Metro Denver’s food scene has never been as vibrant as it is today, something The Denver Postap food writers understand. Thatap why we’re out on the town as much as possible. Each month, we’ll provide you with recommendations about a few of the dishes we’ve tried. Want to hear about them early? Subscribe to the Stuffed newsletter, where we introduce one each Wednesday.
Jinya Ramen Bar
Sitting down on a bar stool at Jinya Ramen Bar across the street from Union Station, you see and hear the comings and goings of so many people that will later dissipate to their respective destinations. Dates show up with suitcases having just arrived from the airport; convention attendees with garish lanyards chatter over beers and bowls of ramen; from the kitchen emerges an amorphous yet lively “Arigato!” between jives in Spanish. The ramen takes care of the smells and flavors, with so many stockpiled in each bowl. My pick was the Tan Tan Men ramen, with chicken soy broth, sesame essence, ground pork, baby Bok choy, shredded leeks and chili oil. It’s a warm welcome to Denver.
1710 Wynkoop St., Denver, and other Colorado locations;
Noodles Express
Sources say it truly may be the end of the road for Noodles Express, a beloved Szechuan Chinese food restaurant that has flirted with closing on and off for the last couple of years. A sign taped to their window says they’ll be leaving their property at the end of May. If that’s the case, I’ll miss their salty fish fried rice, which contained enough chili oil to warrant adding “spicy” to the title. I’ll also miss the building and its bygone simplicity on South Colorado Boulevard, the way its neon sign beamed “NOODLE EXPRESS” in red letters. Singular. There won’t be another like it.
703 S. Colorado Blvd., Denver
Cinnamon’s Bakery
I see all the cinnamon buns being posted on the r/denverfood channel on Reddit and I raise you these two beautifully baked baddies. Cinnamon’s Bakery is tucked outside of Estes Park’s commercial corridors, and for good reason: Their cinnamon rolls sell out quickly. By the time we arrived at their little shack, they had been ransacked. Thankfully, they still had trays full of sea-salt caramel and raisin rolls and pecan sticky buns. Slathered with icing, the raisin roll was just as sweet and indulgent as I imagined the cinnamon roll was. What I’m trying to say is, select some of their other delicious options and leave some OG cinnamon rolls for the rest of us, OK?
920 W. Elkhorn Ave., Estes Park, plus a location in Loveland;
Molotov Kitschen + Cocktails
In case anyone forgot, pierogies are dumplings, too. And some fabulous ones are being served at Molotov Kitschen + Cocktails, a real gem of a hole-in-the-wall in East Colfax Avenue’s Bluebird District. The traditional Eastern European and Ukrainian dishes that chef Bo Porytko prepares at his restaurant change seasonally. When I went earlier this spring, the pierogies were filled with a creamy blend of potato and gruyere cheese, and laid on top of a caramelized root vegetable broth the color fuchsia. The whole thing was covered with a turmeric smetana cream. They were my kind of delicacy.
3333 E. Colfax Ave., Denver;
Sobo 151
If watching playoff hockey (or basketball, let’s face it) puts your stomach in a knot, the Bavarian pretzel at Sobo 151 will untie it. The South Broadway bar has a singular appeal in Denver for its Czech food, pints of Pilsner Urquell and wide-ranging hockey fandom. The $10 appetizer is a great introduction to the rest of their pub fare and done like nowhere else in the metro: soft and steamy inside, deep fried for a crispy outer shell and paired with a delightful garlic dip. It’ll make you forget about the game for a hot second.
151 S. Broadway, Denver;
