Hello from Denver!
I am in Colorado for a super-short trip (I’ll be back in Charlotte late Friday afternoon), but I’ll happily take even a small amount of time in this gorgeous state whenever I get a chance! I’ll be heading to Boulder later today to kick off a jam-packed day with Celestial Seasonings tomorrow, but I flew out a day early so I could spend some time with Michaela, one of my very best friends since elementary school!
Michaela picked me up at the Denver airport early yesterday afternoon and I’m pretty sure we didn’t stop chatting until our heads hit the pillow at night. It was so, so good to see her!
We got stuck in some heavy traffic on the way back to Michaela’s place which ended up scrapping our plans for the day, but we still got out and about a little bit and I was able to see the place where Michaela and her husband Kyle are planning to open up their own optometry practice next year. While we were in the area, we popped into Etai’s, a local bakery and cafe that offers lots of difference sandwiches, salads coffee drinks and more.
The cafe also has a full-service juice bar which is what drew us to the place! We were both craving some green juice and it was the perfect post travel pick-me-up.
Eventually we made our way back to Michaela and Kyle’s town house where we had a face time date with our best friend Leah who had a baby earlier this month. Leah is my first best friend to give birth and it was so incredible to see someone I’ve known and loved since elementary school with an adorable little one. Leah is so honest and funny and truly let us into what it’s like to be a mom with a new baby during our face time call. It was so special to see her little baby and now I’m absolutely dying to see him in person.
Our grumbling stomachs soon told us it was time to grab some dinner, so Michaela, Kyle, Michaela’s sister Maggie and I all headed out to one of their favorite local restaurants for dinner.
Cuba Cuba is a local Cuban restaurant that has been in Denver for upwards of 12 years. It is absolutely phenomenal and last night I enjoyed one of the best meals I’ve had in a while!
We kicked things off with a round of drinks and I opted for a glass of cabernet.
For my main meal, I ordered the plantain-crusted ahi tuna that was seared rare and served over mashed potatoes with watermelon relish and a black bean reduction.
My picture doesn’t even begin to do it justice, but it was fantastic. The tuna was cooked perfectly and the watermelon relish was sweet, tangy and so, so good. I want to try to recreate it at home!
Apparently Cuba Cuba also owns a sandwicheria in Boulder, so I am on a mission to grab a sandwich from there at some point during my brief stay in Boulder. Also, if any of my Boulder-based friends out there have a restaurant recommendation for tonight’s dinner, I’d love to hear it!
And now it’s breakfast time.
Have a great Wednesday!
![\"Quantcast\"/](\"//pixel.quantserve.com/pixel/p-1e3-7hOJ_U8Bg.gif\")
For someone who isn’t a big fan of seafood, that ahi dish looks amazing! Enjoy your time in Denver! Can’t wait to see the rest of the trip!
My sister goes to UC Boulder and we always have the best meals whenever we visit her! The Kitchen is my absolute favorite but you may want to try to get a reservation. The Med is awesome too, Pizzeria Locale or Jax’s Fish House. If you can make it to Snooze for breakfast, that’s a great spot too!
Seconded about Snooze! I’ve never been to the Boulder location, but the ones in Denver and Ft Collins are amazing!
I think I am going to The Kitchen on Thursday! Can’t wait!!! And thank you for the recommendations. 🙂
Get the garlic fries as a side! I seriously daydream about them, they are so good. And sticky toffee pudding for dessert!
That looks awesome! Have fun! Can’t wait to hear about the celestial seasonings stuff, I love their tea!!
Getting stuck in traffic is probably the most fitting way to get introduced to Denver! I only live about an hour away and I hate driving there because the traffic is always horrible. Do you know what part of Denver you’re in? The restaurant and cafe look great! Enjoy your time in Colorado 🙂
Colorado is so beautiful! I really can’t wait until I get a chance to go next year and explore that state a little bit more. Have a good trip! 🙂
I second The Kitchen!! It’s one of my absolute favorites.The Med is good for happy hour, Riffs is another favorite. Enjoy boulder!
WHOA. Watermelon relish sounds unbelievable!
Julie- let me know if you have time for a Pure Barre class while you are in Denver!
I love the Cuba Cuba sandwich shop in Boulder! The Med never disappoints for dinner, but there are a ton of great options in Boulder to choose from!
I was just in Denver last month, if you have time you should stop by the denver biscuit company. They have the most delicious sandwiches on homemade buttermilk biscuits.
How fun you were able to travel early and get to spend time with your friend!
Every time I see pictures of Colorado I tell myself I need to move there. Someday! Enjoy your time there!! Glad you didn’t miss this flight 😉
I go to school at CU Boulder and I would recommend the Dushanbe Teahouse for dinner! It has great ethnic food and has an awesome atmosphere that you will not find anywhere else! Don’t forget to visit Pearl Street while your here and take a hike through Chautauqua Park!
I was just in Boulder last week to visit my brother – and ate my way through the city! The Kitchen is a must-try (farm to table)! If you’re looking for pub food, I suggest The Sink for burgers (Obama paid a visit here last time he was in town!). Riff’s has awesome tapas, The Rio has great Mexican food (obligatory every time I visit). There are lots of great brew pubs on Pearl Street, such as Lazy Dog – Colorado is craft beer nation, if you’re into that. Enjoy 🙂
I love Cuba Cuba! Have fun at the tea factory, and make sure you go in the peppermint room!
I LOVE COLORADO! (I’m wearing a CO tee shirt today!) … desperately want a company to hire a Michigan girl and give me a reason to move west! 😉
BeauJo’s Pizza is a family favorite. It’s NOT at all healthy, but their braided wheat crust with honey is something I wish they’d ship during cravings.
Also, check out the street performers! You simply have to take time out of your evening to walk the downtown area and enjoy the atmosphere, entertainment and mtn views. AHHH, I wish I was there with you! 🙂 Have FUN!
wow, it looks absolutely incredible! if i’m ever in the area, i’ll have to head there!
Enjoy Denver and Boulder! When I saw you were in Denver I geeked out a little bit! I always pull your workouts off your blog and do them with my female weight training class at the high school I work at in Denver. Love your blog! Next time you are in town a Julie led class would be amazing.
Thank you, Ali!! So glad to hear you like the workouts, too!! And I would LOVE to teach a class here some day!
I know you are a huge seafood lover, but I’m not a big fan! Tuna and shrimp are my favorites though! I love the side parts of the dish, but I would prefer it with a bit steak, personally 😉
Welcome to Denver/Boulder! The weather here is phenomenal right now so I hope you enjoy! I am selfishly loving reading these posts for more ideas myself! The one suggestion I will add is to go hiking Green Mountain. It is so gorgeous!
BeauJo’s pizza, The Rio, and Snooze!!
CO is such a beautiful state, enjoy!!
That is so awesome you’ve stayed so close with your friends. Have a blast 🙂
Looks like so much fun!! LOVE Denver! My husband and I would move there in a heartbeat, no doubt! Two of our good friends just moved out there and we’re tentatively planning a visit sometime in Jan or Feb! Can’t wait to see those gorgeous mountains again!!
My brother finished grad school in Boulder this spring so I had a chance to spend some time with him out there. Riff’s was my favorite restaurant-their mussels were amazing. Also, Mountain Sun is a favorite of Boulder residents. They have light and fresh food along with a great brewery.
My blog page has a few more recommendations, but those were my favorite spots! http://candietravels.com/2013/08/08/boulder-colorado/
Celestial Seasonings! How cool. I love their tea!
Cute scarf – where is it from?
I haven’t looked through all the comments, so sorry if this is a bit late, but I live in Denver, and go to Boulder every weekend (boyfriend lives there), and I’m sure a ton of people will recommend the Kitchen, but I highly recommend Zeal. It is PHENOMENAL. Seriously incredible. Anyway, I’ve been reading your blog for a while now, and have never commented… welcome to Colorado – you made it just in time for some chilly fall weather!
How fun to see old friends! I really want to visit Colorado! I can’t believe I’ve never been!
Oh, and make sure you check out the Peppermint room while you’re at Celestial Seasonings!
Oooh I will!! Thanks for the tip!
Such a great time to be in Colorado I bet the weather is wonderful right now! Many great restaurants in the Boulder area and Pearl Street is a must while you are there!
I personally wasn’t the biggest fan of the Cuba Cuba sandwicheria. If you want sandwiches in Boulder go to Snarfs! Some of my favorites: The Buff for breakfast. Centro for a Latin dinner, Pizzeria Locale for delicious pizza, Spruce Confections for coffee and pastries, The Rio for a margarita, Reuben’s for burgers (pretzel buns!), Brasserie Ten Ten for French Cuisine, Dushanbe Tea House for breakfast, lunch, tea.
Thank you for the recommendations!
Hi Julie!
Welcome to Colo 🙂 hope you love it here! If you have any free time in between activites let me know if you’d be interested in taking a Pure Barre class here. I’m a teacher at the Cherry Creek/ Highlands studios and would love to have you and your friend as my guests!
Megan
Hi Megan!!! I am actually planning to head there now for the 9:30 am class! Will you be teaching??
Dang!! Wish I was, I taught the 6am in the Highlands this morning and now I’m stuck at work. Hope you have a great class and love our studio! Let me know when you’re back and maybe we can plan a Pure Barre/ coffee date!
I’ll be flying into Denver tomorrow to visit my best friend tomorrow. I’m so excited! <3
It's huge and out of the way, but I actually really like the Denver Airport. Once you find your terminal, it's pretty easy to get around.
I visited Boulder last May and loved it!! While we only spent an afternoon there, I’m dying to go back and explore more of what the city has to offer. We did hike near the flatiron rocks which was breathtakingly beautiful and visit the Avery brewery taproom which was a lot of fun. Hope you enjoy your stay!
I love Colorado! My husband and I stayed in Colorado Springs and Denver for about two weeks a few months ago during our cross country move to Phoenix. Every single thing I ate in that state was divine. I hope you enjoy your stay.
Plantains and ahi tuna sound amazing! Why is it Denever seems to have the best food? I swear everyone always raves about the food there.
Because we’re a bunch of foodies and demand good restaurants! 🙂 I love all the fabulous restaurant choices here… But the Mexican food is no bueno. Midwest (Indiana, Ohio, Etc) have way better Mexican restaurants.
Absolutely try Snooze for breakfast, but get there early! If you are looking for a fast meal Fresh Thymes has a great organic (very Boulder) menu! Rush on the hill also offers a lot of smoothies/acai granola bowls which are great for breakfast/lunch! Enjoy your time in Boulder, the sun is shining bright for you today up here!
Fresh Thymes is amazing!!!! They have tons of Paleo options too which I love. Mmm. 🙂
ahi tuna is one of my favorite meals. your dinner looks delicious!
my aunt and uncle live in denver and i love visiting them! i’ve always said that if i had to move out of state (california), i’d pick colorado. 🙂 hope you have a great trip!
We have a place around here called Booster Juice. You would love it!
An infamous Denver spot=Biker Jim’s! Gotta try it at least once!
I can’t remember any restaurant names in Boulder off hand. I did a short trip there last June as well. There are so many quirky, local places in town that I am sure you will find some delicious eats. And more green juice! Will you be doing a recap of your visit to Celestial? We didn’t get a chance to visit it on our short trip but sure wish we would have. We have no less than 5 of their teas in our pantry right now
love everything about Denver and Colorado in general, and often miss so many aspects of living there. glad you had such a great time w/ your (beautiful!) friend from childhood!
If you’re able to make it outside of Boulder I highly recommend Sweet Cow in Louisville for ice cream. It’s maybe 10-15 min outside of Boulder. They come up with some crazy, delicious ice cream flavor AND they have pretzel cones. It doesn’t get much better than that.
I lived in Denver for a year and I never heard of Cuba Cuba! Now I”m going to have to force my friends to take me there when I go back to visit. If there is any chance you guys can’t think of a place to eat while you’re there, my absolute favorite food in the world is a torta from Las Tortas. It’s on Alameda just East of Colorado Blvd. It’s like a giant pile of everything that is good put on the softest bread and pressed. And it’s like $8, so win-win! Also, you would be completely obsessed with Snooze, a breakfast place there, but your hosts probably already know about that one.
Have such an amazing time there! Denver is the best!
I love Denver! If you have time I recommend Hacienda Colorado. It’s the best Mexican restaurant ever! Their queso dip is off the charts! If you go, tell the manager that her niece recommended it!
You’re making me miss my former city of Denver! I used to take visitors to the Celestial Seasonings tour. Once I went twice in a week. Ha!
Love Cuba Cuba!! I would def go to Sherpa’s if you have time in Boulder. It’s Nepalese, Indian and Tibetian food. So amazing. If you liked the atmosphere in Cuba Cuba, you will love Sherpa’s, as it’s located in a cute little house. One of our absolute favorites from when we lived in Colorado!
Also if you fly back through Denver’s airport, be sure to check out Itsawrap in the B concourse, if you have time. Super healthy and yummy wrap options. It’s a little hidden gem that we are always sure to hit up when we travel. Have so much fun!
Don’t you love the after effect of a refreshing green juice?! I’ve always wanted to make it out and visit Colorado! Enjoy!
Have fun in Colorado! Did you see this post by a girl who did the same Whole Foods challenge as you did? Wow! http://www.sodiumgirl.com/whole-foods-market-hack-challenge/
Any chance you know where Michaela got that cute grey shirt? I’m looking for one just like it!
Lucilies!! Have one in Boulder and Denver! Phenomenal breakfast/lunch spot. You got to get their biscuits..huge!!