Restaurant Reviews

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Joseph's Fine Dining

Joseph's Fine Dining is on the south end of town.
The neighborhood was not what we were expecting, and it was right next to a car wash.
The exterior was also not really what we were expecting, with a giant plywood lobster out front. It's possible that if I didn't have a Groupon, and I just wanted to have a fine dining experience with my honey, I might have passed it by.


Do not let the outside fool you. Joseph's interior is lovely, welcoming and elegant. They have taken the small things into consideration and the menu boasts seafood and adventurous dishes to please the palate.

There is a bar area with a granite top bar in the front, and then the dining area opens up along the side. The whole left side of the restaurant has a tinted glass between you and the kitchen so that you can see into the kitchen, but do not have to hear the noises or smell all of the smells.

The tables have linen table clothes and candles for ambiance.

The back wall has a fireplace, decked with lighting to add to it all. This would be a great date or anniversary location.


The menu had fine dining written all over it. From scallops to sea bass. Trout, veal, lamb, filet, flambeed meals, duck, and calf's liver.
They also presented us with a special menu, which was printed on neon green paper. It wasn't very fine-dining-esque. But it worked.


We started with Crab Stuffed Mushroom appetizer for $11.99.
The tequila lime beurre blanc was such a nice touch and not overdone at all. I could taste the hint of lime, but it wasn't intense and could go unnoticed if you weren't savoring each bite.
They also had escargot and calamari. But I didn't want to freak my fiance out!


It looked adorable, with a tall salad wrapped in cucumber on the side. But the most important part was it tasted wonderful.

I went with the Calf's Liver and my fiance had the Flambeed Steak.

It was exciting to have our meal cooked right at our table. The raw piece of meat sitting next to us looked beautiful. I think that really counts. Anyone can make something look nice after it's been cooked. REAL good food looks amazing before you touch it, as well


The cooked it up in butter right next to our table.


Then she set it aflame right before serving.


The sauce was a sweet peppercorn sauce that tasted like there was cherry in it? It was superb.


And then the was the calf's liver. It was perfectly cooked and served over risotto with beautifully sauteed onions on top. Heeaaaavenly.


I don't like to be mean, especially when you treat my tummy to such delicacies, so the quick gripes and then I'm done. I didn't love the "specials" menu printed out on computer paper. Kind of tacky.
Since you could see through that window to the kitchen, I thought it would have been more appropriate if the chefs were not wearing t-shirts and Bronco jerseys.
And we waited a while at the end for a check.

But that's it. And it could have been on off night.
Dinners ranged from $17.99 to $31.99, but mostly hovered in the mid-20s.
And we were too too stuffed for dessert. Oops! But the menu looked amazing. They also had a superb wine selection. You know how snobby I am about wine. I wish I had been in the mood for a glass, but I'm not sure how I could have chosen only one from their well-chosen wine menu

All in all, it was 4 out of 5 stars. It wasn't McKenzie's or the Broadmoor, but it was far above even the nicer chains such like Elephant Bar or Olive Garden. That's why we created the Finer Dining Category for you. A place that will impress, but us commoners can still afford it

Fun facts: Joseph's has a Wine Night. Yes, we know how much I love these You can also make a dinner reservation online by visiting their website.



Follow the hash tag #WhatsHotColorado on Twitter for Updates and Deals during the week And be sure to use it when you find some deals we haven't spread the word on!

Popularity: 2% [?]

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Peak Grill

Breakfast is a fantastic meal. A bad breakfast can ruin your day.

One of our favorite spots after the Omelette Parlor is the Peak Grill on Centennial and Garden of the Gods. It's quirky, small, and the food is fast and good. The orange juice is from concentrate, so I'll warn you about that one



The menu has all the traditional American breakfast foods. Biscuits and gravy, skillets, corned beef hash.You name it.

Everything is very good, it's very quick, and very relaxed and friendly. Also, the prices are fantastic, and being stingy, I need fantastic pricing to enjoy a place



Oh, and you can get hollandaise on anything. Considering my chronic butter addiction, this pleases me greatly!



If you stop by the Peak Grill, or if you've been there before, come back and let us know what you think about

DID YOU KNOW?? The Peak Grill has military discounts every day except Sunday and they also usually have coupons on ValPak.com. Read carefully, though. I don't think their coupons count on Sundays, either.

Popularity: 2% [?]

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Caspian Cafe

The Caspian Cafe is a Mediterranean restaurant here in town.



The outside is nothing special, but the inside is another story entirely.



They have sky high ceilings that are painted black and drop lights that, to me, resemble stars in the night sky.
It's not as dark in there as these pictures seem, but my camera has seen it's last day.
The one side has all bistro tables and can be used for large groups and parties.


On the other side is booth seating around the perimeter for a more intimate experience.

And the bar area is small but beautiful. And well-stocked



Our evening started off with a bottle of wine from their discontinued menu- they were discounted. We HAD to.



The best part, though, was the food! Big portions. Tons of flavors.
They almost always have a special of some sort. I almost always get whatever it is and it's always better than what everyone else at the table is getting. Always.

This particular night, I had lamb and other goodness. It was heavenly.
I'd call it a good value. You don't leave thinking you've just been ripped off haha.
You can check out ValPak.com or PremierValuesMag.com. I've seen Caspian Cafe Coupons in there quite a few times.

Dinners ranged from $16.95-$26.95 and they have everything from beef to lamb to vegetarian and some fantastic seafood dishes.



The chefs at Caspian KNOW how to cook. My lamb came out cooked perfectly and the demiglace was unique and out of this world.

For the un-adventurous, there was a kebab platter that came with sooooo much food, I thought we would pop.



If you go with someone who isn't afraid of real seafood, try the mussels appetizer in saffron tomato cream. Or even have it as your meal. Dip your bread in the sauce when you are done and you will die and go to heaven a million times.

And for dessert, a TOWERING slice of chocolate cake. The whipped cream was mint infused and I liked that extra touch of flavor where you're not expecting it. Another creative touch from the chefs.



The wait staff was attentive and knowledgeable. They knew their wines. They knew exactly what was in the specials and how they were made in addition to everything on the menu.

We often judge wait staff by how long our water glasses remain empty. Our water glasses were never empty. Our check came at the right time. It was a great experience.

I have been probably 3 or 4 times. For lunch and for dinner. And I have found consistency in the food, the flavor, and the personability of the employees. I love love the Caspian Cafe.

I'd classify Caspian Cafe as a "finer dining" experience. You won't feel right if you're there in your rugged wear, but you also don't need a jacket or tie. (They don't have a dress code- I'm just stating my opinion.)

Did you know? Caspian Cafe has belly dancers. If you're interested in seeing a performance, be sure to call ahead and find out when they will have a belly dancer

Popularity: 2% [?]

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Margarita at Pine Creek

Hello Colorado Springs Are you missing summer yet?

My most recent adventure was to Margarita at Pine Creek. It's located off I-25 and Woodman-ish. You may have seen their sign from the highway?



You may have heard it described as the place with the giant carrots. Now you know why.

Margarita is HUGE and UNIQUE. I couldn't pinpoint how to start or how to describe it, so I decided to just take you through our night in the order we experienced it.

We parked in the gravel parking lot out front an made our way down a walkway. When we got in front of the building, I realized how adorable, eclectic and unique this restaurant really is.





We came into a courtyard and noticed the building is quite a bit larger than it seemed from the road.

You enter on the right in the red building, and you will be seated from there.



We were taken to the back of the restaurant which was how we realized the enormity of it, and the intricacies. They had plenty of little nooks shoved out to the side with various different lighting fixtures. Some of the tables were made of piece of broken glass.



The menu!

The dinner menu had two options. A five course meal for $42 or a three course meal for $35. If you chose the 5 course, you'd get an a before dinner treat, an appetizer, a soup/salad, your dinner, and dessert.

Since there were two of us, we each got the three course. He got the appetizer, soup/salad and the dinner. Then I go the soup/salad the dinner and the dessert. And then we shared. It saved money and we still got to try everything





They also had wine flights.

After we ordered, we decided to explore while they made our food. First, we went down a spiral wooden staircase to what turned out to be a lounge and bar, with decorative sculptures and art.

They have live music down here on Friday nights. You can check out their events page if you're interested





As we wandered, we peeked out the windows to find more. And more. And more.

There are courtyards everywhere, ranging from 5 tables to 25.





Some of the courtyards were filled with people. Others were compeltely empty.



A lot of it seemed like a fairytale.

We came back to bread! And vino! Yum! Warm, with butter.



What more do you need in life?

The wine selection was actually very good. I believe they had 3 or 4 pages, from varying regions, and the people who worked there seemed well versed in the flavor qualities of each of the wines.

The people were very friendly and VERY laid back. I expected a uniform of some sort, or possibly a little dressed up. No way. Khaki shorts and sandals was what our server wore.



For the most part, we loved this restaurant to bits. My fiance didn't love his meal, but he didn't realize he was ordering vegetarian, and he requires meat to be happy But then it came time for our check. And our server was noooowhere to be found. And then when she was to be found, she was moseying haha. I have to believe that it was a fluke. I don't think people would continue coming back if their service was always that slow.

The funny thing was, when she greeted us, she told us it was a slow night and we were going to have all her attention. I do believe her that it was slow. We seemed to be her only table. But she was slow herself, to the point of making me verrrry cranky. We sat staring at our empty table for quite a while after dinner.

That being said, I do think it was a fluke. And I do intend to go back, because my meal was fantastic.

AND I do recommend it. It's a great place for a date, or even a large group of friends. And summer time is truly a great time to go.

Did you know??
Margarita at Pine Creek does movie nights (Friday Nights) during the summers. They show a movie on the side of the building out in one of the courtyards and most people have dinner first and then enjoy the movie together Watch out for that one next summer!!

CHECK OUT THE RESTAURANT HERE

Popularity: 1% [?]

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Heart of Jerusalem Cafe

The Heart of Jerusalem Cafe is a great lunch stop. It's not fast food, but it's not a slow sit-down meal either.


You order at the counter, and you can grab a seat or take it to go, but it's ready pretty quickly.


The service is wonderful. Often, you're being served by the owners, so they can explain anything you're looking at on the menu. But they seem to take care in hiring people that are always polite and pleasant.

It's set up very much like a cafeteria or Cafe. The tables and chairs are cafeteria tables, and they have booths if you want to be more comfortable.
But they spiced it up by adding authentic touches and decorations. I love the hammered metal pendants that hang over the tables. It's not fancy or ritzy, but it's also never dirty.




The flavor factor is THERE. I've tried the Heart sandwich, the dolmas, the baklava, the falafel and the falafel and beef sandwiches. So I obviously know what I'm talking about, because I eat here WAY too often

My favorite sandwich, although they are all very good, is the heart sandwich. It had chicken and lamb and beef, I believe. But in addition to all these meets, the spices and add-ins are so flavorful and amazing. It's a tad greasy sometimes, but this type of lamb usually is.

A sandwich is $6.99 and you can make it a meal for and extra $4.00. Meal = Sandwich, drink and a choice of rice, fries, falafel, dolmas, or tabouleh.
Note: This is a LOT of food if you get the falafel or the dolmas, and I always take half home with me when I get the meal. Plates are $7.99 and you can add rice for $1.50.
And then they have appetizers and desserts separate if you want them, ranging from $2.99-6.99.

AND they have a kids menu of simple things that you don't have to be brave to try, like cheese quesadillas.

The dolmas are always HOT in the center- Be careful when you bite in But they are also packed with intense flavor. So so good.

Also, the hummus that comes with the falafel is amazing in an indescribable way. It is so creamy but still flavorful and just perfect.

My favorite deal they have is Tea for 2.


It's quite a bit of tea, and a fun way to extend lunch if you're eating with a friend.

Popularity: 1% [?]

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Denver Spotlight - Cru Wine Bar

Just because we live in the Springs, doesn't mean that we only play in the Springs. We'll be spotlighting Denver activities, not as a main feature, but to give you some options to get out of town when you're feeling cramped in the Springs.

Our first Denver Spotlight is Cru- a Food and Wine Bar, as stated in their name.
I've been twice to the Park Meadows location, which is how I figured you deserve to know the greatness of this place as well. Any place that I'll drive almost an hour to visit is worth sharing

Cru's main focus is their extensive wine collection. I think the fantastic food they serve is just to keep you occupied while sipping on little bits of heaven.

Cru at Park Meadows in Denver

The Park Meadows location has an outdoor patio, and then bar seating and tables inside. There is a wine wall along the back that will make any wino salivate, but it's also decorated in an eclectic- almost bookstore or library feel. The mahogany wood shelves cover wall to wall, floor to ceiling, and a tall rolling ladder allows the top shelf to be reached by librarians bartenders

Cru serves wines by the glass, by the bottle, or by the flight.
A flight is 3 smaller glasses of wine for you to try for the flavor. If you purchase a flight, it comes with a note card which explains the wine, the flavors and the origins.

I got the Latin Affair flight, which consisted of three Malbecs.

They accompany their wine with a superb selection of appetizers, CHEESE FLIGHTS, and other various creative entrees.

The service at Cru is always great at the bar. Their bartenders know about wines and can help you pick a food pairing or just help you decide which flights, glass, or bottle is right for you. Their wait staff in the dining room is wait staff. The second time I went, my server didn't know much and clearly wasn't a wine drinker. Not her fault, I just had to make decisions on my own. I was fine with that, but I can see a novice being frustrated by a lack of information, especially at a wine bar.
The ambiance has the eclectic book store feel I mentioned, with vintage posters on the walls in the seating area. The outside dining area was truly a place I could hang out for long periods of time. It happened to be a perfect night, and the dining area is set away from mall traffic enough that you don't feel like you're at the mall, but close enough for people watching.


Appetizers ranged from $9-14 and could be shared by 2 people.
Cheese flights were $15 or $16, and could easily be shared by 2 or 3 people.
Wine flights and glasses ranged from $11-25 depending on the wines, obviously.
Dinner entrees ranged from $16-22 and pizzas from $12-16. The entrees and pizzas were not the usual way-too-much-food-for-1-person helpings you tend to get at Chili's or wherever.

Cheese flight at Cru.

The flavor factor was 5 out of 5. They know exactly how to cook a meal/appetizer that will taste fantastic with a glass of wine. But they are also skilled in pairing unique flavors. I'd venture to say this could be a great place to have dinner even if you don't drink wine. Gasp! Sinful, I know. But, the food is truly delicious on it's own.

We kept our wine cards that explained our flights. I'm going to try to collect every one I wonder what happens if they change up their flights. I guess I'll have to drink more.

Wine flights and an Ahi Tuna appetizer at Cru

Popularity: 2% [?]

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The Melting Pot

I went to the melting pot with a bunch of friends for my birthday.



It's in the basement of a building, so immediate reaction was IT'S DARK! But, I do understand the darkness tends to correlate with romance and mood lighting, and it wasn't bat cave dark, so I'll let it go.

We were greeted by our very friendly waiter quickly and things got going!

I checked out the wine cabinet- GLORY!



And then roamed around and explored a bit.

Yes, I do this everywhere. Even on my birthday. It's all for you! Haha



They have small tables of four, and ours was for 12, I think. Since they have those grills in the middle, you can drag tables together to be close to your friends, so I appreciate that they thought of this when designing their restaurant.



Our server came back with our appetizer (a cheddar cheese dip with vegetables, shared among the 10 people who came). And we got to snacking.

And then we finished munching. And he was nowhere to be found. I am ALL FOR giving people their space. Especially a larger group- we obviously were chatty. But the table of 10 next to use arrived after us and left before we even had checks, so I know it didn't have to be THAT long. It got to the point where we were getting bored and hungry between courses.

We had dinners for 2, which were cheaper then each of use buying one ourselves. I think dinner was around $29/person? I know someone was offended that I had asked them to come to Melting pot and spend $100 on my birthday.

TAKE NOTE: Dinner ranges from about $25-32/person. Not too abnormal. You can add an appetizer for about $12-18 and you can add dessert for around $20, BUT dinner for 1 person does not have to be anywhere near $100. So don't let this place scare you too much.



And I can't complain about anything other than the speed of service. The meat was great. The sauces were great. The experience was fun and made for a good venue for that many people to all feel included the whole time.

As you can see above, we pretty much licked the plate clean.

And then dessert, which was on fire.

Literally.



We actually all shared this one dessert. There was a lot of appetizer and a lot of dinner and this was just perfect.

The pace is always slow here, so don't come for a quick bite. But it's not usually 3 hours slow (Yes, that's how long it took us to have 3 courses.) It's a great place for a date because it's an interactive meal and there's a lot of sharing.

I love this place.

Popularity: 3% [?]

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Pizzeria Rustica

We stopped by this Pizzeria because we heard they had a really cool brick oven that they made all their pizzas fresh in.

The first time we went, they were closed for the winter or something? I can't remember, but it was a long period of time. But we were interested in the oven, so we tried again a few months later.

The window has their logo, which is their brick oven. Go figure!



It appears to have been a home at one point. When you walk in, you'll see a staircase, don't go up it, go around it. The restaurant is on the first floor.

If you look up, there's a chandelier hanging from the high ceilings and photos on all the walls.



And then, inside, there are also paintings. Some are decoration, and some are for sale.



The staff was friendly and we were seated quickly. The restaurant was well-lit, but not bright lit. It was a calming dimness, but not so dark that you feel like batman.

Our server was also very kind. I like to ask a lot of questions (Ooops). She didn't mind and humored me with thought-out answers

We started with a bottle of wine. And boy did they ever have enough wine!





We ordered an appetizer. A Caprese salad for $8.



And then, I roamed the restaurant.

I am always pleased when I don't get dirty looks for snapping pictures. DID YOU KNOW that the Pizzeria Rustica uses organic and locally grown produce? They do.



These are the places in Colorado where they get their ingredients. VERY interesting, right???

I took a picture of the kitchen from the dining room....



...and asked about their brick oven. At which point, I was invited to step into the kitchen and see for myself! Ooo! I love this!

So I did.

And it was a little uneventful. But cool, still. I think I was just expecting it to be beautiful and amazing, and it was merely a brick oven in a kitchen.



I did get to chat with the chefs and that was fun. I was curious as to how they knew when a pizza was done, since they don't have timers, and the fire can change and the distance from the fire can change. He told me about the things they look for in the crust that lets them know it's ready. I totally soaked it all up because I love cooking so much, but I have to imagine other people would find it cool, too.

I don't know why I didn't take pictures of our pizzas, but I didn't.

I got a half-size Margherita, and my fiance got a half size Salsiccia.I added chopped fresh garlic to mine. I love garlic. It was amazing.

Our total bill was $40 for a bottle of wine, an appetizer, and two dinners. I'd call it a success folks. We will definitely go back. And I definitely recommend it.



It came with chocolate-covered coffee beans To cleanse your palette.

Popularity: 3% [?]

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HuHot Mongolian Grill

My Fiance told me about HuHot after he went there with some coworkers for lunch.



Hu Hot is it is ALL YOU CAN EAT Mongolian.

When you walk in, you grab a table and then you head to the front where you'll get a bowl and start down a line of stations.

Your first station is meet and noodles. The creepy part is the meat is all sliced and frozen and looks weird. But it's still yummy. I wondered if it was sanitary, but I'm assuming the State of Colorado's Health Inspection said it was or they wouldn't be so popular.



They have pork, chicken, beef, seafood, crab, peperoni. I can't even remember. A lot of meat lol.

And 3 or 4 types of noodles to choose from.



Then you skootch on down to the toppings bar. This had veggies, cilantro, water chestnuts.... Keep adding to your bowl!



It's not even over yet!! Then you make your way to a sauces bar.



Yes, you pour the sauces right into your giant bowl of raw/frozen food. They have garlic and ginger and hot and salty. There were soooo many.

Then, you take your bowl of goodness to be cooked! You hand it to a guy who pours your food and sauces out onto a giant circle stove.



There are tip jars on the counters, and I must say, if anyone deserves the tip, it's these guys. They work very fast and you can tell it's very hot.



They keep track of whose food is whose and then they'll give it back to you on a plate. So, if your bowl was overflowing, it will probably fit on the plate just fine.



Depending on what time you go and what day of the week, it may or may not be worth the price.

For LUNCH during the work week- It's $8.49 all you can eat. Amazing, right? But they're busy around lunch, so if you have a short lunch break, just pile your bowl as high as it will go and try not to drop anything. If you have time to dilly dally, then you can get seconds, thirds, whatever your heart desires and your stomach can handle. For DINNER during the week, it goes up a bit, and then DINNER on the weekends it goes up a lot- to $12.95. Then you have to ask yourself how much can you eat?? LOL.

That being said- I don't eat too much and I went when it was $12.95, but I wasn't upset by it. I forced myself to go back for seconds to make it worth my pennies

Popularity: 4% [?]

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GARBANZO Mediterranean Grill

Garbanzo quickly became one of my FAVORITE places after my first 2 bites.

It's located on Powers and North Carefree by the Super Target. And it's well worth your drive, wherever you are.



When you walk in, you'll probably be confused. It's confusing. Don't feel stupid. The employees are well aware that the options are confusing and will walk you through them. It's probably best described as a Mediterranean take on Panda Express. You pick your base concept, you add some ingredients, and then you accessorize.



At Garbanzo, your base is either a salad, a platter or a wrap. Simple, right? Then you add some goodies- meat, falafel, hummus. It's completely custom, so you can add whatever. And then you accessorize- You can add sauces, grilled eggplant, pickled red things. I have no idea.

Another big thing to understand is you may not know what all of it or any of it is, so be brave I tried one of everything, and I can promise it's all good! The employees also understand that you can't pronounce most of the food. In fact, some of them have t-shirts that say "I just ate something I can't pronounce." While you're adding things to your plate- you'll notice that some of the signs have a price of $0.85 or whatever it happens to be. So be aware if you're adding something to your plate that will add to your price. MOST of the tags do not have one because they're not extra. But I know it catches some people by surprise.

The grilled eggplant is to die for and is sooo worth the price.



After you're done, you can grab a seat there, but I take it to go.

There is SO MUCH food on the platter that I like to set it on my desk at work and nibble for an hour or so. I just can't eat all that food in one sitting.

It's very rich and the flavors are fantastic. There's a lot of garlic, but there are a lot of new flavors that are just too exciting as well. The hummus is amazing and creamy. The garlic sauce mixed with the cilantro sauce is outstanding.



This is my one of everything platter. So I think I paid $8.29? It came with a pita too. And then this bowl is outrageously full. The only thing I think I can identify in this picture is rice. Chicken and steak. Grilled eggplant...

The rest is a delicious mystery.

Popularity: 5% [?]