Colorado musicians rise to the occasion with benefit concert for flood victims that raises $650,000

Colorado Rising, a benefit concert for flood relief featuring performances by Dave Matthews, The Fray, Big Head Todd and The Monsters, Wesley Schultz, Jeremiah Fraites and Neyla Pekarek of The Lumineers, Devotchka and Nathaniel Rateliff raised $650,000 Sunday night at the 1stBank Center, 11450 Broomfield Lane in Broomfield.

And from what I was told through e-mails and Facebook posts, the evening of unprecedented entertainment from Colorado musicians was a smash hit. The money raised will go to www.liveunitedcolorado.org.

The United Ways of Colorado came together to help and support our neighbors and communities throughout Colorado who have lost so much in the recent floods. The recovery funds will support community organizations working with individuals and groups focused on long-term recovery.

Kudos go to everyone who bought tickets or merchandise, donated by texting and to media partners 97.3 KBCO, CBS4, and sponsors The Gill Foundation and its Gay & Lesbian Fund for Colorado programs, CH2M Hill and East West Partners, Inc.

“It’s no surprise that the entire music community from musicians to fans stepped up in a time of need for Colorado,” said Chuck Morris, president and CEO of concert organizer AEG Live Rocky Mountains. “Thank you all.”

Off with their necks!

Denver’s venerable Brown Palace Hotel toasts the start of the holiday season with its 26th annual Champagne Cascade at noon Sunday when a master swordsman will use a Napoleonic saber to sever the bottle necks of Moet & Chandon Champagne bottles, which will be poured into the uppermost glass of the two-story, 6,000-glass pyramid erected in the hotel’s lobby.

This year’s toast also will honor the 100th anniversary of the Boy Scouts of America, Denver Area Council, by offering guests several ways to support the organization.

Colorado Congressman Mike Coffman will assist with the champagne pouring. Following the festivities, guests will be treated to live jazz music and more entertainment in The Brown’s open atrium. The event is open to the public, and champagne pouring can be viewed from the balconies of floors four through seven.

A VIP experience, with prime viewing access on the mezzanine level, unlimited champagne, beer, wine, hors d’oeuvres and desserts is available for $100 per person with 100 percent of proceeds benefiting the Boy Scouts of America. Reservations: 303-294-3618 or go to www.brownpalace.com.

Attendees can also help the Boy Scouts of America by bringing non-perishable food items to donate to the “Scouting for Food” drive, which supports more than 100 food banks throughout the Denver Metro area.

The 26th Champagne Cascade returns to the Brown Palace Hotel on Sunday, Nov. 3. (Brown Palace Hotel photo)

Bonnano ventures into Venue

Frank Bonanno is the Denver restaurant industry’s Energizer Bunny. And although he’s built an empire than includes seven restaurants, two bars and a pie shop, he’s busting a move into the hip Highland neighborhood by opening a sandwich shop in the former Venue Bistro space at 3609 E. 32nd Ave., according to a post at www.denver.eater.com.

Bonanno Concepts marketing director (and former Eater Denver writer) Lauren Hendrick confirmed that a lease was signed for the empty space.

Bonanno intends to offer gourmet sandwiches with house-cured meats, according to the Eater story. Earlier this year, Bonanno took over Vesper Lounge, sandwiched between his signature restaurants Mizuna, Bones and nearby Luca D’Italia on Seventh and Grant, and even broke into the suburbs with Bonanno Brothers pizzeria in the outside outskirts of Park Meadows mall.

Read the entire Eater Denver post at http://denver.eater.com/archives/2013/10/25/former-venue-space-may-soon-be-occupied-by-a-new-frank-bonanno-eatery.php.

Frank Bonanno is bringing a new concept to the Venue space in Highland.

Argyll finds new home

Eater Denver also reports that Robert Thompson, owner of Argyll, the popular Cherry Creek gastro pub that closed in 2011, has found new digs inside the Las Margaritas space at 1035 E. 17th Ave. in Uptown. Las Margaritas will close after 19 years at that location.

Thompson had intended to relocate Argyll, which was previously named “best new restaurant” by Westword, in the Baker neighborhood. But when the Las Margaritas space became available, Thompson made his move.

The new Argyll space, renamed Argyll Whisky Beer, will undergo a remodel and expansion of the kitchen and bar area. The bar menu will include the largest whisky library in Colorado, according to Eater. Executive chef will be John Broening, who runs the kitchen at Thompson’s Le Grand Bistro.

See the whole story at http://denver.eater.com/archives/2013/10/25/argyle-will-reopen-in-the-las-margaritas-space.php.

The Las Margaritas space on 17th Avenue will become the new home of Robert Thompson’s Argyll Whisky Beer.

Colorado restaurants take proper place on national best lists

More Denver and Boulder eateries are taking their rightful place alongside their bigger-city brethren on national “best” lists.

Case in point: Here comes Travel + Leisure magazine’s 30 Best Italian Restaurants in the US., which included Frasca Food and Wine in Boulder on the lauded list.

Said T+L: “Boulder isn’t the first place you’d look for one of America’s best Italian restaurants, but it certainly shouldn’t be last. The philosophy of master sommelier Bobby Stuckey and chef Lachlan Mackinnon-Patterson’s Italian restaurant in the shadow of the Rockies is based on the neighborhood restaurants in the subalpine region of northeast Italy—informal gathering places inspired by the cuisine and culture of Friuli.

“Begin with the grissini (pencil-size crispy breadsticks) and cocktails at the bar before moving on to whichever pastas you’re lucky enough to find on the menu that night – pray for tortelloni). Oh, and there’s the matter of that wine list, which boasts more than 200 varieties.”

Check out the rest of the list at http://www.travelandleisure.com/articles/best-italian-restaurants-in-the-us?xid=JustIn102413BestItalianRestaurants.

The same story listed the best sushi and best vegetarian restaurants in the U.S. with Sushi Sasa in Denver and Leaf Vegetarian Restaurant in Boulder as the Colorado winners.

“While Denver may be far from either ocean, Sushi Sasa’s chef, Wayne Conwell, says he borrows ideas from chefs from both coasts to keep his menu interesting,” according to T+L. “His customers want something playful at this sparsely decorated restaurant accented with bamboo.

“The Diablo roll is the winner; the signature roll comes with spicy tuna and seared tuna on top, house-made ponzu, and a generous sprinkling of jalapeños and cilantro. The saffron snow crab stuffed with Scottish salmon with a yuzu crème fraîche is another popular item.”

The rest of the story: http://www.travelandleisure.com/articles/americas-best-sushi-restaurants/2?xid=JustIn102413BestSushiRestaurants.

And our state’s vegetarian nod goes to Leaf Vegetarian Restaurant in Boulder.

T+L said, “Weathered wooden floors, exposed brick, and a soaring textured ceiling create an elegant downtown space in this food- and health-obsessed college town. The farm-to-table menu, sourced in part by owners Lenny and Sara Martinelli’s nearby Three Leaf Farm, is primarily gluten-free. More than half its items, such as miso-glazed tofu and zucchini-noodle manicotti, cater to those diners avoiding both meat and gluten.”

See the rest of the meatless winners at http://www.travelandleisure.com/articles/best-vegetarian-restaurants-in-the-us?xid=JustIn102413BestVegetarianRestaurants.

Boulder’s best biscuits

Not to be outdone by Travel + Leisure, Food and Wine magazine released its “best biscuits in the U.S.” list, and included Dot’s Diner in Boulder in the mix.

Food and Wine said, “This 30-year-old diner is a Boulder mainstay (popular with both tourists and hippies) and is known for its tender buttermilk biscuits, made in regular and gluten-free versions. Regulars swear by the A.M. sandwich: a warm biscuit filled with a scrambled egg, melted cheddar, and a choice of ham, avocado or vegetarian sausage.”

Read the rest of the story at http://www.foodandwine.com/slideshows/best-biscuits-in-the-us?xid=TTIPS101513AmericaBestBiscuits.

Fore!

Downtown toilers can challenge their colleagues during the lunch hour, bring the kids down over the weekend or grab a few friends and head over to Skyline Park to experience the new urban mini golf course at Skyline Park, 16th and Arapahoe.

Other free games include ping-pong, bocce ball, ladderball and board games brought to you by the Downtown Business Improvement District.

The links are open daily through early November, weather permitting. More information: www.downtowndenver.com.

Eavesdropping on a man: “I have the day off tomorrow so I’m heading to the car wash to get one of those Brazilian wax jobs everyone is raving about.”

Did you hear that I have a new column, “Mile High Life,” in Colorado Community Media’s 17 weekly newspapers circling Denver? Be sure to like my Facebook page! Also, here’s where you go to get my column emailed to you Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays. My email: penny@blacktie-llc.com. Want to advertise your business here? Contact Trisha at trilind@hotmail.com.