Like cereal? With 120 kinds, The Cereal Box likely has something for you.
We could all use a heaping bowl of sweet, sweet nostalgia every now and then (or every day), and a new restaurant in Arvada has answered our realitydodging prayers. The Cereal Box Inc. is now open and serves candy-colored, super-sugary cereals that will surely lower our life spans.
The concept started as a joke among Michael Emmerson and his advertising co-workers. After their business was shipped off to another state, they started talking about what else they could do.
“I love cereal and I collect toys, so I said I’d open a cereal store and just sell cereal,” Emmerson said. “I told my kids and they said that was cool. Then my wife got laid off from her job in March so we said, ‘We’ve gotta do something for us. Let’s do it.’ ”
The Cereal Box currently stocks 120 cereals from around the globe, so you’re bound to find something to quench your inner child’s (or actual child’s) whining. And The Cereal Box isn’t messing around with basic Frosted Flakes and Cheerios here (although it has those, too.) Oh, no, it’s bringing in the big guns. We’re talking Marshmallow Fruity Pebbles, Quisp, Christmas Crunch and Unicorn Fruit Loops.
Can’t pick just one out of the multi-colored row o’ cereal boxes? Get one of the expertly-curated mixes, like the Zoo! Be Crazy, with Frosted Flakes, Corn Pops, Kinder Happy Hippo and chocolate milk, or The Nutty Professor, with Reese’s Puffs, Peanut Butter Cap ‘n Crunch, Cocoa Puffs, Reese’s Peanut Butter milk, whipped cream and peanut butter.
The Cereal Box Inc.: 5709 Olde Wadsworth Blvd., Arvada; cerealboxinc.com; Mon.-Sun. 7 a.m.-7 p.m.-ish
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You know it’s a good day when there’s pastrami news to report.
Jerrod Rosen is opening up Rye Society, a Jewish Deli in the former Hutch & Spoon space, and the man knows what he’s doing.
First, he’ll be flying in pastrami from New York’s Carnegie Deli. (The Carnegie Deli closed in December 2016, but it still produces and ships some of its products.)
Next, the Denver restaurant business is in his blood. One of his grandfathers ran Rosen’s Grocery back in the 1950s and another owned the Oasis DriveIn. His great grandmother operated Rosen’s Kosher Café in the 1920s.
Rye Society also will be making its own pickles and baking fresh rye bread every day. Rosen tapped chef Ryan Leinonen, formerly of Trillium and Colt & Gray, to help out with the menu, which will also have healthy options in addition to stacked sandwiches. Rye Society. Opening early 2018. 3090 Larimer St., Denver
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In feel-good Thanksgiving news, ACRES farm at Warren Tech High School and a bunch of Denver chefs are putting on this year’s FEED, providing a hot dinner for an estimated 6,000 hungry locals on Thanksgiving Day. FEED is a continuation of Rosa Linda’s (which closed in 2015) annual tradition of feeding those in need. The Squeaky Bean took over hosting duties, and now the torch has been passed to Dana Rodriguez and her restaurant, Work & Class. To donate or learn more, visit acreswarrentech.com/farm-dinners.
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Looking for a gift for the drinklover in your life? The just-released Denver Passport Winter Edition is filled with 2-for-1 drink specials at 40 local spots, like Bar Helix, Root Down and Colt & Gray. The pocket-sized booklet is $20, and if you buy it online before Dec. 1, you get a free Mountain Passport for slope-side drinking. thepassportprogram.com
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What do you get when you combine Justin Cucci’s (Root Down, Linger) food with local distiller extraordinaire Rob Master’s beverages? You get The Family Jones Spirit House, the city’s first restaurant/distillery combo. The space is cool, cocktails are strong, and small plates include three-cheese fondue served in a pumpkin. This is a family you might actually want to be a part of. 3245 Osage St., Denver, 303-481-8185; Wed.-Thurs. 4-10 p.m., Fri. 3 p.m.-12 a.m., Sat. 12 p.m.-12 a.m., Sun. 12-10 p.m.; thefamilyjones.co
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It’s the time of year when our thoughts naturally turn to meat. Or, if they don’t, The Juniper Pig would like them to. The newest spot to open inside the Stanley Marketplace, Juniper is a butcher shop with benefits. (Meaning take-out dinners, sandwiches and charcuterie, in addition to the fine meat being chopped up.) Just how serious does The Juniper Pig take its meat? Just ask the custom, stateof-the-art, pink Himalayan sea salt-lined meat aging cabinet. Except you can’t, because it’s a cabinet. 2501 Dallas St., Aurora, 720-328-8930; Sun. 9 a.m.-5 p.m., Mon.-Tues. 3-7 p.m., Wed.-Fri. 10 a.m.-8 p.m., Sat. 9 a.m.-8 p.m.; stanleymarketplace.com
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You probably already know chef Hosea Rosenberg, either from his Blackbelly restaurant or from that one time he won TV’s greatest culinary competition, Bravo’s “Top Chef.” Now Rosenberg wants you to get to know his New Mexican food, and Santo is where he’ll be cooking it for you. Feast on wild boar Navajo fry bread, stacked blue corn enchiladas and red chile posole. 1265 Alpine Ave., Boulder, 303442-6100; santoboulder.com
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In case you missed it — and most of Denver did because the event sold out so quickly — Sushi Ronin’s Corey Baker won last week’s Ramen Showdown at Departure. In honor of our favorite 20-cent pack o’ instant noodles-turned-steaming-bowls-of-broth-y art, here are eight spots at which to get your ramen slurp on.
• Uncle’s Spicy Chicken Ramen, with its kicky, creamy sesame broth and bobbing poached egg, should be on everyone’s ramen bucket list. 2215 W. 32nd Ave., Denver, 303-433-3263; uncleramen.com
• Want your ramen served with seven authentic Asian side dishes? Of course you do, which is why you’ve probably been visiting Domo, perhaps Denver’s most ambient Japanese restaurant, for years. 1365 Osage St., Denver, 303-595-3666; domorestaurant.com
• The Sakura Square staple Sakura House has nine different types of ramen on the menu, and you can’t go wrong with any of them. 1255 19th St., 303-2922323; sakurasquare.com
• Osaka Ramen’s Tonkotsu bowl is pretty much the opposite of fast food. It takes 36-48 hours of simmering to get the porky broth just right. 2611 Walnut St., 303-955-7938; osakaramendenver.com
• Bones made ramen trendy in Denver when it opened in 2008. Almost a decade later, the Lobster Ramen is still one of the city’s best bowls. 701 Grant St., Denver, 303-860-2929; bonesdenver.com
• You may think you know ramen, but have you tried dipping ramen? Tokio is the rare spot serving soup-less ramen (Tsuke Men) with a side of hot pork dipping broth. 2907 Huron St., Denver, 720-639-2911; mytokio.com
• Traditionalists head to Aurora for Katsu Ramen’s freshly made noodles and long-simmered broths. 1930 S. Havana St., Aurora, 303-751-2222; ramendenver.com
• Sakana Sushi & Ramen has five different ramens on the menu (including the rich Curry Ramen and simple Shio Ramen), plus northern Japanese-style add-ons like butter and corn. 7520 Sheridan Blvd., Westminster, 303-429-6646; sakanasushiramen.com
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Amelie is a 1973 Citroën H Van — a big panel van, in other words — imported from France. She’s now a food truck of sorts parked in Evergreen serving up sweet crêpes and savory galettes. Oh Crêpe Colorado opened on Halloween; go say “hi” to Amelie. 4602 Plettner Lane, Evergreen, 720-616-1838; Wed.-Mon. 11 a.m.-5 p.m. ohcrepecolorado.com
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We’re all about to be very jealous of Fort Collins. Our friendly neighbor to the north is getting Ginger and Baker, a 20,000square-foot project that includes two restaurants, a rooftop bar, market, bakery and coffee shop in a renovated grain mill. Perhaps most notably, there’s killer pie. 359 Linden St., Fort Collins, 970-223-7437; gingerandbaker.com