Halloween Anniversary Dinner at Flagstaff House

The spousal unit and I went out to the Flagstaff House restaurant overlooking Boulder on Halloween. The occasion was our anniversary. We had looked at the menu online prior to making reservations. we saw that there were really no good vegan options. So, as we made the reservation, we let the kitchen know that it would be a meat eater and a veggie fanatic. We arrived slightly early, let the valet park my vehicle and entered the lovely restaurant. The restaurant has an unusual 1970's vibe, but is still very nice. The decor reminded me of a sedate fern bar. We were seated at a great table with a fantastic view of Boulder (definitely bonus points for the restaurant.) We were greeted with great service. I was in a beer mood so I opted for Cut Throat Ale and we ordered. Dinner started with complimentary appetizers (vegan of course) and bread from a local Boulder bakery. The first course for me was Ahi tartar prepared table side while my wife had a matsutake mushrooms and gnocchi plate. Next up, after a complimentary palate cleanser of strawberry balsamic sorbet, was the main course. My wife had a nice plate full of different veggies and I opted for the New York Strip and Guinness braised short ribs. Both were excellent, the ribs were a little too full of fat, but still tasty. The port reduction for the strip steak was a nice touch. We finished the meal with dessert, the vegan ordering the sorbets (with the pear sorbet being fantastic!) and I ordered the freshly spun ice cream plate. The best was the salted caramel ice cream which I will now get cravings for!! The service was excellent with every question answered quickly and requests taken care of quickly. This is one spot I recommend for special dinners.

PJ's Bistro at Manitou Springs, Colorado

The vegan and I were in Manitou Springs to watch the Emma Crawford Coffin races. We were both hungry (one of us was even more hungry!) so we found a small cafe called PJ's Bistro. The Bistro is a Hungarian restaurant serving Perogi and Potato Pancakes amongst other offerings. I am always looking for great Potato Pancakes, so I ordered them with sour cream and applesauce. The pancakes are some of the best I have had in a great while. The pancakes were well formed, tasty with a nice spicy touch. My wife decided to have a grilled vegetable sandwich, without onions. She also asked for pickles. Her sandwich was very good, filled with lots of veggies (mushrooms, red peppers, and more.) The side of fries were also tasty, although they did not taste of being fresh cut. The service was very attentive even though there was quite a crowd of people in the area. If you are in Manitou Springs (where the motto is keep Manitou weird), stop in to PJ's Bistro for some nice food and Hungarian specialties. I think the next time I am there, I will try the Perogis. PJ's is right on Manitou Ave near the downtown part of Manitou. The restaurant overlooks the staging area for the coffin races.

Dinner at Root Down

Last night the wife and I went with friends to the fairly new and very popular restaurant Root Down located in the Highlands area of Denver. Since there were four of us, we decided to do small plates and share. We picked several dishes that could be made Vegan so the wife could eat them with us. The service was outstanding and very knowledgeable. The food was excellent with standouts being the risotto done vegan (no cheese), the veggie burger sliders (I recommend the mustard), and the Buffalo burger sliders with a nice taste of smoke. The only disappointment was the bruschetta. It was supposed to have grilled peaches, but there was not much peach flavor. As a straight bruschetta it was very good, but I was expecting more of a peach taste. The only Vegan dessert was a banana sorbet that I did not try but received rave reviews from my wife and our friends. The drinks were well made and had some unusual ingredients that actually worked together. I recommend Root Down, although feel that the first meal I had at Beatrice and Woodsley was slightly better.