Post #517486 by CucamongaChango on Mon, Mar 15, 2010 10:55 AM

Howdy!
Not a lot of tiki here... as in practically none.

What is here, is beer. Dunno if you're a beer person or not, but I am a fully certifiable beer geek and I can recommend to you Falling Rock taphouse, which is one of the world's great beer temples. Also, there are so many excellent home-grown breweries that I can also strongly urge you to try a couple of them. Downtown are several, but I would recommend Great Divide and Breckenridge. Both have an array of styles and will allow you to taste to find the right one for you. Great Divide is my current favorite, and they are doing some wonderful things over there right now. The Claymore Scotch Ale and the Hoss Rye Lager both blew me away.

For cocktails, try the Cruise Room. It's been there since 1933, and has a beautiful decor designed by the guy who did the Queen Mary. Classic cocktails like Sazeracs and Old Fashioneds are the things to have here. It is a treat.

Food-wise, I haven't been here all that long, but I'll tell you what I know.
-Mead St. Station is a neighborhood pub that has startlingly good food. The baseball sirloin is excellent, as is the ham/brie/pear sandwich. Friendly folks, good beers on tap, full bar... great place.
-Fogo de Chao is a chain, I'll put that out there first and foremost. But, if you're a carnivore, I can't think of a better place to go. This is one of those Brazilian steakhouse places where gauchos come to your table with endless skewers of meat. Heaven.
-Cherry Cricket is said to have the best burgers on the planet. I haven't had one yet, but I'm looking forward to it.
-Carl's Pizza is an old school dive Italian place that warms my heart just thinking about it.
-Cheeky Monk is a Belgian beer bar with excellent fries, mussels, and sandwiches. the beer menu is the star here, if you like Belgians, but the food is good too.