An Update to Check Please! And Hurry

In our previous post we proffered the question of eating at independent restaurants vs. eating at chain restaurants and the quality of food for the price you pay.

I was reminded of this recently as I dined at Steuben's on Monday for lunch. I sat at the bar and had outstanding service from the bartender. It was a perfect balance between attentive service and letting me work (they have free wi-fi!) and enjoy my lunch.

Let's talk about my lunch, a simple greek salad. Seeing the size of their salads I just didn't think I could put down the whole thing - that's when my bartender offered me a half size - PERFECT! I was hungry but not starving, so, this salad in all of it's crisp romaine and iceberg lettuce, tasty black olives, tomatoes and feta cheese with a very well balanced vinegarette was excellent - I almost wished I'd ordered the full size.

Monday was a beautiful, sunny day so I also enjoyed a flavorful ice tea with my salad. Price: ~$8 all in.

Now, most of you out there probably don't give ice tea a second thought but I will tell you there is an "ice tea factor" out there and it goes directly to the quality of food and service in the restaurant. Here is my theory, if a restaurant provides ice tea out of the beverage gun, just leave, seriously. Have you tasted it? Of course you haven't, there isn't a taste, well, maybe a hint of motor oil. My assessment is, if you can't brew hot water through a tea bag then why are you in the restaurant business? And for those of you who do and you can see through the tea, what's the point? It's light brown water with an over riding taste of lemon and whatever the water taste like. But, I digress...

Now, fast forward to Wednesday, when I was running around Denver like a mad women. And like most of us when we are pressed for time, I resorted to a fast food restaurant. I ordered a grilled chicken sandwich and an ice tea (that tasted like coffe - ugh!). Price: $6.50 all in.

So, here is our point, for an extra $1.50 our meal could have been a meal that was head and shoulders above the fast food restaurant.

Have you been to Steuben's? It's a great place, it ALWAYS has people there, it's a wonderful neighborhood restaurant, the staff is great and better yet so is the food (and the ice tea).

Check Please! And Hurry

Have you ever surveyed how much you spend eating out at a chain restaurant for an evening? Think about it. Have you surveyed how much you spend eating out at an independent restaurant, do you remember? Now, ask yourself this, is the amount you spend at an independent restaurant that much more than a chain? How much better was the food, the service and the wine/beer/spirits selection than your chain restaurant with their only national brand beverages available? Most independent restaurants offer very affordable small plates or even kids meals if you want to take the family.

Recently I went to dinner at a chain restaurant. I am embarrassed to admit it. Our waiter arrived at our table speaking into a wireless mouthpiece, communicating with the kitchen I suppose. I couldn’t tell if he was talking to me or not. He didn’t greet us and he started handing out menus while continuing to talk into his mouthpiece. When he finally finished he took our drink orders and disappeared for a very long time. When he came back he was interrupted and continued his conversation into his wireless mouthpiece. To top off our evening, the food was bland and the background music was so loud we couldn’t hold a conversation. The biggest surprise of the evening however was how incredibly busy this restaurant was. I had to wait 30 minutes for a table dodging small children and waiting at the bar for 20 of those minutes just to get a drink.

On another evening at a more exclusive chain I was treated to a 5 minute long over rehearsed speech about the evening’s menu. Our server was bored and sing sang her way through the entire presentation. Am I being overly sensitive or does anyone else think this kind of service is unacceptable?

There are so many small, independently owned restaurants in Denver that know how to deliver not only good service but also exceptional food and an atmosphere where it is a pleasure to dine and have good conversation. If there’s a restaurant out there that you love, visit it. Eat there. You may not be able to spend as much on dining out as you once did, but when you’re making a decision about where to spend your hard earned money don’t overlook our local restaurants. As foodies we need to support those restaurants especially during these economic times. Please humor me and go to Fruition, Table 6, Root Down, ZCuisine, Duo, Red Trolley, Bones, Mizuna, Luca D’Italia, Panzano or Vesta Dipping Grill. You won’t be embarrassed that you did.



(Written by Christine Lucas & Becky Creighton)

April Newsletter

If you would like to read our April Newsletter please visit this link:

http://viewpage.benchmarkemail.com/c/p?9tSN8Jgb1CbCp0D6GMkY64oi4XniF4nQoJF69E8ur3my2%252F3R4PyC1tdhKJ8%252BanR3lJ9zGGeySOM4jl7ZcF0nnw%253D%253D

To receive our monthly newsletter please sign up at www.culinaryconnectors.com/contact_us.html

To Market We Go...

Let's talk about passion for good food, quality products and a desire to be the best neighborhood market around. When we talk about that, then you have to talk about Marczyk Fine Foods and you should grab a beer or a glass (ok, a bottle) of wine because you're going to be talking for a while.

Where to begin about this wonderful market? We could start with Jimmy, the second generation butcher ,who made breaking down a part of the cow seem like a walk in the park. While we're talking about beef, let's keep going; lamb, pork, - a cowboy steak! Hello? Have you seen this hunk of beautifully marbled beef? Ok, so, when I'm anywhere close to downtown I can't help myself but to stop by and pick up some short ribs, lamb chops or one of their house made sausages.

And while I'm there I might as well head over to the wine shop, where over 80% of their wines are below $20! And they have some great ones, make sure to ask Ashley about the Ruche - so enjoyable.

In closing, the whole staff at Marczyk's is great, they just want to make sure you have the best experience while in their store and with the food and wine you take home with you.

770 E. 17th Avenue Denver, CO 80203 303-894-9499

They Just Keep Getting Better

Have you ever had an experience that you didn't think existed? I'm talking about you've dreamed of it but that's about as far as it got. I have to tell you I had one of those experiences on March 21st during our Gourmet Culinary Tour. Usually, I write about one or two shops we visited but, I have to tell you, they were all great. From our friends, William & Steven, at Wen Chocolates and that chocolate cake that if it wasn't so rude, I would've eaten the entire thing by myself (OK, that, and I still need to fit in my jeans). Just look at this gorgeous cake, and I assure you, it tasted as good as it looks.

We were also treated to a lesson in gelato making by the very talented Deanna Parker of Red Trolley Ice Cream Boutique - they finally got on Twitter so now I (and the rest of Denver) can find out what flavors they are putting out that day. Trust me when I tell you if they put out the Salted Carmel Gelato with the Homemade "Snicker's" Topping, just go, drop whatever you're doing and go get a pint or a gallon. If you really want a sugar buzz, you could take the gelato over to Wen Chocolates, get one of Chef William's cakes and pretty much be in heaven. (Did I mention I like chocolate?)

Our visits to Savory Spice and The Truffle always delight the senses, how could they not? We're tasting exotic spices from all over the world. Did you know that they grind most of their spices in house? And make their own blends? Just smelling the turmeric, chili powder, ginger, salt, pepper and paprika in that mixture was enough to make me want to go home and start cooking. But,

that would mean I would have missed a fantastic shop coming up. That's in the next blog, so, go grab a pint of gelato, some cake, might as well as stop by Little Raven Vineyards and have Peter Klann pick out a nice dessert wine for your chocolate treasures and make a night of it.

Spice mixture at Savory Spice