PRRP installment 12: William Oliver's Publick House

William Oliver's is better known as the whiskey and bacon place! Our friends Glenn and Michelle were in the mood for hot dogs and bacon, so they joined us. This restaurant opened its Lafayette location less than a year ago. Michelle and I had been once before, but it was the first time for G and Glenn. 

It was fairly busy for a Thursday night, but the service was prompt, and the food was good. I tried the Maker's Fruit Cake off the December special cocktails list ($6 each); it was tasty and powerful! Glenn had a Bloody Boar (a bloody Mary with bacon), Michelle tried a Black Bottle (Fort Collins brewery) tripel that she said was good but not very tripel-like, and G had fresh-squeezed lemonade. For dinner, Glenn had the maple bacon bourbon dog; he liked it, but when he found that the bacon element was part of a sauce instead of an actual slab of bacon, he said he would order the bacon dog next time. Fortunately, the bacon in his drink made up for it. Michelle had the bacon dog. I tried the sweet chili pork tacos and was a little startled by the level of sweetness but ended up liking the flavors. G had the shepherd's pie and enjoyed it. 

My favorite thing was the awesome dessert we shared (though I admit that I ate most of it): whiskey bundt cake topped with pecans, bacon-beer-maple-caramel sauce and vanilla bean ice cream (and sprinkled with bacon bits). The cake was very moist but had a crisp edge except where it had soaked up the sauce.

Glenn and Michelle with the drinks: Bloody Boar, Maker's Fruit Cake, and Black Bottle tripel draft beer

Glenn with his maple bourbon bacon dog and coleslaw

Michelle's bacon dog and coleslaw

Sweet chili pork tacos

G's shepherd's pie. I told him he should try this because he loves anything that involves ground meat and mashed potatoes.

The dessert was the real show stopper: whiskey bundt cake topped with pecans, bacon-beer-maple-caramel sauce and vanilla bean ice cream (and bacon crumbles). 

PRRP installment 11: Deli-Cious Z's

We drew Deli-Cious Z's from our breakfast/lunch restaurant list, and it was true to its name: delicious! They serve breakfast and lunch all day (6:30-3:30). 

I had the Mountain Benedict, and G had the Big City Breakfast (steak and eggs with pancakes). The food was excellent, and I was pleased that they have decaf coffee, which some breakfast places don't bother to offer. You can add a donut to your order for 30 cents, and the donut was fresh and amazing. 

They were doing a steady business but were not full at 9:30 on a Saturday a.m. You order at the counter, but there is plenty of seating and nice morning sunlight from the east-facing windows. We heard the boy at the table next to us (age about 12) refer to the cinnamon French toast as "the epic gooeyness of epicness."

Our 30-cent add-on donut. I picked a cake donut, and it was awesome. 

Steak and eggs plus a pancake for G, and the Mountain Benedict for me. All delicious (or should I say "deli-cious"?).

The pastry case at Deli-cious Z's. I would like to try one of everything, please. 

PRRP installment 10: Miller's Grille (CLOSED)

Update January 2022: Permanently closed; now Ghost Box Pizza.

We actually know Miller's very well and have probably been to it more often than any other restaurant currently on Public Road, as it is in easy walking distance and has a nice "burgers, barbecue, and beer" menu and moderate prices. [2019 update: Miller's closed in 2018. The building is still closed, but the word is that a new restaurant is scheduled to open there with an arcade in the basement.]

Our friend Kat is a Miller's regular, so she joined us to provide perspective. We started out with the gorgonzola potato chips, to which Kat introduced me last spring and which remain a favorite. G and Kat both had the mushroom & swiss burger (Miller's has an extensive burger menu but was out of goat cheese, so they couldn't cook the goat-cheese-and-cranberry burger that was G's first request), G's with sweet-potato fries and Kat's with tater tots. 

I usually get the mac and cheese or the salad with smoked meat, so I decided to try something different and had the barbecue sampler plate with pulled pork, chicken, and hot links (they didn't have brisket tonight) and sides of baked beans, coleslaw, and a corn muffin--plus an Altbier from Liquid Mechanics. The chicken and pork, albeit a little dry, were tasty with the different sauces, and I had plenty to bring home.

Gorgonzola chips with house-made potato chips

My barbecue sampler plate: chicken, pulled pork, and hot links plus sides. It's hard to take a food photo at Miller's without it being dominated by the giant red water glasses, so I had to do some strategic cropping!

Mushroom & swiss burger with sweet-potato fries

Kat with her mushroom & swiss burger and tots. I did not taste the burger, but the tots were delicious!

It was fairly quiet on a Thursday night, but a handful of people were watching the Broncos game in the bar.

PRRP installment 9: Panang Thai

I had eaten lunch at Panang Thai once about a year ago, but G had never been. We both liked it very much; the food was fresh and flavorful, the service was good, and the food came out quickly. It was quiet on a weeknight, but they were doing a steady takeout business. 
We had the grilled shrimp satay appetizer, and then I had the Thai green salad and G had wonton soup. The salad was much larger than I expected, with chopped lettuce, cucumber, bean sprouts, cherry tomatoes, carrot shavings, and lots of tofu, with the peanut dressing on the side. It was delicious but so filling that I was able to sample only a little of the green curry (fortunately, it will reheat well). The curry was excellent; I requested no bell peppers, but it had lots of other vegetables. G had the panang curry and devoured it all. We weren't asked for a spice level, and he said his was pretty hot. Mine was medium, which is what I would have asked for, but if you like mild, you may need to remember to request it when you order.<

We are drawing the restaurant names from a vase.

Panang curry and green curry

Grilled shrimp satay: delicious!

Wonton soup and Thai green salad with tofu and peanut dressing

Hello, unidentified fellow diners. I hope you don't mind being featured in my post, but you sat in such a picturesque spot.