It had been a long Saturday, complete with a drive through a blizzard to cut a Christmas tree. The idea of cooking dinner receded as we crept north from someplace remote in the Black Forest south of Franktown, the tree lashed to our minivan roof.
We’d tried Andrew and Jen Casalini’s cheese plate at a summer festival. My wife had visited their business, Satchel’s Market in Park Hill, for coffee.
Gold stars all around.
So we went for dinner, looking for tasty comestibles to bring home, heat up, and munch during tree-trimming.
More gold.
We grabbed a few entrees; a bunch of quiches; guacamole and salsa; and a big chocolate chip cookie for dessert.
As we agonized over the short-but-sweet menu and ogled the sprawl of cheeses on display, Andrew chatted, telling us how he stuffed the chicken breast with sun-dried tomatoes, garlic and prosciutto, championing the work of the local artist whose work adorned the market’s walls (and who was having an art opening that evening in the market space), and announcing the hiring of a Denver cheese guru.
The girls gamboled across the wood floors, sitting at the beat-up old tables and eyeing the display of desserts.
This is a comfortable, neighborhood place. Regulars drop in and joke around. Samples get pressed into patrons’ hands. People linger.
And they eat, which is a good thing, because Satchel’s has some winners.
The chicken breast ($8.49) did not turn dry after a reheating in the oven at home. Juice poured from the bird with every cut. Its sides of roasted rosemary potatoes and baby carrots were perfect, the potato crisp yet tender, the carrots cooked to a pleasant al dente.
The butternut squash lasagna with roasted tomato marinara, bechamel sauce and parmesan ($5.99/pound) presented a mix of Italy and Thanksgiving that said, “Next year, we’re mixing a bit of Rome into our parade of pilgrims.”
Then there were the mini quiches ($4.25, each coming with a piece of bread): ham and cheddar, seafood, broccoli and cheddar, and asparagus. Andrew draped a slice of triple-cream cheese over each little egg-and-dairy bomb, making them beyond dynamite. Nuclear? Definitely wonderful.
The guacamole ($8.99/ pound) and salsa ($5.99/ pound) were good, although they each needed more salt.
From the desserts, Andrew recommended one of his thick chocolate chip cookies ($.99). Each bite screamed “Happy Chocolate Butter!”
It all was so tasty we returned early the next morning for cappuccinnos, burritos ($3.25, choice of ham and cheese or spinach and feta), and a fat cinnamon roll ($1.79).
Yes, more gold stars.
Next time, we’ll mine for gold with a few of his scrumptious-sounding sandwiches.
Staff writer Douglas Brown can be reached at 303-820-1395 or djbrown@denverpost.com.
Satchel’s Market
Eclectic|5021 E. 28th Ave., 303-355-2137, satchelsmarket.com|99 cents-$9|6:30 a.m.-6 p.m. Monday-Thursday; 6:30 a.m.-8 p.m. Friday; 8 a.m.-9 p.m. Saturday; 9 a.m.-4 p.m. Sunday.
Front burner: Exceptional food – from sandwiches to dinner entrees to cookies – and a warm atmosphere. Great cheese selection, too.
Back burner: The surrounding neighborhood doesn’t lend itself to strolling. There’s nowhere to window shop, and few other thriving and inviting commercial outposts.
