What to Eat in Denver, Colorado for a Weekend

The tides have turned in Denver. 

In the past decade, its population has exploded, with over 25% total growth, ranking 11th in fastest-growing cities, while the state of Colorado is the second-fastest-growing state in the nation, thanks in large part to its capital city.

I’m not going to say this is entirely due to legalized weed, but it certainly helps. 

Whether it’s to pursue a more progressive environment, take advantage of a rustic outdoor lifestyle, or smoke a bunch of pot, there’s obviously something enticing about Denver, Colorado. 

It also happens to have a top-tier restaurant scene. 

Denver doesn’t quite have its own iconic dish (unless you count Rocky Mountain Oysters, which I am in no rush to sample); Chicago has deep dish, Philly has cheesesteaks, and Atlanta has lemon pepper wings. So what kinds of food does Denver pride itself on? 

Let’s find out. 

Friday

I flew into Denver early on Friday morning. I only lost about an hour of my day due to the time change (three hours west, two hours back), allowing bonus time to eat.

As I departed the airport, I encountered the infamously horrifying large blue horse statue named Blue Mustang, also known as “Blucifer” due to its haunting red glowing eyes. This idiosyncratic piece of art has gained notoriety around the world for its alleged curse: a portion of Blue Mustang crushed its creator Luis Jiménez, killing him. Today, it creeps out thousands of passengers a day. The red eyes are a tribute to Jiménez’s father, who owned a neon shop, but it reads rather as a tribute to some satanic ritual. 

I arrived in Jefferson Park shortly before 11:00 AM to drop my bags off with my friends Justin and Taylor (and their dog Rocky) before heading to a nearby coffee shop to get some work done and begin my survey of this new and unfamiliar land. 

2914 Coffee

2914 Coffee is owned by an English husband and wife who bought the store (discovering it online) in the early days of the pandemic. After a series of unfortunate events immigrating here, they finally were able to open up the shop, now staffed by a talented group of baristas (with some occasional input from their young kids).

 

 

 

 

 

 

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My coffee order is quite plain, generally rotating between an Iced Americano, Cold Brew, and Iced Coffee, with no flavorings or cream or sugar. It’s a surefire way to judge a cafe’s product quality minus any confounding variables, but it does leave a bit of excitement on the table. I decided to compromise and, in my Iced Americano, added cayenne pepper from the Akumal (which adds the cayenne to a mocha). It was a surprisingly effective addition; you don’t taste the spice so much as you feel it in the back of your throat. If you drink coffee for the caffeine, why not wake yourself up even more with some extra heat?

This was a great spot to do some work, but an even better spot to take in a slice of Denver life. You encounter a wide net of different people in different phases of their professional and personal journeys. Everybody’s work seems to be that much more important, largely in the startup world (including my host, who co-founded an outdoors brand called MODL). From various tables, I overheard things like “Series B funding”, “Kickstarter”, and “epic”…all telltale signs of a forward-thinking group. These entrepreneurs opt for skinny jeans, tattoos, and Onewheels over the less exciting chinos, tie clips, and Teslas. 

After an hour or so of changing the world (or in my case, writing about vegan restaurants in Chicago), it was time to pay tribute to the pride of Denver: a dispensary. While some may argue for the ski slopes or the hiking trails, I’d say that nothing better represents what Denver is known for around the country. Since Colorado was one of the first two states (along with Washington) to legalize recreational marijuana in 2012, it has become one of the initial things that somebody mentions whenever the state comes up in conversation. 

Despite whatever Reefer Madness fear mongering its opponents may peddle, the legalization of weed has been a resounding success, raking in hundreds of millions of dollars in sales, generating millions in tax dollars that go right back to the people of Colorado. 

Good Chemistry

We went to a Highlands dispensary called Good Chemistry. It had a sleek, high-tech aesthetic…a far cry from the dank and grimy setting one might expect out of a marijuana emporium. As somebody coming from Georgia, where weed is still fully illegal (besides being decriminalized in Atlanta, which is obvious if you take a sniff just about anywhere), it almost feels wrong to be speaking candidly and un-cryptically about the drug. The employee at the front desk even said “Stay high!” while we walked into the main room; she knew what our mission was. 

The employees couldn’t have been kinder or more helpful, and the entire experience was one of the most pleasant transactions I’ve had in quite some time. I was blown away by how much of a full-fledged industry this has become. They have online ordering (which even earns you a preferred spot in line in front of walk-ins), a customer rewards program (my friend had $25 in credits), and daily discounts (3 pre-rolled joints for $18 is a deal that my college self would have giggled uncontrollably over).

I recognize I’ll sound like an overly righteous stoner, but I don’t get how it’s not legal, man. I don’t understand how there is even the slightest hesitation about making it federally legalized and available in every neighborhood. Whether you’re conservative and love personal liberty and tax revenue or you’re liberal and love…smoking weed, it should be a political and philosophical slam dunk. Colorado and the now 18 (!) other legal states are ushering us out of the murky quagmire of state-by-state variability and into the future.

With our cannabis successfully (and legally) in tow, it was finally time for some grub.

Tacos Tequila Whiskey

We ventured to Tacos Tequila Whiskey, a much-praised taco joint serving “Mexican street food” with a modern twist. They obviously serve tacos, tequila, and whiskey, along with Antojitos (“little desires”), salsas, and desserts. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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I started with the special margarita of the day, hibiscus, which was much brighter and pinker than I expected, but tasted damn good, striking that perfect balance of potent and flavorful that margaritas do so well. We got the Totopos y Tres Salsas (“just made chips” and three salsas) with Roasted Tomatillo, Molcajete, and Casera. The chips were beautifully salted and each salsa shined in its own way: the Roasted Tomatillo was bright and sour from the lime juice with a perfectly complementary heat; the Molcajete was smoky and a bit milder; the Casera was crazy, tart from the citrus and spicy from the habanero, with an extra bite from the sliced onions floating around. We also got a lovely guacamole that was no-frills but delicious.

Now, about those tacos…

I got three tacos, each amazing in its own distinct way. The Queso a la Plancha was griddled with cotija cheese, avocado, and plenty of the roasted tomatillo salsa from earlier. It was a simple combo that relied wisely on the quality of its components. The Queso Birria was your usual birria taco with Monterey Jack and shredded braised beef, with sides of consomme and tomatillo avocado salsa for dunking galore. This had a salty and savory flavor, with crispiness from the griddle, which held up nicely no matter how much I dunked it in the jus (and I dunked it plenty, thank you very much). Finally, the Pork Belly “Agridulce” had a sweet & sour braised pork belly with candied garlic, a cabbage-cilantro slaw, and more jus for dunking. The crust on the pork belly was beautiful and the meat, as one should expect from pork belly, melted in my mouth. I’m not usually a fan of corn tortillas, but these were fresh and absolutely divine, adding even more goodness to each bite. 

After lunch, we went back to Justin and Taylor’s place to finish up our work for the day and walk Rocky around Jefferson Park. It’s a scenic and serene place, full of dogs playing and families celebrating birthdays, a refreshing dynamic right in the middle of the neighborhood. The weather in Denver is also tremendous. It was a warm weekend, with highs in the high 70s and low 80s, but no humidity whatsoever. This was a welcome relief for a schvitzy guy like me from the south (though I still sweated plenty). Eventually it was time for the marquee event of the night: a concert at Red Rocks Amphitheatre.

Red Rocks has always been my white whale of a concert venue. The only other time I’d been to Denver (in fall 2020), the venue was closed due to the pandemic, so even though we hiked the area, there was no live music. I felt teased being in such an iconic concert space without hearing any sweet tunes. This trip, it’s back in action, and the stars must have been aligned because one of my favorite live bands, Joe Russo’s Almost Dead, was playing. I’m not sure the exact odds that the past two trips I’ve taken through work both coincided with a Grateful Dead cover band (in Washington D.C. it was Dark Star Orchestra), but who am I to say no?

The show started at 7:30 PM so we were made the executive decision to pick up Blue Pan Pizza and tailgate in the parking lot.

Blue Pan Pizza

Blue Pan is an authentic Detroit pizza place. Detroit pizza, defined by its rectangular shape, cheesy crust, and rows of sauce going across the surface, is rapidly gaining popularity outside of the Motor City. We split two pies and cheesy garlic bread, hoping that they’d stay fresh and tasty for the half-hour drive to Red Rocks.

 

 

 

 

 

 

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Our hopes were satisfied, and everything from Blue Pan was fantastic despite the delay from cook to consumption. The first pie we got was the Brooklyn Bridge, topped with sauce, mozzarella, ricotta, pepperoni, Italian sausage, chopped garlic, oregano, and pecorino romano. The ricotta and spicy meats were beautifully balanced. Our second pie was the 313 (a Detroit area code), prepared without marinara sauce, along with ricotta, garlic, mozzarella, salami, calabrian chilis, sweet piquante peppers, basil, arugula, and shaved parmigiano reggiano. I loved the spice level, with the peppery arugula and the bold tastes of the two peppers. The sauce was hardly missed at all, giving an almost flatbread feel. We got it with a side of the garlic ranch, which was a perfect complement. The Good Dog (cheesy garlic bread) was nothing fancy, but when you’re working with bread, cheese, garlic, and marinara, you need not reinvent the wheel.

It should be noted that the Brooklyn Bridge won first place in the 2014 International Pizza Challenge (traditional division) and the 313 won first place in the 2013 International Pizza Challenge (pan division). I didn’t know the International Pizza Challenge existed, but I have no choice other than to respect its supreme authority. 

After devouring the pizza (along with some beer and a LEGAL joint), we began our expedition to the concert.

Red Rocks

Right away, I was astounded by how many stairs you need to scale to enter the amphitheatre. I admittedly haven’t spent much time recently on the Stairmaster, so between that, the pizza and beer, and already being a mile above sea level, my heart was pumping. Luckily, it was cool and dry enough that I never broke into a sweat. 

The ascent through Red Rocks is visually striking, with the steps entering right into the rock formation. It reminded me of the Mexican prison El Presidio from Red Dead Redemption. This is an oddly specific reference, but I can’t find anything else that reminds me as much of the experience of conquering Red Rocks.

After however many steps we traversed, we found our way to a block of seats suitable for our group of six, and…wow. You can look at countless photos of the view at Red Rocks, but they don’t do justice to the fully immersive experience. As you face the stage, you’re treated to a panoramic view of the stage, those red rocks, lakes, the woods, and the downtown Denver skyline. It looks like Bob Ross drew one of those topographical diagrams of all the different landforms.

The view becomes even more enchanting as it gets dark, turning the skyline into a sea of lights. Once the show started, it was hard to stay fixated on only one sight; my eyes were perpetually shifting from the band to the bucolic skyline to the rocks to the sky and back again.

The band brought the house down, and everybody in the venue was dancing, even the security guards. 

After nearly four hours of jams, it was time to snap back to reality and return to the real world. Leaving was a similarly brutal process to arriving…for every step we went up, we now had to go down. Fortunately, gravity was on our side so our egress was much quicker than our ingress. After a quick drive back northwest to Denver proper, we hit the hay and prepared for another day full of eating.

Saturday

Often on these trips, I resign myself to the sins of both sloth and gluttony, but Taylor was taking Rocky on a run so I tagged along, both to explore the neighborhood (they live right next to the South Platte River as well as Empower Field, home of the Broncos) and to really earn my next few meals. The weather was sunny and warm and the increased altitude kept me working hard every step (pun intended) of the way. I especially appreciate how seamlessly Denver integrates residential areas into the commercial ones.

Afterwards, we walked to a nearby Mexican restaurant called Santiago’s for breakfast burritos. 

Santiago’s

Their burritos are famous for the option of having them “smothered”. For Waffle House aficionados, this is not putting diced onions on an order of hash browns; it’s drowning your burrito in Santiago’s proprietary green chile. I had to try this because, hey, when in Rome! I got a chorizo breakfast burrito (with eggs and potatoes too), half and half (somewhere between mild and hot), and smothered (though I asked for the green chile on the side).

 

 

 

 

 

 

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The burrito itself is sloppily wrapped, unraveling soon after my first bite, but the filling is full of flavor. The green chile itself is quite spicy as well as a little bit tart; it tastes great but I’m glad I got it on the side because the term “smothered” is no exaggeration. 

We didn’t get anything besides our breakfast burritos because we already had our sights set on our next snack…

10 Barrel

One of the coolest parts of downtown Denver is the River North Arts District, or RiNo. 

[Side note: Denver loves abbreviating neighborhoods with the first two letters of each work. There’s Lower Downtown, or LoDo; Lower Highland (LoHi); it’s not an insane amount but it’s definitely a unique pattern. Alright, back to the food.]

We gathered a group together at 10 Barrel, a multi-story brewpub. We decided to take advantage of the perfect weather (the kind of day ELO wrote the song “Mr. Blue Sky” about) and grab a big table up on the roof, suitable for our group of nearly ten people.

 

 

 

 

 

 

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We had recently eaten lunch and had an early dinner coming up, but we still made the executive decision to split three appetizers. 

We started off with a pub classic: Pretzel + Cheese. The pretzel roll was piping hot, clearly fresh, and served with a warm four-cheese dipping sauce along with yellow mustard and pickles and pickled onion. The cheese sauce was indeed quite cheesy and went beautifully with the chewy pretzel. Next were the Truffle Fries, with parmesan and parsley. These were addicting and a nice companion to what came next. The 10 Barrel Steak Nachos had both Cajun chips and fries as the base, then piled high with steak, bacon, jalapenos, garlic, shallots, the four-cheese sauce, and green onion. Each bite had a new combination of tasty ingredients.

Our food was perfectly complemented by 10 Barrel’s flagship IPA: Apocalypse. It had the perfect bitterness of your favorite IPA, minus some of the edge. I lost track of how many of these I had, but they were a perfect antidote to an afternoon baking in the sun.

We left soon after to change and get ready for the big food event of the weekend: Linger Eatuaries.

Linger Eatuaries

Our dinner was at one of the concepts from the Edible Beats restaurant group, self-proclaimed “renegades of flavors & masters of remix”. Linger is housed in a former mortuary (props to them for braving the optics of serving food in a former storage spot for human corpses) in Lower Highland (or LoHi, as we’ve learned is the proper way to abbreviate Denver neighborhoods). The restaurant prides itself on being 100% wind-powered, with a veggie-forward menu representing countries from all over the world. I was admittedly skeptical about a restaurant with so many shticks (what even is a “master of remix”?); what about just making good food?

My concerns were quickly put to rest. This ended up being one of the best dining experiences I’ve ever had.

 

 

 

 

 

 

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We began with the Bao Bun Trio. The three buns were: Mongolian BBQ Duck with miso-pickled cucumber and scallion; Char Siu Pork Belly with charred broccoli, snow pea, and water chestnut; and Korean Fried Chicken with kimchi, pickled fresno, and chili aioli. Each one was unique and amazingly balanced, with a bold mix of spicy and umami, not to mention the bao bun itself being fluffy and flavorful.

Next up were the Crisp Filipino Spring Rolls, which had Impossible “meat” along with glass noodles, carrots, and water chestnuts with sides of chili sambal and garlic-vinegar sauce. I definitely couldn’t tell I was eating a plant-based meat. Both sauces had their own complex flavor profiles, and the crunch of the roll was so loud and pronounced that it almost sounded fake. 

Course number three was the Tempura Ginger Chili Shrimp, with a nuoc cham (water, sugar, lime juice, and fish sauce) papaya slaw, pickled veggies, peanuts, and black sesame & scallion aioli. This had a beautifully crunchy texture with a nice mix of tartness and spiciness.

The next thing we got was a real wild card: Roasted Eggplant “Bone Marrow”. It was a chunk of eggplant slow-roasted in a miso glaze to the point that it resembled traditional bone marrow. The texture was melt-in-your mouth tender, and it was a unique twist to spread it on the grilled sourdough.

We saved the best for last with our final course: Wagyu Sliders. Oh my God. That’s the most accurate review I can offer for these pieces of perfection. The wagyu is unbelievably rich. The accoutrements make the sandwiches even better: bacon onion jam, aged cheddar, and curry-dill pickles. They’re paired with the crispiest sweet potato waffle fries you’ll ever eat, which come with a subtly smokey chipotle ketchup.

As for cocktails, I got two throughout the meal, which were very different but equally refreshing. There was the New Saigon, a spicy, sweet, and sour potable of gin (though our waitress suggested I sub it for tequila, which was a brilliant move), lime, basil, jalapeno, and cucumber. Later on, I got the Espresso Martini, which is already one of my favorite drinks. They add cinnamon to theirs, which elevates the taste beyond your run-of-the-mill espresso martini. 

Linger was, top to bottom, one of the most impressive restaurants I’ve ever been to. From the bar to the decor to the service (shout out to Heather, who was a smiling source of wisdom and quality recos), and obviously the food. No dish was strongest or weakest. As people say when describing a Grateful Dead concert, it’s all one song.

We did manage to save a bit of room for what was waiting right next door.

Little Man Ice Cream Co.

Little Man Ice Cream Co is a tribute to the lost art of vintage ice cream stands in the style of Coney Island. It’s impossible to miss the massive 28-foot tall milk jug and the enchanting smell of fresh waffle cones. 

Clearly, few customers did miss them because there was a huge line snaking around the block. Fortunately, an employee pointed us toward the express line, which had only half the flavor options yet was completely empty, so we shaved a lot of time off our wait. I went with a tried and true favorite: strawberry, with several pounds of fresh strawberries in it. I could definitely taste them in each devastatingly fresh lick I had of my cone.

From there, with happy heart and very full stomachs, we walked through Commons Park towards the Coors Field area, where we met a group to jump around to a few different bars: Tap Fourteen, Hayter’s, and Zanzibar. Downtown Denver is surprisingly happening, full of guys with mustaches, almost all transplants from other states.

After all that food, we found it very tough to rally and stay out late, despite the best efforts of the espresso martini. At that point, we called it a night and rested up for one last day of eating.

Sunday

My body had still not adjusted to the two hour time difference so I was wide awake by 5:30 AM. As I spent the next few hours reading and going through all my pictures and videos from the past two days of experiencing Denver, the more I appreciated the city. It essentially combines the excitement and convenience of urban living with the serenity of a smaller town. There’s also the legal weed. That part is cool.

Eventually, my group woke up and we made our way over to breakfast. I had been awake for over five hours at this point, so I was bordering on hangry.

Sassafras American Eatery

Sassafras is located in the Highlands in the historic Dunwoody Home, which was built in 1889. Both the interior and exterior look every bit the relic of an older time. We were told it’d be an hour-plus wait for a table of four, so we had some time to kill; there was a farmer’s market right down the street to help us do just that. Before we left, we stopped by their extensive coffee and booze bar, where their gifted baristas whipped up some impressive concoctions.

Once we made it to the farmer’s market, we walked from vendor to vendor, squeezing through gaggles of shoppers and their (very good) dogs. Our friend Barak suggested a nearby breakfast place that he said had one of the best breakfast sandwiches he’s ever had. Say less, Barak!

Highlands Cork and Cafe

From one historic house to another. Highlands Cork and Cafe is in a quaint 1907 house with a sprawling patio off to the side. There were all kinds of inviting breakfast, lunch, coffee, and wine options, but my heart was set on the sandwich I’d already heard so much about. 

That notorious sandwich is Kiko’s Breakfast Panini. It contains egg, tomato pesto, cream cheese, turkey sausage, and habanero cheddar on grilled ciabatta with a side of fruit. This sandwich right here makes breakfast worth eating. The ciabatta is so nice and crunchy, the habanero cheddar brings a rolling heat that you may not expect, the turkey sausage adds a meaty taste that’s lighter than pork would’ve been, the cream cheese provides a fluffy and creamy layer, and the pesto is packed with garlicky, parmesany, and basily flavor. The way the flavors and textures combine is unlike any breakfast sandwich I’ve had before, and perhaps unlike any I’ll have again.

The side of fruit, however, was literally one slice of cantaloupe, the weakest of the fruits in a fruit salad. At this point, why even offer a side? At least throw a few grapes in!

This meal filled me up for the next several hours, fueling me for my final stretch in Denver, which was spent riding multimodally around the Sloan Lake area (I jumped from scooter to e-bike to scooter, not out of choice, but because each vehicle had some new issues arise). It’s a beautiful neighborhood, where we passed one picturesque vignette after another: kids on swings, dogs playing fetch, couples laying together on rocks, dudes smoking bowls, and plenty of other slices of life. 

Eventually, I grabbed my bag and ventured back to the airport, reuniting with the blue horse of my nightmares. Soon after I settled in by my gate, I was hungry for one more bite. I’m not proud to say that I ended up getting a Spicy Deluxe Crispy Chicken Sandwich from McDonald’s. 

Sometimes after a bold weekend of deep cuts, you need to play the hits.