Mama Mia!

Some times you just crave Italian food. I don't mean pizza, I mean pasta with cheese and garlic and butter and herbs and I'm getting excited just thinking about it!!! In one such occasion where I was majorly jonesing for some Italian fare, I suggested we got to Angelo's on 6th. When I walked in, I was scared at first, it looked a little dingy. But I have never let something like that keep me from a meal. In fact, to any of you who know me well, you know that it takes being ill in a foreign country to keep me from eating. But I digress.
The first thing I insisted on getting was some garlic bread, luckily, they give you your own little loaf, because it came in handy later for sopping up sauce. Yum! I had the lobster ravioli. Pretty hard to mess up, but it has been done before. Not in this case, however. It was awesome! LIke, make you moan a little with every bite, awesome.

coffee anyone???

If you are anything like me, you love coffee. When I say I love coffee, I don't mean that I just love it, I mean that f I could intravenously inject it into my body while drinking it, I would. That being said, I am constantly on the lookout for the perfect cup o' joe, along with the perfect place to drink it. What I have found is that there are different places that are ideal for enjoying different types of coffee. For straight up espresso, I go to Pablo's on 6th because they roast their own coffee and it's awesome. For lattes, iced coffee and anything meant for drinking on the go, I go to Buzz Cafe. And for something exotic, like Turkish coffee, I go to Gypsy House.
Nestled on the corner of 13th and Marion, is this special little jewel know to local residents of capitol hill. It smells of incense before you even walk in the door, and with one step inside you are transported to a different place and time. I myself have lost a whole day in this place. Turkish music, eclectic decor, and did I mention the coffee? I have had Turkish coffee in many places before, I have made it before, so I know what to expect. But every time I take a sip of the Turkish coffee served at Gypsy House, I am in heaven. It is sweet and aromatic, and even a little floral on the tongue. The kind of coffee that makes you feel like you've been socked in the mouth. It is strong but good. Seriously the best coffee ever!!!
This is the perfect example of the family business. Owned by a turkish woman and her two twin daughters; any time of day you will see one, two, or all three of them behind the counter or conversing with other customers. The experience is wonderful, inviting, and memorable. If coffee isn't your thing, they have this awesome tea menu that is designed to match your zodiac sign. If your not really into all of that, don't worry, they won't try to predict your future or anything. Well they might, but I think you have to pay extra for that! Ha! Regardless, try the tea designed just for you and see if it isn't the best tea you've ever had. You can also enjoy breakfast and lunch items, and some delicious desserts. Stop by on a Sunday afternoon and you won't be disappointed.

Pho 95

If you are in any way familiar with Vietnamese food, then you've heard of Pho. Pho is a Vietnamese noodle soup often served with chicken or beef, and in some cases other meats that are definitely for adventurous eaters. Recently my boyfriend became rather obsessed with the stuff and we began driving up and down federal, trying all the Vietnamese restaurants we saw. Pho 95 was where we found the best Pho, best egg rolls and best Vietnamese coffee. And with all this wonderful food, we were happy to see a small tab. They do not serve alcohol, but you probably won't even notice. The food is that good! We always get the filet mignon rare beef Pho and it is awesome! I have paid twice as much at other places and have never had the meat melt in my mouth like it does at Pho 95. As for the egg rolls, they come with more lettuce and trimmings than anywhere else. Always fresh and fast, always delicious!

I haven't written in a while because well, life happens. But I have been eating, and I have some good stuff to share. This post will is all about Seoul Food. "What's with the spelling" you ask? Well if you've ever driven down Sixth Avenue at the intersection of Washington, you'd know what I'm talking about. Uoki, capitol hill's little gem, is my all time favorite sushi restaurant. It is quaint and close to other local fave's but the the menu boasts a selection of items that pack huge flavor. Sushi chef and owner, Mark, welcomes you when you walk in and chances are the specials menue will have some sort of concoction he thought up earlier that day. My boyfriend and I both come in craving the Super Dynamite Roll and the beyond decadent Tempura Fried Cheesecake. Without a doubt the best thing you can imagine when you think of cheesecake. With the exception of dark chocolate dipped frozen key lime cheesecake from Islamorada Florida, but I digress. The food at Uoki is fresh and flavorful, inventive and at times unexpected. It's not the grand sushi boats with millions or pieces of sashimi like you get at other places, it's the creative rolls full to the brim with flavor and the traditional Korean and Japanese cuisine that is truly enjoyable. If your in the mood, stop on in, have some sake, a few rolls and if your still hungry, they've got a special dessert right now that's a sundae with tempura fried bananas and all the trimmings. To die for!!! But bring a friend because even for a big eater like me, it's way too much to stuff into a tummy full of sushi. Oh! and when the weather's nice, they have this cute little patio right on Washington. So got to Uoki for great sushi. Even West Word agrees with me.

Billy's Gourmet Hot Gogs

I know what you're thinking, hot dogs? Really? But hot dogs are about the most well known and well loved food in America. In fact the month of July is national hot dog month! I will admit, I am a huge hot dog fan. And being German, I have a special appreciation for the sausage. Any sausage will do in fact. I frequent the local 7-11, to get my fill and until now have found that nothing beats the old "sevie" when it comes to good dogs. They are cheap, and fresh, and you can load em' up the way you want em'. With a setup so perfect, why then would I even bother to go to a place where I would have to pay more for a hot dog? Two words, Kobe Beef. Upon entering Billy's Gourmet Hot Dogs, on the corner of Broadway and Larimer, it was the second thing that stood out to me. A small sign labeled "specials" and below that the magical words that send any meat lover into a mouth watering frenzy. So, without even looking a their menu, I placed my order. "How would you like that?" What? As I looked around I noticed there wasn't a condiment bar, only a colorful menu still in my hands that I hadn't even bothered to check out. Upon inspection I found that there were many ways to eat a hot dog, ways I hadn't quite considered. There was of course the standard Chicago style which comes with all sorts of your usual toppings, the famous Coney Island style (my favorite), and some new ones. For my first try of gourmet dogs I picked the Tijuana style. It didn't just sound exciting, it was! Pico de gallo, grilled jalapenos, and sour cream on a 100% Kobe Beef hot dog. They forgot the avocado but I didn't care. I was in hot dog heaven!!! Oh, did I mention the dog was wrapped in bacon before they grilled it? Um....amazing!!! Of course anything is great when you add bacon, but this felt like it should have cost $20.00, and it was only $5.oo! Never in my life have I spent more than two bucks on a hot dog and had it been worth the money, until now. The fries were good too, they come four different ways and I can't wait to try them all! Did I also mention that while we were waiting for our dogs they brought us a jalapeno cheddar dog to snack on? I am getting excited just writing this, so I'll stop. But if you want to try a super tasty hot dog that is better than the 7-11 fare, head to Billy's and have one of their creations or have it the way you like. Either way, it will be worth it.

Sweet Action

So by now I'm guessing that anyone who's hip to Denver's dining scene already knows about a sweet lil' place called Sweet Action located on Broadway. If you aren't already aware of this gem than let me fill you in. It is an ice cream store. But not just any ice cream store, it is the best ice cream store ever!!! I should know too because I worked at Bonnie Brae Ice Cream (one of Denver's best and most well known) when I was in high school. What Sweet Action offers is a selection of ice cream that will cater to everyone! They have unique flavors like honey almond orange blossom(my favorite), pink lemonade sorbet, and red velvet cake, or variations of favorites like chocolate chip, cinnamon, peppermint, etc. They also have some vegan flavors for our vegan friends.
The other thing they have that just revs me up is their ice cream sandwiches. These are the reason I decided to check out this place; a friend had told me about them. The first one I tried consisted of ginger cookies with blueberry lavender ice cream ...heaven!!! The flavors were subtle enough that they worked really well together. The only thing I would do would be to make the ginger cookies a little bit more gingery. But nevertheless, it was good enough that I gobbled it up in no time and started craving seconds!
I'm always excited to see what they've made for me to try each time I go in too, because they change the menu a lot. Who knew Ice Cream could be so exciting? Hands down my favorite Ice Cream shop in the whole world, with the exception of this place in Paris I went to when I was 18. But that was than and this is now, and now when I am craving something sweet and don't want to make it myself, I go to Sweet Action.

Cafe Colore

This is my first blog ever and I'm really excited! I was inspired to start blogging tonight at dinner, after quietly critiquing our dining experience to my boyfriend. So bare with me as I dive in.

Having not been to this restaurant before and generally not accustomed to dining downtown, my boyfriend and I went to Cafe Colore with a little reluctance. But we were pleasantly surprised when we walked in. We sat at a cozy little table for two, and by cozy I mean tiny. But the meal made it worthwhile. Starting with a fresh bruschetta topped with basil, garlic, tomatoes, olive oil and balsamic, we were instantly in food heaven. It sounds basic, but when the ingredients are fresh, it's fantastic!

For our entrees I had the pork chop with the champagne and orange reduction and my boyfriend had the steak with an oyster mushroom and sage sauce. Both served with broccolini and mashed potatoes. The steak was amazing! They used fresh sage and fried it rendering an incredible flavor that really complimented the meat. The pork chop was good, but it left me wishing I had gotten the pork chop special instead. The idea of a champagne and orange reduction sounded utterly delectable, but the sauce just fell short. A little on the bland side and not enough of the champagne flavor. I expected something a bit more savory, this was sweet. Not that sweet is bad in savory dishes, but there needs to be balance. Because the sauce was a little lackluster, it really made the small amount of black pepper on the pork chop stand out too much. By the end of dinner I found myself running my meat across my boyfriend's plate to get his sauce!
After a tiny entree upset, I had to get back to a food high with a great dessert. We split the chocolate mousse pie. All I can say about that is anything with an Oreo cookie crust is at the top of my list. It was denser than normal chocolate mousse which made the pie even more decadent!