Advertisement

SKIP ADVERTISEMENT

Bites

Restaurant Report: Lou’s Food Bar in Denver

Lou's Food Bar

Denver residents who have been to one of the six restaurants and bars run by Frank Bonnano would most likely agree that the experience means good food and service to match. With Lou’s Food Bar, which opened late last year, the 43-year-old chef has broadened his repertory with an American rendition of a French bistro that has quickly helped to add more followers to his already loyal customer base.

Now in the city’s Sunnyside neighborhood, in the first space Mr. Bonnano owns instead of leases, the former biker bar has a laid-back feel. The gray-hued space features a mix of feminine and industrial elements, with a wide-open room reminiscent of a warehouse, wicker chairs and flower-etched crisscrossing beams.

The chef pays special attention to appetizers: there are nine choices of house-cured charcuterie and almost a dozen varieties of house-made sausages, including Thai duck and venison Cheddar. The culinary team also gets its cow, sheep and goat milk from local farms, and makes the most of its cheeses — including blue, Gorgonzola and chèvre.

Much of the rest of the menu focuses on a combination of hearty portions of American comfort food and French classics, like fried organic chicken with whipped potatoes, meatloaf, and hanger steak with frites. Instead of reinterpreting these favorites the way many chefs do, Mr. Bonnano successfully stays true to the original versions. A basic roast chicken, for example, was as tender as it gets, with a crispy, golden, herb-crusted skin. Though the mussels La Cagouille were seasoned with only salt, pepper and butter, each bite popped with flavor.

“Unlike my other restaurants, which tend to be special-occasion places and where the cooking is complex, I tried to make the menu at Lou’s simple and approachable,” Mr. Bonnano said. “It’s the kind of food my family and I like to eat every day.”

A daily changing side vegetable, like cold zucchini tossed with garlic, cherry tomatoes and chili flakes, and a short but diverse wine list round out the no-frills meal.

Desserts rotate weekly, but a crème brûlée and seasonal pie (a recent selection included blueberry and cherry) are usually in the mix. There is a cocktail menu and also a choice of seven nonalcoholic cocktails, including the Cookies and Crème, which is made with milk, vanilla and chocolate sauce and has an Oreo cookie rim. The choices might sound basic, and they are. It’s the execution that stands out.

Lou’s Food Bar, 1851 38th Avenue, Denver; 303-458-0336; lousfoodbar.com. An average meal for two, without drinks or tip, is about $50.

SHIVANI VORA

A version of this article appears in print on  , Section TR, Page 12 of the New York edition with the headline: Denver: Lou’s Food Bar. Order Reprints | Today’s Paper | Subscribe

Advertisement

SKIP ADVERTISEMENT