Eating Out in Colorado

Boulder:  Native Foods Cafe, 1675 29th St Suite 1272, Phone (303) 442-0213  My girlfriend wanted me to try one of her new favorite vegan restaurants so we gave it a try and I was pleasantly surprised by the tastiness of the food here. She had the reuben sandwich and sweet potato fries while I had the blackened Native Chicken wrap. Both sandwiches were excellent, the fries nicely crisp and the lavender lemonade is really tasty. I took home a carrot cake and chocolate cupcake for my husband and me to eat later and my husband had no idea it was a vegan product. Yummy, although they could have cut the icing in half, good as it was. I would definitely eat here again despite not following a vegan lifestyle.

Fort Collins:  Bann Thai, 626 S. College Ave., Phone (970) 797-2707  Because my friend is a vegan, she chose a restaurant that not only has vegan friendly meals but one that has an outdoor patio where they allow dogs. We shared dishes of Panang (red curry with tofu), spring rolls, a tofu satay and coconut ice cream. All were tasty, spicy hot and well prepared. Our wait person was friendly, efficient and helpful. A nice place to people watch and enjoy a great meal.  

The Rainbow Restaurant, 212 W. Laurel St, Phone (970) 221-2664   We came for breakfast with a friend who is a vegan.  Denny and I had the more standard breakfasts of eggs scrambled with veggies, a serving of pumpkin break french toast and huevos rancheros along with the vegan coffee cake recommended by our friend. All were excellent and we enjoyed dining on the patio because we had our friend's golden retriever along with us.

The only downside was the waitress's lack of attention to our iced tea and water glasses; we had to catch her attention again and again for refills. 

Loveland:  McGraff's American Grill, 1602 East Eisenhower Boulevard, Phone (970) 669-8847   Denny and I stopped for dinner on an evening when we weren't sure what we wanted to eat and we had just arrived in town to visit a friend. He ended up with the French dip and I ended up with the Southwest dip. While the meat in the sandwiches was tender, there was no "heat" in the southwest dip sandwich and the meal was simply so-so. Nothing to rave about, nothing really to complain about, just "ehhh". Decent service, basic chain restaurant decor well maintained, just not a memorable meal. 

Next Door Food and Drink, 222 E 4th St # 100, Phone (970) 541-3020  Three of us shared appetizers and a salad. We had our waiter running back and forth to the kitchen to inquire about the menu items and how they were prepared because one of the group is allergic to garlic and the other is a vegan. We ended up with the fried artichokes, the dipping trio and the Baby greens/ dried figs & apricots/ manchego/ balsamic vinaigrette (minus any garlic in the vinaigrette). All were very good and our waiter was very patient with us and the dietary restrictions. Accompanying our meal was a nice pinot noir and the pleasant atmosphere made for a very enjoyable evening.

Pho Lan, 1360 E. Eisenhower Blvd, Phone (970) 685-4411   My girlfriend treated my husband and me to lunch here. She is vegan so went with the veggie spring roll while my husband had a broccoli/chicken dish and I had the medium tofu pho bowl. Huge servings, excellent meal although my husband was a bit disappointed that the sriracha sauce seemed to be watered down as it had no "bite". I thoroughly enjoyed my first pho bowl and ended up taking a lot of it home due to the size of the serving. Great place for vegans as the staff is willing to work with you on your menu choices.

Trinidad: Trinidad Diner, 734 Main St. Phone (719) 846-7798.  Good breakfast, friendly staff, building a little worse for the wear. Cash only. (4/2010)  Edited 6/2012:  Breakfast wasn't as good this time around--I think we'll pass on this place in the future.

Wonderful House Chinese Restaurant, 415 University St, Phone (719) 845-1888  The first thing we noticed upon entering the restaurant was the friendliness of the staff and the number of "regulars" dining at lunch time. Very muted color scheme inside, cloth napkins a plus. My husband had the Szechuan chicken while I had the Garlic Chicken. Both came with a lot of vegetables, was hot and plentiful and my garlic chicken had a flavorful sauce. My husband was disappointed in his Szechuan chicken as it was rather bland. We asked for and received a bowl of chili sauce and when we finished with our included egg rolls my husband poured the mixture of hot mustand and sweet and sour sauce from the egg rolls on his meal which added a lot of heat and flavor. The hot and sour soup was excellent. We would certainly try this restaurant again if we were in the area, although we would ask for our meals to be made spicier while being made.