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reviewed on: June 6, 2008

Come August, every eye in the nation is going to be focused on Denver and specifically downtown Denver. And a lot of that focus is going to be on our restaurants. As a result, the restaurateurs of downtown are polishing their shoes and combing back their hair in preparation for what they’re hoping is going to be a profitable week. This week we’ve been downtown several times to see what’s going on, and the other night found us at an old favorite that hasn’t made the press much lately—1876 at the Grand Hyatt.

Named after the year of Colorado statehood, 1876 has never been a glamorous room. It’s relaxing, casually elegant, and quiet, but if you’re looking for glitz you won’t find it here. What you will find is really good food from the kitchen of Chef Thomas Baranoucky who earned his stripes at the Ritz Carleton. The big push at many restaurants today is going “green” and, not to be left behind, Chef Baranoucky has moved in the direction of local sourcing of ingredients. The result of all this is a special “herb-inspired” menu with lots of Colorado products and, going one step further, a three-course dinner at the “mile-high” price of $52.80 per couple.

One of the nice things about this fixed-price dinner is that there are two choices each for the appetizer, entrée and dessert so, if there are two of you, it becomes a no-brainer to make your choices unless you really both have your hearts set on a specific dish.

So we began with one each of the two appetizer/salad choices. The first is an appealing salad of tango greens and lola rosa lettuce combined with tomatoes and cucumbers in a tart vinaigrette. The greens were crisp and tasty but the best part of this dish had to be the visual aspect of the frilly tango over the lettuce. The second choice was the roasted baby beets with goat cheese foam and truffle oil served over greens. I don’t know why the flavor of beets meshes so well with goat cheese, but it’s a delightful combination.

The main course brought a choice of Colorado striped bass or pork tenderloin and, again, we chose one of each, and found both excellent. The fillet of bass had been cooked skin side down, resulting in a delightful crisping of the edible skin. The flavor paired beautifully with the accompanying tarragon and tomato risotto.

The pork was done to a perfect medium, and came with creamy polenta and a rosemary-apple syrup.

And finally, dessert brought a crème brulee served with a rolled tuile with a hint of rose.

In addition to this special menu, the regular menu at 1876 is also available, featuring a nice variety of dishes that includes a bacon-wrapped veal tenderloin, seared king salmon, duck breast with a white port wine glaze, molasses-braised short ribs and more. Many of the dishes are available in half-sized portions at half the price.

Complimentary valet parking is available.

1876 Grand Hyatt
1750 Welton Street
303-296-1876
http://granddenver.hyatt.com/hyatt/hotels/entertainment/restaurants/index.jsp