The holidays have hit, and at no place is this more evident than the Boulder Cork restaurant, located at 3295 30th St.
Upon entering the posh establishment, a breath of hot air warms the bones as the Christmas carol and poinsettia filled atmosphere warms the soul.
The restaurant, which was established in 1969 and boasts of being one of “Colorado’s most renowned dining experiences,” is extremely inviting but suffers from its house staff being a bit stuffy.
My date and I arrived nicely dressed and promptly on time for our 5 p.m. reservation. The kind host took our jackets to the coat check and informed us it would be a couple minutes, as the waiters were still setting up.
Now, having been a host myself at many restaurants, I know that it is usually nice to ask the patrons waiting for tables if they would like to have a drink at the bar. This was not the case here, as we were forced to wait standing for almost ten minutes.
We were seated at a very nice booth in a romantic setting near the back of the restaurant. Our waitress was with us immediately, though she did not seem thrilled to be waiting on two college students.
We ordered two glasses of wine from the extensive, award-winning wine list. A basket of warm bread and butter was also brought out; it tasted excellent, with a luscious spongy inside and a crunchy artisan crust.
After receiving our wine, we ordered an appetizer of almond crusted Brie, the filet and crab cake entree and a side of the baked stuffed chilies with guacamole and sour cream.
The waitress neglected to share the specials of the night with us, one of which happened to be my girlfriend’s favorite fish, mahi mahi. We found this information out by overhearing another, more enthusiastic waiter reciting the specials to a large table of more elite-looking gentlemen sitting near us as we waited for our food.
At a restaurant that boasts world-class status, a waitress that neglects to explain specials is really quite inexcusable. If I am going to pay $100 or more for a dinner for two, I expect to be treated like the paying adult I am and not get low-quality service because I may not be a business CEO. This is really too bad for the chef and kitchen staff, as the food is worth every penny.
The almond-crusted Brie was warm and smooth, drizzled with a sweet raspberry sauce that was delicious on the accompanying toasted bread. The baked stuffed-chilies side dish was inspired, adding a unique southwestern kick to the filet and crab cake entree.
The steak was done to a perfect medium rare, pink and flavorful on the inside. The crab cake was to die for: rich, succulent and moist, it melted in my mouth. We topped the meal off with the New York-style cheesecake, which, along with the rest of the food, was world class.
For a CU student looking for an upscale place to bring a loved one for a great steak dinner, the Boulder Cork is the place to go. That is, as long as they bring a rich-looking chaperone around the age of fifty so the staff doesn’t treat them like second-class citizens.
