One of the best ever...

Last night I think it is safe to say that my wife and I had one of the best meals we have ever had. I've actually been to this restaurant before (Rioja in Denver), but the experience last night will be one that overshadows any previous trip here and possibly most places in the future. If you are in or around Denver, I cannot recommend this place enough, Rioja on Larimer street.

What made the dinner so spectacular? For one, the food. And then our seating. We were walk-ins without a reservation but were early enough in the dinner cycle to score a couple seats at the chef's table/bar. Here were were treated to some personal attention by not only our waitress, but the chef responsible for most of the appetizers, salads and deserts.

The food was simply outstanding. We found out later in the night that the head chef is a repeat winner on Iron Chef named Jennifer Jasinski who has worked with Wolfgang Puck for about 10 years. On our menu last night:

• A blackberry whiskey sour that was a perfect way to get rid of the lingering airplane ride
  
• The Rioja Picnic with cured meats and homemade cured olives and salads.
• An amazing tuna tartare served with marinated apples on top of crisp apple chips
• Roasted candy striped beet salad
• Sampling of their Artichoke Tortellini
• Lavender sourdough bread
• Mission figs on top of a Gorgonzola mouse topped with a port wine reduction
• Their skirt steak special served with a walnut fennel pesto, a julienne summer squash medly and a sweet corn polenta cake

I'm not quite sure how we walked out. This is not a place to miss.