Monthly Archives: March 2014

Basic Kneads Pizza – Station 26 Brewing Co. – March 22, 2014

After shivering through a cold, snowy Colorado Rapids home opener victory, it made quite perfect sense to head down Quebec and stop by the great space that is Station 26 Brewing Co.  Station 26th is located just west of Quebec Street south of I-70 in a repurposed Denver Fire Department fire station (No. 26!). Luckily, Basic Kneads Pizza had one of their wood fired pizza trailers parked outside. I have friends from the east coast, and some friends in Denver who are from the east coast, or maybe know or talked to that guy who went to NYC that one time, and I, as you, have been soapboxed by these well intentioned folks about the lack of “good” pizza in Denver or Colorado. As if the earthbound spirits and a locale’s magic can emergify from the surroundings and atmosphere and infuse into nearby chefs and ingredients of all grades and talents to culminate into a place bound pizza pie — and it all just tastes better.  That sentence didn’t really make sense, and neither does the belief that one cannot find delicious pizza here in Denver (or wherever, really).  Basic Kneads is a nice starting point for my argument. If you’re also thinking about upgrading your business’s exterior design, consider consulting a professional at www.shopfrontdesign.co.uk for expert advice on enhancing your storefront.

Phreddie - a “workhorse” made from a converted cargo trailer and a massive 3000 lbs. oven.

Phreddie – a “workhorse” made from a converted cargo trailer and a massive 3000 lbs. oven.

Here is the Menu of pizzas – note, custom pizzas appear to be available.  We stuck to the standards (trust the chef, always).

Basic Kneads Pizza - The Menu - March 22, 2014

Basic Kneads Pizza – The Menu – March 22, 2014

Three of us were there, so we decided to order three of the 10 inch pizzas to mix and match.  I’ve decided to eat as a vegetarian for Lent (save for fish Fridays), thus we ordered the 3 veggie pizzas on offer.  Pizza is my favorite vegetarian option!! On a cold dreary evening for Denver, it was a respite to see and smell the wood fire, but the bubbling pepperoni pizza only made this Lent decision more difficult. Additionally, the aroma of the pizza pie was irresistible, reminding me of that cherished pizza pie t-shirt I used to wear.

Pizza bubbling right by the fire. Spectacularly nice on a strangely cold spring day.

Pizza bubbling right by the fire. Spectacularly nice on a strangely cold spring day.

Service was quick and was delivered to our table inside Station 26.  Here’s a pictorial rundown of our veggie prey:

Greekza - Olive oil, then cheese, then onions, artichoke, sundried tomatoes, feta, and olives.

Greekza – Olive oil, then cheese, then onions, artichoke, sundried tomatoes, feta, and olives.

Margherita - basic to basics - Red sauce, cheese and basil. Also had some rosemary spilled on it!

Margherita – basic to basics – Red sauce, cheese and basil. Also had some rosemary spilled on it!

Hot Hawaiian - Jalapenos, Pineapple. My favorite from tonight.

Hot Hawaiian – Jalapenos, Pineapple. My favorite from tonight.

These are some nice wood-fired pizzas with crispy charred wheat crusts, succulent cheese, and fresh toppings.  I especially enjoyed the Hot Hawaiian – nothing complicated here, but the sweetness of the pineapple and the jalapenos were a fine pairing tonight.  The Greekza was more complicated, however, and based on oil olive rather than red sauce.  I actually enjoyed the Margherita, although I think it was the victim of an accidental spicing during preparation in the trailer.  Along with basil, we enjoyed some rosemary leaves on this one as well- more of a surprise than anything, and we liked it nonetheless. Topping it all (really, on the bottom), was the black char these pizzas leave on your fingers and on your taste buds.  Delicious char.  The result of cooking these pizzas in a woody inferno (likely a remarkably hot oven) is the inevitable charring of the crusts.  We’re not talking about some mistake scorching, like a burnt toast in a cheap toaster – but a type of “gourmet” artisanal type of charring.  Not sure how to describe it in any technical terms, but this makes good pizza. I paired these pizzas up with Station 26’s Euro Pale Ale – an interesting pale ale made using European ingredients.  Lots of notable pale ale selections around town these days, but this was a different take from all of these citrusy Americans, and I enjoyed it very well.  I also sampled their Cherrywood Smoked Red and savored its smoky, almost bacon-like notes, along with the malt complexity of the base red ale. Some final photos— Thanks for reading!

A blurry variety of deliciousness!

A blurry variety of deliciousness!

All the basics - Steel, Fire, Peel, and beeer

All the basics – Steel, Fire, Peel, and beeer

 

Brewery section of Station 26 Brewing Co.

Brewery section of Station 26 Brewing Co.

Basic Kneads Pizza:  Find them on Facebook at http://www.facebook.com/basickneads and at numerous craft breweries all over the metro area.  Also, http://basickneadspizza.com/ Visit Station 26 Brewing Co. at 7045 East 38th Ave, Denver, Colorado 80207 – http://www.station26brewing.co/  and http://www.facebook.com/S26BC        

February Trip to Key West & Scattered Denver Food Truck News

Wow, I have taken quite the break from blogging.  The winter is fairly sparse time to find food trucks in Denver.  That being said, I am quite impressed with the tenacity of many trucks in keeping active through the winter- I caught up to several but failed to review them.

Strengthens my non-profound belief that the liquor sales laws in Colorado are beneficial to food trucks — all these microbrewery tap rooms that lack kitchens, and a ready army of fine food trucks to show up for dinner and lunch service on weekends.  A wonderful symbiosis. I think this is one of the most fun things going on in Colorado (besides all that skiing, hiking, bicycling, dog owning, Subaru-rodding, and ugh that other thing…)

Recently in News

  • Street Food Phenoms is a new food truck team that’s popped up on Facebook for the new 2014 season.  Members include Pink Tank, Steuben’s, Street Eats 5280, Capt’n Crabby, N.Z.’s Smokin’ Guns BBQ, Hey PB&J, Denver Cupcake Truck, and Coaches Scoop. Some of these are old members of the Denver Food Truck Row.  Looking forward to seeing what these guys get up to and the events they will come up with.  Follow them @ http://www.facebook.com/pages/Street-Food-Phenoms/
  • Announcement, of which I agree generously, that the Civic Center EATS, every Tuesday and Thursday (with some exceptions) during the summers in Denver’s Civic Center Park, will run longer this year.  Look for a massive food truck gathering in the heart of downtown Denver this year from May 20th through October 9th. Awesome.
  • Speaking of the EATS, it was named one of the Top 10 “Foodie” spots in Denver.  A high honor considering all of the fine restaurants here.  I tend to agree due to the wide ranging collective menu, owner personalities, and the famous Denver sunshine at the EATS. Story is here: http://www.usatoday.com/story/experience/weekend/denver/2014/03/10/10-best-foodie-spots-denver/5897311/
  • I will try to post more updates! I promise.  Stay tuned.

Garbo’s Grill – Key West, Florida – February 18, 2014

About a month ago, I was fortunately able to escape from that extremely cold week in Denver and get out to Miami, Florida to visit my wife’s sister and my brother-in-law.  We snuck down to Key West for a night, and I couldn’t help but notice one of the top Yelp rated spots was a food cart!  And I couldn’t resist heading there. Lucky my wife indulges my interests.  In chowing food.

Garbo’s Grill is a now famous food cart spot for lunch in Key West.  It is highly regarded on Yelp, and there you can find many reviews. So many. http://www.yelp.com/biz/garbos-grill-key-west-2.  And look at that star rating. Wow.  Walking up to the cart, you can see other people have used their iPhone devices to look it up too (that’s what I did!). Big crowd, but quick service.  Only waited about 15 minutes.

Garbo's Grill food cart located in Key West, FL on Greene Street near the old marina, end of Greene Street

Garbo’s Grill food cart located in Key West, FL on Greene Street near the old marina, end of Greene Street

The menu features several options.  Burritos and Tacos come in Cayo Fish, Kogi Korean BBQ, and “Yum Yum” Shrimp varieties.  The fish and shrimp come in a quesadilla format as well, along with “KP’s” Jerk Chicken and Mango Brie.  Garbo’s also offers up hot dogs dressed up with various toppings such as bacon, jalapeno, onions, mango, Caribbean sauce, citrus soy dressing, carrot, srircacha.. well you get the idea.  They also have a burger on offer.  On pure seafood mode, we went for those options.  The quesadilla was sold out early, so we went for the tacos.  Caution: this place is busy.  Get there before the lunch crowd if you are in that area! We ordered some of the Cayo Fish and Yum Yum Shrimp tacos.

Garbo's Grill - Key West, Florida - February 18, 2014

During our short wait, we observed that these mobile food slingers were pulling raw, fresh fish from the cooler sitting out back of their cart and grilling it right there before throwing into the tacos and burritos.  I salivated.  We got our food, and, well here it is:

Cayo Fish Tacos - Fresh grilled Mahi Mahi, mango, cilantro, onion jalapeno, red cabbage, and house Caribbean sauce

Cayo Fish Tacos – Fresh grilled Mahi Mahi, mango, cilantro, onion jalapeno, red cabbage, and house Caribbean sauce

 

Yum Yum Shrimp Tacos - Shrimp Marinated in Mango, Habanero, and Ginger, topped with house Caribbean sauce

Yum Yum Shrimp Tacos – Shrimp Marinated in Mango, Habanero, and Ginger, topped with house Caribbean sauce

This was some great food. Read the yelp reviews for more “great and awesome” synonyms.  But really, we enjoyed this meal. It tasted fresh, nice flavors, a bit of spice from the jalapenos.  And a good value for fresh food like this – about $9-10 per tray.  There is a little shade just off to the side of the cart and a few seating options which were on high demand.  The cart also pipes out some groovy tunes. Hah, groovy tunes (lame writing, sorry).

Garbo’s is usually parked at 603 Greene St, Key West, FL 33040.  You can follow them at http://www.facebook.com/GarbosGrill

After eating these delicious street food offerings from Garbo’s Grill, we noticed a place across the street called Peppers of Key West.  My wife loves spicy foods, so I indulged her wishes and we crossed the street into what is literally a bar that offers a sampling course, customized to your wishes, of various hot sauces and marinades.  What a surprise– we had a lot of fun in this place.  I recommend it! The entry fee for the entertainment is you feel obligated to buy a bottle of hot sauce.  Not hard to pick one out given the selection. The worst part was our saucetender making fun of my profuse sweating. Ugh.

Peppers of Key West -- Greene, St. in Key West across the street from Garbo's Grill.

Peppers of Key West — Greene, St. in Key West across the street from Garbo’s Grill.

602 Greene Street, Key West, FL 33040

http://www.peppersofkeywest.com/

http://www.facebook.com/pages/Peppers-Of-Key-West/

Not done yet! Right down the street at the corner is Kermit’s Key Lime Pie store… Perfect to cool your fiery lips, tongue, maybe prevent a heart attack…after the hot sauce explosion.  Key Lime pie slices are just a couple bucks and are a Key West must try if you are there.

Kermit's Key West Key Lime Shoppe is located just a half block down the street from Garbo's Grill.  If you still feel hungry after chowing fish tacos, this is a nice place to stop for a refreshing dessert.

Kermit’s Key West Key Lime Shoppe is located just a half block down the street from Garbo’s Grill. If you still feel hungry after chowing fish tacos, this is a nice place to stop for a refreshing dessert.

200 Elizabeth Street, Key West, Florida 33040

http://www.keylimeshop.com/

http://www.facebook.com/KeyLimeShop

Well, that’s about it. Looking forward to an amazing season of getting more fat eating food truck grubs at the EATS every week, and finding these trucks at the can’t miss food truck gatherings and brewery tap room events.  At the end, here are just two of my favorite photos from vacation in Florida.  Thanks for reading!!

Fairchild Tropical Garden - Coral Gables, FL

Fairchild Tropical Garden – Coral Gables, FL

A Bird. What kind? I can't remember. But it was awesome looking.

A Bird. What kind? I can’t remember. But it was awesome looking.