ey! Colorado in the summer you may say? Well, we like to be different! This state is a great destination any time of year, especially in summer away from the heat of steamy Floridaaah...

      We don’t like crowds and try to travel at off-peak times. In the first week of September, our first stop for two nights  was the Hotel Teatro in downtown Denver.

DENVER

Yes, Denver really is one mile high! There is a step on the Capital Building, now found to be the 15th one that is exactly 5,280 ft. above sea level. In Denver’s rarified air, golf balls go 10% further, so do cocktails, alcohol is more powerful here than at sea-level! The sun feels warmer, you’re closer to it and your coffee cooler. Water boils at 202 degrees here. The air is very dry so drinking more water is a must.

Denver has the 10th largest downtown in America. Within a mile radius, it has three major sport stadiums, the nation’s second largest performing arts center, three colleges with 30,000 students. Also, art and history museums, a mint producing 10 billion coins a year, a river offering white water rafting, over 5,300 hotel rooms a $140 million amusement park, a $100 million aquarium as well as 300 restaurants. Don’t ever say you’re bored in Denver!

Denver is near the mountains, not in them and has 300 days of sunshine a year! It has the largest city park system in the country, and, being such a cultural city, is the highest educated population in America according to the visitor’s bureau. Denver also has more high school and college graduates per capita than any other city.

Entering Denver through the air is a sight to behold. The Great Plains that stretch for miles suddenly stop, giving way to the majestic Rocky Mountains. Arriving at Denver International Airport is another wonderous sight.

Built in 1995, DIA is so huge that it is twice the size of Manhattan and bigger than the entire city of Boston or San Francisco. It covers 53 square miles and can land 100 planes an hour. The inside terminal has the largest public art program in American history and its roof of 34 peaks of the Rocky Mountains has become one of the most recognizable artichectual symbols of any airport. An amazing airport and what a grand way to enter Denver!

Old Denver has a rich and rough history. Arapaho Indians settled here and in the early 1800’s welcomed ’pale faces’ in search of beaver and buffalo. Then gold was found which lured 40,000 ‘gold-diggers’ to what quickly became known as the Colorado Territory (the Spanish explorers named it meaning reddish colour, from the indigenous rocks) giving rise to the instant city of Denver. Much gambling and speculating went on as well as a struggle to make it more civilized. The John Evans family did much to improve things and played a big part in linking rail travel to the Mile High City, saving it from economic starvation.

Chic boutique Hotel Teatro in old Denver

This same Evans, lived in a home on the Hotel Teatro site when in 1910 the Evans family decided to demolish it. They replaced it with a state-of-the-art office tower and street-car barn for the Denver Tramway Company. After 1957 it was then utilised for the University of Colorado, and, after renovations, in1998 the luxury hotel and restaurants metamorphasised. The Teatro (Italian for theatre) borrows its name and theme from the adjacent Center for Performing Arts, which endowed the hotel some of its most exquisite stage sets, props and costumes from past productions. Even the hotel’s press kit was presented in a theatrical format, very imaginative.

HOTEL TEATRO

This very smart boutique city hotel exudes quiet luxury and is centrally placed for seeing the sights. The only disappointment was that the Performing Arts Center (next door), covering four square blocks, the largest performing arts center under one roof in the world, comprising nine theatres, seating 10,000 people, was off-season also!

The hotel’s 110 guest rooms and suites have 12ft. ceilings, hand-made silk bed coverings, plush carpets and floor to ceiling drapery, all in sage, golds and creams with dark wood furniture.

Marble bathrooms, European chrome fixtures, luxury baths and showers, oversize Frette towels, robes and Aveda bath products continue the pampering in every detail.

General Manager Coni Thornburg has seen to these many ‘women’s touches’ over the years. Some new amenities, as well as full service digital phone lines, Hewlett-Packard combination laser/fax/scanner/copier/printer,include a Guided run,

daily escorted run on Denver’s scenic Cherry Creek Trail, Dreamaker programme, sleep assistance for the mind and body, a Bubbles and Bubbles package, Aveda bath and some French Champagne, aromatherapy baths, 24 hour room service, Yoga-on-demand and Major Domo (keeper of Royalty!)

This service anticipating guest’s needs, such as when Katie Couric of NBC arrived for a shoot without luggage, theatre tickets and forgotten but needed items.

Sounds terrific, shouldn’t every hotel have this service? No wonder Hotel Teatro was named one of America’s “Noteworthy Newcomers” and “In” places by 2001 Zagat survey of Top US Hotels, Resorts and Spas.

Having arrived late afternoon, we enjoyed settling into our excellent large guest room. On staff recommendations, we then made our way, in a most civilised style, via the hotel’s Range Rover, they will drive you if at all possible within a few miles of the hotel, to Vesta Dipping Grill for dinner.

VESTA DIPPING GRILL

Vesta Dipping Grill's fare and sexy decor

Vesta, the goddess of the hearth, is the most beautiful of the Roman divinities. Her name derives from a Sanskrit root, vas, which expresses the idea of ‘shining.’ This, and more information, as well as asking for feedback, positive or negative, was written on the front cover of the menu, plus thanks to the people who’d help them make possible the dream a reality...how often do you get that!

We really liked this place, with its traditional design elements of high brick walls, woods and metals blended with funky lighting, deep colours and some very sexy booths. Owners Josh and Jen Wolkon have a great concept here and the menu makes the diner really think about tastes and what they are ordering/eating. It was packed on a rainy Tuesday evening straight after Labor Day, they must be doing it right.

The menu consisted of ‘pre-dippin’ appetizers, salads the the ‘world grill cuisine.’ We had theRoasted Vegetable Samosas with roast corn sauce and yellow curry which was great, different and delicious. The ‘amuse’ prior, was a taste of  fresh half fig with Windsor blue cheese and aged balsamic drizzle­delectable.

Our choices from the ‘grill’ were the Brown Sugar Roast Duck Breast, with buttermilk chive mashed potatoes and curried onions and the daily special, Pan-Seared Halibut with lavender rice, basil emulsion and a fresh fig salad, both excellent. The treat here was that at this point you could choose up to three dipping sauces to accompany your meal. We tried the mango poblano salsa, the dried berry and the mango cinnamon chutneys, the mandarin orange chili mojo and the yellow curry. All were interesting, imaginative and enhanced our dining experience perfectly. The staff were great, manager Jeff, Maitre d’ Marshall and our server Kyle took good care of us.

We didn’t have room, but the desserts looked delicious too... next time hopefully. If you are in Denver don’t miss this clever and tasty place, Vesta Dipping Grill.

MORE DENVER

After a very comfortable night and sharing an Eggs Benedict breakfast in our room, we headed off for adventure. Again, unable to refuse a lift in the hotel Range Rover we were dropped at our first stop, the famous Molly Brown House, home of the ‘unsinkable’ Molly Brown, Titanic survivor. The house thankfully has been saved and restored to its Victorian origins by Historic Denver, Inc. It was very dark inside (brown!), to help preserve the antiques presumably, yet really showed how things have changed on the ‘home front’ with bigger windows now and light, airy interiors afforded by central heating and A/C of course. I was also interested to see the original use of the ceiling tile look-alike paper, anaglypta, on the ceilings and the use of gold and silver paints...all in use today in interior design. We stayed for some of the tour...can’t get too excited about a ‘house’ that was once lived in by a lucky survivor of a terrible tragedy! Open seven days a week, tours run all the time.

We then walked across Lincoln Park where the Capital Buildings and Civic Centers are, to the Denver Museum of Art then showing the John Singer Sargent exhibition we wanted to see. A new wing is being added to to Denver Art Museum, designed by Daniel Libeskind, winner of the World Trade Center redesign project. This will be his first building in America. We also enjoyed a light lunch outside in the museum cafe, soaking up the bright sunshine of the beautiful day that it was.

Neal then headed to the Coors Field for a tour and I to the 16th Street Mall for a shop! Coors Field Neal writes: Ah, baseball! Whether it is spring training for the Pittsburgh Pirates at cozy McKechnie Field in Bradenton or a very special tour of the magnificient Coors Field, home of the Colorado Rockies baseball team, I love this game.

My tour at Coors Filed was with a group of other baseball aficionados one sunny afternoon. The building of Coors Field itself generated a huge turnaround for the LoDo (lower downtown) section of Denver. Old warehouses were revitalized with the advent of the Rockies, and today it is alive with restaurants, bars, shops, galleries and more to make your visit here worthwhile.

The park itself is just 10 years old and our 75-minute tour was a great­from the upper deck right to the playing field. The Rockies were in San Francisco that day losing to the Giants, so our group had the field to ourselves. It was interesting seeing how the park was laid out with the seats angled towards home plate, enabling everyone to enjoy the game comfortably. The spectacular sunsets over the Rocky Mountains are a stunning sight through the left field area. It was a wise decision by the architects to incorporate this into the layout.

Tours of the dugout, locker rooms, press level (with many dents in the walls from foul balls), the club and suite levels and the playing field itself were great. The total site covers 76 acres and a 66 million year old dinasour fossil was even found during construction! More tidbits include10 miles of handrails, 1,400,000 bricks engraved “Coors Field,” 45 miles of wire beneath the ground to heat the field and 350 women’s toilets.

For $6 it is a great tour with an informative staff. I loved it and I am sure anyone who is slightly interested in baseball would as well. A nice side note is that through 2002 the Colorado Rockies Player Fields Programs, which is partially funded by revenues from Coors Field Tours, will have opened 92 fields around the state at a cost of $16.8 million. Batter-up!

The well-known 16th street mall is a mile long and is in the heart of the city’s business, convention and theatre districts. It has a great bus system that’s free! No traffic allowed. Shoppers can hop-on hop-off at any of the frequent stops along the way, saving much walking in between. The street is lined with 200 trees and planters filled annually with 50,000 flowers. Outdoor cafes, shops, fountains, open plazas and parks makes this a happenin’ spot.

One block off the Mall at 17th and Tremont is the famous triangular Brown Palace Hotel. Built in 1892, the “grande dame” hotel features a nine-storey atrium topped by a stained glass window and throughout the lobby there are wonderful Victorian and Art Deco design features.

Just off the street too, is the Denver Pavilion, a two square block entertainment complex with15 movie theatres and more than 40 other shops and restaurants.

We met up again at Larimer Square, another, smaller scale shopping and dining district. Very attractive and quieter, this was a great place to browse the galleries and unique boutiques.

After our busy day a meal at our hotel’s first class Restaurant Kevin Taylor was a welcome respite.

RESTAURANT KEVIN TAYLOR

Acclaimed Chef/Owner Kevin Taylor and his team certainly ran a tight ship, this restaurant is well worth the visit. Manager Thomas Voskuil, Sommelier Mark, with his gorgeous voice, Toby, our most excellent server and Executive Chef Chris Carson, Kevin’s right hand man, were the team that put our dining that night on our unforgettable list. Thirty-nine year old Taylor is a native Coloradoan, known for his creative unpretentious approach to American cuisine. He has received accolades from Food &Wine, Bon Appetit, Zagat, TASTE and many others.

Restaurant Kevin Taylor has been awarded the coveted Mobil Four-Star, the AAA Four-Diamond Award and the Wine Spectator’s “Best Award of Excellence” for its 900 bottle list and 12,000 bottle wine cellar. Kevin also has jou jou, a more casual but still smart wine bar type venue within the Hotel Teatro, as well as three other restaurants in Denver and Boulder. We were pleased to meet and chat with him for a few minutes earlier in the day, during his busy schedule.

The very chic and smart high ceilinged elegant dining room of the restaurant is rather art deco/neo classical. Taylor scoured Paris and the French countryside for the gold motif floor to ceiling draperies, to the linen wall coverings. The paneling is pecan stained honey with horizontal frets in light cherry stain. The dining chairs designed by Taylor, made by Fong Brothers, are Alderwood, stained honey and upholstered by Scalamandre in soft greys and lemon striped upholstery. Subdued lighting was provided by shaded wall sconces and fabulous, huge dish ceiling fixtures. The silver is Christofle, the china Bernardaud and the glass ware German crystal.

The ‘amuse,’ our first tasting, whilst soaking up the surroundings, was a tiny Squab Terrine, as well as a Tuna Sashimi rolled in paper thin cucumber. These with a glass of Perrier Jouet. Exquisite.

The wine list was very complete, not many places offer 12 Red Zinfandels. Our following wines were a glass of New Zealand Marlborough Sauvignon Blanc, with the Soft Shell Crab ‘sandwich,’ with toasted brioche, arugula, crisp bacon and cracked mustard aioli, and a Sauterne Nicolas 2001 with the Seared Grade ‘A’ French Foie Gras with pickled cherries, foie gras duck toast, pineapple gelee and caramelized pineapple. Amazing.

Pouilly Fuisse accompanied the soup course. Chilled Cucumber Vichyssoise, with heirloom tomato salad, asparagus tips and garlic chives, then the Puree of Two Asparagus Soups with fried green tomatoes, créme fraiche and poached lobster claw were both delicate and delicious. These soups were served to us in unison, and fused tableside. I love that, when the solid ingredients are served to you on the dishes and then the soup is poured over. This time the green and white asparagus soups were poured over simultaneously. Very impressive.

Kevin Taylor's Open Ravioli of Jumbo Shrimp and Diver Scallops, Roasted Venison Loin and a Flourless Lemon Souffle

Next we enjoyed sharing the Warm Parmesan and Crisp Tomato Tart served with frisee, crisp prosciutto, spinach and a basil dressing. The dish was so light and so fresh.

The fish course comprised the Open Ravioli of Jumbo Shrimp and Diver Scallops, with sweet corn, roasted peppers, asparagus and a bouillabaisse broth. The meat course of Roasted Venison Loin ’au poivre,’ with pancetta braised (very flavourful) Savoy cabbage, so great (chiagga) baby beets and Peruvian purple potatoes. Wow! All these were terrific tastes and texture combinations, complemented with a Willamette Valley Pinot Noir Cristom Reserve 2000.

I do enjoyed the writing and reminiscing of these articles and cannot believe how much food I am writing about! Thankfully Neal and I share most plates and tastings and do not finish each dish.

After a walk around the restaurant and upstairs to the private dining room overlooking the restaurant, we returned to our table for a tasting of two fabulous desserts. The Bittersweet ‘Liquid Center’ Chocolate Cake, with vanilla bean ice cream and hot chocolate syrup and the Flourless Lemon Souffle (of which there was a choice of Chocolate and Grand Marnier also), with raspberry sauce. Thankfully another 20 minutes had to be allowed for this gorgeous creation! Awesome as they say. We both agreed that every dessert offering sounded mouth-wateringly tempting.

There was also a very comprehensive After Dinner Drink Menu with Dessert Wines, Port, Cognac, Armagnac, Grappa, Cordials, Bourbon, Scotch and Eau de Vie.

After we politely refused coffee and petit-fours, Toby still presented us with a lovely box of tiny jewel-like treats to take away. What a wonderful place, with a professional, yet relaxed and totally capable staff presenting fabulous food creations to match.

Seasonal menus change here every two months and a pre-theatre prix-fixe dinner menu is also available nightly. Enjoy! BOULDER After picking up our Enterprise rental car from the helpful and pleasant Steven Walker at the convenient nearby downtown location the next morning, we set off for Boulder­the long way round! Heading for the Front Range hills we skirted the Rocky Mountain National Park to Estes Park in the northern corner, stopping in Nederland for lunch. We had this at the tiny cafe Annie’s,  the best egg sandwich with pesto cream cheese, perfect. The scenery was lovely and the roads were quiet.

PEARL STREET INN

Approaching attractive Boulder, we easily found our Pearl Street Inn B&B, for that night, on well you guessed it, Pearl Street, can’t forget that one! This was a great find right downtown, around the corner from all the shops and restaurants, yet with free and available parking!

We met with very nice relaxed young owners Jayson and Teresa Cote. The Inn has one suite and six very comfortable guest rooms with wood burning fireplaces, private baths and charming antiques. The spacious old home was lovingly renovated by the Cotes who’ve owned here six years.

The L­shaped building encloses a very attractive sun-dappled flagstone courtyard where drinks, teas, coffees or a quiet read, could be had anytime. A glass of wine or fruit punch and homemade baked goodies and fruit were also laid out on a little bar for guests to have every afternoon. Another very nice touch. Discount Health Club passes are available from Body Balance located near the Inn and internet access is available in every room.

Pearl Street Inn also caters, having a full liquor license allows them to handle every occasion from weddings, receptions and parties to intimate evenings. Their great central location isjust three blocks east of the busy Pearl Street Pedestrian Mall. They also have an Internet Cafe open daily to the public, serving gourmet lunch items and coffee drinks.

We had some time to enjoy browsing and shopping along the eclectic, artsy and  rather hippy Pearl Street Mall, offering everything under the sun. We very much enjoyed most of that time in a fabulous kitchen shop called Peppercorn...what a find! I was somewhat grateful that my shopaholic mum wasn’t with us, we’d never have left Boulder!

We then drove to a residential area not far away, to find the Celestial Seasonings factory. This was well worth taking the time to visit. The Mint room was the most memorable. The large storage room was piled high with crates of mint, the powerful aromas of which enveloped us when the doors were opened. Very cleansing for the sinuses!

The tour was great, very informative and enjoyable, as was the tasting room and emporium. I bought some rare White Tea, made from the flower, not the leaves, for some friends, and some delicious English Toffee  After Dinner Tea for me! There was every kind to

choose from and a much larger selection than our local stores offer.

Celestial Seasonings roots go back to Aspen in 1969. Mo Siegel, then 19 years old, gathered some wild herbs in the forests and canyons of the Rocky Mountains and made them into healthful teas. In 1970, Siegel and John Hay then found a bountiful harvest growing around Boulder. Celestial Seasonings first herb teas were packaged in hand-sewn muslin bags and sold to a local health food store. Consumed widely in Europe for centuries, herb teas were previously perceived in America as only medicinal.

Celestial Seasonings introduced herb teas as flavourful beverages, virtually creating the herb tea industry in the US. Today Celestial Seasonings offers close to 100 innovative products and is the largest specialty tea manufacturer in the USA.

SUNFLOWER

The Bento Box at the organic Sunflower in Boulder

As early evening approached, we wandered along Pearl Street to see what it offered, and found Sunflower. This restaurant’s cuisine is described as fine, organic and has garnered several awards. Executive Chef/Owner Jon Pell has an impressive history dedicated to  natural foods and holistic living. Jon created the Five Seasons Restaurant in Boston, Mass. in 1981, there as Chef and co-owner for 11 years. In Aspen he was the Executive Chef at Explore Bistro and owner/operator of Wildflower Catering from which the original Sunflower restaurant was born. Pell also developed and managed the Aspen Club Cafe, an upscale bistro in one of America’s finest health clubs.

Since 1999 he has orchestrated a different and refreshing dining experience at Sunflower, including some bio-dynamic wines. These are produced without pesticides and with the philosophy of the whole production being at one with the earth. The three rooms, seating 1 50, with a long handsome bar, was decorated in vibrant fun colours, stone and brick, plus a huge beautiful painted sunflower of course. They serve lunch and dinner here and an amazing sounding and popular weekend brunch, shame we had to miss that.

We loved our choices of the smoked salmon antipasta mista and the tofu nori roll. The fresh and hot, house bread is par-baked from California, served fresh to diners with yam butter and rosemary infused olive oil. Divine.

I then created a dish by infusing two favourites, the Pepper Seared Ahi Tuna, which was on the menu, over a salad, and had it instead with the Szechuan Vegetable Stir Fry, really great. This we shared with the Bamboo Steamer comprising a variety of fresh, organic vegetables, Japanese udon noodles steamed in a bamboo basket, served with peanut sambal and a choice of tofu or tempeh, chicken, salmon or jumbo shrimp. All very fresh and very tasty. Our friendly and knowledgeable server Erik and Assistant Manager Victoria took good care of us making this a very enjoyable, healthy event.

With the University of Colorado close by, this venue is always buzzing with students and/or parents as well as locals and visitors. We then strolled some more of the now, less active, Pearl Street and spent some time in the Red Fish Brew House, checking out one of Colorado’s many fabulous micro brews and live music.

After a quiet and delicious home made breakfast at the Pearl Street Inn, we headed off to Vail. We planned a detour en route to see Frisco, Breckenridge and Keystone. All attractive, quaint towns with their own character and Rocky Mountain flavour. We also noted a proliferation in between the towns, of many condos, reminding us of what must be a much busier time during ‘their’ winter season.
Please look for our second article on Colorado with Vail and other Rocky Mountain adventures in our summer edition of Taste Dining & Travel.

Photos by Neal Finelli