City Grille321 E. Colfax
Denver, CO
Thursday, January 8, 2008
www.citygrille.com
Attendees: Lara, Jen, Caroline, Rhonda & Ang.Denver, CO
Thursday, January 8, 2008
www.citygrille.com
I have always wanted to go to City Grille but something always seems to come up or get in the way and even though I have lived here for over 10 years I have never managed to get there. Upon entering I was a little surprised to find an cute little neighborhood joint, right smack in the middle of downtown Denver...just a hop, skip and a jump from the Capitol Building.
Well....for this Dinnergirl I gotta start by saying, I don't really want to be "judgery" but overall I gotta give this Denver landmark...complete with a giant hamburger on the side of the building and a huge banner in front acknowledging their burger prowess, a just above medium and so-so review.
Let me start with the service. I la-la-loved our waiter, Allen. He was awesome, funny, self-deprecating and totally into the whole, The-Bitches-Have-Come-For-Dinner vibe that was going on (especially with me), and I am completely aware that it was a Thursday night, very busy for a neighborhood joint but the gal that seated us and subsequently served us our food was not very friendly or initiating in any way, so much so that I didn't even have a chance to ask her name. As I said, it was a rather busy night in the restaurant and I can totally understand the whole, My-God-I'm-Swamped kinda thing, but ultimately, to me, two second of your time to make sure everything is right and okay really doesn't seem too much to ask.
The girls started out by ordering a round of martinis at the table (except Lara, who went simple and practical with a lager). Since we had varying degrees of "dirty" and olive count Allen, super-smarty and seasoned waiter that he is brought a glass full of olives and a small beaker of olive juice! Brilliant!
I will start by admitting that I did not have the Best Burger according to the Denver Post 2008, so I can't speak to that. I did have a scrumptious bite of Rhonda's Buffalo Burger which I did think was YUM but their claim-to-fame, I did not taste.
I had the Beer Battered Halibut and City Fries. The halibut was cut into small fillets and deep fried to a golden brown perfection. I am a fan of chunky tartar sauce so I was kinda excited about the prospect of said sauce with capers. I love capers. Don't get me wrong, I could taste the capers, salty and interesting, I just couldn't see them and to me the whole thing was kinda masked by the flavor of dill, which I really like but was just not expecting and rather overpowered the tartar just a bit too much. The fish was really good and you do get a lot of it so it was definitely worth the $10, which, for halibut is a bargain.
But I don't know why they make a big deal out of calling them "City Fries" specifically, because, basically they were shoestrings plain and simple. Good, but by no means exceptional.
With all of that said and even so...I would definitely do CityGrille again and I think next time, I'm having the burger!
4 comments:
I read Ang.'s blog and rather uncreatively, I'm sure, I agree 100% with everything she wrote about City Grille (we had the same meal) -- except I think I liked the tarter sauce more than she did, but agree that it lacked in texture and was too thin to be great. The prices are pretty right at City Grille so I'd certainly return and might enjoy it even more now that I know what to expect. It seems like a fun, laid-back, neighborhood joint. xxx
I had the burger and it was good, not a 10 but good. I don't know if I've even found a 10 burger, but I'm still looking. The fries were fine. I'm kinda picky about good fries, these were skinny, which I like, but not too crispy.
Allen was a great server! Especially for us; we can be a bit of a handful!
It is a find neighborhood burger joint, but since I don't live near there I'm not sure how ofter I'd go.
First, a disclaimer: I'm a CityGrille whore. Seriously. I love their burgers, their fries (when cooked the proper amount of time) are the definition of perfection, and the buns they use to house the burger... heavenly, in my opinion (or "IMO" as the kids are saying).
That said, the service has always, always left something to be desired. I've sat at a table for a full 10 minutes before being acknowledged by the staff, and have waited for a check for a good 20.
For best results, sit at the bar, get a beer (a pale ale like Sierra Nevada is a great choice), order a steakburger with cheddar, and fries.
Typically, the battle for "best burger" in town comes down to CityGrille and the Cherry Cricket. Frankly, I think that's laughable, as the Cricket's burgers are nowhere near as delicious as the Grille's. Check out the Squealing Pig in Cherry Creek sometime. Just a couple blocks from the Cricket, and they have a better, more gourmet burger.
Cheers.
Squealing Pig.... sounds like we are going to need to check them out!
I loved my Buffalo Burger. It was so yummy I ate the whole thing! Well, I left some of the bun, which I also loved, but I was enjoying the meat a little bit more and was getting quite full. They certainly don't skimp on portions. I think the girls who had the halibut all took home leftovers in their tupperware (love that tupperware idea!!)
I'm not a fries person..... ya I know, kinda weird... but I too thought they looked a little generic. But then again, what do I know about fries?
I think Allen was amazing and set the tone for the whole night. He was my favorite part of the evening.
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