Wine Dinner in Denver’s Rialto Cafe Celebrates Earth Day

Posted on March 19, 2013 by valerie

parducci-sustainable-red-wine-mdnCelebrate Earth Day with Parducci Sustainable Wines at Upcoming Wine Dinner in Denver’s Rialto Cafe

Parducci  wines are so good because the vintners take such good care of the land,  according to owner Tim Thornhill. The Mendocino County, Calif., vineyards have  been around since prohibition, but in recent years under Thornhill’s tutelage,  it has made sustainability part of its core mission, and now claims to be the  nation’s first carbon neutral winery (and its greenest, overall, a distinction  that’s difficult to measure). It’s an energy- and water-efficient operation that  draws its power from renewable sources and shuns chemical pesticides or  fertilizers in favor of predatory insects for pest control, on-site owls for  rodent control, homemade compost for fertilizer and other organic and biodynamic  growing methods.

“I want more insects,” Thornhill says, and, expanding on his water-, energy-  and soil-saving practices, he adds: “I end up with a better wine in the  end.”

It’s true. The 2008 Sustainable Red is an easy smooth-drinking wine described  by Parducci as having “berry fruit flavors and spicy complexities” that pair well with pasta, pizza and flavorful cheese.

Experience Parducci’s wines first hand right here in Denver at Rialto Cafe on April 23rd at 6:30pm for a 4-course paired dinner, featuring a menu by Chef Michael Dodge and Q&A by Pardcci Winemaker, Bob Swain. THhe menu will feature the popular Sustainable Red and a rare Port that only is allowed to family member of the Wineyard. The cost of the WIne Dinner is $50 per person (tax & gratuity additional) and includes 4 glasses of the sought after wine!

Check out the Parducci Wine Dinner menu here.

Reservation to this event can be made by calling: 303.260.4735

 Read more: http://www.thedailygreen.com/healthy-eating/latest/parducci-sustainable-red-wine#ixzz2O16o4wvf

Deliciously (Gluten) Free

Posted on September 28, 2012 by hillary

In the realm of diet trends ranging from Veganism to the Atkin’s Diet, Raw Foods to the Master Cleanse, restaurants around the world have been challenged with the daunting task of keeping up with people’s eating habits.  As each new fad emerges, Executive Chefs across the country scramble to keep up with these diets in order to keep trendy clientele coming back for more exclusive offerings.  Many restaurants have adapted over the years to veggie diets, offering a selection of meat, dairy and egg free items, but a relatively new trend is growing at a rapid pace, forcing restaurant owners and chefs to offer an entirely separate menu in accommodation.

Gluten-free diets first emerged as a treatment for the chronic disease of the intestinal tract dubbed Celiac Disease.  The cause of this illness is unknown however it is linked to the gene pool.  If a family member is affected, chances are more likely there will be other cases within that family.  Although the disease itself is incurable, a gluten free diet is proven to ease the laundry list of uncomfortable symptoms that affect Celiac patients.  Gluten, a protein composite found in wheat, grains, oats, rye, barley, etc., breaks down the villi in the intestine, which prohibits the patient from absorbing nutrients, therefore, they become malnourished.

Denver Gluten Free Menu Options - Rialto Cafe

Celiac disease is a very real one, but the gluten free diet associated with it has become a trend amongst health enthusiasts.  Gluten intolerance is a very different device and many people use this diet in order to alleviate much smaller discomforts than those who have actually been diagnosed with Celiac.  All the same, restaurants cater to this trend, offering menus filled with grain free items to make dining experiences more enjoyable for all of those affected by either of these disorders.

At the Rialto Café, we developed a gluten free menu several years ago in light of these changing dietary demands and trends.  Just ask your server to present this menu and you will be delighted with limitless choices of appetizers, entrees, “naked” burgers, soups, salads and even desserts.

For lunch, sample the Seared Ahi Tuna appetizer or the “naked” salmon sandwich topped with artichoke hearts and tomatoes.  For dinner choose from steak, seafood or our infamous pork chop.  Top off your dining experience with chocolate fondue, created just for you.

Comfort Food is Here to Stay

Posted on September 14, 2012 by hillary

When the economy turned for the worse several years ago, Americans began gravitating towards the hearty comforts of home, even away from home.  Restaurants nationwide began developing culinary twists on dishes such as meatloaf, mac and cheese, cornbread and pot roast in order to give guests a robust meal without the haughty price tag.  According to J. Public Relations, one of the top hospitality and luxury lifestyle public relations firms in the country based in New York and San Diego, “With the economy inching towards recovery, chefs are proving that comfort foods are here to stay.”  With a gourmet twist, that is.

Chefs everywhere are playing with Mac and Cheese recipes, adding lobster, truffle oil, bacon and the like.  They are embracing your grandma’s meatloaf recipe with open arms, taking it apart and putting it back together with items such as buffalo, kobe and turkey as opposed to the traditional ground beef.  Culinary geniuses everywhere are infusing mashed potatoes, rotating rotisserie chicken and re-creating bread puddings, chocolate cakes and apple pies.

If you have been to the Rialto Café in the past ten years, this may all sound familiar to you.  Our Truffle Mac and Cheese, Skillet Corn Bread, Buffalo Meatloaf and White Chocolate

These are not your grandmother’s pork chops…But they are massively delicious! Another of Rialto’s upscale twists on a hearty homemade meal.

Cherry Bread Pudding were all created in the idea of giving you the comforts of home…Long before the downturn in the economic status of our nation.

This, for us, is not a trend.  This is a foundation of our ideology as a dining establishment.  It may be a coincidence that we stayed ahead of the curve on this Comfort Food Trend created by the topsy-turvy economy, but it there is no irony in the fact that we are so good at this specific aspect of the food industry.  Comfort food with an elegant twist has always been a “trend” of ours…Time and practice does, in fact, make perfect.

First Curtain Call

Posted on August 10, 2012 by hillary

On August 14th, the Ellie Caulkins Opera House will raise its curtains for the first big theater event of the season.  Colorado’s own Matt Stone and Trey Parker, writers of the popular satire cartoon South Park, bring home the laughter with The Book of Mormon, playing from August 14th to September 2nd.  This musical, religious satire depicts two missionaries stationed in Uganda, preaching the Book of Mormon to natives who are too involved in issues such as AIDS, poverty, war and famine to be concerned with religion at all, let alone the foreign concept of Mormonism.

The Rialto Café embraces the theater crowd with open arms, offering a $28, three course, pre-fixe theater menu, free parking after 4:30pm and 50% off select bottles of wine to theater ticket holders.

The introductory course includes the option of our soup of the day, a house salad with mandarin oranges, goat cheese and slivered almonds or a house made Caesar salad.  For your entrée, choose between our Fresh Scottish Salmon with creamy goat cheese polenta, tender Beef Short Ribs, Herb Roasted Half Chicken or a Bacon Wrapped Shrimp nicoise style salad.  As an encore, try the Red Velvet Layer Cake, Crème Brulee, White Chocolate Cherry Bread Pudding or a Lik’s Ice Cream Sampler.

For drinks, enjoy any of our delicious signature cocktails or, as part of the theater package, 50% off select bottles of wine.  Our current selections include:

Kim Crawford Unoaked Chard

The Book of Mormon Musical opened on Broadway March 2011 and when the theater recordings were released, it ranked as the highest charting broadway cast in four decades coming in at No. 3 on billboard charts.

Kim Crawford Sauvignon Blanc

Bouchard Pouilly Fuse Chardonnay

Jacob Demmer Reisling

Brancott Pinot Grigio

Beringer Knight’s Valley Cabernet

Greg Norman Shiraz

Seghesio Family Vineyard, Zinfandel

Estancia Pinot Noir

Columbia Crest Grand Estate Merlot

Tierra Secreta Reserva Malbec

Call us for reservations for the Pre-Fixe Theater menu at 303-893-2233 in order for us to ensure you make it to the show on time!

Encore!

Posted on August 10, 2012 by hillary

Most of our guests indulge themselves so fully in the delicious appetizers and entrees at the Rialto Café that they rarely save room in their satisfied bellies for dessert.  It’s an unfortunate occurrence, set forth in part by the large portions we serve up, but we urge you to save room for a bite or two the next time around.  In addition to long standing favorites, such as the White Chocolate Cherry Bread Pudding like Grandma used to make with a Rialto twist, making it unique to the corner of 16th and Curtis, we have also added a few new items to satisfy your sweet tooth.

Stop in after a movie or a show and try the Black Forest Cake, a dark chocolate indulgence, riddled with candied cherries, dark chocolate mousse and fresh raspberry sauce and “rounded” out with a crème brulee center.  Or, if you’re completely stuffed after a Rialto Café dinner, steal away with a piece of our Key Lime Pie with a graham cracker crust and freshly whipped cream.