Downtown Denver restaurants offer a lot of different types of cuisine and though you can get Asian food…you may want just a good old fashioned Chinese restaurant.
PF Chang’s is a good restaurant and the quality of the food is good and the atmosphere is nice but I normally want something else a little more to my taste. I want what I experienced many times while traveling to Asia…that delicate combination of salty/savory/tart/hot/sweet…
LOL..what does that mean?
Here is an example…or a comparison might be more useful.
In America you get Chinese food that is normally ONE of those flavors…and more often than not it is sweet or hot…and unless you order “sweet and sour” chicken or pork you rarely get a combination of flavors.
In Asia you normally get food that is a ratio of more vegetables than meat..for me I normally think that ratio is something like 3:1 with meat used sparingly. It is also very common that you would not have your food drowning and gasping for air in a bunch of sauce!
Okay..enough complaining about that..let’s just say that you couldn’t find American style Chinese food in Asia even if you wanted too.
The featured item is normally pork…and more pork. And I don’t know about you but even if you hate pork.. good Denver Chinese restaurants will find a way to prepare pork in a way that will please you…and yes..I am serious...these folks have been cooking for thousands of years and I think they know a thing or two about spices and seasonings.
The restaurants I like are a little off the beaten path..not really one of the downtown Denver restaurants..but (in my opinion) perhaps a little much need change of pace.
I am an eater…not really a writer. But here is some advice…and boy oh boy will this spare you any disappointment…whether it be in Denver or elsewhere.
DO NOT EAT AT AN ASIAN PLACE UNLESS ASIANS ARE EATING THERE
So..I will run out of words to describe these places…you will have to trust me LOL.
Let’s pick a couple of types of food then I will get to where to go get it. But please…though I love food and I know where to get it..I am not a chef and I cannot describe food like a restaurant critic..
Denver Chinese Restaurants
Dim Sum, Barbeque, Bakery
Cantonese-JJ’s on Alameda is good...really good and you can get Dim Sum there and it has a fairly high ratio of Asian folks there which..I cannot say this enough..
Dim Sum-Star Kitchen on Federal Boulevard...greatness..I simply can’t add anything more to that. Bakery-Celestial Bakery at Alameda and Federal…they have some dumplings,and some duck but their main focus is on pastries..all of them..and yes..I have had all of them..are highly recommended.. if you don’t know where to begin..start with almond cookie and moon cake. Then the lemon walnut pastry.
I know there are amazing fusion places that are variations on Chinese food..but I want to draw attention to “everyday” food!
