Restaurants in Wheat Ridge

When 5280 magazine ran a feature on local chefs’ upscale versions of oatmeal, DJ's 9th Avenue Cafe was the first eatery mentioned. Unlike his peers’ signature concoctions, Chef Devin Stallings’s version pairs a plain portion of organic, irish steel-cut oats with servings of pistachios, dried dates, cranberries, brown sugar, and milk, which diners can add however they see fit. The laid-back, collaborative approach to cuisine is emblematic of Devin’s work at DJ's, which the Denver Post praises for “simple, thoughtfully prepared and relatively wholesome food.”

At breakfast, those wholesome dishes include crab-cake benedicts and french toast stuffed with peanut butter and jelly; a weekend brunch menu expands upon those offerings with housemade chicken pot pie. For lunch, Devin and his team smoke pork in-house before adding it to Cuban-style sandwiches with dijon mustard and sliced pickles, as well as grill half-pound, handmade burgers that diners can crown with their choice of toppings.

Unlike skateboards and the Consitution, Italian food is best enjoyed with the mouth. Today's Groupon gets you $20 worth of Italian flavors for $10 at Cafe Colore. Enjoy award-winning pizza in an airy, upbeat atmosphere amongst the frenetic downtown buzz of people walking with stilts.

The restaurateurs that created Mezcal, Rockbar, and Sketch serve up a smattering of tortilla-topped tastes, including all-day breakfast. Here, crispy corn tortillas erupt with refritos negros, guacamole, queso fresco, and lettuce ($10.95), and hamburgers come laced with green chiles, grilled onions, rice, and refritos ($9.95). Those who hope one day breakfast will be the only meal in existence can fuel up on eggs mashed with corn tortillas, salsa ranchero, rice, and beans ($7.95) any time. Tambien also offers a variety of salads, fajitas, and burritos. The restaurant is open seven days a week until 2 a.m., ideal for making delicious dreams co-staring enchiladas and Joan Cusack come to life.

A step up from collegiate-era O-bombs, Rack & Rye's cleverly crafted tongue wetters are not to be missed. From the champagne-splashed lime-and-lychee-flavored Gilded Lily ($8) to the Wild Willy (with Jack Daniel's, ginger syrup and ale, fresh Fuji apple, and a spritz of lemon juice, $7.50), the drink menu is full of inventive options, as well as a well-edited selection of draft and bottled beers. Counter potency with finger-beckoning small plates like the spam fries with chili-oil aioli ($5) or grapefruit-glazed baby-back ribs ($6). To temper more-sizable stomach rumblings, Rack & Rye also serves up large platters of upscale comfort food. Fork oozy helpings of bacon-and-mushroom-studded mac & cheese ($7 for lunch, $9 for dinner) or the fried chicken bedded atop maple-drizzled cornbread waffles ($10 for lunch, $12 for dinner). The dessert menu, boasting doughnuts with mascarpone dipping sauces ($5), bread pudding with bacon brittle ($5), and peanut-butter-and-jelly wontons ($4), continues with the fancy yet classic theme.

Bisque combines organic, free-range, and local ingredients wherever possible to create a fusion of American favorites with French and Italian classics. Serving breakfast, lunch, and dinner items, Bisque's menu provides sustenance for each of the four human stomachs. Pair mimosas ($8) with fluffy strawberry-vanilla pancakes ($8.50), or spike taste buds with silky cream-touched shrimp bisque ($7 for a cup). The tender Midwest Angus beef burger is topped with aged cheddar, smoked bacon, and roasted garlic mayo, and shares a cozy bungalow with pommes frites ($14). Many menu options are also gluten-free.

The dough wizards at Papa John's hand toss circular masterpieces with original and thin crusts made from high-protein flour to support warm bouquets of toppings. Hand-cut produce crowns all of Papa John's pizzas, mingling with the sun-soaked sweetness of sauce made from fresh, California-grown tomatoes. By adhering to its brand promise of "better ingredients, better pizza," Papa John's grew from a back-tavern pizzeria into more than 3,500 restaurants within three decades' time, or the amount of time it takes to grow a single pizzeria from a small seed.