BEHIND THE PETE'S: An Exclusive Interview With Illegal Pete's Virgil Dickerson

Illegal Pete's successfully brought an end to the great Burrito deficit of the mid 90's in Colorado. We no longer have to fret about both frosted tips or the absence of good mission style Mexican food. At the forefront of the sustained efforts of Illegal Pete's stands the one, the only: the Virgil. 

In an exclusive tell all with the man who does all and knows all things Denver, we get the inside scoop about ingredient sourcing, secret menu items, and why Illegal Pete's is so special. 

Photo: Travel Channel

U5280: What does the average patron doesn't know about Illegal Pete's?

VIRGIL DICKERSON: Many patrons don't know about our Starving Artist Program (where we feed any out of town band for free when they come through Colorado and Arizona), that we have a record label (with 10 bands and 3 comedians), and that we are partners in festivals (High Plains Comedy Festival and Dusk Music Festival). We also do fundraisers every month at every store where we raise funds for non-profits. We do month long fundraisers for Youth on Record and The Joshua School. And on Colorado Gives Day, we partner with a different, local non-profit at every location. 

U5280: Illegal Pete's has been making itself at home in Colorado since the mid 90's. What were the early days like?

VIRGIL DICKERSON: In those early days, I didn't work for Pete's, but I was a patron. The first store was tiny and at first did not have a bar. The second location on Pearl Street wasn't much bigger, but they opened up with a bar. In those days, when you were in line, you usually knew many of the people in line. There wasn't breakfast then, but we always had late night and late nights on the Hill and on Pearl were always nuts. 

U5280: Illegal Pete's is a company with a lot of heart. What aspects of the company model help create the friendly, personable and relaxed environment? 

VIRGIL DICKERSON: It all starts with Pete. Pete is one of those rare business owners who puts his people above profits. It's not that he doesnt' believe in profits, but he makes decisions based on whether it's the right decision and not necessarily the decision that will make the most money. This is why when I asked Pete to start a Starving Artist program and give bands half off of food, he said why not give bands free food. Pete recently did a wage increase across the entire company last year to ensure that all of  his staff were earning a living wage and recently rolled out a 401K. These is not common for the restaurant industry. 

U5280: What gets older: eating burritos everyday, or hearing burrito jokes every day? 

VIRGIL DICKERSON: Oh man, that's a great question. I don't eat burritos every day (not sure if there is everything I could eat every day) and luckily I don't hear burrito jokes every day. Come to think of it, I'd like to hear more burrito jokes in my life. Have any? 

U5280: What efforts does Illegal Pete's make to source good food? 

VIRGIL DICKERSON: We are always striving to find the very best ingredients. We source our pork and beef from Creekstone. Creekstone never uses hormones or antibiotics. Our tortillas have no artificial flavors and no preservatives. We do our best to recognize the dietary needs of our customers. Recently, we replaced pine nuts with pumpkin seeds as people with nut allergies are able to eat pumpkin seeds.  

U5280: The Starving Artist program feeds touring musicians every day who roll through town. How did the concept come about? 

VIRGIL DICKERSON: In my former life, I ran a record label called Suburban Home. I used to tour with my bands and on one stop in Santa Fe, the promoter told us to check out Fred's Brread because they gave touring bands half off their food. We ate there, it was great, and I never forgot about that restaurant. Fast forward to 2010 when I started working for Illegal Pete's, I asked Pete if we could give touring bands half off food. As I mentioned above, he said why not give bands food for free and we haven't looked back. In 2015, we fed over 400 bands and I thin we will feed over 700 bands this year. 

U5280:  Illegal Pete's has done a lot to support local music. What shows should we put on our calendars for November? 

VIRGIL DICKERSON: I'd say that if you have not yet seen Brent Cowles or the Still Tide, they are two of Greater Than's more recent acts and they are both incredible. You should just go to any local show you can. I could list about a hundred local acts that I adore and still so many more to see. 

U5280: Any secrets to the Pete's menu? 
Well, we have secret menu items. While I'd like to share them with your readers, we prefer our customers to find out about these items by word of mouth or randomly. We can't wait for you to find these items on your own. 

U5280:  Illegal Pete's is a restaurant built on good combos: freshly grilled meat, house-prepped salsas, great guac. Then there's the company: good people, good music, and good food. It seems like the Pete's team has figured life out. Impart the wisdom! Tell us the perfect Pete's burrito we have yet to try.

VIRGIL DICKERSON: I think if you ask anyone at Pete's, you are likely to get a different answer each time. I typically get burrito bowls, but when I do have burritos, they are almost always one of two burritos: a pork carnitas potato burrito or a big fish burrito. 

U5280: Any thing left to impart on the Pete's fiends? 

VIRGIL DICKERSON: Well, we are looking to grow Illegal Pete's to other cities and possibly other states over the next 4 years. Our first out of state location, in Tucson, Arizona, is going incredibly well. We hope to open locations in Tempe, Flagstaff, and possibly Phoenix. My personal wish list includes Portland, Austin, and Seattle. We have some fun projects in the works that I hope see the light in 2017. It's going to be another fun year! 

 

GABF: Beer, Beer, and More Beer!

The Great American Beer Festival rolled through Denver last weekend, sending a shockwave of beer lovers into our streets, breweries and bars. The GABF spirit was felt all across the mile high, but we dared to venture into the swarming epicenter of the Colorado Convention center to give you the low-down on the nation’s largest and most-loved beer festival. 

To an outsider, the festival might seem like nothing more than pretzel necklaces and a beer holiday. The festival is in fact the most esteemed judging ceremony for breweries nationwide, large and small. It saw it’s 35th birthday this year, it hosted nearly 800 different breweries, and it’s awards leave lasting impacts on our national beer scene. Its awards are pared out by an elite panel of judges have the ability to make or break a brewery, and this year over one hundred different beers left decorated in silver, bronze and gold. For the full list of awarded beers, click here. 

Photo: Matthew Smith

Colorado is known to be a craft beer destination, and tons of local breweries were representing this weekend. Breckenridge Brewery, Denver Beer Co, Fermaentra, Dry Dock, Black Shirt Brewing, New Belgium, and the list goes on. The "Napa Valley of Beer" not only created the festival, but has helped build a craft and microbrew culture that spreads from sea to shining sea. 

Basically, more medals equal more credentials for up and coming brewers, and for those who don’t have the chance (or the tolerance) to sample every single beer, these medals give us a necessary steer in the right direction. Not to say that this festival is all stern faces and serious beer talk; the GABF is at once a make or break moment for breweries and a party. When you’re in the business of beer, it’s all about having fun too, and the GABF is proof.

I spoke with Greg the home-brew knowledge guru and member of the national GJCP about his favorite aspects of GABF. He called the festival the “longest running, annual gathering of beer geeks.” He takes his beer seriously, but the heart of the festival was the reason he attends. For Greg, the festival is a time to reconnect with once-a-year-friends, and to share a really good up-and-coming craft beer. He was buzzed on the energy in the air, not just the brews. The GABF has been bringing friends and beer enthusiasts together for decades, transcending from a tasting spree into a tradition, and creating strong connections between breweries across the nation. It’s a microcosm of the beer community at large, and it’s simply really, really fun. 

Photo: Matthew Smith

Photo: Matthew Smith

Photo: Matthew Smith

The festival goers were kilt-sporting, rung with pretzel necklaces, and all in good spirits. I stopped to chat with a brewer from Hopworks of the Pacific Northwest about the attendees. They iterated, “Everyone here is stoked. Drunk people are prone to fight, but no one has. There’s a strong sense of comradery, everybody’s happy.” 

Photo: Matthew Smith 

In terms of logistics, the festival was a crowded swarm of costumes and shoulders to navigate through; some lines spilling out into the alley-space and it was sometimes a test of patience and dedication. It goes without disagreement, though, that the convention center, despite it’s inevitable, unavoidable closeness, was extremely well organized. Free water stations were spaced between every twenty or so booths. Huge signs marking every section and easily understood maps left little room for confusion. The crowd was heavy, but that’s to be expected. 
The flock gathered often at hot-spot breweries, and the best breweries were sometimes dry within the first couple of hours of a session. The flock was a permanent fixture for Black Project Brewing, a local South Broadway brewery who touts their wild caught microbes and meticulous brewing practices. The line was over twenty minutes, but it was well worth the wait. On the upside of things, the flock would coagulate in pockets, leaving a lot of little known, great booths open for conversation and slow sampling. As long as you knew the patterns of the flock and which beers were worth the wait for, you were home free.

This festival is a chance to refine your tastes and discover what makes American beer special. Also, it’s the perfect chance to finally break out that old kilt you’ve been hiding in the back of your closet. Regardless of what you string on your pretzel necklace, the GABF welcomes all beer-weirdos and weird beers, so if you have the chance to snatch up a ticket for a session next year, don’t wait until it's too late! 

Photo: Matthew Smith

Photo: Matthew Smith

Photo: Matthew Smith

Check out GABF's photo gallery to see if you made it in. If not, there's always next year! 

Wine & Dine for a Very Fine Cause

The Denver Food + Wine Festival (DF+WF) celebrates its twelfth consecutive year September 6-11. A multi-day extravaganza showcasing talented chefs from across the state and their creative culinary creations served alongside hundreds of wines and spirits.

Photo credit Nick Adorni

The weeklong festival will feature an array of events ranging from $40 up to $250 for a VIP experience. DF+WF is co-sponsored by the Colorado Restaurant Association and Southern Wine and Spirits and is the only food and wine festival of which all proceeds directly benefit charities. Beneficiaries this year are Kroenke Sports Charities, MSU Denver, Denver Post Community Foundation, and The Colorado Restaurant Assc. Education Foundation. You know how we like to wine and dine for a good cause!

Photo credit Nick Adorni

The Festival’s Grand Tasting hallmark event is Saturday, September 10, 2016 held on the grounds of The Pepsi Center (7th Avenue and Auraria Parkway), opening at noon for those who bought a “First Tasting” ticket, 1pm for GA until 4pm. The Grand Tasting unites Colorado’s culinary leaders – award winning chefs, mixologists and wine professionals – and leads guests on a culinary journey through the state’s acclaimed, and expanding, dining scene. The open layout allows guests to eat, drink and explore the creations of more than 40 top restaurants and more than 700 wines and spirits from the region’s most lauded wine professionals. In addition to wine there will be heavy hitting libations such as an array of Devotion and Hanson Vodka flavors, Dulce Vida organic tequilas, Leopold Bros. many spirits, Old Smoky Distillery’s Moonshine, and locals Spring 44. For guests interested in additional unique experiences, the VIP Lounge at DF+WF will feature specialty wines selected by Southern Wine & Spirits Master Sommeliers, paired with tastes from 12 upscale restaurants, Viking Culinary Stage demonstrations by celebrity award-winning Chefs, and a silent auction.

Photo credit Nick Adorni

Favorites returning from past Grand Tastings include Patrón Spirits Bar & Café; Woody Creek Lounge; Campari Tiki Lounge; Deutsch Redemption tent; Treasury Wine Estates; Trinchero Family Estates; and an Absolute Vodka tent. Sounds like we should prepare for some serious day drinking!

New Attractions to this year’s Grand Tasting event include the Elijah Craig and Heaven Hill Bourbon + Bluegrass Lounge. Local bluegrass band, Lonesome Days will be playing while Elijah Craig bourbon will be pouring. Guest can also chat with Lynn House, Heaven Hill Brands’ national brand educator and master mixologist. If you’re a regular pizza eat/maker, you’ll enjoy the Weber Mobile Grill Academy with specialists providing interactive “best techniques” to grill pizza. For those food fanatics who love the entertainment and celebrity side of things, you’ll want to periodically stop by the Wolf Specialty Appliance Culinary Stage featuring Chef/Owner Giorgio Rapicavoli, Eating House, Bravo’s Chopped winner, Forbes’s “30 Under 30” for food, and James Beard Rising Star Semifinalist!

Photo credit Juliette Coughlin

The night before the big Grand Tasting is a fun Friday night cocktail party and contest on Pepsi Center property! Celebrity bartenders from the Colorado Bartenders’ Guild will compete for the title of Denver’s “Best Cocktail” Friday Sept. 9th during SHAKE DOWN. This will be a Southern-inspired evening of soulful bites and cocktails, paired with live music while eleven local celebrity bartenders compete for guest votes for the “Best Cocktail in Denver.”

For those who love to brunch, and with all of Denver’s amazing breakfast spots it’s hard not to, Sunday, September 11 is the first annual festival dedicated to brunch, Rise + Dine. It will showcase the city’s favorite morning eateries such as Lou’s Food Bar, Corner Office, McLoughlin’s, Rosenberg’s Bagels, Sarto’s, Snooze, Syrup, and The Squeaky Bean. Attendees are encouraged to wear pajamas while noshing on food, enjoying mimosas and striving to make the most impressive Bloody Mary. In fact, you could be a part of Bloody Mary history! The DF+WF Bloody Mary bar will be competing for the world record of “Largest Bloody Mary Bar,” by featuring more than 57 accouterments this year. Truly a once in a lifetime brunch opportunity!

Photo credit Nick Adorni

Tickets are still available for all of the events https://denverfoodandwine.com/event-schedule/ and they can be purchased here: https://nightout.com/festivals/3612/events/tickets#.V8XsCixTHct

Saturday’s Grand Tasting Restaurants:
Ameristar Resort & Casino
Bistro Colorado
Carbon Café & Bar
Colorado ProStart
Colorado Western University
Degree Restaurant
Del Friscos Grille
Froozer
Grimaldi’s Pizzeria
Jill’s Restaurant
Jim N’ Nicks BBQ
La Patisserie Francaise
Lavazza/Italco Foods
Luke’s A Steak Place
Maggianos
Nature Nate’s Honey
The Oceanaire Seafood Room
Postinos
Range Restaurant
Rhein Haus Denver
River & Woods-Open Blue Cobia
Simms Steakhouse
Skinny Pop
Solitaire Restaurant- Woody Creek
Texas de Brazil
The Fort
The Noshery
Uno Mas

-Tiffany Candelaria

 

 

Lifestyle | The Dawn of Immersive, Experiential Theater in Denver

Ultra5280 was invited to a sneak peek, trial-run performance of the new “360-degree, multi-sensory experience” that is “Sweet & Lucky”. While this article will give you a much better idea than we had, there’s no way we could (or would) describe in words what the “Sweet & Lucky” experience truly was. For starters, everyone’s experience is different. . .

The fact that this immersive theater experience has made it to Denver is a compliment to us Coloradoans. It is a signal to the country that Denver has a palate the size of New York that longs to be satiated. With a bursting food, art and music scene paired with an attitude of possibilities, Denver has been making our tastes known. Zach Morris, co-creational director from the New York company, Third Rail Projects, joined his hometown of Denver to bring our city the experience we have been craving. "We're interested in presenting works in nontraditional contexts, in public spaces," says Morris, "Sweet & Lucky’s" lead director. "As traditional theater is to a novel, our work is to a poem."

Upon our arrival, rather than entering and mingling about in an ordinary lobby, we were instantly transported into the story through an antique store and old timey bar carefully crafted by the Denver Center for the Performing Arts' props team. You mingle and explore the various rooms of the antique store until the "show" begins.

You then embark on this journey, literally you’re walking around, exploring all different scenes, environments, people, periods of time, spectrums of emotion, memories, etc. You’re led through a series of performances with a small group of other spectators that occasionally changes throughout, and it seems like they purposefully take you away from who you came with right from the start. At one point you’re completely alone in a scene with an actor, who speaks to you directly, and waits for you to reply. Honestly, it’s a bit nerve-racking. You never know what to expect or when you’ll be called on to step up and be a part of the scene, which definitely happens. The creators and actors are aware of the emotional response that must elicit in someone coming to an unfamiliar experiential show, who is then separated from the one familiar thing (person) they came with, and is led away into all these different scenes and situations.

As you are led from scene to scene, all of the other small groups are revolving around experiencing the same scenes, but in different orders. Thus, the order you see it in will surely alter your perception of the story. The performance is broken into bits and pieces and the viewers are supposed to fit it together to create a cohesive story. Another factor that makes the experience/story unique to each, is all of the props that you are invited to touch and hold; you will inevitably see and read things while other spectators are busy with other props. You will also hear and see slightly different things depending on how closely you’re paying attention, and feel different emotions depending on all of these factors, along with personal context you overlay. This makes for a truly unique storytelling experience. You are living the story, rather than being told or shown... and in that way you are also creating the story. So just as everyone’s version of any experience is unique to each, so too is the experience you have at “Sweet & Lucky”. And that seems to be the whole point.

At the end of the show, the entire audience is brought back into the large theater space where it began, and just as we all saw the same start to the story, we see the same ending. All that was in between are the fragmented and few memories of a long life lived, and the various tangible objects left behind. Just as in real life, our memories are scattered, subjective, and unique to each.

In an era where some of the most prestigious arts are struggling to bring in an audience, Denver Center for the Performing Arts has embarked on innovative avenues to draw in the Millennial generation. Their plan over the next couple years is to expand the use of the Center to include education, new structures and grassroots programming while also taking their audience from under the dome to completely transform their viewing experience. In a time where we are more likely to interact through technology, our generation is in need of these moments out of the ordinary. We are in need of human interaction and testing the boundaries, in a hands-on way. “Sweet & Lucky” gives this to us through an immersive experience where we become a part of the action, not only able to interact with the actors, but able to touch the props, create our own story lines, and feel that we were a crucial component in the storytelling process.

Sweet & Lucky runs May 17 - June 25. The show is for ages 21 and older, and an on-site bar opens 45 minutes before show time. Two performances June 1 and 8 are open to patrons 18 and older. You will be walking or standing for the duration of the show, and purses and backpacks are not permitted.

http://www.sweetandluckydenver.com/

Tiffany Candelaria & Theresa Dixon

Lifestyle | What We Thought of the Fleakin' Flea

It’s official! 2016’s first Flea of the year reigned in over 20,000 people this past weekend! And it was quite the spectacle too, as happy hipsters, baby wielding dilfs and local goods enthusiasts flooded the streets of Denver’s River North district.  The crowds did surprise us, mainly due to the sheer chaos downtown that surrounded the launch of Denver’s new A Line... which had a wait of nearly two hours out of Union Station! Promptly abandoning our initial decision to check out the A Line launch party, we decided to ditch the lines and opt for artisan vendors, booze and to our excitement even more lines! 

The Flea was already pretty packed by the time we arrived an hour after it opened on Saturday the 23rd. It was also larger than we expected, spanning out on all sides of the ExDo building. There were booths lined along three sides of the venue coupled with a food truck courtyard, complete with seven food trucks and two ice cream trucks. The bars kept the lines moving as thirsty shoppers flooded their fronts hoping for New Belgium craft, margaritas, cocktails and other domestic spirits.

The long lines, excitement and flawless djing from veteran flea curator, Tobias Krause caused some of our four legged friends to take shameless (and adorable) naps right in the center of the of all the commotion. 

There were over 150 vendors this time making it one of the largest Denver Flea’s to date and what seemed like one of the most popular (next to their super Holiday Flea we reported on early December).  As usual, there were lots of clothing companies, body products, homemade foods and jewelry, all kinds of art and some unique home goods and furnishings. 

One of the reasons we've flocked to the Denver Flea numerous times is the diversity of unique finds situated in a fun, party-like atmosphere. You're always greeted with a boozy beverage ticket, lots of local snack samples and plenty of pretty people watching. Between all the stunning handmade pieces, art, clothes, food and people, the Flea is a nonstop beauty overload. You will most likely leave with a couple cool new things, a full tummy, plenty of FitBit steps, and a renewed appreciation for the artistic spirit thriving within Denver. 

Here's to lookin' at you Summer Flea. Fleak on, fleaks. Fleak on...

Lifestyle | A Creative, Collaborative Twist on Dining in Denver: The Dinner Party Association

Food, fun, friends, music, local, libations, collaboration… These are things we are very fond of here at Ultra5280 and believe you, our readers, are fond of as well. Last weekend we discovered The Dinner Party Association, a new pop-up concept that brings all these wonderful things together once a month! Its founder, Megan Ranegar, and her “traveling supper club” are new to Denver as of this past December, but she didn’t waste any time acclimating her concept to the Mile High City. This first Sunday was the 3rd Dinner Party Association event, “The Taco Situation”, which took place three stories above the 16th Street Mall at a co-working space aptly named The Hive on 16th.

The basic concept is simple Megan explains, “We dinner party in unlikely places, eat delicious food, and toast with local brews.” Their goal is to create a community between Denver residents, foodies, chefs, musicians, photographers and the like. “I feel like I always meet the coolest people and have the best conversations in a dinner party atmosphere; I want to spread that magic through The Dinner Party Association.”

If grassroots involvement is any indication a concept is gaining momentum, then we think it’s pretty obvious Denver digs The Dinner Party Association’s arrival. We found out about the event via a post on Instagram and other brunch goers heard from a friend of a friend, or via social media as well. And now, you can say you heard about it here from us! While Dinner Party Association’s Instagram page has nearly 3,000 followers, it also has many other people and businesses that are outwardly supporting the pop-up on their social media outlets. Before moving to Denver, Megan organized similar pop-ups in Los Angeles but wasn't sure she’d continue them here, “I was mostly hesitant because I didn't have any connections to chefs, venues, etc. but I can't believe how collaborative the Denver community is! I've been so happily surprised at the reaction and support my concept has received here.”

Megan shares the one thing that really helped turn her California concept into a reality in Denver was meeting Brooks Gagstetter of Logan House Coffee. “Brooks basically said ‘you're doing this’ and proceeded to provide a beautiful warehouse space for our first event in January, and I’ve just continued building relationships from there.” The events now take place the first Sunday of each month in a unique new venue, with a completely different lineup of food, drinks and ambiance each time. “The theme of each event is something I dream up and then reach out to different spaces and chefs who I think would be a good fit. Then comes the fun part - designing the event. I have a background in marketing, so creating content to promote the event is fun for me too.”

Their first event was a “Coffee Beer Brunch” in the Logan House Coffee warehouse, in RiNo. Megan explains it's their goal to find cool, unique spaces for an alternative dining experience. The first Denver bunch to brunch with Dinner Party Association ate Thai fried eggs, rosemary chia pudding jars, pork rillettes with preserved pear atop Apache fry bread, and aged Rocky Mountain beers from Beryl’s Beer Co. For their second event they held a dinner and beer pairing and added live music to the mix with a musician from Denver and one from Chicago. Megan is very good about setting a scene and weaving a theme to make the dining experience truly unique, “I love thinking of little touches that will make the pop-up feel special,” she tells us.

The third event, which we attended, was titled “The Taco Situation” and began at 11am with cocktails, coffee and time to chat. Everyone was seated and plated with their first round of tacos around 11:30am. The brunch featured Horchata with Jameson on the side, coffee, a delicious hand crafted Apple cocktail from mixologist Lawrence Mack, and a series of Water, Land and Air inspired tacos.

The first round was Rainbow Trout Escabeche atop blue corn tortillas with pickled root veggies with a salty and astringent flavor palette. The next was a savory grilled Elk tenderloin with caramelized onion and subtly sweet pear jam atop potato tortillas. The third round was a sort of salty, smoky roasted Duck with beans, bacon crumbles and crispy shallots on butternut squash tortillas. Chef Kyle Morgan of Morgan Handmade Rations created each of these dishes which were very different in flavors and allowed you to experiment with pairing each up with the variety of drinks most of us had in front of us…They were all so good it was hard not to horde!

For the sweet finish, we each got a little jar of chocolate Serrano and tequila-infused dulce de leche with fresh, fluffy churros from El Camino Community Tavern! We lingered over this delicious dessert while wrapping up conversations and exchanging contact info with our new friends.

With all the new dinner halls, open markets, and community dining options we’ve come to frequent in and around Denver, it’s no wonder The Dinner Party Association found a home here. The next three months of upcoming events are already posted on their online calendar and they have full intentions to make this pop-up concept bigger and better. “We're hoping to partner with many Denver chefs and creatives as we continue to make our events magical--the more the merrier.” Megan thanked everyone in attendance and invited us all back to the next event for a discounted price, something she always does for repeat guests. The next event is April 3rd “Beer and Blues Dinner” with New Belgium and live music from Dragondeer. May 1st is a Spring Brunch and June 5th is an Artisan dinner at Cheese + Provisions. More information on The Dinner Party Association and tickets to April’s dinner can be found through the links below. 

http://www.dinnerpartyassociation.com/

https://www.eventbrite.com/e/blues-beer-pop-up-dinner-tickets-22935789564

By Tiffany Candelaria

Lifestyle | A Restaurant Rooted in Seasonally Local Ingredients & Creative Cooking

Ultra5280’s visit to Root Down, Justin Cucci’s first Edible Beats Restaurant, wraps up our series we began late December. If you happened to miss the previous two, scroll down and start at the beginning with Linger, then Ophelia’s. And by the time you’ve finished reading this article you’ll see why we felt it was important you knew about this trendy trio and how their focus on flavor, quality, sustainability and creativity makes them a staple in the Denver food scene.

Devils on Horseback

Devils on Horseback

Root Down opened back in December 2008 in a former mid-century gas station, and in pure Cucci fashion he incorporated many of the original elements into the new décor. A style that has rung true in each restaurant debut since. Root Down’s menu is focused on offering sustainable protein and vegetable based dishes using produce from their gardens, local growers and purveyors to create globally influenced seasonal cuisine.

We started with their most popular starter, Devils on Horesback, which we noticed is on the menu at Linger too. What’s cool though is each restaurant’s version is different to reflect their individual style. At Root Down the Devils are smoked almond-stuffed Peppadew Peppers, wrapped in tender belly bacon, and sauced in Gournay cheese fondue. Take my word that these little Devils rode us straight to taste bud heaven.

Next we had the Butternut Squash Risotto with the Root Down/local touch of purple quinoa from Southern Colorado. The dish itself was beautiful and the texture was dense and creamy even with the added the quinoa. The butternut squash flavor was rather subtle, but I could be a tough critic having just returned from ten days in Italy. My bad!!

The next dish was even more interesting, one because we didn’t order it, two because it was the nightly special thus not on the menu, and third because it required you to work for the meal and get a little messy. The dish consisted of two diver scallops atop prawns in a Thai based sauce with jam, baby carrots and Brussels Sprout garnish. The scallops were soft and buttery, but the prawns underneath took a fearless eater, some figuring out and extra napkins.   

The Longs Peak Rack of Lamb was a pleasant surprise after defiling a couple prawns in the previous course.  The dish consisted of two large bone-in lamb chops atop Farro with baby carrots, a layered sweet potato and apple tower with a melted cheese top, and Pear-Pepita Salsa. The creamy sweet carrots and potatoes were perfectly offset by the crisp tartness of the pears and apples and rounded off by the hearty herbed Farro base. The lamb was exceptionally tender and flavorful without tasting gamy and was the perfect dish to satisfy winter warmer cravings!

If you’re looking to surprise us with something, we’d tell you to follow suit of the Root Down staff and surprise us with a free dessert trio! The kind and gracious staff and Executive Chef Jeremy Kittelson prepared a sample of the first three desserts listed on the menu: Chocolate Bombe, Eggnog Bread Pudding and Banana Crème Brulee Pie. So this “Pie” … its texture was more like flan than a crème brulèe and was topped with whipped sour cream instead of the traditional caramelized sugar crust, the banana slices next to it had a brulèed crust though. The base of the pie was that amazing flavor combo of crunchy peanuts and creamy chocolate. The Eggnog bread pudding was fluffy and saturated with rich eggnog flavor, but our favorite part was the side of Bourbon ice cream! And for the chocolate aficionados there’s the almond brownie tucked inside a whipped chocolate ganache wrapped in a chocolate shell with vanilla cream, appropriately named the Chocolate Bombe. They’re right, it’s bomb.

Based off their names none of these desserts were what you would expect, but now that I’ve said that I realize nothing is really quite what you expect at Cucci’s restaurants. Everything they create has its own twist and incorporates unique local and seasonal ingredients, like the risotto that unexpectedly had little specks of purple quinoa!

We were happily surprised to see all three of Cucci’s restaurants participating in Denver Restaurant Week February 26 to March 6th which offers a three course menu for only $30 per person. If you’ve never treated yourself to any of these restaurants there’s no better time than snagging that special someone for a Valentine’s Day retreat!

Tiffany Candelaria