Food Fiday Boulder Edition: Tangerine

There are few things in the world I love more than a good brunch. I'm a fan of breakfast foods but my weekday schedule doesn't really provide me with time to enjoy a "balanced breakfast." Most days I just shove a banana in my purse and hope for the best. That is why during the weekend (or if you are on vacation and you don't have to wake up by 7am) you can enjoy the wonder that is breakfast. And when I am on vacation I want to eat brunch every damn day to make up for my deficit. At some point during our visit to Colorado the idea chicken and waffles came up, at which point I expressed my desire to "put them in my mouth." Emo.Matt knew just the place- Tangerine.

Tangerine might be the cutest darn breakfast joint I've seen. The decor was modern and light, with just pops of, well... tangerine. The metal chairs were all different colors and I loved the green tile behind the bar. We were lucky enough to get a booth by the window that was drenched in window light.

Their coffee menu looked pretty sweet, but since I was already two cups in by this point I opted for a chai. But to my surprise when I ordered it our super kind waiter asked me what kind of milk I wanted. I said almond milk hesitantly because I find it hard to get lattes and such done with almond milk in Nashville. And do you know what he said?! "SURE." I had the best almond milk chai latte ever. It was thick and creamy and I couldn't tell that it wasn't straight from a cow. Steve ordered the fresh squeezed orange juice that was delicious. I'm a sucker for pulp and this one was as pulpy as they come.

Since the menu was full of lots of tasty options, Steve and I decided to order two things and split them. Obviously, we went for the chicken and waffles. It was a fried chicken breast sandwiched between two sides of a Belgian waffle with cashew cream on top and real maple syrup. The chicken breast was tender and spiced well. The fried bit was delicious, wasn't too thick, and didn't overpower the meat. Why don't all waffles come with cashew cream? Fo' Real.

My personal favorite go-to breakfast of  choice is usually eggs Benedict. I have eaten this dish all over Nashville and I love to try it out at new places. Tangerine offers a nice variety of Benedict offerings. I went with the the Green Eggs and Ham. It was made with Prosciutto, brie, walnut pesto and hollandaise sauce. I have never had this exact combination on a benny before and I am in love. How have I never had Brie on a benny before?! That seems so unfair seeing how it melts beautifully with the runny egg and hollandaise. Also, one can never ever go wrong with pesto as far as I'm concerned.

Overall, I loved Tangerine. We didn't have to wait for a table at all and our waiter was a really sweet guy and very attentive. I can only hope I make it back to Boulder to try out more of their benedicts!

Food Friday Colorado Edition: Euclid Hall

Sometimes one of the joys of traveling is having the locals suggest stuff. And knowing that I'm into food, I love it when locals suggest food! We had no particular plans on where we wanted to eat during our one night in Denver, but after a conversation at local taproom Great Divide Brewing brought up Euclid Hall (I believe the words duck, marrow and pig ears were uttered), I knew I had to go there for dinner. Immediately. Luckily my friends indulged my foodie urges and we made our way there.

The building itself is quiet impressive. The restaurant is two stories and it has the feel of a really hip bar. And that makes sense because the place is also a really hip bar. They have their own version of happy hour called study hall and they have a good selection of beers on tap. It seems like every place in Colorado has a good selection of beers on tap. Thus I was feeling pretty beer'd out by that point and opted for a cocktail instead. I ordered the Violet Hammer which was made with scotch, peach schnapps, lemon juice and blueberries. The best part was the unexpected sage leaf in the drink. I don't believe I've ever had a drink with sage in it but come herb o'clock in my garden all of my goodies will be getting a dash of sage.

There were 5 of us for dinner, and basically Steve and I ordered a bunch of stuff to split, and Emo.Matt, Alice and Fabian ordered a bunch of stuff to split. Plus, we all made sure to try a little bit of everything else. It felt like we ordered everything off of the menu! But this method is a really great way to try a lot of stuff out at a new place.

Steve and I started off the night with fried cheddar curds with a buffalo ranch dip. When growing up in New York, you don't get cheese curds. It wasn't until I went to some random state fair (Hello BIG E) that I was able to try this delicious fried delicacy. Euclid Hall's take on the treat was no exception. The curds were fried crispy to perfection- no extra oil or grease on these babies. And honestly, I'm always a fan of buffalo sauce. Such gooey deliciousness!

The next dish was the steamed mussels in a New Belgium Trippel Ale, garlic and shallots. The mussels were surprisingly sweet (even though I'm sure I had a male and not a female). But the sauce was delicious. I kept using my leftover shell to scoop it up like a soup spoon and shovel it into my mouth. If I wasn't sharing this dish with more people, I would have picked up the cast iron pot and drank it like a toddler.

This pretty plate is Pad Thai Pig Ears. YEP YOU HEARD ME RIGHT! Euclid Hall did away with those pesky noodles and replaced them with strips of fried crispy pig ears. If you are a regular reader, you probably know that I really enjoy pig ears (and most other random pig parts as well). This was the most inventive iteration of swine ears that I've ever had. The sauce was very sweet though, so about half way through I doubted my ability to finish the plate. Which was totally fine because we shared it and the plate was licked clean. 

Here is another dish that is not surprising. MORE BONE MARROW. This was served with a sherry gastrique that was divine. I dragged the bone through the sauce and then scooped some marrow on the bread. The sweet onions on top added a nice high note to the dense sherry sauce. And don't worry dear readers, I did pick up the bone with my hands and sucked it clean. I'm in another state and I simply don't care. 

One of the things that struck me on the Euclid Hall menu was the variety of poutines that they offer. I have only had real poutine maybe twice in my life, but those experiences were so memorable that I get giddy when I see a restaurant offer the dish. The duck poutine was deliciously foul. (get it?). The gravy was thick and reminded you of having a home cooked meal in a farmhouse. The duck itself was plentiful and the gravy made it stick like mad to the fries. 

Steve and I opted for the rather nontraditional beef cheek poutine. It was smothered in tomatillo green chile, cheddar curds, goat cheese and cilantro. The green chile had a strong kick and by the time we got to the bottom of the plate my mouth was on fire. Beef cheek is the most tender sweet piece of meat and it was a perfect marriage with the green chile. 

The grand finale was the cashew crusted cobia. Since this was a Matt, Alice and Fabian dish so I didn't get to try the fish itself. What I can speak to was how delicious the the sweet potato and apple puree was. It was almost dessert delicious (I kind of think sweet potatoes are desserts anyway). Also, apparently I was the only fan of the frisee salad so I kind of housed the thing. I have no idea what dressing they put on those curly leaves of joy but it was simply perfect and light. I really HATE overdressed salads. Is hate too strong of a word?

Overall I had a great time at Euclid Hall. If you are ever in Denver and are looking for an entertaining eating experience, I highly recommend it. And a big thanks to Fabian for suggesting this place!

Hike in Red Rocks

The great thing about visiting Colorado is all the beautiful scenery. Even just driving on the highway was beautiful. Looking out the window on a long drive I was comforted to be followed by mountains. The jagged Flatirons met us first and then gave away to the majestic Rockies. I'm envious of those who have this view on a regular basis. On our last full day in Colorado we drove to Red Rocks Park to take a hike around some beautiful rock formations. All four of us (Steve, Emo.Matt, Alice and Myself) brought along our cameras and we made it a photo hike. Of course, Steve's photos turned out way better than mine (no surprise there) so I'm happy to share some of his snaps with you. Enjoy!

The Fort Collins Brewery and Funkwerks

After our trip to New Belgium we stopped in downtown Fort Collins for a quick bite to eat and then we were back on the beer trail. Our next stop was Fort Collins Brewery which was a nice departure from the insanity of the New Belgium tap room. This tap room was smaller, quieter and just plain peaceful.

FCB offers a nice variety of special flights for tasting. Here myself and Alice stare wistfully at the bar while deciding what we want to drink.

It was lovely outside by the time we got our beers so we decided to have a drink on the patio. This is me making the most horrible face when a car alarm started going off. It ruined my tranquil beer moment.

So, on to the beer! I love stouts and porters and FCB offers a seasonal porter flight. Perfect! It came with a Vanilla Porter, Coconut Porter, Mint Chocolate Chip Porter, Double Chocolate Coffee Stout and some beer that Steve picked (the red one).

Clearly we had no problem drinking all these beers. My favorites were the mint chocolate porter and the coconut porter. Mint chocolate is my favorite food combination and I wasn't disappointed by that flavor in beer.

After FCB we took a little trip down the road and ended up at Funkwerks. Besides having a delightfully funny name, they have very Funky beer. This is because they only offer Saison style beers which have a slight tangy yogurt flavor to them.

I totally dig their drunk looking glass mascot.

They stamped FUNK on my hand. I had the FUNK all day.

As this was later in the day, I can't remember exactly all of the beers that we ordered. Their taproom site has a good list of what they offered. I remember trying the Montage, Saison, Tropic King and the Mistral. The others, not so sure. I was pretty beered out by this point. And I was getting sleepy. Day drinking is a tiring proposition.

And just look at this beautiful sunset that waiting for us as we stepped out of Funkwerks. Man, I love Fort Collins.

New Belgium Brewery Tour!

When Steve and I planned our Colorado trip, we knew there would be lots of beer. Both Steve and Matt are avid home brewers and I knew they wanted to geek out over beer. When Matt suggested we spend a full day in Fort Collins drinking all sorts of tasty brews and touring local breweries, how could we say no? So Saturday we headed out bright and early to the New Belgium Brewery. The tours book up way in advance and we didn't have tickets, but we were told if we got there early and waited around, we could get on a tour. We got to the tap room just before 12, gave our names to the hostess and ordered a taster from the bar. Before I even took my first sip we were informed that there was a cancellation and we could jump on the 12:30 tour. Talk about good timing! Also, the tour is free. And filled with LOTS of free beer.

New Belgium is now entirely 100% employee owned and it seems like one of the best places to work. All of the staff were not only friendly to us, but really good friends with each other. Every employee gets a special bike on their one year anniversary so the brewery is filled with assorted bicycles. For their fifth anniversary employees get to a trip to Belgium with their brew-master to try tons of beers. For their 10 year anniversary they get a 6-week paid sabbatical to do whatever the hell they want. That is my kind of company!

Doesn't this look like a church that worships beer? The pointed ceiling, bright lights and mosaic floors made this the prettiest mash tun I've ever seen.

Throughout the tour we got to taste lots of beer. LOTS OF BEER. They were handing it out so frequently that I had barely any time to finish my little tasting glass before they were giving me another.

This is the room where they make all their special barrel aged beers. But look closely at the back wall. Notice something? It is actually an employee rock climbing wall. The story goes that when their first employee hit the 10 year mark they asked him what he wanted and he asked for a rock wall. This person now has the official title of Director of Fun.

This beer is made by Satan.

Oh hello, I'm just another glass of some fancy-pants barrel aged beer.

I can't even comprehend how much beer is inside of these silos. I would like to get all Scrooge McDuck on them and put on my bathing suit and go for a dip. If I take a shower first I won't contaminate the beer, right? ;-)

The decor of the brewery was pretty neat. I especially liked all the lighting fixtures that were made out of bottles and cans. This is possibly the classiest dorm decor I have ever seen. Frat boys, be jealous.

Just look at that bottling line. I feel like I could watch factories in process for hours. Perhaps that's why I always get sucked into Unwrapped on the Food Network.

And the best part/most random moment was the celebration of "Jean Shorts January." This event is celebrated by the staff in the tap room who were all wearing jean shorts. If a visitor chose to participate and cut their jeans to shorts right then and there, they would take home some free tasty beer. This poor fellow is loosing his pants for some suds. The jeans weren't doing much for his shape or butt so I think he made a wise choice.

If you are ever in the area, go on the New Belgium tour. It is the best brewery tour I have been on and has the best ending. SPOILER: you go down a giant spiral slide.