The Garden of the Gods . . . if you can overlook the sidewalks, the paved roads and keep Edward Abbey’s voice out of your head, there is something enchanting about this place. The idea that it was land that nobody owned for years is intriguing. The idea that a man purchased it for $12 an acre is phenomenal. Lastly, the idea that he wanted people to enjoy it for free is unbelievable.
Of all the things we saw in Colorado, this was my favorite. While I know it makes me sound like a silly east coast girl, I’ve never seen anything so odd and out of place yet beautiful at the same time as these red rocks. I’ll leave you with pictures, of which with my novice camera skills can’t even come close to capturing the grandeur and majesty.
Kissing Camels (Can you see them?)
Walking around, Mindy and I could really feel the elevation. It was surprisingly easy to get winded. After some time at the Garden, we headed back to Denver for our last night.
We wanted to find a great place eat. We scoured around the internet but couldn’t really settle on anything. During our first day we went on a micro-brew tour. Steve, our tour guide, was kind enough to give us his number should we need anything while in Denver. We hit him up for a restaurant suggestion and he gave us Steuben’s.
The atmosphere was somewhere between a diner and some of the nicer restaurants I’ve been to. The tattooed servers were friendly and knowledgeable about the food. The inside seemed to fit thy style of all the restaurants we went to in Denver with exposed wood or steel.
The options on the menu were unlike offerings I have seen at other restaurants.
One thing we knew we had to try, because we’d never seen it on a menu, was the deviled eggs.
Ugh. . . these were so delicious. Very little mayonnaise, the eggs were whipped into a creamy fluff, and the scallions added a freshness you don’t usually find in deviled eggs.
On to the entrees. Melinda had a grilled veggie sandwich, accompanied by amazing mac & cheese.
Jamie was craving a burger. As the menu had the farm where the meat comes from listed, I told her she had to get it.
As a child I hated sloppy joe. There were many a tearful night at the dinner table consisting of me refusing to eat ground beef, whether it be in the form of a burger, a meatloaf, or a sloppy joe. Something about the texture of a sloppy joe was particularly offensive to my young sensibilities. However, when I saw the option of a vegetarian sloppy joe, I knew I had to try it. The spicy pinto bean sloppy joe was far too large and spicy for me to finish, but was really worth the try. The buttery Texas Toast was a much better option than a soggy bun.
If I ever open a restaurant, I would love for it to be like Steuben’s. The way they turn home-style favorites into intriguing new taste ideas is worth multiple visits; too bad it’s so far away.
After eating, we went back to the hotel and packed up. The next morning, Jamie and Mindy returned the rental car and flew out to Detroit. A few hours later, I took the hotel shuttle and caught the jet stream back to New Hampshire (well Massachusetts technically). I had a great time on our girls trip way out west. I hope Jamie and Mindy did too.
See you next year ladies.
