Coming to Denver for STC's 2019 Technical Communication Summit & Expo? Join one of our Monday, 6 May STC Dine Around groups! There’s quite a few to chose from (though some are filling up fast!). Those of us in the Rocky Mountain Chapter (and a few friends of the Chapter who are familiar with Denver) have picked our favorite restaurants and are inviting you to join us for dinner.
All the offerings are listed here—but if nothing strikes your fancy, keep an eye on the Social page of the Summit website. We may add a restaurant of two.
The Buckhorn Exchange
Restaurant website: Buckhorn Exchange
Cuisine type: Steakhouse
Price point: $$$$
Host: Frank Tagader, STC Rocky Mountain Chapter all-star
Greetings, this is Frank Tagader. I'm hosting one of the awesome dine-arounds during this year's Summit here in the Mile High City. If you don't know me, I'm a Senior Technical Writer working for Swisslog Healtchcare on robotic solutions for hospitals. I'm also a three-time Past President of the Rocky Mountain Chapter of STC. I hope you'll join me for dinner at the Buckhorn Exchange, located at the 10th and Osage light rail stop, just 10 minutes south of downtown Denver.
Why the Buckhorn? Well this National Historic Landmark and Western Museum has been serving steaks, buffalo prime rib, and a variety of meats you might not find anywhere else. They've been in business since 1893. So, if you're vegan or vegetarian or have an aversion to game animals, this might not be the dinner spot for you. But, if you want a bit of local color and some history, and an adventurous spirit (Rocky Mountain oysters, anyone?), join me for dinner at the Buckhorn Exchange. It's uniquely Denver.
We’ll get there on the light rail. We get on very close to the hotel, and off just a couple of stops down the line. It couldn’t be easier! A round-trip light rail ticket will run you about $6.
Rio Grande
Restaurant website: Rio Grande
Cuisine type: Mexican
Price point: $$
Hosts: Dave Wilks, STC Rocky Mountain Chapter and Kirsty Taylor, STC Board Secretary
Kirsty says: I'm Kirsty Taylor (not Kristy or Kristie or Christie, and I have a Starbucks name when I'm in the U.S. I don't care if you pronounce my name as Keersty or Kurrsty, and I will (mostly) forgive you if you slip up and call me Kristy. Just think of Kirstie Alley, but Australian and blonde and a technical communicator). I'm a Manager of Product Internationalisation at a Mining software company (yup, spelled with an s, because we're an Aussie company). I'm an awesome dinner date because I'm the only Australian hosting a Dine Around! We're not going to be throwing a shrimp on the barbie, I won't have a hunting knife, crocodile, or deadly drop bear with me, but I am a genuine, born in the back of beyond, Aussie. How often can you have dinner with an Aussie? Crikey!
I chose Rio Grande, because while I'm from the deep, deep south, we don't have a wide range of good Mexican or Tex-Mex food in Australia (gosh, and it's all Mexican to us … sorry!). These days, it is slightly better than make-it-yourself Old El Paso options, but I always jump at the chance to have some Rellenos, Tostadas, or Sopapillas when I visit the U.S.
Dave says: My name is Dave and let me tell you a little about me and why you should come to my dine around at the Rio Grande.
I work at Oracle and help customers implement guided learning—walkthroughs, layovers, onscreen guidance, whatever you want to call it. I've been a technical writer for a little while and worn many, many hats in my career. I'm a Colorado native who's lived all along the front range, from Colorado Springs to Fort Collins.
Speaking of Fort Collins, I went to college there, and if you went to college at a certain time, you went the Rio Thursday nights after Friends and Seinfeld. If you had a significant other at the time, you sometimes had to suck it up wait until after ER. It started as a little hole in the wall that could barely accommodate the crowds, and then moved to a bigger space that still couldn't accommodate the crowds. The challenge was always to figure out a way to exceed the two margarita maximum. The solution, oddly enough, was just ordering a third marg. There was always such a huge crowd nobody could keep track.
The Rio spread throughout Colorado sometime later in the 90s. The Boulder location was the place I saw my future mother-in-law do a cartwheel for the first and only time. The location on the south side was where the documentation team had way too much fun sending off a fellow tech writer at a goodbye lunch. We returned to the office and were very, very loud. I wouldn't recommend doing that one. The downtown location was where I ran into an old high school friend and ended up joining his fantasy football league. I lost.
The Rio also serves Mexican food. Oh, and it's also called Rio Grande, but you should just call it the Rio.
To get there, just walk a couple of blocks up to the 16th Street Mall free shuttle and get on the west bound train (toward the mountains). When the announcement says “Next stop, Blake” get ready to get off and, of course, actually do get off at Blake. Walk BEHIND the bus (unless you have a walk sign) and cross 16th street. Cross again to get on the West side of Blake and hang a left. It's a few doors down.
Oskar Blues Brew & Grill
Restaurant website: Oskar Blues
Cuisine type: Cajun/Southern
Price point: $$$
Host: Eva Miranda, STC Rocky Mountain Chapter Secretary
My name is Eva Miranda and I am a twenty-something Colorado native. Currently I work as a technical writer at an enterprise software startup in South Denver with peers that range from twenty-somethings like me to those who have been in the software game long enough to be considered experts. Besides knowing the best walking route from the hotel to the restaurant, (15th to Market street, totally) I learned a lot about Denver and its history during an internship with Colorado Preservation Inc. While I didn’t grow up in Denver (I’m from a very rural area actually) I learned to love downtown when I moved there for school. And while I live on a ranch now, I still love visiting downtown, mostly for the food. History, geology, trendy food, trendy beer, communication, nonfiction reading for fun, and word choices are all topics of conversation I offer. I love learning about and getting to know people, so expect me to be asking you some questions too! I promise you will feel welcome at the table!
I chose Oskar Blues because it combines my favorite parts of Denver—good beer, live music that’s separate from the dining area, interesting food choices (like the Pad Thai Curry Fries) and a historic setting. Also, they have the best cornbread in Denver. It is a fun environment and everyone is guaranteed to try something new! I see dinner as an opportunity to make people feel welcome in Denver, and show them what Denver has to offer.
The restaurant is about 7 blocks from the restaurant. It’s a very enjoyable walk but if it is cold or snowing, you can take the free 16th Street Mall shuttle over to Market Street. Because the shuttle stops every block and doesn’t jaywalk, both options take about the same amount of time.
Osaka Ramen and Stem Ciders
Restaurant website: Osaka Ramen & Stem Ciders
Cuisine type: Japanese (not sushi) & Cider
Price point: $$
Host: Carrie Sheaffer, STC Rocky Mountain Chapter sorta-President & Past President.
You want to have dinner with me because I have a lot of stories to tell that are not work-related (and maybe a few that are). I’ve worked in the software industry for close to 20 years (let’s not talk about how close), and have experience documenting APIs, managing global teams, and working from home.
Also, I picked the best restaurant(s). Osaka Ramen is some of the best ramen I’ve ever had, and I’ve lived in both California and Hawaii. I know ramen. And even if you don’t like ramen, their other plates are amazing too. They don’t do sushi, but they do have bento boxes and everything I’ve tried there is amazing. This is my favorite restaurant in Denver.
It’s also in an interesting part of town, very old-industrial, and surrounded by a lot of microbreweries and other interesting spots. We’ll check out one of those spots together, Stem Ciders, which is about a block from Osaka. Depending on how we’re feeling, we can have cider before or after dinner.
Stem and Osaka are both really small places, so this is a small dinner group! It’s also a bit of a hike, and we can either get a car or stretch our legs and work up our appetites with a walk. Let’s see what the weather looks like.
Biker Jim’s Gourmet Dogs
Restaurant website: Biker Jim's Gourmet Dogs
Cuisine type: American
Price point: $
Host: Marybeth Alexander
Let’s take Biker Jim’s' own description: “Biker Jim’s craveable concept pimps 15 gourmet sausages, ranging from wild boar and Alaskan reindeer to pheasant cordon bleu and an award-winning vegan dog. Toppings are limited only by your imagination, and we have a killer condiment bar with all the fixings, including locally made Elevation ketchup. Our proprietary dogs, served on fresh-baked-rolls, and sourced from the best purveyors, are plump and juicy, ridiculously good and a whole lot of fun to eat.”
Sam’s #3
Restaurant website: Sam's #3
Cuisine type: American
Price point: $
Host: Todd DeLuca
Sam’s #3 is possibly the best-known diner is Denver. Expect big plates of good ol’ American food (and maybe some Mexican too). This place is a short walk from the hotel.
Euclid Hall
Restaurant website: Euclid Hall
Cuisine type: Pub
Price point: $$
Host: David Caruso and Jessie Mallory
Hi all, my name is Jessie Mallory, I’m one of STC’s Directors, and I hope you’ll join me at Euclid Hall for this year’s Dine Around! Euclid Hall has a fantastic beer selection, award-winning chefs, and is only 6 blocks from the Summit Hotel. Let’s enjoy a gastro delight together and I’ll give you the inside scoop on what it means to be a Director on the STC Board!
Rioja
Restaurant website: Rioja
Cuisine type: Mediterranean-influenced
Price point: $$$$
Host: Glendon Hodges
Glendon says: My name is Glendon Hodges, and I am a technical writer at Cherwell Software in Denver. I'm trying to impress a few of my foodie friends who are attending the Summit. If you want a noteworthy meal, you should come along to Rioja. I chose Rioja, because (like a surprisingly larger percentage of Colorado residents) I am a newcomer to the area. I moved from Minneapolis in December. I've heard great things about this place from what Colorado natives I could find. It seems to be the highest-reviewed and most-awarded restaurant on the list. In the end, though, I put my culinary faith in James Beard. If the foundation says Executive Chef and Owner Jennifer Jasinski is the best chef in the Southwest, who am I to argue? She's appeared on James Beard's lists five different times. The location is a just a short walk down 15th from the Hyatt Regency in Larimer Square.
Linger
Restaurant website: Linger
Cuisine type: International small plates
Price point: $$
Host: Ben Woelk, incoming STC President
I'm Ben Woelk, new STC President (from an hour beforehand). I am THE awesome dinner date. I'm an introverted leader whom no one believes is an introvert. I'm passionate about STC members and care about your experience. We will celebrate, commiserate, get to know each other, and have a good time. Why would you go anywhere else?
I chose Linger on the recommendation of a friend and because it's Denver's finest Eatuary. It has a rooftop bar served from an RV. Local and sustainable food and there's a large selection of small plates, so it's an affordable option for everyone. It's a former historic mortuary (Olinger's Mortuary) turned into a trendy restaurant. It's unique. Top that!
We will likely be sharing Lyfts or Ubers. It's a bit of a walk. We don't want you dead on your feet by the time you get there.
Appaloosa Grill
Restaurant website: Appaloosa Grill
Cuisine type: American
Price point: $$$$
Host: John Endicott, STC Rocky Mountain Chapter all-star
John says: I’ve worked in tech comm and eLearning since dinosaurs walked the Earth. Currently working remotely and loving it, I’m looking forward to meeting everyone. I’ll feel funnier after my third tequila.
I chose Appaloosa because it’s one of the few restaurants I’ve tried and liked over the last several years that is still around. Plus they have live music if you want to hang around.
Walk, walk, walk. It’s like three blocks from the convention center, right off the 16th Street Mall.