Greetings from Denver, Colorado. If you have never visited Denver, you are missing out. Lots of blue skies, beautiful views of the mountains, bike shares, tons of restaurants, and an oxygen tank on every corner. That last one is not true. But do not forget, Denver is known as the “Mile High City”, which means the air is thin, especially if you have an active lifestyle.
Having been here three weeks, I have been to several places that stood out to me. Given the schedule I have had recently, by the time I ate something and decided to write about it, I had already forgotten to take a picture of it or I had already forgotten what it was I just inhaled. Oh well!
I tend to do research on restaurants using the same websites and apps on my phone. Funny enough, I feel like I dropped the ball in Denver, but I'm here 3 more weeks, so there will be more to come. I promise. Most websites (Food and Wine, Travel and Leisure) and Apps (Best New Chefs, Eat & Drink) keep pointing me to Boulder. Now I have never been to Boulder nor did I have any clue about where it is. I soon discovered it’s a college town. It’s also about a 20-25 minute drive just north of Denver. I am fortunate enough to have two girlfriends that agreed to make the journey with me. I couldn’t drive myself. My license has expired and of course in typical Luis form I am waiting way past the last minute to do anything about this.
The drive to Boulder is beautiful. Here I was with blue sky, at the foot of the mountains in a yellow VW Beetle. Quite honestly, this is probably one of the prettiest drives I’ve ever been on. As we descended into the town of Boulder, a modern day “last stop before you head into the mountain” type of town appeared. Cute shops, bike shares (this is huge in Colorado apparently), marijuana dispensaries, college students, and the ever popular Pearl Street promenade. And most importantly Pizzeria Locale, the reason for this arduous trip outside of Denver.
Pizzeria Locale was the one common restaurant that seemed to be the talk of the Denver/ Boulder area. I tend to gravitate towards this type of cuisine. Who doesn’t love pizza? Who doesn’t love a twist on what we consider to be conventional pizza? Most importantly, who doesn’t love the items other than pizza at these type of restaurants?
Upon arriving we are told about the experience we are about to have. Inspired by the cooking techniques and recipes of Napoli, Italy, Locale has beautifully blended old world with new world techniques and ingredients.
As a starter we jumped at the sight of an “amuse bouche”, mozzarella-risotto balls with a touch of saffron. Fried, gooey, and delicious. One wasn’t enough. The menu is divided into 4 different sections, salads, small bites, white pizzas, and red pizzas. Luckily for me, my friends Lauren and Adea were more than happy to allow me to commandeer what we would eat this afternoon.
We began with a “Frutti di Mare” salad. Octopus, mussels, clams, shrimp, calamari, artichokes, capers and potatoes. Quite honestly one of the best Frutti di Mare I have ever had. A hint of lemon and Italian parsley to top this off. Served cold, with a cold beer or a sensible glass of prosseco could be the perfect pairing on a hot summer day or a cold spring day here in Boulder.
We followed this dish with an order of Polpettine (pork meatballs with a walnut pesto). You would think pork and pesto would be a bit too salty to pair like this, but it wasn’t. There was a balance in each bite, and I would recommend getting an order of focaccia to soak up the remainder of the pesto.
Pizza time. Of course with a white and red pizza options, I had to get one of each. Ortolano is the name of our red (rosse) option. A blend of pecorino, mozzarella, eggplant, zucchini, and peppers. None of the were roasted which in my mind made them stand out beautifully. What impressed me the most is how simple yet extremely delicious their marinara sauce is. Bold tomato flavor with yet subtle enough to allow the vegetables to come forward with flavor.
What truly stood out to me was our white pizza (bianche). A sweet corn, creme fraiche, mozzarella, and prosciutto cotto. For those who don’t know (myself included) prosciutto cotto is boiled prosciutto. Boiling it brings out the flavor and makes it a little more salty. Mix this with the sweet corn, and creme fraiche and you have something extremely unique. I’ve never had corn on pizza. I’m sure most people haven’t considering that corn isn’t an Italian ingredient. This is by far one of the most unique, and delicious pizzas I have ever had the pleasure to taste.
So, in conclusion, Boulder does not disappoint anyone. Neither does Pizzeria Locale. If in Denver, hop on your rent-a-bike, grab your oxygen, and pedal you way to Boulder.
