The Summer Dining Guide

MEET YOU ON THE PATIO.

Or maybe the rooftop? An air-conditioned dining room is never a bad deal either if it’s cookin’ outside. BUT…this is all about the cookin’ inside. ‘Tis the season for spring and summer dining, so here’s what’s happening from some of the tastiest kitchens in town.

Tell us about your new offerings this season…

Clayton Hotel & Members Club  Executive Chef John Kramer We are really excited for the Palisade Peaches.  It’s always a blast to create great appetizers and desserts with such a fantastic product.

Toro Latin Kitchen & Lounge F&B Director Serena So We are thrilled for the Winter to be behind us and to be able to welcome guests to Toro. There’s nothing that makes us happier than seeing a packed restaurant and lounge area with all the doors open, Colorado fresh air in the space, cocktails and spectacular Latin dishes on their way to our customers. This Spring and Summer we have our standout cocktails and mocktails arriving. On the bar menu, you will see the new Passion Pisco Sour, Floral Moral, and Caipiréa. On the mocktail side, you’ll see our Espresso Notini, Clarita, and Maria Bonita. All of them are colorful, vibrant and ideal for evenings at Toro.

Narrative at The Jacquard Executive Chef Charles Albright We are really looking forward to a new turn of the menu to bring us out of winter. We are focusing on your classics and going to be touching base with our creation around what our core values are at Narrative. We are a neighborhood restaurant that is in touch with our community and our atmosphere to cater to a relaxed summer vibe.

Bar Dough Executive Chef Stefy DeVita : At Bar Dough, we’re working on several dishes in preparation for spring and summer. I’m excited to lean into what the season gives in terms of fresh veggies. Luckily, I have a lot of great relationships with farmers, so I’ve also been making some plans to work with them on some fun unique dishes. We want to have more fun shareable small bites on the menu, and this is the perfect time for that.

Local Jones Executive Chef Matt Heikkila Rare Bird will be our highlight of the spring and summer featuring our new wood-fired pizzas with seasonal vegetables.

Ollie & Park’s Managing Partner Ned Nichols I love our beautiful blackberry and almond margarita with Alban Eno tequila, and our new dinner menu features Colorado lamb tenderloin with a chipotle and honey glaze; pan seared beet-infused salmon fillet with orange and rosemary, bear Blanc sauce, and Chef Jason’s new strawberry gazpacho.plate offerings.

What’s a dish you’re particularly excited about?

Clayton Hotel & Members Club Tomato Salad. We are not sure what this year’s version will be, but summer tomatoes are the best.

Toro Latin Kitchen & Lounge Nothing says Toro to me more than our Mezcal-flambeed tomahawk. Beyond the amazing tableside presentation, it invites guests to celebrate the opening of the summer season with spectacularly grilled Colorado beef. Ideal for sharing, it gets everyone in the spirit for big moments like graduation, the 4th of July, and Father’s Day.

Narrative at The Jacquard We are very excited to bring back our grilled halibut from last season, with a new twist to enliven the soul of summer.

Local Jones: I always get excited in the spring as we are able to start getting the fresh green vegetables worked back into the menu. As the weather warms, the dishes get lighter and brighter and it’s fun to see the progression from the braised and roasted winter dishes into the bright colors of spring.

Bar Dough: Honestly, one of the dishes I’ve been planning for Bar Dough is a Calabrian salsa and bean salad. It’s going to be packed with flavor and texture. Served with crispy focaccia, burrata and spring alliums. We are also working on a nice light fish entree with speck wrapped cod, brown butter and a pea aglio bolido that’s very yummy.

Ollie & Park’s I’m very excited about the 20-foot black walnut cocktail lounge that we’re building on our patio. My favorite dish is the shrimp gnocchi, which is out house gnocchi and gulf shrimp tossed in a lemon beurre blanc, served over an English sweet pee puree.

what’s your top summer “food” memory and why?

Clayton Hotel & Members Club The Mexican street corn at the flea market. It’s always one of my favorites with lots of tajin.

Toro Latin Kitchen & Lounge As a Singaporean, food is a part of our DNA. It is the expression of our identity, of family, our culture. It brings us all together in a way that nothing else does. That’s why some of my fondest memories involve the dinner table with my loved ones during past visits back home. While my mother, my brother, and I may not agree on everything, there is one thing we can agree on – a bowl of rich, fragrant, spicy and deeply satisfying laksa can make everything right in the world.

Narrative at The Jacquard When I was younger, I used to spend a lot of time with my cousins. We would always be outside enjoying the heat of the days during the summer. Some of the best times were when we would tube the creek in Boulder. Our parents would drop us off in the morning at the library and we would go to the gas station and fill our tubes with the free air. We would then walk the creek up to Eben G. Fine Park, then float all the way down to Scott Carpenter Park and walk all the way back up to path to do it again. The simplicity of spending the day on the creek and having fun with my family is truly a memory that will always remind me of the slower times of Summer.

Local Jones: My favorite memory as a chef is going to harvest garlic bulbs at a local farm back in the Pacific Northwest It was a lot of work to do, but I was able to bring most of my kitchen team out to the farm and pull on the bulbs and tie them in the barn rafters to cure. After they were ready, it was a great point of pride to be able to include these in our menu where the entire kitchen team was responsible from getting from the farm to the table.

Bar Dough: A favorite memory tied to this time of year is getting my home garden going. It’s more than just a hobby for me – it’s therapy. There’s something incredibly grounding about putting your hands in the soil and nurturing something from seed to harvest. It’s a completely different way of connecting with food, one that’s deeply personal and inspiring. I started gardening three years ago, and now it’s something I really look forward to every season. It reminds me why I fell in love with food in the first place.  A bonus this year is Bar Dough has 10 new garden beds and I am really excited for our guests to be served food that we are growing and nurturing.

Ollie & Park’s: My favorite childhood food memory is probably trying oysters for the first time in Sag Harbor, New York, at my aunt’s restaurant. I didn’t expect to love how sweet and salty they were. I tried something adventurous and fell in love with it.

Whether it’s on your menu or not, what’s your favorite Summer meal?

Clayton Hotel & Members Club BBQ. Being from Texas, there is nothing better than BBQ and a cold beer on a hot afternoon.

Toro Latin Kitchen & Lounge Spring and summer to me are all about celebrating the beauty of the products we have locally. There’s something about the Colorado climate that creates fruit and vegetables that are to be celebrated. No other place does this better than the Cherry Creek Farmer’s Market, whom we have collaborated with before on a Chef’s Table format dinner at Toro. However, at home, nothing represents the seasons better than a light, fresh orzo salad with vegetables like snap peas, artichokes, and radishes.

Narrative at The Jacquard Though not on our menu, one of my favorite meals that always makes me feel like summer is Paella. The blend of all the flavors and notes makes me reminisce about family gatherings during summertime.

Local Jones: Anything with spring peas in the dish! My go to is an English pea risotto with a cured egg yolk shaved over top. Nice and light to match the warmer days.

Bar Dough: I love a good, fresh, simple salad—especially this time of year. If I had to pick one, I’d say a fresh Caesar salad is hard to beat. When it’s done right—crisp romaine, a punchy umami dressing, some shaved Parmigiano and homemade croutons—it’s just classic and perfect. But honestly, I’m also a big fan of a tomato salad. When tomatoes are in peak season, all you need is a little olive oil, some flaky salt, maybe a bit of basil or burrata, and it’s magic. It’s about celebrating what’s fresh and letting the ingredients do the talking.

Ollie & Park’s: My favorite summer meal would be a beautifully braised leg of lamb.

Guidebook

A5 STEAKHOUSE

1600 15TH STREET

303.623.0534 / A5DENVER.COM

ASH’KARA

2005 W 33RD AVENUE

303.537.4407 / ASHKARADENVER.COM

AVIANO COFFEE ON 2ND

215 ST PAUL ST. SUITE 180

720.389.9948 / AVIANOCOFFEE.COM

AY PAPI

248 DETROIT STREET

AYPAPIDENVER.COM

BAR AMORINA

233 Clayton Street

303.532.8980 / BARamorina.com

BAR DOUGH

2227 W 32ND AVENUE

720.668.8506 / BARDOUGHDENVER.COM

CLAYTON HOTEL & MEMBERS CLUB

233 CLAYTON STREET

303.551.1600 / CLAYTONDENVER.COM

FORGET ME NOT

227 CLAYTON STREET

720.259.5369 / FORGETMENOTDENVER.COM

FOX AND THE HEN

2257 W 32ND AVENUE

303.862.6795 / FOXANDTHEHEN.COM

HAPA SUSHI

3030 E second AVENUE

303.322.9554 / HAPASUSHI.COM

KUMOYA

2400 W 32ND AVENUE

303.862.6664 / KUMOYADENVER.COM

LOCAL JONES

249 COLUMBINE STREET

720.772.5022 / HALCYONHOTELCHERRYCREEK.COM

MISTER OSO

103 S OGDEN STREET

303.955.0352 / MISTEROSODENVER.COM

NARRATIVE

222 MILWAUKEE STREET, IN THE JACQUARD

720.571.8080 / NARRATIVECHERRYCREEK.COM

Ollie & Park’s

1210 E 17th AveNUE

720.769.3427 / OLLIEPARKS.COM

SENOR BEAR

3301 TEJON STREET

720.572.5997 / SENORBEARDENVER.COM

TAP & BURGER

2219 W 32ND AVENUE

720.287.4493 / TAPANDBURGER.COM

Toro latin kitchen & lounge

150 clayton lane

303.253.3000 / Torodenver.com