PRRP Redux 2: Teocalli Cocina

Teocalli is another restaurant that opened on Public Road (in summer 2019 in the location that was formerly Black Diamond) after we did the original PRRP. We actually ordered curbside pickup a week ago yesterday, but I am just now getting around to posting about it. The curbside menu is on the website (https://www.teocallicocina.com/), and you can either order online or give them a call. I called and was told the food would be ready in 20 minutes, and G walked over to pick it up.

We'd been to the restaurant a couple of times in the prepandemic days, so we tried to pick some new and different (to us) dishes. For an appetizer, instead of the salsa trio, which I know features some interesting flavors, we got the Teocalli guacamole (shallots, jalapeno, lime, green chorizo, pickled fresnos, cotija), which came with a big bag of warm chips. We also got the large kale salad with quail eggs. I just noticed this salad is no longer on the curbside pickup menu; perhaps it wasn't selling as well as other things because it was a bit pricey, but we thought it was delicious with its spicy, creamy dressing, and it was big enough that we had leftovers to eat with dinner another night.

We each selected three tacos, which come on house-made corn tortillas: for G, de birria (short rib, caramelized leeks, tomatillo sauce), grilled chicken (adobo chicken thigh, salsa verde, red onions), and pescado (mahi mahi, kale salad, avocado espuma), and for me, shrimp (chipotle butter, oaxaca and chihuahua cheese, jalapeno cremosa, all grilled), carne asada (chimichurri, cheese crust, smoked onion), and carnitas (pork shoulder, roasted tomatillo, pickled onions, cilantro). We also got a side of Mexican rice. Friends, this was too much food! I had to save two of my tacos for the next day, though I tried a bite of each first to ensure that they were all tasty (they were). G ate two of his and saved the third. Fortunately, they reheated well. It was a great, flavorful meal, and we will be checking out some of the other menu options next time.

We put all the tacos on one plate, so you can't really distinguish them, but in summary, one each of shortrib, grilled chicken, fish, shrimp, carne asada, and carnitas, all on house-made corn tortillas. Also on the table (from top): guacamole, chips, a side of Mexican rice, and the chopped kale salad with quail eggs.

My plate of food. I had to save some of it for later, for obvious reasons.

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 2: DosWapos Mexican Cocina (CLOSED)

Update 2024: Permanently closed.

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This was our first visit to DosWapos, though we visited this location at least once in the past when it was a different Mexican restaurant. We went on Sunday night, which has turned out to be a nice quiet time to go to restaurants. Coincidentally, while we were still there, I happened to see a request on FB for local Mexican food restaurant recommendations, and quite a few people mentioned this place. There is a Wapos in Boulder in addition to DosWapos at Arapahoe and 95th (southeast corner), and our server explained that "Wapos" is a corruption of "guapos," which means handsome (or beautiful in the feminine form).

G had the tacos al carbon with beef and said they were simple but very good. I had the pick-your-own combo plate with a pork tamale, a soft stuffed relleno (in a poblano pepper), and rice and beans. The tamale was very good, and the relleno was also good but a bit too cheesy for me (which I could have predicted if I had been thinking). I liked the red Mexican rice (which I have always wanted to learn how to make) and the refried beans very much. We also liked the chips, which were thin, very crisp, and just the right level of salty, and the medium-spicy salsa.  I also had a house margarita and liked that it was very limey and not too sweet. I would definitely go back to try more things on the menu, especially the tacos and some of the breakfast items.

Action shot of G entering

House margarita

Build-your-own combo with chile relleno and pork taco

Tacos al carbon with beef

Detail from art that G liked

Front section of the restaurant and the bar area

SBRRP installment 9: Front Range Brewing Company (CLOSED)

Update 2024: Permanently closed.

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This is the last installment of the SBRRP, as I could not find any other restaurants that were not fast-food chains. I will post the summary separately. After this, we will be moving on to the Arapahoe and 95th Street Restaurant Project (A95RP).

When I was compiling the SBRRP list, I wondered, "Does Front Range Brewing have a kitchen?" I went to look at their website, and one of the top links is labeled "We Have a Kitchen," so the answer is yes! Apparently I am not the first one to ask that question. The menu is limited to the nicer kinds of bar food: appetizers, a few salads, wraps, quesadillas, flatbreads, and two "brewhouse favs" (brat and grilled cheese). There are also a couple of kids' options (grilled cheese and grilled PB&J).

This brewery has been around for a while, but we had never been there. We thought it had a pleasant interior, with nice lighting, colors, and decorations. It was very quiet when we arrived about 5:45, but they have limited Sunday hours (2 to 7 p.m.). Other nights, they're open until 10. The nice bartender answered a lot of questions and helped me sort out a flight of five beers, and I tried a mix of the small-batch, core, and seasonal beers. I liked them all, but my favorites were the Helles and the Märzen because I tend to favor light, crisp beers. For our food order, we shared a small spinach salad, G had the bbq pork quesadilla, which came with a side of chips, and I had the CAM flatbread (marinara sauce, mozzarella, salami, grilled chicken, and beer-brat sausage). The beer flatbread is house-made, and this meat-heavy version was delicious. I especially liked the slightly sweet marinara sauce and the sausage. G devoured his quesadilla and said the fusion of flavors was tasty. We'll definitely be back!

Quiet on a Sunday evening

My flight, left to right: Prairie Fire Helles, the November-fest Märzen, the Ma Belle Peche saison, the Hogback Double IPA, and the Waneka Lake Session Chocolate Stout. I especially liked the Helles and the Märzen. These were all 5.5% ABV except the IPA (8.5%).

Flight labels

Small spinach salad (very good, with cheese, walnuts, bacon, and balsamic vinaigrette). I especially liked that the nuts were not candied! Plus bbq pork quesadilla with chips and CAM flatbread.

A rare photo of G, featuring his bbq pork quesadilla

The bartop has a collection of 2,700 beer-bottle caps. The bartender was showing me that they had an original Avery beer cap.

 As a side note, we used to frequent this mall when it had a whole different set of restaurants and the FRBC site was a bingo parlor. Obviously, this was a long time ago! We hadn't seen it yet in its newest incarnation and under its new name ("The District"). We liked the new arrangement of the interior mall space with couches, armchairs, and tables, and a few people were hanging out in this area. There is a coffee shop (OTIS) that was closed when we arrived, but the open area would be a nice space to relax with a cup of coffee.

The inner area of the District mall

SBRRP installment 1: Dillinger's

A couple of years ago, G and I did a Public Road Restaurant Project that involved dining at every restaurant on Public Road (all 21 of them at that time). This winter, we will try all of the other restaurants in Lafayette, which together total up to a lower number than those on Public Road. We are starting with the South Boulder Road Restaurant Project. Since we are excluding fast-food restaurants and franchises (not because we don't like them but because everyone pretty much knows what the food is like in these places), our list for the SBRRP is quite short, as fast-food eateries abound in that part of town. We put the names into a jar and drew the first one tonight: Dillinger's!

Dillinger's has been in this spot on the southeast corner of SBR and Centaur Village Drive since 1991, but we had never been there even though we've lived here longer than that--we are Old Towners who tend to stick to our neighborhood, so this is helping us branch out. A friend told me she didn't think they served food! Well, this is not true, as you can see from their name, where "food" even comes before "spirits." We liked the colorful, cozy interior and the friendly staff. The menu is mostly typical bar food, but many of the dishes are made fresh, and we thought the food was tasty. G had a burger and fries and said the burger was very good. I tried the fish and chips, which came with a side salad that was fairly basic but fresh tasting. The fish was crisp and tender, the fries were good, and the prices were reasonable. We washed it down with Alaskan Amber (on tap) and finished off with churros and vanilla ice cream for dessert.

The World Series and other sporting events were on TV, and there are pool tables in the back, but it was pretty quiet on a Tuesday night between 6:30 and 8 p.m.

I forgot to take my own photo outside, so this is a low-res one from the Yellow Pages website

My fish & chips. I'm sure the cod starts out frozen, but it was tender with a crisp crust, and we all know it's really just a vehicle for the tartar sauce. 

The colorful interior reminded us of other bars we like. 

Alaskan Amber beer! We couldn't pass that up. 

Side salad--basic but fresh tasting

G's burger and fries. He said the burger was delicious.

The order of churros came with two churros and a scoop of vanilla ice cream, so this is half of the order after we split it up. 

PRRP installment 17: The Post

We picked the Post instead of drawing from our remaining restaurants because we wanted to use our coupon for $10 off that came as a door hanger a month or two ago and expires 2/9. Thanks, Post! 

As many of you know, the Post used to be the Lafayette VFW Post building before it was renovated to its current brewpubbery glory. It is technically half a block off Public Road, but close enough! I walked by it for many years on my route to the PO when the VFW just had a couple of picnic tables in the side yard, and you never saw anyone out there. Of course, there was no reason for it to be busy, as it was not a restaurant, but it's just interesting to contrast the atmosphere then and now! These days it is almost always hopping, even on a Monday night. 

Why Monday? BURGER NIGHT. I promise you, the Post has an awesome burger. Kat introduced me to this phenomenon a year or so ago, and it ratcheted my general liking for the Post up to a recurring Monday-night obsession. The burger (which is not served other nights of the week) comes with a Thousand Island sauce and onion jam, and the bun is a house-made English muffin. It is a good idea to split the burger to leave room for dessert! 

We also shared a big house salad, one of my favorite things there, and some garlic fries and topped it off with a show-stopping kahlua bread pudding with candied almonds and chocolate ice cream. I had a Howdy beer because I am a fan of pilsners. See photo captions for more food details.

The big salad comes with big chunks of chewy bacon, tomatoes, pepitas, croutons, blue cheese, and cucumber chunks. I just noticed the menu says it also has apples and boiled eggs, but I didn't spot any of those tonight. Oddly, on my one visit to the Post in Boulder, the big salad did not live up to my expectations based on how good it is at the Lafayette location. I don't think the Boulder kitchen had the vinaigrette right.

The burger is not huge, but it is big enough to share! The bun is a house-made English muffin, and it is topped with Thousand Island dressing and onion jam. It does not need any other condiments. It comes with a garnish of pickled veggies; sides are a la carte. 

Garlic fries with cheese crumbles

This out-of-focus photo shows how excited Kat was about her half of the burger.

Make sure you get over to the Post before this dessert rotates off the menu. Kahlua bread pudding with candied almonds and chocolate ice cream. It was amazing!

PRRP installment 16: Efrain's (and Chocolaterie Stam)

From our few remaining dinner places, we drew Efrain's. This is probably the best-known restaurant on Public Road and also the longest-lived except for the Fortune Cookie and Ting's. We vaguely remember the restaurant that was there before Efrain's, which had a name that started with a T and an eclectic menu that included things like roast duck, but we can't recall the name--or the place that was there before that one. At any rate, we hadn't been to Efrain's in several years. 

We walked up at 5 p.m. to avoid the long waits that are typical of weekend dinnertimes there. We enjoyed our meals, and the service was brisk, friendly, and competent. G had chicken fajitas, and I had the tamale plate. The tamales came from the kitchen very hot and were smothered in a flavorful red chile sauce. 

Afterward, we walked across the street to Chocolaterie Stam for dessert (a truffle for G and gelato for me). It was quiet when we first got there, as it was still only 6:15 p.m., but several groups were coming in when we left. And there was a piano player!

I thought the  margarita was pretty.

The tamales were hot and tasty, especially because I liked the red chile sauce. G liked the fajitas but thought the meat should have come on a sizzling plate accompanied by grilled onions and peppers. 

Photo of me and the restaurant in the mirror that we were seated next to. 

Dessert at Stam: cookies and cream gelato and a dark chocolate truffle. You can see the piano player waaaay in the background.

Stam has the most beautiful counter.

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