Confession

Ok, so I haven't been the most well-behaved this week. In addition to breakfast at Snooze Monday and dinner at Fruition Tuesday, I also had a burrito bol at Chipotle for dinner yesterday, and lunch at Parallel 17 today. Lunch today, I'm afraid, was followed by a girls' trip to the 7-11 across the street for some Haagen Dazs. I am afraid to step on the scale.

Fruition - A Hitch in the Get-along?

I'd been eye-ing Fruition's summer menu a bit, since I hadn't been there in a couple of months. What caught my eye especially was the new black cod entree. For the uninitiated, black cod is an insanely buttery-rich, flaky fish that is actually not a cod at all. It has recently been "discovered" by gourmet restaurants everywhere and has appeared on many a notable menu. (Just for the record though, I was eating black cod before black cod was cool. My mom used to buy it at the Asian grocery store and cook it at home way before anyone else knew what it was!) Here in Denver, the best specimens I've found have been at Sushi Den and Zengo, but almost any place you look now, you can find some version of a miso black cod dish.

At Fruition, they were advertising a pan roasted black cod with orecchiette pasta, vegetables, mushrooms, and truffle oil - a small departure from the Asian flair that most black cod dishes wield. It intrigued me, and as I never pass up the opportunity to eat black cod, I made a reservation for a Tuesday evening. Mr. M and I were in need of a date night anyway, and this was just as good an excuse as any.

We arrived and were seated at the back corner banquette table. Not my favorite - it feels a little cramped, and the people beside you can definitely hear every word of your conversation, but maybe it's supposed to create a communal atmosphere.

We started with the chilled heirloom tomato soup with burrata grilled cheese - very fresh and summer-y tasting. We also tried the pasta carbonara, which was also quite good; the house-cured pork belly was truly a thing of beauty.

I ordered the black cod (of course), and Mr. M ordered the beef (of course). The beef was good, not great, yet the duck-fat fries were definitely great (how could they not be?). Mr. M loved the accompanying Fourme d'ambert cheese crumbles too.

Yet lo and behold, the fish that arrived on my plate resembled nothing like any black cod I'd ever seen or eaten before! Frankly, it was overcooked and rather tasteless. I had a few bites, then called the server over and expressed concern. Unfortunately, he had neglected to inform me that the kitchen was out of black cod and was serving striped bass instead...

I have actually never done this before (I'm always too "nice"), but I sent my plate back to the kitchen and asked for a different meal. Not only was it not what I had ordered, it was not cooked well either. I felt embarrassed, even though I don't think I should have. Only a few minutes later, a plate of diver scallops arrived, perfectly cooked. The fennel salad served on top was a tad sour for my taste, but the scallops themselves were excellent. The server apologized for his mistake, and my second meal arrived quickly, but that was the end of it. Maybe that was all I should have expected, but for a restaurant of that caliber, I would have thought maybe a small appetizer, dessert, or glass of wine would have been added to our meal gratis. But there was no further mention of the incident.

We left satisfied but a bit disappointed also. As you've read, I've been pretty impressed with Fruition up until this point. And every restaurant and its waiters can have "off" nights. But I guess I didn't expect it of a nationally-recognized place that's been impeccable up until now. It's funny - it takes a rather small gesture to smooth over a mistake like this, and when restaurants neglect to do it, they potentially lose some repeat business. Though I can't say I won't go back and give it another shot (mostly because of their transcendent appetizers), I'm sure not itching to go anytime soon...

For the first time, I'm going to actively solicit comments - what do you think? Was I right to send my plate back? Is what they did in response "enough", or am I too greedy and demanding in expecting more? I know I have high expectations, but aren't they justified when I'm dropping $50 per person on a meal? And do you think someone from the kitchen spat in my scallops? (I've been wondering that.) Let the debate begin...

Brief thoughts on Snooze

Met a girlfriend for breakfast at Snooze today. Snooze has been the latest Denver breakfast darling, and though its location may not be the greatest, the inside is great fun, and the menu pretty much makes you drool. I'd never been on a weekday before and was pleasantly surprised not to see the line snaking out the door as on the weekends. We had one of the round circular tables to ourselves. Though we were seated immediately, service was a bit lacking. However, I enjoyed their coffee and the company of my dining companion enough that it didn't matter so much. My friend had the (enormous) whole wheat blueberry pancakes, which looked great. I had breakfast tacos with chorizo, and they were also quite good. Much better than the huevos rancheros, which were a bit disappointing to me on prior visits. I still haven't been able to order any of the sweet entrees (pineapple upside down pancakes, molten chocolate french toast, snickers pancakes) myself, as I'm not sure I could handle such a large sugar load so early in the morning. Too bad they're not open late at night, 'cause they sound like they'd be great for dessert.

Lunch for one

I took myself out to lunch today. After working all night, I felt like treating myself to a little something special. Life sometimes can be a bit much, so it's such a good thing for me to get away by myself to either process some things or just to relax.

Boulder is a great getaway because it's so close - just 30 minutes, and I feel like I'm away. It also is home to one of my favorite restaurants, The Kitchen. It's a place with great food, a nice vibe, and free Wi-Fi!! (So I can sit here blogging on my MacBook, looking like I'm working. I have them all fooled...)

Today, I had a half portion of the Abbondanza salad - a special salad of butter lettuce, creamy chevre, crispy bacon, and fresh sweet peaches. Yum. I also ordered the proscuitto and burrata flatbread - something on the menu that I've had my eye on for a long time but have never ordered. The flatbread was soft on the top and nice and crispy on the bottom, perfect. It was delicately draped with thin slices of proscuitto, then covered with dollops of fresh burrata. Burrata, for those unfamiliar, is a fresh Italian cheese that's basically mozzarella with cream; thus it tastes like a softer, more creamy, liquid-y mozzarella. The burrata was cool, added after the flatbread was baked, and then the whole dish was drizzled with a bit of olive oil. This was a masterpiece - the salty, rich proscuitto, the soft and crispy bread, and the cool, creaminess of the burrata combined to make my mouth sing in celebration and turn cartwheels in joy. Ok, I'm exaggerating. (But just a little.)

Before I admit that I had dessert and coffee too, I have to add this little self-congratulatory note: since I got back from Las Vegas and Mr. M and I had our talk about saving money by trying to eat out less, I've lost 5 pounds. Now, that's just a pound a week, but it's definitely made a difference. Now, I would never be one to advise people to eat out less - I appreciate good food and good restaurants way too much to do that. But for me, that one small change, painful as it has been, has at least had an "up" side as well.

Anyway, to celebrate, I did splurge and have angel food cake with Chantilly cream and fresh strawberries. And coffee. Because you can only deprive yourself so much.

I bet I just gained those 5 pounds back.

Fish tacos

From some leftover salmon that I had, I made some delicious and healthy fish tacos. I filled white corn tortillas with the fish and topped them with salsa and the roasted red pepper sauce that I'd had leftover from the kabobs. Easy as pie.

Sushi Den 2?

My mom came to visit this past weekend. One of my family's favorite things to do when visiting us in Denver is enjoying a meal at Sushi Den. Obligingly, we planned our outing for Saturday evening.

On arrival at around 6:30, there was already a line out the door. Mr. M stood patiently in line for one of the privileged talking beepers and was told that the wait would be 30-45 minutes; however, if we were so inclined, we could be seated immediately down the street to their newly opened sister restaurant (or stepchild?), Izakaya Den.

We decided to walk down to check it out while waiting for a table. We walked in to find an extremely harried hostess with nary a smile or greeting for us as we entered. I asked to see a menu, and one was unceremoniously plunked down in front of me with a sigh. I perused it briefly, then dared to ask to see the sushi menu as well. The one that was proffered showed most of the basic nigiri, including toro and uni, but nothing really special.

We looked around the restaurant - it's actually a decent space, especially the small slightly crowded patio in the front, enclosed on three sides with the fourth being a tiny bamboo fence. It looked like a pleasant spot to share drinks and snacks with friends. There was a large bar and sushi bar as well.

One of the waitresses approached us and asked if we'd like a table. I asked her more about the sushi and was told that the nigiri is the same as we would get across the street. We decided to sit and try it out.

When we were seated, another sushi menu (much abbreviated from the first) was handed to me, missing some of my favorites - I'm not really sure why it was different. When I asked the server about it, she said that this menu contained everything that was available that day from the sushi bar. I looked over the regular dinner menu, and though it might have appealed to me on a different day at a different time, I had my mind already set on sushi. My mouth was watering for some buttery rich toro, some briny uni, and maybe something new from the chef specials menu. We regrettably informed our server that we would be waiting for our table at Sushi Den instead.

By that time, a spot at the sushi bar at Sushi Den had opened up, and we were seated immediately. We enjoyed the Japanese Wasabi appetizer - fresh bincho with real wasabi (not the powdered kind) grated over the top, then ordered a ton of nigiri and some sushi rolls. We splurged on 2 pieces of toro each and also tried the fresh kodai and kampudai from the chef's menu, both which were excellent. As is our usual, we blew $60 per person in under an hour.

Maybe one day, when I'm not in the mood for sushi (though when would that be?), I'll go back and try Izakaya Den - they had some interesting-sounding dishes on the menu, and if your taste for sushi is limited to your routine tuna and salmon nigiri, I'm sure it would be fine. But if you're serious about sushi, I would skip Izakaya and just stick with the tried and true.

Lunch, if you're beautiful enough...

I strolled through Cherry Creek North yesterday, walking to meet a friend for lunch at North. Along the 2 short blocks that I walked from my car to the restaurant, at least eight tall, beautiful, willowy-thin women in designer clothes, the latest "it" handbags, and three-and-a-half inch Jimmy Choos passed me by. No kidding. Sure, there were plenty of regular joes like me around, walking their dogs or just enjoying the first day of respite from the 100-degree weather we've had the past week. Being me, of course, I had donned a plain denim skirt and T-shirt, wore my sunglasses as a headband, and slid into my comfy Born sandals before running out the door. In the restaurant, it was even worse. This may possibly be the only place in casual Denver where you can feel under-dressed for lunch.

Attire concerns aside, we had a lovely lunch. The modern decor, sexy vibe, and large picture windows looking onto a gorgeous summer day made for a pleasing backdrop against which we enjoyed our meal. The bread and roasted red pepper spread they bring to the table is always a low-carb-diet buster. We split the "Tutta la casa" salad - a chopped salad with goodies like capers, onions, proscuitto, salami, and gorgonzola nestling in the soft mounds of romaine. We also split the roasted eggplant pizza, with a thin crispy crust and a faint scent of truffle oil adorning the simple cubes of aubergine. The damage was only $13 per person, which is a good thing. If I want to keep eating here, I'll have to step up my wardrobe...

Great Easy Company Recipes

I'm usually a little anal when it comes to having people over to the house for dinner. I'm not really sure why - maybe it's personality, maybe it's pride, maybe it's the pressure I put on myself to serve a great meal because everyone knows I love food so much. Whatever the case may be, I generally don't like to try recipes for the very first time when company comes over, for what if disaster strikes and it doesn't turn out well? As I've quoted in a previous post, when company comes, "cook what you know". So occasionally, I'll put together an entire dinner as if company was coming over, when actually, the only guests are myself and the dashing Mr. M. He is my guinea pig, so to speak, but far be it from him to complain about it.

Last night, I wanted to try something summery and quick - something I could put together even if I was having people over on a weekday night after work. I decided on a menu of grilled kebabs with a roasted red pepper dipping sauce, along with an orzo salad with feta, basil, pine nuts, green onions, and cherry tomatoes.

The orzo salad is from a recipe that appeared last spring in Bon Appetit magazine and is one of Giada De Laurentiis's (the famous, top-heavy, Food Network celebrity chef that can't possibly eat anything she makes) recipes. That aside, it is actually one of my go-to dishes for company already. I've made it tons of times before and am really comfortable with it, but I wanted to see how it would go with the kebabs. The recipe is quite simple, and just by reading it, you'd never believe how good it is when it comes out. I don't modify a thing. Really, you have to try it to believe it, even if you're not usually a fan of pasta salad! I made it with fresh basil and tomatoes from our garden, which makes a difference I think. The only thing you cook is the pasta - everything else is just mixed in, so it comes together so easily. You can make this an hour or two in advance and let it sit at room temperature to let the flavors mix, mellow, and meld...

I was inspired to make the kebabs from this post from one of my favorite food blogs. I simplified it just a bit and modified it to accommodate what I had and didn't have in the house and garden. (I unfortunately didn't have any extra lemons to use as suggested in her blog post, but I can't wait to try it for next time.) I used:

16 oz whole white button mushrooms
1 large red bell pepper cut in large squares
2 small zucchini (of course) cut in one inch thick coins
1 package extra firm tofu cut in cubes
1 red onion cut into 8 wedges (helps to leave them attached to the root end)
half of a big thick steak, cut in cubes - (omit if there are vegetarians, use more if there are carnivores coming)

I threaded these prettily onto 4 oiled extra long metal skewers. I drizzled them with olive oil, seasoned with salt and pepper, and sent them outside with Mr. M, who grilled them to perfection.

Meanwhile, I made a roasted red pepper dipping sauce for the kebabs. Not having quite all the ingredients for the sauce suggested in the aforementioned blog recipe (who the hell has pomegranate molasses hanging around in the pantry?), I made do with what I had. Into my food processor went:

1 jar roasted red bell peppers (without the juice)
large handful of pine nuts
the leftover tofu that didn't fit on the skewers
a dollop of my thick homemade Greek-style yogurt that I keep in the fridge
a bit of hot smoked paprika (wonderful stuff!)
salt to taste

I whizzed all of this together, tasting as I went, and discovered it was quite nice. I poured it in a small bowl to serve with the kebabs.

When we served up our dinner, there were beautiful palettes of summery colors on our plates. It was delicious - the smoky kebabs went very nicely with the creamy but light red pepper sauce, and the lemony orzo salad complemented and rounded out the meal well. And the only thing I had to do on the stove was boil pasta!!

I can't wait to try this out on my next unsuspecting guests. Anyone want to come over?

Puppy Pics

Totally unrelated to food, yet the cause of much fun and laughter (as well as much potty training and crate training consternation) around our house the past couple weeks, is our new puppy. Maybe it's mommy's pride, but I think she's the cutest thing ever.

Tomato Basil omelet

It may surprise some of you to know that Mr. M is actually a pretty good cook. He is a master on the grill, but his second specialty is breakfast.

This morning, he went out to the garden and harvested some of the beautiful red tomatoes that are ripening in the sun this month. He also grabbed some generous handfuls of basil - our plants are going crazy despite one huge batch of pesto I already made just a few weeks ago! He chopped the tomatoes and basil, then some red onion. He sauteed the onions over medium heat until they were caramelized.

He then made a beautiful 3-egg omelet for each of us, stuffed to bursting with mozzarella cheese, the sweet, caramelized onions, the sun-warm, ripe tomatoes, and the pungent fresh basil. With some fresh ripe Rocky Ford cantaloupe on the side, it was quite the heavenly breakfast.

Family-style Italian

A friend's birthday was this weekend, and she was requesting Italian. She'd never been to Carmine's on Penn, but I had celebrated many a friend's birthday there, and the noisy, boisterous, festive atmosphere would be just right for our little party.

Something that is a bit annoying about Carmine's is that the menu is posted on a large chalkboard (for example, "Pasta Boscaiolo") without any explanations of what each dish is. I suppose that the regulars never have to ask, but our friends had never been here, and I had a hard time remembering. Our server, however, was great about patiently explaining the ingredients of each dish. The food is served family-style in insanely large portions. Eventually, after much discussion with our server, we ordered a Caesar salad (pretty standard, nothing special), the Pasta Boscaiolo (spaghetti with portobello, spinach, and some other veggies - really good) and the Chicken Pazzo (chicken scallopines with eggplant and cheese on top - also very good). It was PLENTY of food for the four of us - we never came close to finishing the salad or the pasta. We enjoyed a bottle of Italian white - a Tocai blend - that was very good. For dessert, we split a cookie thing with fruit and cream on top - yum. The meal came to about $130. Which included the free entertainment. Yes, really - there was no extra charge for the loud slurred conversations peppered with episodic bouts of ear-splitting belly laughs from drunken patrons at nearby tables. Can you believe it? It all adds to the fun-loving atmosphere to be had at Carmine's. Happy Birthday, M!!!

Season's Eatings

Mr. M and I hit Potager tonight with some friends of ours who live in Evergreen. Being that our friends are mountain folk with two young kids (and we are DINKs in Central Denver), it's not often that we get together with them, so we felt privileged to go out on the town with them. I hadn't been to Potager at all for the past year, but a friend recently went and raved to me about the late summer menu, and I was inspired.

In case you've never heard of it, Potager is a lovely little place on a tucked-away corner in Capitol Hill. The chef, Teri Rippeto, has been called "the Alice Waters of Denver", due to her devotion to fresh, seasonal ingredients and locally farmed produce. The menu changes every month or so to showcase whatever happens to be growing at that time. Though this emphasis has become "trendy" in recent years, Potager is anything but trendy. This restaurant seems really genuine in it's love for good, local, fresh ingredients, and they're not just doing it to be cutting edge.

Mr. M and I showed up early and sipped a glass of bubbly at the long concrete L-shaped counter-height bar (which I love). The bar overlooks the open kitchen, where bowls of ripe peaches and bundles of fresh produce were in abundance. The atmosphere is light, airy, peaceful, and classy without an ounce of pretension. When our friends arrived, we grabbed a table out on the patio. There is a beautiful garden out back, perfect for enjoying a summer evening meal. We pored over the menu, having a hard time deciding what to order, as everything sounded so good. Eventually, we decided on mostly small plates with a couple of entrees to placate the boys.

We had a wonderfully fresh and crisp green bean salad with fried onions and nasturtium flowers - excellent. The goat cheese souffle was delicate, light, and full of flavor - I could have had one to myself. A nice corn pancake, some ruby-red house cured salmon, and some yummy lamb meatballs gracing the table as well. Portions of the appetizers were on the small side. The two entrees of steak and fish were eaten mostly by the guys, though I did sneak a taste of Mr. M's steak, which was really good. We had one bottle of Viognier with our dinner that was just okay to my taste. For dessert, we split the peach berry cobbler and a buttery, delicious almond cake. All in all, the damage was about $50-60 per person - definitely not cheap. But it was some of the best food we've had. At least this week.

Quick and Easy Stroganoff

In a hurry tonight to get dinner ready, I decided to make a quick, easy, healthier version of a childhood favorite. I boiled some salted water for some whole wheat linguine pasta. While that was going, I sliced some sweet Walla Walla onions and some steak into thin strips. I sauteed the onions first, carmelizing them until they were brown and gooey. I then browned the steak strips and seasoned them with salt and pepper, which took only a few minutes. I then deglazed the pan with a generous pour of red wine, scraping up the brown bits from the bottom. Finally, I added a couple good-sized dollops of my homemade yogurt, whisking it in off the heat. The sauce was creamy and rich without all the fat of sour cream or heavy cream. I served this over the whole wheat linguine, and dinner was ready in the blink of an eye.

The Un-glorious Transformation

If you haven't heard, Sketch in Cherry Creek closed and miraculously turned into a new restaurant in just 3 weeks. When I heard this, I was sad that my June 19th post seemed to be a harbinger of bad things to come for Sketch, but I can't say I didn't see it coming given the lack of butts in the seats. I was also amazed that it could undergo a transformation in such a short amount of time. The location now houses a restaurant called Tambien, run by those who also opened Mezcal on Colfax and Chama in Belmar. There was a big ad in the Westword last week saying there would be happy hour all weekend at Tambien in celebration of its grand opening.

Mr. M and I decided to check it out today, as we are fans of Mezcal. The dining room had been dressed down a bit and opened up past that lovely wine wall that I'd always loved about Sketch. Overall, the menu is almost an exact duplicate of the menu at Mezcal. The house margaritas didn't compare to those at Mezcal either. We ordered the chips and 3 salsas (a bit of something new - a green tomatillo, smoky chipotle, and honey habanero) which were good. The queso and tacos we had were also good, but if we'd wanted to go to Mezcal, we would have gone to Mezcal. It quickly became clear to me how they had turned the restaurant around so fast: they basically copied everything from their other restaurant and opened a Mezcal 2. Unfortunately, as with most sequels (with the very notable exception of The Bourne Ultimatum), this one was not as good as the first.

I'm disappointed and will actually miss Sketch, especially given what it's become. I likely won't be returning for awhile. The only question I have is: what did Sketch do with all that wine, and will they give some of it to me?

Mish-smash

A rather boring food week and weekend was had due to the arrival of a new family member - an 8-week old puppy we named Naia, after one of our favorite Spanish white wines. Anyway, all I have to say is that it's a good thing that puppies and babies are so cute, because otherwise no one would ever want one.

We did make it to another Botanic Gardens concert where we thoroughly enjoyed sipping a fabulous 2005 Pra Soave (an Italian white) while listening to Patty Griffin.

This afternoon, Mr. M was hungering for a good old-fashioned hamburger. We stopped at Smashburger, a new burger joint in a strip mall at Colorado and Mississippi. Overall, it's a good concept - a step up from your generic fast food chain, where you order at the counter and the burgers are brought to the table; the place also has a liquor license. There is a choice of everything from burger size, bun, cheese, sauce, and fixin's. The burger was pretty good, and the fixin's seemed fresh. The service was somewhat lacking in that Mr. M, while looking for something to dress up his fries, could not find a single full bottle of ketchup in the restaurant. When he brought this to the attention of the staff, they proceeded to bring him yet another mostly empty ketchup bottle for him to puzzle over. A burger done exactly to your specifications, with any of the toppings, is less than $5. Pretty decent meal, if that's what you're in the mood for. Still can't hold a candle to the burgers at the Cherry Cricket, but I really don't think they're competing in the same category, so how can you compare? Good if you want a step up from Mickey-D's but don't want sit-down service at the Cricket.

This evening, I went over to a friend's place, and she treated me to a hearty meal of Cincinnati chili, made from the cans of sauce sold by Skyline chili. For some reason, it seemed better this time around than when I had it in Cincinnati last month, maybe because I wasn't eating it in a fast-food dining room. All that was missing was a scoop of Graeter's ice cream!