Earl's - Denver, CO

Ok, so I usually try to include the reason for choosing a place that I visit and this time it was a recommendation from the bell boy at the Sheraton I was staying at. I asked him for a good place around the area for lunch that would provide a satisfying bite to eat. I told him I had about an hour before my next meeting and he said to me with great conviction: You should go to Earl's just a couple of blocks down the street. The food is good but the "view" is better he said with a little wink in his eye. Immediately I knew what he was referring too and I couldn't stop myself from one of those invisible laughs. Here I am looking for great food and he gives me a totally different reason to go there. Being a sales person this totally breaks the rules of providing someone with a solution to their problem through great listening and confirmation. Either way, obviously his "tactics" worked as I found myself walking towards Earls for a quick lunch without the confirmation of good food being served there.

I arrived at the restaurant and saw a very modern looking sports bar type place. Take the modern steakhouse and marry it with a hardcore sports bar and this is what you get. Upon reception by the hostess i noticed why the bell boy said what he said....there was not one guy working here other then possibly in the kitchen. The crowd in the restaurant was mixed between guys and girls so at least it wasn't male dominated but mainly a nice lunch crowd from surrounding businesses. This is a huge plus for me when finding places for lunch because the atmosphere is so much better at a standard lunch joint for the business people in the area versus a tourist lunch place like Hard Rock.

So let's get to the lunch. The menu is quite extensive with anything from Maki rolls, Salads, Sandwiches, Pastas to Steaks and fish at varying prices. Salad and soup combo with rosemary ciabatta for $8 seemed like a very nice option but instead I went for the Grilled Chicken and Baked Brie Ciabatta which is a grilled chicken breast, melted brie, roasted apples, spinach, sweet fig jam, garlic mayonnaise on a toasted ciabatta. Instead of the fries I opted for a Caesar Salad on the side. And the verdict........the salad was awesome, crisp and hearty with a Caesar dressing that must be homemade (if it isn't I need to ask for the brand next time). The sandwich was good, nice combination with the aioli and sweetness of the figs and apples. The real star in this sandwich though was the chicken breast. Unless I am at an upscale restaurant or at home I never see the following technique used in a classic bar joint when making a chicken breast sandwich; the skin was still on the chicken breast. As it was pan-fried and then most likely finished off in the oven, leaving the skin on makes the chicken breast much juicier and it also gives it a nice pungent smooth chicken taste. This may seem like a little thing but it makes wonders and I whish more places would adopt this practice but then again it probably would be hard to do for two reasons; one being that people would feel that leaving the skin on would result in excess calories and the restaurants would need to make sure that they buy chicken breast with the skin left on.

Final verdict; I will definitely return both with my wife for lunch/dinner and for business lunches. This is a perfect business lunch locale!

Overall Rating: 4
Food Rating: 4
Cost: $$-$$$

1600 Glenarm Place, Suite 140
Denver, CO 80202
http://www.earls.ca/