Last week I discovered Vert Kitchen, a five-week-old lunch spot in Wash Park. Owner Noah Stephens and head chef Emily Welch describe the place as an old-world deli, but I hardly think that does Vert justice. While salads and sandwiches (think curry chicken or skirt steak with arugula and walnut mustard) dot the small menu, this deli thinks like a small-scale, European restaurant.

The high-quality ingredients and dishes are well thought out, not to mention often local and organic. Take the BLT, all too often a throwaway sandwich. Vert does it right, dishing up two towers of toasted whole-wheat sourdough bread, butter lettuce, roasted, almost-jammy tomatoes, fresh mozzarella, and smoky bacon. Couple that with sides of the day (like the divine pesto and pea pasta salad and quinoa-wild rice salad)–and lunch couldn’t be tastier.

My daughter, who enjoyed the kids’ meal (a crustless turkey and cheese sandwich, carrot sticks, and a juice box), was equally pleased–especially when it came to sharing the freshly baked, tangy Key lime square.

704 S. Pearl St., 303-997-5941

Amanda M. Faison
Amanda M. Faison
Freelance writer Amanda M. Faison spent 20 years at 5280 Magazine, 12 of those as Food Editor.