Since my time living out in Denver, Oskar Blues has always been one of my favorite breweries. It’s hard to go wrong with their Dale’s Pale Ale. When I realized that they now had a restaurant in Denver, it was time for my family to stop in for dinner one night while on spring break. Oskar Blues Grill & Brew is located just off the 16th Street Mall on Market Street, just a few blocks from Union Station. There was a good crowd when we arrived, but the spacious restaurant space allowed for a table to be had right away.

Inside

Obviously, you will find Dale’s Pale Ale on draft, but they also have a ton of other beers that aren’t so common, especially out in Ohio. If barrel-aged Ten FIDY is there, be sure to give that a try! Other popular beers include Mama’s Little Yella Pils and Old Chub. The restaurant also features a full bar and signature cocktails.

Spicy Chicken Sandwich

For dinner, I had the spicy chicken sandwich which is tossed in honey sriracha, topped with coleslaw and pickled jalapenos on a brioche bun ($15 with fries and pickle slices). This was a really unique and good spicy chicken sandwich. It was pretty hot, so be sure you have plenty of Dale’s Pale Ale to wash it down with! My wife enjoyed the pulled pork, and the kids menu had just about everything our littles could want on it.

The Stanley Beer Hall concept is something I wish I saw more of at home in Cincinnati. You check in at the front desk and open a tab. The staff provides you a card to use during your visit to then use when you pour your own beer. You can get as much or as little of a taste as you want. It’s like a buffet of beer!

Pour Your Own Beer

Add to that some really good food. My wife loves pork green chili and found that theirs was spot on. Pork shoulder, Monterey jack, sour cream, cilantro, served with flour tortillas ($13). It had the right level of spice and plenty of chunks of pork.

Pork Green Chili

I enjoyed the B.L.A.T. with candied bacon, lettuce, avocado, tomato, and mayo on brioche ($16 with a side). The candied bacon was perfectly cooked and I loved the addition of avocado to the sandwich. The only thing I should have done was added green chili to my tots for an extra few bucks.

B.L.A.T.

My only complaint would be that the prices are a little high, especially considering that you are often your own server. But overall a great experience.

We almost always stop in Idaho Springs either on our way to or coming back from the mountains. Often we stop at Beau Jo’s, but on this latest trip back to Denver we stopped at the Tommyknocker Brewery & Pub. I’ve been to Tommyknocker often when my wife and I lived in Denver a dozen years ago, but this was the first time we’ve been back since moving away. I forgot just how spacious the pub is on the inside. We had no trouble getting a table on a Friday afternoon.

Mountain Melt

For lunch, I went with the mountain melt, grilled sourdough stuffed with cheddar, jack, pepper jack, and American cheeses plus bacon and tomato ($15). On the side, I had a cup of tomato artichoke soup. The soup was awesome and paired really well with the grilled cheese. This is a great comfort food for the winter (or even spring break).

Charcuterie & Empanadas

My daughter ordered the charcuterie featuring select artisan cheeses, salami, beer brat, cranberry apple chutney, mustard, and her bakes crostini ($16). This was a large plate that was plenty to share. I would have liked to see more cheese on the plate, but what was there was good.

My wife ordered the spinach and cheese empanadas ($15) which were really good. Another solid recommendation for something to share with the table, as the serving size was pretty large for one person to try to tackle.

Overall we had a great visit to Tommyknocker and will make sure to stop back again soon.