Affordable but Eatable!

The five best places to eat and still have money for drinks!

In a rapidly growing city such as Denver, the cost of entertainment can become quite overwhelming.  With the growing costs of every day living, it can become difficult to find extra money to take yourself out at the end of the week for a good meal.  Short of fast food or no food, any young, respectable person still deserves a night out on the town.  That is why I have devised a list of the five best places to eat so that when you leave the restaurant there is still money left in your pocket for after dinner drinks, or heaven forbid rent! 

Depending on what type of atmosphere you are looking for, a good place to start is the Goosetown Tavern.  Remember when you were eighteen and you considered yourself alternative with ripped jeans, worn corduroys and the most prominent color in your wardrobe was black?  The Goosetown Tavern might take you back to those years.  It’s moderately smokey and noisy atmosphere welcome the most talented of tattoo artists and their willing subjects.  It is only the more welcoming though, as there are a myriad of beers on tap for extremely reasonable prices and their broad menu offers many choices that are very well priced; not to mention they play a ton of great music.  Once the food hits your table, you’ll forget about the song on the juke box that you’re almost embarrassed to know the words to because the food will leave you speechless.  Once you leave the Tavern, both your stomach and your wallet will be full and you won’t have to go right home and start saving money for your next night out.

A similar night out would take you to the Paramount Cafe.  A little bit bigger than the Goosetown, this place attracts a similar crowd; those looking to relax and have a good time.  The laid back atmosphere and huge beer selection is only an appetizer to the menu choices you will be offered if you decide to stay and eat.  The walls are draped with artists from the 80’s and 90’s and the music can easily put you back into that era as well.  As you have your first cocktail, the scenery around you will be entertainment enough.  Once the food arrives you will be pleasantly surprised by the large portions served for such reasonable prices.  This is a place you will keep returning to and can always be assured will be there.

In the mood for pizza and beer?  Wazee Supper Club is the place you want to go in downtown Denver.  This quaint restaurant is in the heart of downtown but offers a more relaxed feel than some of the other, more expensive restaurants.  Their pizza is desirable and the prices are too.  A couple of beers won’t hurt the tab here as any food you eat will be affordable.  The menu, just like the crowd, is diverse but fun and it isn’t going to break anyone’s bank that ventures inside.  You will not leave the Wazee unsatisfied rather ready to tell your friends about this great find!

Enchiladas, margaritas and fajitas, oh my!  The Rio Grande Denver’s most attractable Mexican restaurant.  With the three margarita limit, you know you’re in for a treat once your lips hit the glass. But that is only the beginning.  One margarita down and you’ll be ready for a second and ready to order off of their amazing menu!  Anything Mexican you could possibly dream of is a choice on their menu, all extremely affordable.  You’ll eat just enough so that you can have that third margarita and still walk out of the bar on your own two feet.  Their guacamole is heavenly, their quesadillas mouth-watering, and their chili is hot, hot, hot!!!  Get ready for some fun at the Rio because it will be all around you and you will leave a little tipsy, a little full and a little richer than you thought you would.

Finally, does anyone know what happened to diners?  Not the ones that offer just grease on the countertops, but the really good ones that when you wake up hungry in the middle of the night, all you want is a piece of their pie?  Well Denver’s got one in Sam’s #3.  Close to the bars that you’ll be leaving hungry, Sam’s #3 is a traditional diner that offers a ton of food choices from breakfast to dessert that you could be in the mood for anytime of day.  The prices are reasonable too so you might be able to get that milkshake you’re always dreaming about.  There are certain times you might have to wait for a table but that’s just because Sam’s #3 is no secret to the folks of Denver that are hungry on a Sunday morning. 

Denver has many more places that anyone would enjoy going to and be able to afford.  These are just five of them.  Five places however, that in my opinion, are the best.  They have the best atmosphere, the best selection, the best food and the best prices.  Every time I go to any of them I walk away satisfied and happy that I didn’t pick a more expensive place where I probably would have gotten less food.  Ultimately the choice is up to you, but trust this money-saver’s advice, the more money you save on a night on the town, the happier you’ll be when you wake up hungry for a good diner.  J