar in South Denver near DU. They tend to book good local and touring blues / roots bands on the weekends. (DU Area / Washington Park)
- El Chapultapec Cash only, but it’s the place to check out jazz and blues in Denver. Kitty corner from Coors Field, the greats have all played the ‘Pec. (LoDo)
- Dazzle More formal jazz bar, with sit down food, but also a back bar. Excellent talent shows up here. (Capitol Hill)
- Red Rocks Amphitheater Not so biased towards a particular genre, but if you time your trip right, a concert at Red Rocks is an incredible experience.
Neighborhoods
- RiNo Neighborhood There’s a lot going on in the River North area of Denver. You’ll find Epic Brewing, Black Shirt Brewing Co., Our Mutual Friend among other breweries, restaurants, cafes in this burgeoning area Norteast of LoDo on Larimer Street.
- Cherry Creek North One of the “tony” places in Denver. Lots of shops and boutiques.
- Union Station Newly renovated Union Station is a really cool place to check out. The “Terminal Bar” has a great selectoin of beers.