Restaurants in Aurora

Flavor and texture are integral to more than just the entrees at Axum Restaurant. Entire tables' orders emerge on communal serving platters, blending the aromas of collard greens with those of housemade cottage cheese, sautéed beef with rosemary and herb butter, and lamb shanks in fiery berbere sauce. Diners sop up the spicy, savory fare using scraps of injera, a spongy flatbread, in place of silverware or food-filled Super Soakers.

The cuisine is offset by the dining room’s relatively austere ambiance, where fuchsia tablecloths add a vibrant pop of color to the space's soothing neutral tones. Pendant lamps hang directly above the bar area, illuminating the bartenders as they pour Ethiopian beers and uncork bottles of honey wine, which is made in-house by drilling into the subterranean honey reservoirs.

For more than 27 years, chefs at Rodney's have manned grills within the cozy basement eatery, unfurling a menu of steak-house cuisine headlined by tender slabs of aged, USDA-choice meats. Hearty hunks of sirloin, filet mignon, and slow-roasted prime rib sate appetites and tone wrists' abs alongside a colossal cheese- and bacon-swathed baked potato that the Denver Westword included among its 100 Favorite Dishes of 2010. In addition to its prized steaks, the neighborhood eatery's kitchen dispenses hefty sandwiches and elegant seafood, such as fresh Atlantic salmon and shrimp, and its full bar unleashes a spectrum of cocktails.

Hot dogs have gone gourmet. At The Hawt Dog and Sausage Eatery, chefs pair charbroiled hot dogs or sausages with a host of creative accompaniments—which include marinated tomatoes, chipotle beef chili, and Cajun shrimp jambalaya sauce—before swaddling each “hawt” in fresh dough and baking it to perfection. Each hawt begins with a high-quality base: the restaurant only slings all-natural, locally sourced sausages made without antibiotics and growth hormones or Hebrew National hot dogs forged from 100% kosher beef. Chefs accentuate these savory cylinders with dressings, sauces, chips, and tater “tawts”—all of which they make in-house to avoid running costly background checks on the ingredients. In the dining room, customers relax at a long counter lined with metal sheets and sip local craft beer as they peer into the exposed kitchen.

Planted on the corner of Grand View and Olde Wadsworth, The Archive Room—with its illuminated sign shining out from the building’s brick façade—practically beckons passersby inside. Within the eatery's comfortable confines, platefuls of home-cooked comfort fare, such as baked chicken and dumplings, and classic Irish pub favorites, such as bangers and mash, populate tables in an atmosphere that tips its hat to yesteryear with its collection of old Life magazine covers. Amidst the flicker of a dozen big-screen TVs and a homey fireplace, barkeeps pour drafts of Batch 19 and Guinness, overfill chalices with whites and reds, and concoct cocktails from a slew of top-shelf liquors. The pub also entices crowds and animate lampposts to wander in from the outdoor patio with rousing weekly events such as poker night, live Irish music, trivia contests, and weekend brunch.

Cebiche's chefs forge aromatic Peruvian dishes from recipes steeped in the country's Incan heritage and peppered with Spanish, African, Asian, and European influences. Citrusy ceviches encompass a suite of seafood, such as the shrimp, squid, and octopus. Bisteck a lo pobre presents a fine cut of fried steak, and aji de gallina veils shredded chicken in a creamy parmesan-walnut sauce that trickles onto accompanying steamed rice. Many dishes on the menu can be prepared vegetarian or in full Technicolor upon request.

Diners can sip pisco, a strong peruvian brandy dating back to the 16th century, on an outdoor patio, or savor velvety spoonfuls of crème volteada—a Peruvian spin on flan—amid the indoor dining area's collection of native trinkets.

Revamped and relocated from its original subterranean location in Cherry Creek, the new Roo Bar rests atop the earth in a spacious location with the same neighborhood regulars, addictive wings, and a congenial staff. Melding the spirit of Denver with Midwestern staples such as butter burgers and Chicago-style hot dogs, Roo Bar's kitchen serves up a menu of casual eats. Weekly specials include all-you-can-eat wings on Monday nights. Thursday nights bring rounds of poker, and Wednesday evenings award beer and prizes to the trivia team with the highest combined pool of totally inessential knowledge.