Cafe Brazil

Recently it seems that the missus and I have been spending a lot of time eating in the Highlands area of Denver due to the interesting range of restaurants.  We have eaten at locales such as Bang!, Lou's Food Bar, and Axios Estiatorio, but it really feel like we are still only scratching the surface of the restaurants in the area.

Most recently, we ate at Cafe Brazil (4408 Lowell Boulevard, Denver, CO / 303-480-1877), which is an award winning restaurant serving South American cuisine.  Our first couple of attempts to eat there were unsuccessful due to the fact that the restaurant is inexplicably closed for dinner on Sundays and Mondays.

Note:  I apologize in advance for the odd lighting for the pictures in this post.  The restaurant is quite dimly lit, and so we attempted to take pictures using the iPhone as a flashlight with mixed results.

We started our meal with the special appetizer of the day, which was essentially a Sweet Potato Croquette, as well as a Grilled Manchego cheese.  Both were colorful and had interesting texture and flavors, but I think we both preferred the Grilled Manchego when added to the complimentary bread.  The restaurant serves a variety of breads in the basket, but my personal favorite was a sweet coconut bread.  I think it was because they reminded me a little bit of my mom's poundcakes.

Sweet Potato Croquette

Grilled Manchego Cheese

Our entrees were served with a choice of soup, and we selected one of each choice in order to sample both.  The black bean soup was served hot, while the cucumber soup was served cold.  Both were a little bit spicy, but were completely different in consistency and flavor.  I ended up eating both of the soups because the wifey did not particularly enjoying either of them.  For the main course, I had the Seafood Copacabana (shrimp and scallops in a coconut sauce) while ScaryMsMary had the Frango de Tiago (chicken in curry and coconut milk).

Seafood Copacabana

Frango de Tiago

Interestingly enough, we each thought that our own choices were better than the other's, but upon direct comparison, both of the sauces tasted very similar.  I enjoyed the fact that the vegetables were also well seasoned and prepared with the same care as the main.

Tongzilla binary rating:

ONE

Tongzilla description:

Coconutty Goodness

Cherry Creek Arts Festival

On the weekend following Independence Day, the Cherry Creek Arts Festival opens up for a three day street fair.  The missus and I managed to hit the fair on Friday afternoon when it was less busy and before the rain storms came into town.  The festival itself spans a few square blocks and has over 200 artists exhibiting their wares, a whole street dedicated to food booths, another street for kids' activities, and even live music and entertainment.

Interesting shape and color

Irreverent, but probably the funniest piece in the show

The entire piece is made from toys

Creepy

Less creepy (slightly)

Very lifelike

This is actually a 3D picture.  Works with the traditional 3D glasses

It's my signature smirk.  On a panda.

Crave Restaurant

Although I could probably write several descriptive paragraphs about the burgers at Crave Restaurant (3982 Limelight Ave, Castle Rock, CO / 303-814-2829), the pictures tend to speak for themselves.  Let's just say that I was the only one at the table that actually finished the entire burger.  Few those hardcore folks that think they can conquer the burgers at Crave, you may want to check out the Big Bad Wolf Challenge to eat three fully loaded burgers in 45 minutes.

Kentucky - crispy chicken, bacon, lettuce, tomato, Jack cheese, avocado, and chipotle mayo

3 Little Pigs - pulled pork, ham, bacon, cheese, and onion strings

Side view of the 3 Little Pigs (just for perspective)

Domo Restaurant VS. Izakaya Den

For some reason, I have always been a sucker for a bowl of hot noodle soup.  It can be Chinese Won Ton Mein, Vietnamese Pho, but I am especially fond of Japanese Ramen.  Around Denver, there are only a few places that I have found so far that serve authentic ramen, one of which is Domo Restaurant.  (1365 Osage Street  Denver, CO / 303-595-3666).

Domo, which means "Thanks" in Japanese, is hidden on the side of downtown in what appears to be a converted warehouse with train tracks beside it.  The outside of the building looks like a modified warehouse, but the inside is an interesting variation on the standard Japanese design.  The theme of the decor follows the theme of the food, which is to say that everything is somewhat rustic and simple.  The chairs, for example, are hewn from tree trunks and then simply covered with padding, while the tables are solid stone (and not always flat).

By contrast, Izakaya Den (1518 South Pearl St. Denver, CO, 80210 / 303-777-0691) is a study in contrasting modern cuisine with traditional flavors.  The decor is a sleek, contemporary rendition of Japanese wooden framing, but the chairs and tables are much more "normal" than the slabs and stumps seen at Domo.

Izakaya is traditionally an establishment that serves small dishes along with sake in Japan.  The style has evolved into a similar idea as Spanish Tapas by serving small, tasty dishes with a variety of flavors and textures.  This of course leads to the introduction of new ingredients in order to modernize and constantly update the menu while still maintaining its Japanese roots.

We recently visited both restaurants to sample their ramen, and came away impressed with both.  Domo offers both Shoyu (soy sauce) and Miso (soybean) based broth, with interesting variations such as spicy salmon or pork.  Izakaya Den on the other hand offers some very non-traditional flavors, such as Lobster or Maguro (tuna).

In the end ScaryMsMary prefers the Lobster Ramen at Izakaya Den, complete with the Lobster Dumplings and Miso Lobster broth, while I personally enjoy the traditional Shoyu Ramen at Domo Restaurant.  I am still on the search for a good Tonkotsu (pork bone) Ramen in Denver, but I would not hesitate to order either of these again.