Appetizer at 5280 Burger Bar...
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Lodo Bites, Part Deux.. when we last left our intrepid gastronomes they were on their way to Coohills Restaurant.. we now join TVGuy and AirportRob, already in progress....
10. Coohills -- A bite of food the size of a thimble and the hard upsell to buy their alcohol. Thanks but no thanks Coo...
Score -- (out of 20) 3.0
11. Protein Bar -- I thought it was going to be a smoothie joint only but they completely exceeded our expectations.. think of it as a super healthy Chipotle. Tons of stuff that is good for you (Kale, Quinoa, etc) but was also quite delicious. I'll be going back for breakfast on the weekends once we move the TVGuy Mansion to downtown Denver (Estimated early September)...
Score -- 17
12. Squeaky Bean -- Any place that serves brunch and has a giant Bingo board is okay with me.. Szechuan Chicken Wings and Vodka Watermelon snow cones helped cement this place as one of our next dinner/brunch spots for sure...
Score -- 14
13. Lucky Pie -- Last year's winner by a mile filled with me dread as there was no way they could top their Bacon Brownies (80 million times better than you think), delicious pizza, beer tastings and what was the best bite of 2013... Lamb Meatballs. (I'm not a lamb guy by any stretch but dear lord were they outstanding... I think TVGal had 11 dozen of them alongside 14 brownies..). As we went in I quickly looked at the serving station and sadness ensued as I saw there was no pizza OR Bacon Brownies (those things deserved to be capitalized btw). While there was beer tasting (I think Airport Rob's favorite part of the night -- it was pretty great) and the aforementioned Lamb Meatballs (its definitely a marathon and not a sprint.. 18 restaurants in all but I still ate 6 meatballs) they made up for the no pizza with hot out of the fryer Cheese Curds.
They. Kicked. Ass.
Well played Lucky Pie.... well played...
Score -- 18
14. Backcountry Deli -- we were pretty full at this point and BC Deli in the past has put out pretty damn big samples of their sandwiches and that was what we faced this year as well. The thought of eating large amounts of bread was daunting to say the least. Let it be said that the quality of their vittles overcame my stomach's groans... pretty damn tasty.
Score -- 14
15. BD's Mongolian Grill -- 3 different entrees and we ate one only due to the stomach's capacity to only intake so much... It was fine and all... but part of the fun of Mongolian BBQ is picking out your own ingredients and sauces and having them cook it on that weird circular grill. I realize that they couldn't do that for this event (this place was PACKED) but I left feeling disappointed. I do love BBQ at this place though...
Score -- 11
16. McCormicks - They do possess one of the best Happy Hours of all time, but every year they treat this event as an annoyance.. we've never had good luck here for Lodo Bites and this year was no different.. dry tamales and something else was offered.. they had run out of whatever that empty bin promised... we quickly fled into the rainy night...
Score -- 5
17. Maggiano Pronto -- I've never eaten here and I should.. TVGal's favorite place from two years ago didn't disappoint this year. I was hoping for a drink of some kind as the thought of eating more food was not appealing at the least.. their salami and mozzarella crostinis were so good I ate three.
Score - 12
18. Jax -- A simple shrimp gazpacho finished the night. This place doesn't need the boost -- it's supposedly one of the best places to eat anywhere in Denver and is always packed -- but I appreciate that they showed up anyway...
Score -- 12
And... we're done for this year. Fortunately we have Whiskey & Wings next weekend so the culinary summer adventures continue...
For the record, I did eat a decent-sized breakfast the next day.
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Alton Brown: Slicing a warm slab of bacon is a lot like giving a ferret a shave. No matter how careful you are, somebody's going to get hurt.
--"Good Eats" (Food Network)
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