Foodie Guide to Denver

I spent this past weekend in Denver, Colorado with my fiancé and as a foodie, we had to try all the best places and report back to you all.  From RiNo to Cheeseman Park and the Highlands to Cherry Creek we covered it all. 

Before we get to food though, I have a few recommendations for anyone visiting Denver.  Do not go the weekend after Christmas if you want to really experience an average weekend in the city.  BUT, if you want to experience the city without traffic and people, then it is a perfect weekend to go.  The place was DEAD, the whole entire city.  It was the craziest thing I’ve ever seen for a city this size.  I’m not sure if it is due to the number of transplants in the city or if because everyone goes to the mountains during Christmas, but let me tell you, there was no traffic and we never waited for a table. 

We stayed in downtown Denver but not sure that is where I would stay if we went back.  It was relatively central and short uber rides to all areas of town, but it felt a little like staying in KC downtown – busy during the week with office traffic but quiet on the weekends.

Breweries:

We spent Friday afternoon brewery hopping in the RiNo (River North) area of Denver.  We heard from several uber drivers that this area of town has grown enormously over the past several years and there are tons of breweries popping up.  Several larger ones too, such as Coors, Blue Moon and Odell.  We found a brewery walking map at a store we popped into, but you can find plenty online to decide where you want to go to and what you can walk to and from. (Visit Denver Beer Trails) 

We did Blue Moon, Mockery Brewing, Odell Brewing, Bierstadt Lagerhaus.  Our absolute favorite was Blue Moon.  I’m definitely bias towards the beer but their food was a amazing too.  We had a pot pie and fig flatbread and I wish I could go back right now and eat more.  Bierstadt also served food, we ate a mac and cheese bread bowl but neither mockery or Odell had onsite food.  Odell does have a Shake Shack next door that customers get 15% discount at and you can bring it back over to the brewery to eat. 

Restaurants and Districts:

Our favorite area of town was the Dairy Block, located in LoDo (lower downtown).  They had several boutiques, restaurants, cocktail bars and a food court.  It is built in an old alley was that was beautifully decorated for Christmas and has heat lamps over head so plus plus.  We went the second night we were there and got cocktails at Poka Lola then headed to Kachina for dinner.  Poka Lola had a great 4-6 pm happy hour with $6 cocktails which we thought was a steal. Kachina is a Mexican restaurant with great queso fundito.

We loved the area so much we went back to the food court the next day for lunch. One of the areas had a bingo game going on so would be worth it to check out events happening, might be able to do bottomless mimosa bingo and win a free meal!

Another area we liked was Cheeseman park.  It was a bit slower but had pretty older homes and little shops spread out along the streets.  We stopped for coffee at St. Mark’s coffee shop and bakery.  I wouldn’t say it seemed like an overly popular area but we liked it and they had a ton of loose leaf teas with yummy flavors.  We grabbed our coffee and took a walk around the park which was about a half mile away.

Our favorite restaurant was one recommended by a follower called Linger.  It is in the Highlands area and built from an old mortuary.  It is a street food inspired menu with shareable bites for lunch and dinner but more entrée style for brunch.  We went Saturday morning and they were only serving brunch but got a delicious boa bun, egg and chorizo tacos and chorizo eggs benedict. 

Let us know your favorite restaurants and things to do in Denver! We’d love to hear more about the city.