From a pumpkin spice espresso martini on Rooted’s new fall menu to Izzio’s pumpkin cheesecake pastry and more.
Many restaurants update their menus seasonally, optimizing dishes to show off peak produce and adjusting selections to best fit what guests are seeking. At Rooted Craft Kitchen, which opened in the former FNG space at 3490 West 32nd Avenue in May, the recently launched fall menu marks a big shift for the five-month-old eatery from former Vesta chef Nicholas Kayser.
“We took a look at what people were wanting and our menu mixes, and really wanted to settle in for the fall season and round out our menu,” Kayser says. While the main mission remains the same — “we still stay very, very responsibly sourced,” he notes, with a focus on simple, satisfying food — a majority of the dishes are new.
That includes an entire “meats & frites” section, from which guests can create their own steak frites, selecting from three cuts of beef, four varieties of fries and six sauces. Other standouts include a classic carbonara made with bucatini from local pasta maker Sfoglina; a hearty vegetarian-friendly entree in the form of mushroom ragout with herbed ricotta in a flaky pastry boat called a vol-au-vent; and striped bass with supremely crispy skin served with orzo studded with tomatoes, spinach and Castelvetrano olives. There are also some heavy-hitters from Rooted Craft Kitchen’s location inside Avanti Boulder, like the classic French dip and fish and chips.
The biggest hit from the fall menu so far, though, is a new addition to the drink lineup that proved to be extremely popular when it was offered as a special. Beverage director/co-owner Scott Ericson combined two major trends to create a total crowd-pleaser: a pumpkin spice espresso martini, which, yes, is made with actual pumpkin. “We have people that are like, ‘I drove around the block twice trying to find a parking spot just to come in for this drink,'” Ericson says.
Rooted Craft Kitchen isn’t the only place in town embracing pumpkin right now. Here are other spots serving pumpkin-spiked treats during spooky season:
Denver Central Market/Instagram
Izzio Bakery inside Denver Central Market is currently serving a pumpkin cheesecake roulette with candied pepitas.
Our favorite Mexican eatery with a view of a car wash, Garibaldi on South Broadway, has a number of Halloween specials, including black al pastor tacos, black rice horchata and pumpkin impossible cake (layered yellow cake, flan and candied pumpkin served with a lechera and Mexican brown sugar sauce).
Original Pancake House, which has locations in the Tech Center and Cherry Hills, has a lot of pancake varieties that are popular all year long, including its Dutch baby and custardy, crispy, mountainous apple pancake. But right now, it’s all about Sara’s Pumpkin Pancakes, which are “Better than pie!” the menu declares.
Head to Leven Deli in the Golden Triangle (one of our picks for the ten best sandwich shops in the city) for another sweet treat: pumpkin whoopie pies.
If you’re looking for more pumpkin cocktails, check out the Pumpkin Chai at Deviation Distilling, made with ZinFin Bourbon, Deviation’s Aztec Whiskey, pumpkin Parmesan foam, chai, cold brew and lemon juice and topped with nutmeg and a pumpkin cookie; the pumpkin chai espresso martini at Broken Cage; or the Smashing Pumpkin cocktail at Wynkoop Brewing Co., made with Woodford Reserve Bourbon, spiced pumpkin purée, sugar and lemon juice.
And if you’ve been making Starbucks runs for a PSL fix, consider these options from local coffee shops instead.
Source : Westword
