Colorado Wrap-up

A summary of our Colorado snacks -

Not a whole lot of Asians here in Fort Collins, so we weren't really looking to have the Food of Our People, especially when we saw the "Japanese" restaurant with its dollar sushi specials.

But we spotted a small, mom-and-pop Thai place near the Colorado State U campus that looked promising. Since Thai food is usually pretty safe, even in the flyover states, we decided to give this place a try.






The daily lunch special comes with pad thai, a spring roll, rice, and of course, the special. Thursday's was chicken & ginger. It's a lot of food for not much $, and it was all really tasty. Nothing inventive or innovative here - just good, solid eats.




Charco Broiler steak house.

Everyone at the theater said this is a local favorite. So of course we check it out.




This is an old-school steakhouse, where the decor is dark and minimal, the lettuce in the salad is iceberg, and most of the patrons are wearing cowboy hats, not because it's cute but because they actually work with cows.




We start with drinks...

Fat Tire! Brewed here in Fort Collins. Drink locally!



















I try the 2-Below Ale; it seems appropriate. And it's yummy. Hoppy with the teeniest amount of sweetness. It's a girly beer - but I like that.






Franco starts with the spinach & bacon salad.














Pam has the beef stew and sweet potato fries.










Since we're in cow country, most of us try some form of moo. PJ & Franco have the Charo Broiler version of prime rib, which is a big fat ribeye finished on the grill.











Yurika opts for the gigantic salmon salad. Once again, Veggie Girl gets the biggest dish.








I think I had sirloin tips with mushrooms (this is what happens when I don't take a photo of my own food). I think it was okay. Overall, the Charco Broiler had pretty good, middle-of-the-road steakhouse eats.






Lucille's Creole Cafe.








Lucille's is right across the street from the theater, housed in a - well, an actual house.

As soon as we sit down, I order their chicory coffee. It's dark but mellow, perfectly roasted, and empty cups are immediately refilled. On each table is a pot of Lucille's strawberry rhubarb jam, which is awesome - lots of strawberry flavor with the lemony rhubarb keeping the strawberries tasting bright & fresh.



This is my kind of place.



PJ gets the Cajun Breakfast - red beans & ham, poached eggs, hollandaise, grits, and a buttermilk biscuit the size of your head.

Rich, spicy, and salty. All good things.











I get the Giant Lobster Etouffee!









Actually, it's just crawfish etouffee. Made with dark roux, lots of crawdads, and just enough heat to make you sweat a little. Perfect for a cold day.

It was good, good, good.











Franco loves his biscuits & gravy, so he gets the Lucille's version - spicy sausage gravy, buttermilk biscuit, red beans, and grits.








Cajun/creole food is one of my favorite things, and Lucille's didn't let us down. This was one of the best lunches I've had in a long time. Hearty, rib-sticky, and just spicy enough to warm the tummy.



Which is a good thing, in this unreasonably cold weather.