The first time I visited Denver, I became inebriated after just one beer and felt too full to eat, thanks to altitude sickness. I liked Denver, but I didn't love Denver. Skip ahead fifteen years, and numerous weekends in Colorful Colorado later, I can firmly state that Matt & I are in love with Denver. The city is extremely clean, has a super cool vibe, a great restaurant scene, and is surrounded by the most gorgeous scenery. I highly recommend spending time in the various national & state parks but if you have just one day, or even a long layover, there is so much to see & do in downtown Denver.
You know Matt and I love the W Hotel brand, and the Aloft property in Denver is in a fantastic location. We were able to walk to almost everything on our "must-see" list. During my pre-trip research, I came across this Conde Nast Traveler list of The Best Denver Hotels which has some really beautiful hotel options I want to check out next.
Breakfast is the most important meal of the day, and when we travel, we crave local diners. Back when Matt and I lived in the same state (haha), we watched non-stop Diners, Drive-ins and Dives together, so we were enthusiastic to check out Sam's No. 3. Matt ordered a breakfast burrito the size of his arm and I loaded up on a Mexican egg and veggie skillet. We could sense Guy Fieri all around us.
After that massive breakfast, we needed a cup of coffee and a walk around town. The number one attraction on my must-see Denver list, was Union Station. Yes it's a working Amtrak train station, but it is also a place for coffee & cocktails, reading a book, people watching, or just taking in the natural beauty of the structure. Like most old train stations in major US cities, the architecture is absolutely stunning. Denver added cute cafes and sunny seating areas that has truly made Union Station a destination all it's own. We ordered Pig Train coffee and walked around photographing everything.
Matt noticed a brewery across the street and we parked ourselves at Wynkoop Brewing Company for an afternoon of beer tasting. For a change of scenery, we migrated over to Denver Beer Co for their sunny patio and of course, more beer!
In an effort to walk off the tipsiness, Matt and I strolled downtown, stopping to take photographs of buildings, bridges, and baseball stadiums! As luck would have it, the weather was 60 degrees, the sun was shining and the sky was an ideal shade of blue. Not bad for a Saturday afternoon in February!
I have a notebook where I jot down lists of all the little things that matter to me; what artists I've seen in concert, cities I want to visit, future baby names, camera tips, etc. One of the lists includes all the best restaurants I've ever visited. Because I travel often, cities and restaurants begin to run together. The best thing we ever ate can be long forgotten after years of new cities and new restaurants. Very close to the top of that favorite restaurant list is Bar Dough. Matt and I ordered so much food, the waiter actually started laughing at us. Our table didn't even fit everything and they had to bring the food out in shifts, tapas style. Matt had researched the best things to order and we wanted them all, even if it was way too much food for 2 normal humans. We had a handful of starters, a couple sides, 2 main dishes, and a pizza, followed by actual dessert. I'm full just thinking about it. My favorite starter was the legendary 7x ranch meatballs, made with chuck, port belly, and pancetta. The meatballs were tender and extremely flavorful and the sauce fully complimented each meat.
However, the food that topped all other food and the food that is on my "favorite things I ever ate" list, was the Signore Bianco Pizza. This pizza is covered in stracciatella, parmigiano, creamed leek, red onion, green olive, fresno chile, & fennel. I never order white pizza because, red sauce, duh, but this pizza was exceptional. The flavor combo was sublime; creamy, spicy, briny. I dream of this pizza and will go back to Denver for this pizza alone! The restaurant is called Bar Dough and boy do they know what they're doing with pizza dough.
Downtown Denver is cool. The people are hip. The restaurants are mod. The streets are so clean. The weather is temperate. The beer is flavorful. The buildings are pulchritudinous (good dictionary word of the day, isn't it?). You can't ask for more out of a day trip west.
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