With the recent opening of Ink! Coffee on Larimer and 28th, Denver’s River North Art District (RiNo) continues its food and coffee supremacy. RiNo, which is technically a part of the Five Points neighborhood, is already a nationally recognized food hub. The new location from the Aspen-based Ink!—one of Colorado’s biggest coffee chains—will most likely only fuel RiNo’s status as a popular culinary center. Ink! will be competing with two other coffee shops on Larimer Street—Huckleberry and Crema. On nearby Brighton Boulevard, coffee lovers will find two other options: Wystone’s at Industry... Read More

It’s my first look at Milk Market, a huge food hall with seating for 350 or more.  I can hear the alluring buzz even before the modernized liquor-friendly school yard comes into view. It’s a weeknight around 7pm and the place has a good buzz.  I am alone, without a friend, and it’s a bit like a school yard without a friend…but I quickly become enamored with the attractive and stimulating sights and tastes. What is the Denver Milk Market? The Denver Milk Market is a food hall by Denver Chef Frank Bonnano featuring 16 restaurants and bars.  It is part of the Dairy Block…a micro-district... Read More

If there is one restaurant that should be written about in AboutBoulder.com, it should be The Sink, and mainly because of its sheer celebrity in the Boulder community. Located on The Hill, it’s been a Boulder staple for over 90 years. It’s changed names a and owners a handful of times but in 1989 returned (permanently) to it’s roots. Known for its beatnik murals and colorful decor, The Sink was home to Buffs like Robert Redford (legend has it he slept in one of the booths after working his janitor shifts), and being the hub for the hippie culture in the 70s.  You probably already know that... Read More

I’ve always loved avocados. They are healthy, high in fiber and help to lower cholesterol. Avocado is packed with over 20 vitamins and minerals and practically anyone can eat them – as they are gluten free, dairy free, vegan and vegetarian. Many of those who live in Boulder eat alternative diets, and it’s no surprise we’ve been ranked one of the healthiest and happiest cities in the U.S. Maybe avocados have something to do with that. Alpine Modern Café is a peculiar local gem, located at the corner of 9th Street and College Avenue that is turning this amazing food into a delicious breakfast.... Read More

Amy Long is no stranger to adversary – actually her life has been overcoming one challenge after another to be in the place she is today, a successful entrepreneur, business owner, and Boulder community member. Amy developed her resilience and work ethic from her parents, who owned and operated the popular local restaurant Tsing Tao Asian Cuisine in the south part of Boulder for 22 years. Growing up in the restaurant and hospitality industry was a ‘school of hard knocks,’ where she developed the skills and knowledge for building businesses from the ground up. After years of building small... Read More

The affogato is a beautiful concoction that blends the sweet creaminess of ice cream with the robust intensity of espresso. The simplest type of affogato consists of one scoop vanilla ice cream or gelato with hot espresso poured over it, although I’ve also tried some more decadent versions too (see photo below). While add-ons like chopped nuts, chocolate sauce, liqueur, fruit, or whipped cream can be delightful, I’m a purist who prefers just the two main ingredients. Even if you do like additional toppings, both the espresso and ice cream should still be fresh and tasty on their own. Unfortunately,... Read More

A kooky philosophy professor of mine used to refer to foods that were vegan, gluten free, and free of refined sugar as “morally pure”. Though he was being a bit silly and facetious, the word “purely” captures perfectly the ingredients, mission and values, and intentions of the now Boulder-based natural food company, Purely Elizabeth. In 2008, Elizabeth Stein was a nutrition student with a dream of opening a natural foods/nutrition company like Nucific and moving out west: the manifest destiny of someone hoping to change the game of healthy gluten-free, vegan foods forever.... Read More

Skoop— A Boulder company with a unique charity commitment along with their whole-food sourced sports drink . To help a “starving”  (for nutrition) nation, Skoop has made it their mission to create a sports recovery drink that returns to a more natural form. They create healthy drink mixes to be consumed post-exercise for optimal recovery, but also for any person trying to add extra nutrition to their diet. “We partnered with the Chef Ann Foundation to create Project Produce. Chef Ann Foundation is a non-profit dedicated to providing tools to enable schools to progress from... Read More

Date nights are hard to come by when you work full time and have been married for what seems like forever. Throw a small child into the mix and you may as well forget about it. Although childless, my husband and I frequently plan date nights together. Oftentimes date night in our house consists of trip to Qdoba for take-out, followed by 30 minutes deciding on what to watch on Netflix. I swear, for a platform that has everything, it’s impossible to agree on one show to watch. Our usual plans were thrown out the window when my husband came home with tickets to see a show at the Ellie Caulkins Opera... Read More

It’s been argued the history of the world can be seen on your plate. Moorish improvements to Roman irrigation boosted rice production in 15th century Spain, eventually melding with Middle Eastern spices into what we know today as paella. Bánh mì sandwiches combine native Vietnamese ingredients (such as cilantro, cucumbers, and pickled daikon) with baguettes and mayonnaise left behind by French colonists. There are many interesting through-lines when it comes to food. Closer to home, consider a different kind of example: the humble sub sandwich. Whether you prefer to call them hoagies, grinders,... Read More