If I had one day in Denver, here is how I would spend it.

I would have a big latte and croissant and egg sandwich at The Market at Larimer Square. I would then walk up and down the gorgeous Larimer street, window shop, and snap a bundle of photographs.

I would walk the downtown streets and stop in at the Denver Art Museum.

I would have dessert before dinner and get a scoop or two of gelato at Little Man Ice Cream. Then I’d have the first half of my tapas style dinner at Linger. After ordering the Sesame BBQ Tacos and the Wagyu Burger Sliders, I’d head over for dinner part two (because it is just too hard to pick one good restaurant) at Zengo. I would order Tempura Asparagus tacos and the Hot Stone Wagyu Beef – all to share.

I’d finish the evening by walking across the Highlands bridge and back over Larimer Square (because there is never too much of Larimer Square). Then I’d pull my friends downstairs and into the Green Russell for a final glass of port or bubbly.

I could absolutely get use to a city like Denver. What would you do if you had one day in Denver?

if you’re lucky enough to spend any time at all in Denver, you’re lucky enough

See my other ONE DAY IN posts: San Francisco, CA. Petaluma, CA.

It was bound to happen but it happened for the greatest bread pudding to have ever existed. The dessert came after a night of celebration in which my husband decided to informed me about some life changes he plans on making. Very exciting – I’ll share when it happens. First came the bottle of Shiraz (another weakness of mine), pan-fried hot pepper calamari, a surf and turf of lobster tail and filet mignon and, of course, the grand finale.

After ordering a couple glasses of port, we asked our server for the best dessert pairing. He mentioned bread pudding but it wasn’t something they sold. He brought us some chocolate chips they use to make their chocolate desserts and 10 minutes later a butterscotch bread pudding was placed on our table. Our server, Andrew, had ordered it from the restaurant across the street and it was the perfect pairing with the port.

These small pleasures and generosity of a stranger almost brought me to tears in the middle of the restaurant. It’s been somewhat of a rough first year of marriage for me and my husband – but that’s a story for another day. It certainly has made me appreciate the small things like a fun night out and an amazing dinner.

We later decided to try a place we’ve never been. An adorable, underground, speakeasy-style bar in the basement of luxury shops. You’d never know it was there unless you have fabulously trendy friends that are so wonderfully in-the-know about local hideaways. For being such a secret, a lot of locals sure know about it and a reservation is needed just to sit at the bar. They do the leg work (because they love it) and I get to enjoy! It’s called the Green Russell and the bartenders pride themselves on customizing cocktails to individual taste and mood.

Boy, did they read me well. Vodka, citrus, and sparkling wine was all I heard before I went into a trance after my first sip.

Incredibly fresh and flavorful ingredients came together in a fantastic way.

We walked home feeling unbelievably grateful for getting a night away from the daily stresses we all deal with. Totally worth cheating for.

It’s one of those places that I always forget about until I have a quick happy hour or dinner to organize. And once I go back, I am always reminded of how great it is! So on Friday night when I was meeting my friend, Sarai, for a catch-dinner, I suggested LoHi Steakbar. First of all, the facility and atmosphere are so much fun. It’s the perfect place for a post-work Friday happy hour – it has a young, vibrant crowd, is a little crowded but not claustrophobic, and has a helpful, professional staff.

I was lucky enough to nab one of their booths in the bar and order a somewhat exotic (for me) cocktail, a “Sake-To-Me Manhattan” that had just a hint of sake and cherry juice. Sarai ordered a Hendrick’s Cucumber Martini that was just as balanced, refreshing, and delicious.

One thing, of many, that I really enjoy about LoHi Steakbar is its versatile menu. If you want a well prepared steak frites with any variety of their flavorful sauces, you can find it. However, if you want a great steak sandwich or refreshing salad, they have plenty of options for you as well. I ended up going the casual route and getting the Warm Chicken Club Sandwich. Honestly I wasn’t expecting much from a simple club but it was absolutely delicious!

You might see me become a regular at LoHi Steakbar since it’s in my “hood” and provides the perfect mix of fun, atmosphere and deliciousness.

Cheers!

Rating: GGGG (we’ll explain this later).

P.S. Caitlin and I had our fair share of meals this past weekend – stay tuned as we post more throughout this week. We also celebrated our friend, Melissa’s, 25th birthday at Green Russell. We LOVE Green Russell (Frank Bonanno’s prohibition style cocktail bar in Larimer Square) but we also LOVE Williams & Graham (the speakeasy in the Highlands) – in the next week or so, we’ll post about the differences between the two and, ultimately, which one we prefer!

Last time, I stayed in one of the more interesting rooms in recent memory at a bed and breakfast, hiked the infamous Red Rocks concert venue, and found a pleasant speakeasy to cap off the trip with some cocktails. The outdoors will be the focus this time around, specifically an introduction to rock climbing. I’ll cover the trip on the blog, but I’ll also be writing a newspaper feature about my climbing experience.

The feature will be routed to five Midwest daily newspapers (all part of Small Newspaper Group) for a combined print circulation of 149,604: The Daily Journal, Kankakee, IL, Moline Dispatch, Moline, IL, Rock Island Argus, Rock Island, IL, Post-Bulletin, Rochester, MN, Ottawa Times, Ottawa, IL.

This will be my first travel piece for a newspaper, and the first time I’ve freelanced for one since I stepped back from news coverage a little over a year ago.

I’ll be staying and climbing near Chautauqua Park. Here’s a photo I took on a hike when I made a day trip from Denver back in early April:

Chautauqua Park, Boulder, Colorado

We ordered a couple whiskey sodas and my friend won the toss – our round was on the house – but the crowd was large and pushy due to the deal and we decided to quit while we were ahead, move on to somewhere we could hear each other talk.

It was my last night in Denver and I was fully aware of it, going through the typical emotions that always seem to come my way at the end of an adventure: Gratefulness for its occurrence,  frustration for its inevitable conclusion. Despite arriving in the Mile High City alone, I had made some great friends and felt more like a local than a visitor. I told them I wanted to go somewhere a bit underground, somewhere we could have both a theoretical and actual nightcap.

The Green Russell is a place you will not stumble upon – they pride themselves on maintaining that speakeasy vibe, that forbidden feeling. Their website does not even provide the address, but you can find the location here (it is not hard to find when you’re looking for it).

When you walk down the steps you enter a pie shop (seriously), which is designed like an old-school diner with an aluminum kitchen door, a checkered floor and red-padded stools.  The small window in the door will tempt you to tippy-toe and peek in, yet it isn’t until you pass through that the place reveals itself.

As you enter the decor explodes: Dim lighting with a long wooden bar, horseshoe booths, leather bar stools, stone walls. The whole place oozes 1920s – very much designed with conversation amongst groups of friends in mind. The place looks good, but the bartenders will steal your attention.

Manhattan cocktail.

Terrible decision makers rejoice: All you have to do at the Green Russell is tell the bartender your mood and choice of booze – the rest is up to him. From a Gin Fizz with egg whites to tequila and mint combos, this is the place to experiment and sip cocktails, relax. I told the bartender my situation – that it was my last night in town. I wanted something to remember the night by, and he made me a drink with gin, champagne and lemon. My friend was served a Manhattan with a deep cherry taste – this was no maraschino cherry flavoring.

He didn’t know it at the time, but my memory depended very little upon what was placed in the glass.  The drink was delicious, however it was all the other details that stole the show: The fun of walking through that kitchen door, the prohibition feel and the manner in which the drinks are constructed and served. It feels very classy and proper – definitely reinforcing that 1920s vibe – and watching the bartenders meticulously mix the drinks with the fresh ingredients is something I really enjoyed (make sure you sit at the bar for a bit if you can).

The Green Russell tends to get very busy during the dinner hours – be sure to get a reservation if you intend on eating or have a large party. Otherwise, throw on some khakis, tell the girls to dress up, and enjoy a couple cocktails and a change of pace. You’ll pay to play (drinks are in the teens), so sip slow, and plan on staying a while to take it all in.

Photos by Ryan Dearth of Dearth Photography unless otherwise noted.

Photo by Lori Midson.

Our bartender at the Green Russell (Photo by Ryan Dearth)

Our drinks at the Green Russell (Photo by Ryan Dearth)

Green Russell (Photo by Ryan Dearth)

The boys (and some girls) who run in this data-driven circle have skills that are high in demand. Much like the college student who studies a language for a few semesters, and then fumbles her way through a semester abroad, I am acutely aware that I am a novice on the edge of the circle here. I can talk about nodes, blocks, and views, and I have learned to champion this open-source content management system. (Returning to the foreign language analogy for a second: I can basically say hello, order food from a restaurant, and tell people I like the purple cat.)

I find myself stuck on the fence re: how to move forward. In the world I work in, and more importantly, the world I want to work in, it is clear how concrete skills, like Drupal theming or programming, are an invaluable asset. I have already seen in my work how understanding how a developer thinks can make a tremendous impact on how effectively I can manage an activity. Even if it takes years to generate the demand in public health for all of the “sexy” that Drupal can offer, our clients are clearly heading in that direction.

That said, I’m not sure I actually want to be a full time themer or developer. To jump from my novice skills to the far more in-demand roles requires not only learning some programming languages, but also a commitment to a very different approach to problem-solving. It feels a little bit like trying to switch from six years of studying German to trying Italian and Spanish in college; the transition went rather poorly, and as a result, I speak very little of all three languages, rather than being able to flip between the three seamlessly, as planned. I want my professional career to be a mashup of communications + technology + business in public health,  but I already see how delicate that balance is. As I get to know myself professionally, I find I learn best when I focus on one thing at a time; I just worry that I will wind up getting pigeon-holed.

Biker Jim's "exotic" menu

Ok, enough waxing philosophical, and back to food: In the past twenty-four hours, we have consumed delicacies from the farm, the field, the desert, and the sea. Highlights include:

• From Biker Jim’s Dogs: elk, reindeer, duck, and rattlesnake/pheasant
• From Euclid Hall Bar & Kitchen: pad thai pig ear, beef bone marrow, and an assortment of sausages, including blood sausage
• From Fruition: octopus, pike, and duck

The next leg of the trip begins tomorrow with a long drive from Denver to Santa Fe. My guess is that tomorrow’s blog will be a picture of a road, hopefully with a bit of scenery.

Mandatory tourist shot: Scenic Denver from the 27th floor

Mandatory tourist photo #2: dustmop statue outside the Denver Art Museum

Mandatory tourist photo #3: Jason poses in Denver's Greek Amphitheatre

“And the resulting adventure in décor — a 1930s pleasure palace called the McKittrick — suggests what might have happened had Stanley Kubrick (of “Eyes Wide Shut” and“The Shining”) been asked to design the Haunted Mansion at Disney World, with that little old box maker Joseph Cornell as a consultant.”

Keep the words Huanted Mansion and 1930s in mind while I fill non-Bostonians in on this place called Drink. Drink’s website is just as unpretentious as its location – an underground bar in Fort Point, Boston. Although Drink is hardly a place you might stumble upon without having first heard of this cocktail sensation, on your first visit, you might feel inclined to order a beverage by name, say “a gin and tonic.”  Those in the know, however, will tell the bartender how they are feeling that evening. For example, on one occasion, my friend had just finished a crazy few weeks at work and told the bartender she wanted to “Stick it to the Man.” With only that instruction, the bartender crafted a delicious, punchy beverage from an abundance of obscure liquors, bitters, and other house delights. While I lived and worked in Boston, Drink became one of my favorite places to discover new cocktails and have great conversations with skilled bartenders.

So, on to the mashup of one of my favorite theatre experiences with one of my favorite cocktail bars: The Green Russell. After a day of working from the hotel room and a few light happy hours, Jason and I meandered into The Green Russell en route to a late reservation at the Denver Chophouse. Down the stairs to this bar, we were ushered into a door marked “Do Not Enter” and then into a small room. From what I could tell, this downstairs area continued with one small nook after another, all furnished and decorated with great detail. Thirties jazz drifted through the rooms as we placed our drink orders. Jason was intrigued by an elaborate cocktail on the menu, while I bumbled my way through requesting something light and citrus-y, then left it up to the bartender to decide what form it would take. He delivered a French 75 – a champagne-based cocktail I had been served once before at Drink – not my first, but certainly delicious and exactly what I was in the mood for. While we only stayed for one drink, the Green Russell was a great find, and the French 75 whet my appetite for a delicious prime rib at the Denver Chophouse.