LRP Redux* installment 3: Ruby Ru’s Street Eatery

Ruby Ru’s is Chris Rubeck’s place, and for a long time it was a food truck that was very well known in the area. Last year, it settled in a storefront location at 1280 Centaur Village Drive, Unit 1. The truck still keeps a roving schedule, but at the moment, it just has a couple of dates posted in February. I’m sure there will be more!

Coincidentally, I was just chatting with Chris on FB about Ruby Ru’s last week, and then it was the next one to come out of the hat! So we ordered takeout on this snowy Tuesday evening. I wanted to try the bourbon chicken (chicken over rice with bourbon sauce) because it is the main house specialty. I expected it to be saucier, but in fact the sauce seems to be mostly absorbed and to caramelize on the lovely crispy edges of the chicken. Some of it does soak into the rice. I am not a big fan of bourbon on its own, but I do like it in things, and it is brilliant in this sauce. This was an amazing dish, possibly my favorite thing I’ve eaten recently. The bourbon chicken comes with a choice of two sides. I tried the mac and cheese and the coleslaw and thought they were both very good. The mac and cheese noodles (actually cavatappi) were a bit more al dente than I would make them, but the scratch-made cheese sauce was delicious. The coleslaw is mayo-based and more on the dry side, which I like. You can see in the photo that the main dish and sides all come in one container, and I am sometimes a bit picky about my food touching, but I was relieved to see that the container actually had separators between the sections. G tried the Philly sandwich (thin-sliced ribeye on a soft hoagie roll with cheese, peppers, and onions), and he said it was a good steaky, cheesy, peppery choice. We got an extra side of grilled zucchini, which was very good too. We were in the mood for dessert, and there were two choices: cookies or brownies. The cookies are baked in house, although the dough is not made there, but we can’t report on those because we didn’t try them. The brownies are not made in house, but they were excellent. There are plenty more options on the menu to try (tacos, banh mi bowl, jerk chicken bowl, sandwiches, etc.), so we’ll be back! I might have to stick with the bourbon chicken, but I can always try it in taco form.

* Lafayette Restaurant Project Redux: visiting all the new places that have opened since the ending of the previous round of the LRP.

Ruby Ru's on a snowy February night

Our takeout haul, clockwise from top left: Philly sandwich, bourbon chicken with sides of mac and cheese and coleslaw, brownies, and grilled zucchini

G's Philly sandwich (ribeye, cheese, peppers, onions)

Me with my bowl of bourbon chicken and sides (I do have leftovers for later)

G liked this rainbow decoration inside the restaurant

The counter at Ruby Ru's

A95RP installment 8: 95A (CLOSED)

95A closed permanently in 2024.

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This is the last restaurant in the A95RP subproject; after this, we just have to report on a few more restaurants at Baseline and 287, and we will have made a complete circuit of Lafayette!

We know 95A quite well, as it is a personal favorite for both lunch and dinner. They also serve brunch on weekends, but I've never tried that menu. We went early on Friday night because we knew it would be crazy busy later on, and we got a table in a reasonably quiet corner of the front room. We thought about trying something from the sushi menu, but we ended up getting the coconut shrimp appetizer instead. The coconut crust was nicely crisp, and the dipping sauce was tasty. I ordered an entrée from the specials menu, pistachio-crusted sea scallops with roast fingerling potatoes and beets and a side of watercress with a drizzle of pomegranate syrup. G ordered the Mediterranean lamb from the regular dinner menu: grilled lamb loin chops, garlic-studded spinach, zucchini-potato pancakes, and tzatziki sauce. We both thought our meals were delicious.

It was my birthday, so we shared an order of sticky toffee pudding for dessert. This was also very good, though not quite how I remembered it from a few years ago. David, our server, told us that the baked desserts come from the neighboring bakery, Button Rock, which is a relative newcomer, so it probably was different the last time. It came with a birthday candle and compliments of the restaurant. Thanks, David! The service was good. The noise level had gone way up before we left but was still tolerable. I had never been seated in the front room before, so I'm not sure how it compares to the back on a Friday night.

95A outside and the front room after it filled up a bit

There were more coconut shrimp on this plate, but we ate some before I remembered to photograph it.

G's Mediterranean lamb

My pistachio-crusted sea scallops

Sticky toffee pudding with a birthday candle

A95RP installment 7: Nissi's

Update January 2024: Now in a new location (1455 Coal Creek Drive).

Nissi's is not strictly a restaurant because you can't just drop in for a meal, but I thought it would be fun to include it. It's an events venue with different acts on the calendar five or six nights a week and (based on a quick website scan), ticket prices ranging from $5 to $25. We went to hear the Center for Musical Arts jazz combos, as the CMA is a local institution that is on our very own street, and I'm a former student from the days when I was trying to learn to play upright bass. (By the way, if anyone wants to buy an upright bass, let me know!)

Some friends met us there, and we all ordered different entrees. Dave had the Korean pork belly bowl, Deb had the grilled pork marsala, I had the burger with a side salad, and G had the bowl of green chili. All of the entrees were good except the green chili, which got a lukewarm review from G, who said it was skimpy for the price and just "OK." However, he got some bits from the other meals, so he didn't go hungry. Deb said her pork masala was tender and flavorful, and Dave gave his meal a rating of "tasty." The burger was juicy and had a nice grilled flavor. We also tried the flourless chocolate torte (very good) and the peach cobbler (sorry my photo didn't turn out), which was not a cobbler but more like a crisp with the crisp part on the bottom and ice cream on top. I know the definitions vary, but in my opinion, a cobbler involves a biscuit element!

We didn't know what to expect from the jazz combos, but they turned out to be great. There were two combos: the Monday-night class and the Wednesday-night class. They were very talented and had a polished group sound. I recommend them the next time they come around on the calendar!

Wednesday-night combo (top) and Monday-night combo (bottom) from the Center for Musical Arts in Lafayette

Since my food photography was not very good, I opted for a collage. Top row: burger with salas, Korean pork belly bowl. Bottom row: grilled pork marsala, pork green chili, and flourless chocolate torte. My peach "cobbler" photo did not turn out.

Me with burger. Happy, as I have not had a burger in a long time. The place was not full, but more people did come in after this, as we got our meals before the show started.

Dave and Deb with their entrees 

A95RP installment 5: Morning Glory Farm Fresh Café

I know the Morning Glory very well, as it has been one of my go-to breakfast and lunch spots since it first opened (at a guess) about 10 years ago. For a short time, there was a sister restaurant in the Peloton in Boulder named Poppy, but it closed down. I miss it sometimes when I am in Boulder around lunchtime. G and I went to the MG for Thanksgiving just a couple of months ago (excellent roast turkey!), and I've been there for brunch and lunch at least twice since then. 

This time, we met three friends for dinner on a Friday night. The mall where it is located, at Forest Park Circle and Arapahoe, with four restaurants that were open for dinner, was hopping, and the parking situation was insane! Most of us ended up parking out on the street a little distance away. It was nice to see such a lively scene. We walked into the MG at 6 p.m. and did not have to wait for a table, but half an hour later, there would have been at least a short wait. One thing I liked, being moderately hard of hearing, was that the noise level was not too bad even with a full house.

Here's what we ate! From the "Brinner" menu, one dining companion ordered the vegetarian migas (eggs, green chilies, tomato, vegetarian chorizo, and crispy tortilla chips) with a side of french fries and a side salad, which was reported to be tasty. Two people ordered the hand-made seasoned beef sirloin burger and said it was delicious. G had the black and blue tuna (with sauteed spinach, shiitake, and onions, mashed potatoes, and bleu cheese) and enjoyed it very much. I am still on a restricted carb intake, so I tried the steak with rainbow vegetables and asked to double the veggies and leave off the mashed potatoes. I also had to leave off the blue cheese sauce, but there is an espresso spice rub that I said they could leave on. I ended up scraping most of this off because I didn't care for the texture, but the flavor was nice, and the meat was very good. 

The MG staff do not flinch at special requests! They were very kind and efficient considering how busy they were. Note that the MG has many GF and vegetarian/vegan options and emphasizes fresh, organic ingredients. I know several people who swear that their GF pancakes (the only kind they serve) beat most regular pancakes.

Vegetarian migas with a side of fries and a side salad

Black and blue tuna

Burger no. 1

Burger no. 2

Me with my steak and rainbow veggies

SBRRP installment 6: Acreage

Acreage is an outlier because it is not on South Boulder Road, but it is on the south end of town in an area with no other restaurants. It's at the top of the loop made by Horizon Drive off 120th St. between South Boulder Road and Dillon. I'd been there a couple of times before, but the last time was seven or eight months ago. Acreage is a collaboration between Stem Ciders, which has another taproom in the RiNo area of Denver, and chef Eric Lee. The menu is creative, if a bit pricey (depending on what you are comparing it to), and it changes regularly, probably based on seasonal availability.

It can be very busy on weekend nights, especially when the weather is nice and people can hang out on the nice west-facing deck (with firepits). This past Saturday, it was full but not insanely busy. G was out of town, so my friends Scott and Michelle accompanied me. I got a cider flight (pear, cherry l'acier, banjo, and cranberry cyser). Michelle got a glass of cranberry cyser, and Scott got a glass of Banjo (aged in a whiskey barrel). I thought all four of my ciders were good, and I followed up with a 10-oz glass of pear, which may be my Stem favorite.

Scott and Michelle are vegetarian, so they ordered the veggie burger, the grilled greens, the beets, and a big side of Basque frites that we all shared. The frites were the highlight of the food for me! I was drawn to the mushrooms-on-toast entrée for some unknown reason, so our entire menu sampling was meatless. I did not think the mushrooms on toast was the most successful thing I have tried at Acreage, but that didn't keep me from polishing it off. The mushrooms themselves were delicious, but the lemony flavor of the greens on top didn't quite work for me. However, I like many other food items on the Acreage menu. Did I mention the Basque frites? We also tried two desserts: a lemon cake topped with crème anglaise and poached pears and the cider doughnuts. These were both amazing.

In the background, 10-oz glasses of cranberry cyser and banjo; foreground, a flight of four ciders.

Amazingly delicious Basque frites and beets

Grilled greens. So pretty!

Michelle with her veggie burger

Me with my mushrooms on toast. I was moving some greens to show the big pile of mushrooms. The greens had a lemony dressing.

Michelle tried the hot buttered cider. It was kind of like apple pie filling in a mug.

Lemon cake with creme anglaise and poached pears.

Cider doughnuts with cinnamon sugar and maple ... whatever that stuff is. Topping? Dip? Scott topped it, and I dipped it.

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 6: Community

Today is our wedding anniversary. We celebrated with a late dinner at Community, which also counts as the fifth stop in our PRRP. The food was excellent, and at 8:30 pm on a weeknight, the place was almost empty and very quiet, which made me happy (my hearing loss makes restaurant noise very hard to tolerate). G had lamb shank, I had pork gnocchi, and we shared an apple pastry with butterscotch ice cream for dessert.

G didn’t want to be photographed but said he would be a hand model.

TThe gnocchi isn’t pretty but was delicious!

Apple pastry and butterscotch ice cream

Community on a Tuesday night