CHEWY MELTY CRUNCHY

Three words: Bavarian Cream Churro. After tasting one of these you'll be dancing at the feet of the Santa Maria. Kiva's warm, crispy, chewy, cinnamon-sugar dusted, Bavarian cream filled delights made me forget about every other dessert I've ever had. It made me forget about our meal. It made me forget about everything, for that matter. It was euphoric. Now where was I...

Kiva blends traditional Tex-Mex cuisine with traditional Spanish ingredients to create a distinct identity from the usual cheese covered, green chili doused Mexican plate. You'll find the all the staples such as tacos, burritos, enchiladas, chimichangas, rellenos and such. All familiar, but enjoyably different. Two of the more interesting things we had were side dishes: chochoyones and nopales. Chochoyones are small tamale-like dumplings covered in red sauce while nopales are cacti sauteed with tomatoes and onions. Both very interesting, delicious and a great option from the traditional rice and beans. The whole menu is filled with little suprises. The tacos are made from fluffy, griddled wheat tortillas. Burritos and enchiladas are sprinkled with cotija cheese. The churros are filled with Bavarian cream. The churros are filled with Bavarian cream. The churros are filled with Bavarian cream.

Kiva also has an extensive tequila list, Sunday brunch with bottomless drinks, a great outdoor patio and churros filled with Bavarian cream.

Kiva is very reasonably priced and will receive multiple trips. And, if you don't go try the Bavarian cream churros, I will personally come find you and give you a verbal thrashing.

FORM OVER FUNCTION

Potager is like the new $300 shoes you just bought that make your toes bleed. The gleaming restaurant, lush patio, rustic bar and open kitchen are all extremely beautiful and scream French countryside sans the smelly locals. The organic, Boulder Farmer's Market suppliers scream of Alice Waters' Chez Panisse. But, what it does not scream is, "We know how to cook." The people behind Potager have done a remarkable job with the details: Old cookbooks line the wall bordering the open kitchen, the floor to ceiling wood wine case is sprinkled with hay, the outdoor patio provides a beautiful garden and perfectly weathered wood window coverings, and the menu reads beautifully with wine recommendations for each course. Everything about Potager charms your senses...until the food arrives.

The food is focused on seasonal ingredient from local growers, which is exciting yet debilitating. The kitchen tries to treat seasonal vegetables simply to exemplify the ingredients' 'essence', but it also gets repetitive. Out of the eight dishes we ordered, seven probably had corn, tomatoes or both. But, most of dishes did not 'feature' the corn or tomatoes. It always seemed like an after thought with little creativity: A goat cheese soufflé with a tomato puree. Why not a tomato soufflé or tomato bread pudding? Anyways, that's beside the point that the kitchen could not cook a chicken correctly. The first roast chicken to come out was rare in the middle and sent back. The replacement chicken that came out included a dry, tough breast and an undercooked thigh and leg. I can understand the first chicken being undercooked, but the second? When a plate comes back in a kitchen you better damn well make sure the second one is perfect. There is also an instrument called a quick read thermometer that is part of every cook’s uniform. Use it! Make sure your customers don't get salmonella, especially while cooking half a chicken on the bone. Otherwise, my monkfish came out luke warm, the soufflé was barely warm, the tomato tart crust was soggy, and the lobster and tomato risotto had no lobster. Given, it was the first night of a new seasonal menu change, but it doesn't make it okay to forget the basics of cooking. Raw chicken and warm food do not bode well for a restaurant critiqued as one of the best in Denver.

Even with the major oversights in our visit, I want to give Potager another chance. I feel they are capable of so much more. They have a great vision that is hard to come by in Denver. The space is too captivating to fail. From the perfectly weather-stained walls to the angelic, pregnant bartender, the restaurant is too charming and the ideas are too big to come crashing down...Yet, that might be their ultimate problem.

THE BOOT COUNTRY

I love Italian food. There's nothing like a fritto misto that brings you to the Amalfi coast. Grilled meat with a splash of lemon, olive oil and herbs that is the essence of Florence. A great thin crust pizza Margherita that carries the noisy scooters of Naples. Or, just an artichoke deep-fried in olive oil that brings you to the steps of the Coliseum. But, most importantly, Italian food is about treating the freshest, local ingredients very simply to elevate its essence. It's not about bucket-sized bowls of overcooked pasta drowned in red sauce and garlic. It's about balance and capriciousness that creates harmony. It has the ability like no other cuisine to transport you to the forgotten memories of a trip through Italy.

Venice in LODO has this ability, and that is what makes it special.

FRUITS OF LABOR

Fruition on East 6th Avenue has been hailed by most of the local critics as the best new restaurant in Denver opened within the last year. I haven't eaten out enough to actually know, but Fruition is exceptional and one of the better dining experiences I've had in town. Described as upscale comfort food, the kitchen uses traditional French methods to twist regional American cuisine. The menu changes with the seasons to utilize the freshest ingredients.

The space is quite small, but intimate, comfortable and clean. It feels like someone's home.

The maitre'd and proprietor, Paul, was warm and welcoming, as if he invited us himself. The overall service was very pleasant; our waitress was not the most personable, but professional. The crew was attentive, unobtrusive and timely.

Here's a quick rundown of our meal:

Appetizer: Potato Wrapped Oysters Rockefeller, Lardons, Spinach, Pea Puree--I probably could have eaten 50 of the small, crunchy, briny, sweet packages without hesitation. Especially good, was the pea puree--Just the sweet essence of peas that perfectly describe the season.

Entree 1: Pine nut Crusted Petrale Sole, Braised Baby Artichokes, Lemon-Truffle hollandaise--Perfectly cooked and properly seasoned. The sole was moist and fresh and the hollandaise gave the right amount of acidity to cut through the fish and nuts. It's a bowl-licker.

Entree 2: BBQ Pork Shoulder, Celery Root Slaw, Cornbread Cake--The pork was buttery, smoky, sweet and juicy. The most important element was that the pork was served very, very hot. The flavor of braised/slow cooked meats become muttled if served under temperature, but this was hot to the last bite. The crisp slaw gives a good contrast and reminds you of a North Carolina pork sandwich while the cornbread puts you back in grandma's kitchen. My only complaint was the BBQ sauce tasted a little generic.

Dessert: Chocolate Cupcake Tasting--Three cupcakes with different frostings, vanilla and coffee ice cream and caramel sauce. It was good, but nothing to call home about. The cupcakes would have been better if served warm. The ice cream was subtle--not too sweet, and the hazelnut frosting was the most interesting. It'll satisfy your chocolate urge but nothing orgasmic.

Overall, the meal left something to be desired--in a good way. I want to go back and try every dish. The menu is focused with just a handful of choices per course, which makes me wonder what else is up Alex Seidel's sleeve. Every dish seems refined, balanced, interesting yet very familiar.

But, the question remains: What does Fruition do for Denver? It helps solidify Denver as a culinary town. Nothing revolutionary. Just proper. Denver needs more places like Fruition, where things are done right: A focused menu where everything is cooked perfectly, seasoned properly and served in a comfortable, elegant, professional environment. Denver has so many interesting neighborhoods and organic, homegrown restaurants will make this city pulsate. Less PF Chang's, less Maggianos, less Ruth Chris'. Fruition is not trying too hard, not trying anything crazy -- just creating beautiful plates. It's a steppingstone toward Denver's culinary future.

NO MIRACLES HERE

"Milagro Taco Bar writes...
This festive corner spot dons hardwood floors, copper accents and terracotta-hued walls. It claims a clientele of neighborhood dwellers and Mexican-food aficionados devoted to star chef Frank Bonanno. All relish the mind clouding margaritas, impressive Mexican beer selection, friendly staff and authentic street eats and innovative Mexican plates."

*Edit: Apparently, Frank Bonanno's partnership within Milagro Taco Bar had recently dissolved. If I were him, I would definitely have them take my name off the website.

Dear Frank Bonanno: if you're going to put your stamp on something, you better be damn sure it lives up to the hype or you're just another sell-out.

Milagro Taco Bar was probably the worst restaurant experience I've had in Denver. I'm not picky. But, I am a serious foodie and have a certain expectation of a restaurant that Frank Bonanno (Mizuna, Luca d' Italia) lends his name to. Although it's name contains 'taco bar', which would give it a sense of simplicity (or trendiness), it's hard to contemplate the fiasco that ensued on our visit.

We got a last minute Thursday reservation around 7:30. Upon arriving, our table was empty, but took atleast 15 minutes to be 'set up', so we took to the bar for a round of drinks. Upon being seated, we recieved water and chips and salsa. Another 20 minutes passed without even being acknowledged by a single server. So, Pete went to the bar to order another round of drinks and to confirm that our center seated table of 8 actually had a server assigned to it. After a little management pow-wow, they decided to send us a server, a free round of drinks and a round of tequila shots. We ordered our meals and were told our order would be hurried along.

After being seated at about 7:45, our dinner was served at 9:15. The entire time, the best service was from a bus boy.

I've worked in the restaurant business for 10 years and the question I repeatedly ask myself when I got out to eat is: What did they do to make me want to come back? Sometimes the food is so good it overlooks bad service. Sometimes exceptional service overlooks mediocre food. Sometimes it's an intangible that draws you to the space. In this case, it was none of the above. The food was awful. I had a combo plate (taco, burrito, enchilada). The enchilada sauce was bitter, obviously burned and without proper seasoning. The barbacoa was stringy and tough, the rice was maybe Zatarain's or Uncle Ben's, the green chile had no spice, and the taco was soggy. The presentation was also ill-fated; My burrito was stacked on top of my enchilada! The atmosphere reminds me of the Pink Taco at the Hard Rock in Vegas or a Carlos and Charlie's in Cabo--nothing 'miraculous'.

The thing that bothers me the most is that the entire time not one manager came over to apologize. The restaurant was less than full so they certainly were not that busy. It's a case of someone not caring. Managers should know everthing that goes on in their restaurant--from the dining room to the kitchen to the bathroom to the parking lot. Communication and attitude is a reflection of top management and someone up top definitly fucked up. Do you really think that a free round of cheap tequila and no apology is going to make me want to come back? Maybe the tequila would make us forget our experience? Regardless, I wouldn't go back because I can get better Mexican food for half the price. It just disappoints me that they didn't even try. We were a table of 8! Probably the largest group in the whole joint! That's 8 people x their network that you've lost! I try to give restaurants the benefit of the doubt because it is one of the most difficult industries, but show me something!

Damn! Cheap tequila makes me angry...Atleast give us shots of Patron!