Avenue Grill

I had previously taken a cooking class with Avenue's Chef Lubatty, so I already knew that he was a wonderful chef and a great guy. The tres leches rum cake recipe he gave us is exceptionally good. We decided to visit his restaurant and walked away thoroughly impressed. The atmosphere here is warm and welcoming. This is a "come on in and have a great time with us" place. Our server was wonderful. She was very personable and knowledgable about the menu and made honest recommendations for us. The food was outstanding. I had the lamb, which was tender and cooked to perfection. There was a subtle amount of semisweet yogurt sauce on the meat, which was a nice complement to the tangier salad that was served with the lamb. Wonderful. My girlfriend had the salmon, which was also very impressive. There were capers on there, but the subtleness again complemented the dish instead of overpowering it. Well done on both fronts. For dessert, it was belgian chocolate cake and chocolate bread pudding with caramel. These were two of the better desserts I have had in Denver. So decadent that you savor every bite and feel a tiny bit of sadness that you've one step closer to finishing it. Perfect. I also have to give Avenue Grill major props for supporting Colorado breweries on their taps. They were unfortunately out of their specially made house amber, but there were two very suitable Great Divide brews on tap to make this omission a minor footnote. I reviewed the other drinks and found that they have a reasonably priced wine menu and the cocktail list was impressive. Avenue Grill is a home run in the categories of ambiance, value, and service.

Well, a dear friend was turning 70 (she can pass for 50 damn her) and I offered to take her and another friend to lunch at any place of her choosing.  She chose Avenue Grill.  It would not have been my choice but it wasn't my birthday.  It's OK but that's about it.

The Good:  Gabriel (consummate server who has served me many, many times), the place - it's bright and clean - white tablecloths and napkins - professionally attired staff - I like the whole vibe.  They also know how to make a real adult beverage - some of the best martinis in town.  Gabriel offered to comp a dessert for her birthday but we had a cake waiting - sweet of him though.

The OK:  When we finally got it, the food was OK but nothing special with the exception of the chicken and spinach pot stickers that were awesome.  The lady friend and I shared a reuben at the waiter's suggestion.  Tasty enough but really tiny - literally 3 bites each (fries were lame as was the cole slaw).  Our other friend had the burger and it was huge and looked delish - should have gone that direction since we were sharing.

The Not So Good:  Service today was S-L-O-W.  We arrived at 1:45 p.m. and departed at 3:45 p.m.   They simply could not get the food out of the kitchen and we were one of three tables at this late lunch hour.  Seriously, two hours for lunch with a couple of appetizers and a couple of sandwiches?  Prices at lunch are high.  We had a round of drinks,  shared a cup of chowder and the pot stickers for starters, and a reuben and a burger for lunch and it was almost $100.  Not worth it in my book.

I have eaten here over the years, and never have had a bad experience.
Last  night, we ate here for the 5280 menu. I loved that they had specific dishes marked on menu as being vegetarian, as I am pescatarian. My partner and I split a fabulous bottle of wine, and I had the smoked cheddar and porcini fondue, while she had the chicken and spinach potstickers. We were both very happy with the appetizers. My only (very small) complaint was that I wished that I had gotten a few more veggies or bread pieces, because there weren't enough for all of the fondue, and I hated wasting it.
For dinner, I had the salmon with polenta chunks (the grilled veggies that came with were amazing!), and my partner had the beef sirloin, with mashed potatoes and steamed spinach. Oh yummo... both of us completely cleaned our plates.
For dessert, it was just the perfect portion of an amazing key lime pie.
Perfect. Keep it up, Avenue Grill... we WILL be back.