Another 60 second blurb, this time for a small seasonal food restaurant in Boulder Colorado.  You can read up specifics on their website.  To me this place could easily be in NYC or LA (if you don’t look out the windows at the huge mountain peaks!) and the prices are in-line with those places as well.  I was alone so i ate “Upstairs” in their bar/lounge, so my comments are based on that.  What I ate/drank: cranberry/vodka/shoju sake cocktail ($9), tagliatelli with roasted grape tomatoes and arugula pesto ($12), halibut with roasted new potatoes, snap peas in a prosciutto broth ($30).

  • drink was good, not too fruity, crisp, refreshing, in-line with trendy lounge pricing.
  • tagliatelli had bite, pasta was cooked well (for me), but needed salt and seasoning, i thought it was one dimensional, lacked richness–which is saying something with pesto!
  • halibut was most interesting, some would complain about the small portion but this is a fish entree in land-locked colorado.  the broth had a nice subtle smokiness and the snap peas were a great counter point both in texture and flavor.  fish had an excellent sear on top while still remaining moist.

Overall I was pretty happy, i think they rushed me through a bit (I sat down at 7:30, done by 8:30).  The space is very nice if you like minimalist/mod lounge spaces, with that i mind i’m not sure if the place is supposed to be mod fusion or country rustic.  My food came in very country clay bowls, maybe that’s because i was dining upstairs but it was a noticeable contrast from the food and space.  $63 out the door (that’s with tax and tip) so not cheap, but i was pretty full when i left.   Even with the high-ish prices I would eat their again, my only sug. would be to slow down the service–and maybe that’s true downstairs in the main dining room.  Some other places that looked interesting on that street (and suggested to me), Aju, The Atelier and Frasca.
http://www.thekitchencafe.com/