I first went to Wazee Supper Club in high school back when the corner restaurant stood in the shadow of the crumbly viaduct above. Back then, Wazee was just a tad too far away from the comfort of Larimer Square to be considered a safe neighborhood. So going there was a treat not only for the food but also for the slight element of danger it suggested. Everything has changed about that scenario, except the good food, which has only improved. Wazee Supper Club is now in the heart of chic LoDo renewal and has a spiffed up look and menu to go along with it.

A few things remain from those early days (and the many days long before I ever set foot in there) like the big windows, black and white checkerboard floor, antique fixtures and the dumb-waiter that raised hot food up to the second floor and  lowered empty dishes down again. A lot more is new, including the spring menu items we were anxious to try out.

We started off with the big guns, Absinthe, the “Green Fairy.” Having never had it, I had to try this mystical drink that is making a comeback after being banned in the early 1900’s due to its Bohemian nature and addictive qualities. Wazee does it up right by serving it in a petite glass with a sugar cube resting atop a silver, leaf-shaped absinthe spoon. I was directed to drip water onto the sugar cube so that it would dissolve into the absinthe. To show off the Absinthe Fountain they use for large groups, Rita, the very entertaining and knowledgeable manager brought over a tall glass beauty so I could turn the spigot ever so slightly to get my drips. Sure enough, the sugar cube melted turning the clear liquid foggy. The initial flavor was of licorice with the dusty finish of whiskey. As the evening went on (I nursed it along not being sure what to expect from its effects), it opened up to a more herbal flavor with a mellower finish. I swear my mind become sharper in the day or two since having it. I’ll just have to return for another, or for one of the absinthe cocktails to see if absinthe is the cause. By the way, the absinthe I chose, Absinthe Verte, came from local company, Leopold Bros. Fine product, gentlemen!

Onto the food. We started with one of the spring menu items, House Made Veal Ravioli ($7) with asiago, browned butter, anchovy and parsley pesto with pasta made from scratch, on site. It was garlicky and toasty. In need of some crispy greens, I ordered a small chopped Caesar salad ($5) to accompany my dinner. The dressing was just right – not too garlicky or lemony. It was a good, crispy foil to the Smoked Chicken Ciabatta sandwich ($9) which I was worried would have the kind of crusty bread that nearly breaks your teeth. Instead, the bread was soft yet substantial, standing up to the truly delicious piece of smoked chicken (smoked on-site in a smoker built by the chef), with bacon, asiago, tomato and an arugula aioli served with a pile of fries. It was a full-bodied sandwich with great flavor and texture.

My date ordered another spring menu item, the Tuna Beet Salad ($15). Beautiful and flavorful with oranges, golden beets, arugula, goat cheese, red onion and a soy vanilla porter dressing, the only complaint was that the delicately flavored ahi tuna got lost in the full-o-flavor salad. To appreciate the tuna fully, he ended up eating it separately, savoring it before digging into the hearty salad. I can imagine some of that smoky chicken shredded over that salad and, actually, the tuna with the Caesar for a better balance.

We’ll return another time for the pizza that made Wazee famous. Our waiter Dan, with the most interesting mustache ever, said the Margherita with its simple sliced mozzarella, sliced roma tomatoes and marinara was his favorite – with the addition of some chicken and bacon.

After hearing three people around us order the Crème Brule, we figured there had to be a reason. There was. Plump, fresh blueberries and raspberries perched on the hard surface of the golden, torched shell that broke and tipped, stabbing the delicate custard below.  It was yummy but enough for two, as was the giant, thick slab of New York Style Cheesecake my companion ordered. When you go, order a couple and go halvsies to get a variety.

My reunion with Wazee Supper Club was a happy one. I found the place better than I remember, in every way. I promise, it won’t be another 20 years. We’ll be back soon if only for me to get another dose of, um, mental clarity from that absinthe!

To see a few more food porn shots, visit our Facebook page at: https://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.479411228794228.1073741831.199417573460263&type=3

MEDIA PREVIEW

MAY 15, 2013 | 2:30 P.M.
Head to the Denver Art Museum for the kickoff of a museum-wide summer celebration of textile art and the opening of the new textile art galleries. The DAM’s latest exhibition, Spun: Adventures in Textiles features nine exhibitions, along with special in-gallery moments. Spun takes a wide-ranging look at fiber from pre-Columbian weavings to Navajo blankets to recycled teddy bears to an examination of clothing in art and photography.
Don’t miss your chance to capture stunning b-roll, still photographs
and interview footage. Curators from each exhibition and several
contemporary artists featured within Spun will be available for one-on-oneinterviews.

Spun: Adventures in Textiles is on view at the Denver Art Museum
May 19–September 22, 2013.

Spring into Orange + Giveaway!

Robin & I have spring fever big time, especially because it just snowed in Denver yesterday, on May Day! So we’ve been trying to ease the frustration by getting outside when it is sunny, formulating new products, sipping green drinks galore, spraying spring aromas around the house and indulging in lots of bright colors, especially ORANGE! We are on a major orange kick. Maybe it’s because we’d previously wrote it off as only a color you’d see your great-great-Aunt who lives in Miami wear and have recently changed our minds. Or maybe it’s because wearing orange just makes you feel downright cheerful, either way we are hooked and decided to share the love with you!

We tried out a wide range of orange, coral and tangerine colors from top Eco Beauty brands and listed our hands down favorites for Spring here. From the top going left to right, only wearing our “La Balmba Rosa” Rose Healing Balm w/ no color for comparison, Jane Iredale Pure Gloss in Tangerine, Kjaer Weiss Lip Tint in Sweetness, W3LL People Nudist Colorbalm in #1 (Coral), W3LL People Universalist #6 (Satin Blood Orange, also killer on eyes and cheeks), Dr. Haushchka Lipstick Novum in 03/Cherrywood. Each color was just applied in one light layer, the last two colors can be applied much thicker for a more intense effect. Below are the swatches on my hand in natural and indoor light.

   

We wanted to share our new found crush on orange w/ you (maybe it’s a bit of Denver pride), so decided to do our very first giveaway, and it’s a good one too! A full size Jane Iredale PureGloss lip gloss in Tangerine, a creamy super glossy gorgeous color that works on everyone that has no petroleum-based products in it but does tout Moringa Butter, Lotus Flower Wax and Orange Peel Wax. As well as a full size Scotch Naturals nail polish in Wildflower (just like the color of a california poppy with a hint of shimmer), a non-toxic polish that doesn’t give off awful fumes but still gives an amazing pop of happy color. One winner will be selected randomly, you can enter below, good luck!

Last night marked the DBA’s Spring Idea Exchange, a night filled with new friends, lots of fun and practical tips and tricks from some of Denver’s best. We’d like to say a big thank you to all who attended and our dynamic trio of speakers that came to share their knowledge!

First up we heard from Frankie Bushell from CIRRO Web Development on what truly makes a functional and fashionable website. His tips on design and coding were perfect for any growing blog. Emily Power was up next from A Denver Home Companion. Her Denver-centric lifestyle blog has grown organically over the years to become one of the most read in the city! Her tips on finding your voice were invaluable.

To round out the night, Jim Licko from Groundfloor Media made an appearance to touch on video blogging. We never knew there were so many facets to getting the right shot! From experimenting with Vine in the social media realm, to editing a full-length video, Jim’s expert advise shed new light on the medium.

To learn more about our speakers, feel free to reach out to them here:

Frankie Bushell

https://twitter.com/frankiebushell

http://pinterest.com/frankamous/

Emily Power

http://www.adenverhomecompanion.com/

https://twitter.com/eopower

http://pinterest.com/eopower/

Jim Licko

https://twitter.com/DenverPRguy

http://pinterest.com/jimlicko/

www.youtube.com/user/jlicko

photo by @frankiebushell

the fine people behind the denver bloggers’ association asked me to speak at their most recent meet-up about how my blog has gotten to where it is since i first started it in 2009. it was interesting for me to reflect on my little space on the interwebs and rather exciting to speak in front of an audience (i haven’t done that since college!).

below is the gist of what i spoke about.

——————————————————

my blog has always been a space for documenting personal experiences and thoughts — it started out as a place to dump photos and update family members who didn’t live close by. as i got to know the blogosphere, i discovered a whole other world and realized that the sky was the limit as far as what i could write about, what blogs i could read, how i could make my space unique, and who i could connect with online. not everyone knows my blog, obviously. it’s a little thing i have going on over here. but i’ve seen my readership steadily grow, had some great opportunities come my way, met really wonderful people halfway across the world, and have even made a little bit of beer money — all while still being able to continue documenting my personal experiences and writing what i want to write.

here’s how i think you can do it too:

1. invest in a website you’re proud of.

• your website homepage is the first impression you give to people who visit. when people land on your site they get an immediate idea of who you are and what you are trying to convey. make sure that your website is showing and telling people who YOU are. because, especially in personal blogs, your personality IS YOUR BRAND.
• i wrote for the longest time on a basic, free wordpress theme (and on blogspot before that). this was when i was writing for myself and family members. but as my audience grew and i realized i could be doing lots more with my claimed space, i started to understand that i could actually lose readers due to the blah-ness of my site. it wasn’t me and it gave people no reason to want to get to know me. sure, i was proud of my content. but attention spans are short and people, quite frankly, want to dwell only in beautiful places.
• you can learn code and personalize a website yourself or you can hire someone to do it. i went the latter route and contracted the kin collective to make me something well-designed, intuitive, and distinctly me. together we went over what i loved about blogs i enjoyed reading and what turned me off on various websites. they put these things together, added their expertise, we all tweaked some things and, voila!, my new space was born.

2. find your voice. 

• people come to your blog bc they want to hear what YOU have to say bc they most likely like the way you say things. so speak honestly, write what you want to write about, have confidence in what you have to say, and stop trying to please people. 
• on that note: you cannot be something for everyone. so don’t write to please the masses. write w one specific reader in mind and you’ll likely capture the attention of lots naturally.
• i write about my daughter, my husband’s and my businesses, denver, bragging rights, our backyard farm, places i’ve eaten, my favorite products, whatever the hell i want to write about. i write about these things bc they are interesting to me and what i want to fill my blog with — otherwise i wouldn’t want to blog. but i know full well that there are lots of people who don’t want to read about this stuff and couldn’t care less about my life. but then the fun part is that there are some people that do care! and they keep coming back and reading and affirming me in what i’m writing about. and that is really cool.
• not everyone will love you and that’s ok! it’s more important that your space is your space and it’s a place you like contributing to.

3. make internet friends

• don’t be anonymous! comment on blog posts you enjoy. reach out to bloggers you admire. make some friends.
• give shout-outs: favorite products, places you enjoyed, props to people doing cool things, a well-curated blog roll of must-read blogs.
• guest posts: offer to do them and ask people to write them for you. a nice exchange happens wherein both blogs plug the other and people get introduced to new sites worth reading.
• broaden your reach by utilizing other social networking platforms such as twitter, instagram, pinterest, and facebook. but a rule of thumb? stick w just three and do them well. in addition to my blog, i use twitter and instagram. reach out!: like people’s photos, leave comments, respond to comments/questions left on yours. engage w other people in a genuine manner.
• attend local blogger events and get to know some people in real life. who knows what best friend you might make or what collaboration you might discover!

It’s time to revamp your blog for Spring!

Searching for that next big idea, or wondering how you to increase
your readership? The Denver Bloggers Association is the place for you.

Please join us on Wednesday, April 10th from 6-8pm for our Spring 2013
Idea Exchange. We’ll be hearing from some of Denver’s best bloggers,
website creators and idea generators.

Broaden your network at Denver’s most exclusive association for online
creatives. Cocktails, beer, and wine will be served with light bites.

Location: Black Eye Coffee, Denver, CO
Time: Doors Open at 5:30pm for networking
$5 Cash at the door.

**RSVP via email if you plan to attend as space is limited.

If you know a fellow Denver blogger who would be interested in
receiving an invitation as well, please email Alexandra Hilker
(alexandrahilker@gmail.com) and Alexis Anderson
(alexisannanderson@gmail.com).

Last Wednesday evening writers, bloggers and creatives alike gathered at the Highland’s latest hotspot Black Eye Coffee for the first Denver Bloggers Association Idea Exchange. We came, ate, drank and got a fantastic education on some of the best tips and tricks from bloggers and social media professionals in Denver. Some of the esteemed speakers to grace our coffee bar stage included Vanessa Barcus - founder of ShopGoldyn.com, Rustin Coburn - Marketing Director for InkMonstr, Danielle Yuthas - Director of SEO at Unleaded Group, and Merete Mueller and Christopher Smith of Tiny-TheMovie.com.

Thanks again to all of our attendees, hosts, speakers and Dave Lehl Photography. Be sure to check out Black Eye Coffee in the Highlands at 3408 Navajo St. Until next time!

We would like to extend an invitation to all our friends to the Denver Bloggers Association’s first Idea Share taking place on Wednesday, August 15th. If you’d like to attend, please send your RSVP to: denverbloggersassociation@gmail.com.

We look forward to seeing all of you there!

We want to welcome you to the Denver Bloggers Association! As Denver’s first official and premier association connecting writers, thinkers, and the unique voices that are the bloggers of Colorado, we aim to create a space for furthering our trade. We will be sharing ideas, tips, and techniques that relate to a broad spectrum of industries and interests.

By connecting with us, you will receive invitations to special events and discussions happening monthly. Be sure to check out our blog, Twitter and Facebook for up to date information on all things happening in our colorful state. Welcome!