A Holiday Trip: Denver

Denver, the Mile High City, is known for its sweeping views of the Rockies and the broad array of outdoor activities in its backyard. Surprisingly, even though Ivy went to college in Colorado, neither of us had spent really any time in Denver. We decided to book a spontaneous holiday trip to Denver to see what all the hype is about. We can now confirm that this city was built for foodies, beer and wine lovers, and outdoor enthusiasts!

Here are some of the best places we discovered over our quick weekend getaway…

xxx Ivy & Eve

P.S. We want to give a shout out to Hotel Monaco Denver for being such an excellent host!

EAT

Snooze $$ - When Ivy was doing her undergrad in Northern Colorado, the local Snooze quickly became her go-to brunch spot. We highly recommend their Bloody Marys and the pancake flight (3 pancakes), which you can select from an array of sweet and savory pancakes. Although the menu is continuously changing, we suggest ordering the red velvet, sweet potato, or the pineapple upside-down pancake if they are on offer. 

Denver Central Market $-$$ - This is probably our favorite place we discovered on the trip. Denver Central Market is a fantastic food hall with all kinds of great vendors from Curio - bar, Culture - meat & cheese, Tammen's - fish market, and High Point Creamery- ice cream! We noshed on tuna/salmon poke bowl, cheese and charcuterie, and washed it down with some tasty house rosé!

beast + bottle $$$ - This place is big on farm-to-table cuisine. The menu was full of perfectly crafted entrees, small bites, and tasty cocktails. We LOVED the chicharrones served with a yummy creamy red pepper dip!

Marczyk Fine Foods $-$$$ - This grocery store is located just across the street from beast + bottle. They have a wonderful selection of cheeses, meats, and bakery goods. This is the perfect spot to stock up on goodies for your outdoor adventures or even a picnic!

Venice $$$ - If you are looking for an Italian restaurant with an amazing wine list, choose Venice. It is also located across the street from Union Station. 

Mercantile $$ - Located in the Union Station, Mercantile is part coffee shop, part bakery, and part casual restaurant. They serve tasty sandwiches, salads, and delicious Bloody Marys! We recommend getting anything that will include their house-made pickles. SO GOOD!

Buckhorn Exchange $$$ - Our Dad heard about this place and has wanted to go for years, so he sent us on a mission to test it out for him. We are SO GLAD he did! The Buckhorn Exchange is Denver's oldest restaurant and is a registered National Historic Landmark. The walls are covered with taxidermy animals, old photographs, and other "wild west" memorabilia. They are known for their top-notch steaks and a few more unusual dishes. We started out the night with the rattlesnake queso - warm queso dip topped with rattlesnake meat and a 1/2 order of their rocky mountain oysters (deep-fried calf testicles). Growing up in horse country, we have had our fair share of these delicacies, and we can tell you these were some of the best! Finally, we shared the giant buffalo prime rib and washed it all down with some cold Colorado brews! Fantastic!

DRINK

Forest Room 5 $ - This hip but under the radar bar is a great place to start your evening. Grab a beer or cocktail inside and head out to their side yard for fire pits, a little stream, and even a tipi. We loved its laid back feel and the quirky western films playing in the restrooms. 

My Brother’s Bar $ - This is Denver's oldest operating bar, making it a must-visit. Just down the road from Forest Room 5, this almost secret bar is perfect for your late-night hangouts. We ordered a pitcher of beer, fries, and onion rings, but we hear the cottage cheese is worth ordering! 

Terminal Bar $$ - Located in Union Station, during the day, Terminal Bar is packed with people coming and going via bus or train. After hours it turns into a super cool lounge. After all the restaurants and shops close, The Great Hall turns into seating for the bar.  

Ratio Beerworks $$ - Right down the street from Denver Central Market, this brewery is the perfect place to enjoy your delicious lunch. We ordered their carrot beer, and it was seriously good! 

Infinite Monkey Theorem $$$ - This urban winery has a really fun laid back vibe with a variety of wines on tap, in cans, and in traditional bottles. Grab a glass, take a seat, relax, and repeat! 

PLAY

Christmas Market (free) - During the holidays, Denver hosts an adorable traditional German Christmas Market with booths offering everything from German-made ornaments to giant pretzels! Grab a mug full of mulled wine or hot cocoa and peruse the shops at your leisure. 

Parade of Lights (free) - This once a year (two nights in a row) parade is definitely worth watching before you head out to dinner. The parade begins at dusk, and each parade float and entertainer is covered in glowing lights. This is a fun event for all ages. We liked the fire dancers the most! 

STAY

The Kimpton Hotel Monaco $$$ - We called this place home for the weekend and loved it! The hotel lobby and rooms are beautiful. They have a great restaurant and bar attached, extremely attentive staff, and its location is in the center of downtown, within walking distance of everything Denver has to offer. We can't stop saying great things about this hotel. 

We got into Denver at 5am, and were able to check into our room even though check-in is usually 4pm! One of our favorite parts of staying at the Monaco Denver was the daily happy hour in the lobby daily from 5-6pm. At happy hour, they poured two wines and served a rotating beer on tap. Each drink came along with a little snack. One night they served meatballs, which were divine! We loved that the Monaco Denver thinks of the little details like a "hydration station" in the lobby and even complimentary hand warmers for the chilly Denver evenings! We can't wait to go back!

Happy Holidays!

24 hours in Napa, CA

During the week, Eve works as a curator at an art museum. One of the perks of the job is that she is sometimes asked to visit artists' studios and select art for donation or exhibition. A few months ago, Eve was asked to visit an amazing California landscape painter, Jack Stuppin, up north and we decided to make a quick trip out of it!

We arrived in Napa around noon and went straight to Clif Family Winery. We only recently discovered this Napa winery and had to stop in to say hi and try their food and wine pairing. Created by the founders Gary and Kit of Clif Bars, Clif Family Winery is full of fun history, great food, and of course great wine. The winery was created after Gary and Kit's cycling adventures in Italy. Their adventures included cycling, leisurely Italian meals with wine, and great food and hospitality and sparked the idea to create their own wines from their property on top of Howell Mountain. Now they grow grapes for their delicious wines and organic veggies for their Bruschetteria food truck.

We tasted through their wines each paired with a little bite to eat fresh from the food truck out front. The wines were delicious and the food pairings were perfect. Troy and Tom, who were our servers, made sure we had an awesome time. We were first served some wines that were not included in our Bruschetteria Trio, the 2016 Rosé of Grenache, 2016 Rte. Blanc Sauvignon Blanc, 2014 Bici "MRV" White Blend, and the 2015 Mendocino Grenache.

For the Bruschetteria Trio which started with a seasonal Arancini that was super tasty. The first wine pairing for the flight was the 2015 Oak Knoll Chardonnay which was paired with Porchetta Bruschetta (pronounced "Pork-etta" with pork, herbs, red onion, aioli, and parmesan. Next was the delightful 2013 Gary's Improv Howell Mountain Zin. This yummy wine was paired with their Pimento Bruschetta which included roasted beet pimento spread, goat cheese, and Clif Family Kitchen smoked paprika almonds. The last wine on our flight was the 2013 Kit's Killer Howell Mountain Cab, this heavy and scrumptious red was paired with their Funghi Bruschetta which featured local mushrooms, fontina, and chives.

Lastly Troy brought us a delicious chocolate and red wine reduction "pudding" with Zinfandel salt sprinkled on top and a small bowl of chocolate covered caramels and cherries. Just thinking about them makes our mouths start watering! Our favorite wines were, of course, the rosé and the 2015 Mendocino Grenache (which Troy told us we should try chilled 20-30 min). We ended up leaving with a few different bottles and later tried the Grenache chilled back home and it was quite refreshing!

After satisfying our palates and stomachs, we headed down the road to Napa Soap Company. We loved this cute shop and its lovely smelling soaps all made right in-house. We picked up a few of their bath "teas", soaps, and some shaving bars for the boys. They have the most amazing array of scents to suit everyone! 

After doing a little shopping, we drove to Domaine Chandon where Ivy is a wine club member (YAY!) and we took full advantage of the benefits seeing as we rarely ever make it up to Napa. We sipped through the bubbly wine tasting flight which was delicious and nibbled on some truffle popcorn, and cheese plate. The Chandon tasting room is surrounded by green lawns perfect for picnicking, patio seating, a restaurant, and lawn chairs to admire the Napa Valley vineyard views. This is definitely a beautiful place to sit back and relax some bubbly wines while in Napa. 

After our leisurely bubbly flight, we headed to our hotel to check in. Since the trip was last minute we picked one of the cheapest we could find- Ivy Hotel. It was under renovation, which we were unaware of and it was much farther away from everything than we expected. This wouldn't be a hotel we would normally stay at but it was clean and comfortable for the price.

Once we settled in we headed to the sushi restaurant, Eiko's near the Napa water-front for drinks and dinner. This sushi place was über cool, and the menu was very creative. We're totally trying out the sushi tacos and pizza next time we come! Lexie ordered a bunch of tasty rolls and the blackened edamame which was really yummy! Ivy also got a MASSIVE glass of champagne and Eve tried out their extensive sake menu. You can order sake by the glass (2oz), carafe (10oz), or bottle. Eve loved that you could order glasses because that means you can try a few!

The next morning we only had time to grab a bite to eat for breakfast at the Long Meadow Ranch. The only thing open when we got there was the Cafe which had nice blankets to bundle up in since it was a chilly morning and heater lamps were turned on. The coffee was delicious and so were our pastries! On the grounds, there is the main restaurant, the General Store, a tasting room, and an outdoor area where you can hangout on the grass or sit at the picnic tables and listen to live music. We definitely want to come back here for lunch or dinner. 

xxx Ivy & Eve

Photo credit: Long Meadow Ranch