Candy counters at the Tattered Cover Book Store, Vitamin Cottage, and Whole Foods Market got a little sweeter this week, when the Boulder chocolatier, Chocolove, rolled out three new dark-chocolate bars: coffee crunch, peppermint, and almonds in sea salt. Each is tempting, but the punch of caffeine makes the coffee crunch my favorite.

Bonus: The company’s holiday bar—chock full of dried currants, cherries, orange, nuts, and a hint of fresh ginger—is back for the season.

Bluepoint Bakery’s decadent double-orange scones, made with both Mandarin oranges and orange icing, have the ability to brighten even the bleakest morning. And that’s before you pair one with a latte.

While you can’t pick up this addictive treat from Bluepoint directly (the bakery is wholesale only), you can find the pastries at shops around the metro area. Our go-to spots include Enstrom’s in Cherry Creek and Tuscany Coffee & Deli downtown.

Enstrom’s, 201 University Blvd., Ste. 118, 303-322-1005;

Tuscany Coffee & Deli, 1700 Lincoln St., 303-861-4544, and 1600 Stout St., 720-932-8787

Mulberries, the adorable cake shop once housed on Old South Pearl Street, is thriving in its new Colfax location. With an uptick in foot traffic and twice the workspace for a fraction of the rent, the Capitol Hill digs have proven to be a sound business decision.

“We love our new location,” says owner Kathleen Karr. “We have enough space to produce all of our customers’ favorite cakes and cupcakes, plus add a new line of vegan baked goods.”

And the icing on the cake? With plenty of elbow room, the cheerful space becomes the ultimate spot for “build-your-own-birthday-cake” theme parties.

Don’t miss: The new vegan chocolate-chip scones or the butter-pecan cupcakes with dark-chocolate frosting.

2027 E. Colfax Ave., 303-282-1044

When lunchtime demands a heavy dose of tradition and sophistication, nothing beats the Old World charm of Ellyngton’s in the historic Brown Palace Hotel.

Completing the experience is the menu’s lobster BLT. The decadent sandwich combines toasted brioche, Maine lobster claw, crisp Bibb lettuce, basil aïoli, heirloom tomato, and thick slices of applewood smoked bacon. Served with your choice of side (cottage cheese, coleslaw, fruit, fries, or house-made chips), this dish—plus the gracious service and opulent surroundings—makes lunchtime feel like a special occasion.

321 17th St., 303-297-3111

Autumn signals the return of comfort food, and some of the city’s best can be found on Rioja’s fall menu. As diners have come to expect from the Larimer Square restaurant, chef and co-owner Jennifer Jasinski infuses her dishes with Mediterranean flair.

Look for seared sea scallops with a silky chamomile beurre blanc and an ever-so-delicate, hazelnut phyllo Napoleon layered with parsnip and carrot purée. Or, order the earthy chestnut soup served in a tiny roasted pumpkin, topped with a foie gras brioche crostini.

Nowhere on the menu are the cozy eats more sophisticated than Jasinski’s Wagyu short ribs, braised overnight and matched with a Don PX sherry reduction, creamy Gorgonzola farro, and a pear-arugula salad with candied walnuts.

Bonus: Keep an eye out for Jasinski’s first cookbook, The Perfect Bite, featuring some of the recipes from her fall menu.

1431 Larimer St., 303-820-2282

Inside Tangier Moroccan Cuisine, a heady aroma of spices combines with colorful tribal carpets and Moroccan details. The scene gives me hope: Not since Mataam Fez operated in Boulder (in 2006) has a restaurant sported such an authentic floor-to-ceiling vibe.

When it comes to cuisine, however, the four-month-old Tangier doesn’t yet stand up to the food once heralded at Boulder’s beloved Fez. Still, there’s promise.

Chef-owner Khalil Ben Mellah delivers delicate chicken bastillas (a savory pie encased in phyllo dough), richly flavored lamb barkouk studded with caramelized prunes and roasted almonds, and tender lemon-saffron chicken m’qualli. What’s missing, on occasion, are consistently cooked vegetables and robust soups.

Even so, reserve a floor-level table (or a higher four-top) for tasteful belly dancing (weekends only), sweet mint tea, and heavenly baklava topped with chocolate sauce.

3070 28th St., Boulder, 720-621-9291

Just in time for fig season, Two Spoons offers scoops of its California Fig gelato. The ultra-creamy treat combines the sweet, jammy fruit with a touch of honey. Extra punch comes from the tiny fig seeds that snap with each bite. As with other flavors (don’t miss the Cappuccino Brownie or Dulce de Leche), the shop’s gelati are made with local, all-natural milk from Morning Fresh Dairy Farm, organic sugar, and organic agave nectar.

Add a warm, oatmeal-coconut cookie and a cup of robust “slow coffee” (a local roast dripped and filtered one cup at a time), and you have the ultimate afternoon pick-me-up.

Bonus: Stop by Monday through Friday from 3 to 6 p.m. for happy hour: two-for-one gelato.

1021 Pearl St., Boulder, 303-545-0027

Fall temps and football games mean tailgating season is in full swing. To the trusty menu of chips and dip, hot dogs, and cold beer, add some pizzazz with chicken wings basking in Sriracha Z Wing Sauce from Granby’s Captain Spongefoot Trading Company.

The Asian-inspired sauce combines fiery cayenne and Sriracha peppers brightened with vinegar and a touch of wasabi. The result is good heat and deep flavor. Order the Z Sauce online, and try it on huevos rancheros, stirred into a bowl of pho, with your morning omelette, and, of course, on wings.

Salt is Bradford Heap’s chef d’ oeuvre, his farm-to-table ideal, and his most ambitious project to date. The Pearl Street restaurant has emerged from a six-figure renovation of the former Tom’s Tavern as an upscale, modern version of the beloved Boulder locale. Heap pays tribute to Tom’s by preserving everything from window glass to floorboards and copper piping—and turning them into furnishings and works of art.

The homage continues with the grass-fed “Tom’s Tavern Burger,” which is the only permanent entrée on an ever-changing menu. The rest of Salt’s fare can easily stand up to the clean, contemporary, and locally focused cooking of the Kitchen just two doors down.

Standouts include the Long Family Farm pork belly BLT, a decadent deconstruction of pork, fresh greens, charred bread, a fresh heirloom tomato, and a fried green tomato. Throw in a Palisade peach flatbread and a creamy, lavender-vanilla panna cotta, and Salt becomes Pearl Street’s newest darling.

1047 Pearl St., Boulder, 303-444-7258

Westminster’s 88th Avenue is an unlikely spot for an authentic Italian restaurant. But that’s just what you’ll find at chef Mario Petit’s Mamma Mia Trattoria.

Petit, a native of Florence, captures the understated elegance of central Italian cuisine in his minuscule restaurant. His big-flavored dishes—think savory homemade lasagna and chicken- and ricotta-stuffed manicotti with pesto—are satisfying but never overly thought. And charred-crust pizzas further summon the Italian countryside with fresh toppings like peppery arugula, tender prosciutto, and silky, house-made mozzarella.

Bonus: Pass on the soups, but save room for the dessert tarts with seasonal fruit.

9008 W. 88th Ave., Westminster, 303-963-5305

Last week, I stopped into Murphy’s south Boulder outpost, where a line of waiting diners spilled onto the sidewalk. It’s a scene I rarely witnessed when the upscale Sobo American Bistro occupied the same location. Although I personally miss Sobo’s creative New American menu, Murphy’s family-friendly concept seems to be a better fit for the neighborhood.

Case in point: The value-driven, creative menu features entrées like the house favorite poblano pork tacos plate. Nine bucks buys three succulent barbacoa pulled-pork tacos with earthy chipotle sour cream, diced onion, cilantro, jack cheese, and mildly smokey poblanos. The fresh masa tortillas and tangy tomatillo salsa feel like bonuses.

657 S. Broadway St., Boulder, 303-494-7626

During a recent weekend in California’s Russian River Valley, I was introduced to one of the best books available on wine and food pairing. Perfect Pairings, by master sommelier Evan Goldstein, with recipes by his mother Joyce, a celebrated chef, is a rare combination of elegant yet easy-to-follow recipes coupled with wines. This book’s decidedly unpretentious style is also budget-friendly, allowing most anyone to orchestrate a start-to-finish dinner party.

Back home in my kitchen, I tested the recipes and found this beautiful progression:

Start with baked goat cheese (use Haystack Mountain chèvre) in a walnut crust with greens and apple, partnered with a glass of Merryvale Sauvignon Blanc. Follow this with steak au poivre paired with Chateau Larose-Trintaudon Bourdeaux-style Cabernet. Or, match the succulent soy-ginger-sake-salmon with La Crema Pinot Noir. Finish with an ever-so-light lemon ricotta cake with framboise (raspberry) sauce, a superb match with a Schramsberg sparkling Crémant.

Bonus: With nearly 60 recipes, from appetizers to desserts, paired with hundreds of affordable wines, this book is reason enough to start up a wine club.

The late summer harvest offers plenty of inspiration for creative cocktails—just take my lemon-cucumber-spiked Bloody Mary as an example. I crafted this winning combo after picking up a lemon cucumber at the Boulder Farmers’ Market, soaking it in vodka, and adding it to a classic Bloody Mary recipe.

Although this versatile cuke doesn’t taste lemony (the name actually comes from its lemon-like color and shape), the veggie works beautifully in cocktails because it crisps up and absorbs flavor during long vodka soaks. One crunch of the refreshing garnish and you’ll never reach for celery sticks again.

Recipe: For four Bloody Marys, cut one cucumber in quarters, submerge in the vodka of your choice, and refrigerate. Allow to soak for at least one day and up to one week before serving. At party time, pour your favorite Bloody Mary mixture over ice in four tall glasses. Garnish each glass with a cucumber wedge and one fresh cherry tomato.

With some schools back in session, lazy summer mornings are being replaced by hectic a.m. hours in which families scramble to fill backpacks with quick, nutritious snacks.

Enter Aspen Blizzard trail mix, a salty-sweet combo of ingredients that satisfy kids and grown-ups alike. The tasty blend (from Denver-based Rocky Mountain Foods Inc.) combines flakes of coconut chips with plump raisins, tiny bits of cranberry, salty peanuts, white chocolate chips, and chewy yogurt-covered raisins.

Although Aspen Blizzard is our go-to flavor, other varieties—such as Trail Ridge Road Mix, Palisades All Fruit Mix, and Royal Gorge Gorp—are all hearty and delicious.

Treat your kids (or yourself) by picking up a bag at area King Soopers.

Once settled at the long, linen-draped community table, the lucky group at this week’s Meadow Lark Farm dinner listened intently to Oxford Gardens owner Peter Volz as he described how terrior builds flavor in his root vegetables. Soil fell through Volz’s fingertips as he lifted one of the ingredients featured at this night’s dinner: a perfectly round, creamy, white Hakurei turnip.

Attending a Meadow Lark Farm dinner is an experience that shouldn’t be missed. It’s Colorado’s answer to Tuscany, a chance for metro diners to escape into the Niwot countryside to experience food in its most delicious state, with dinner made from produce plucked from the earth just moments before it’s prepared.

The 20-some guests fortunate enough to secure one of the coveted reservations dine at a table set directly in the heart of the garden that produces the evening’s fare. Complete with renowned local chefs to cook each dinner al fresco and sommeliers to pair wine with food, it’s the ultimate summer celebration.

The grilled Hakurei turnip served on the evening I attended was so exquisite that I looked up the Oxford Gardens stand at the following week’s Boulder Farmer’s Market to find the amazing tuber. Back in my kitchen I found that it worked beautifully steamed in Tom Ka soup and raw in salads and slaws. But my favorite rendition is incorporated into a sandwich (recipe below) inspired by our local farmers’ markets. (more…)

When it comes to vegetarian fine dining, the choices in the metro area have never better. But when diners are on the go, veggie-friendly choices can be hard to come by. Enter Larkburger, an eco-friendly burger shop with outposts in Edwards and Boulder.

Catering to meat-eaters and veg-heads alike, Larkburger’s signature Black Angus beef Larkburger and Truffle Burger stand alongside the Amy Burger, a six-inch portabello mushroom perfectly roasted with a touch of tamari and vinegar. The mighty sandwich comes on a soft, eggy bun, stacked with leaf lettuce, tomato slices, griddled onions, and garlicky aïoli.

Bonus: Pair the Amy (or any of the burgers) with a side of the addictive, hot-out-of-the-fryer truffle and Parmesan fries.

2525 Arapahoe Ave., Boulder, 303-444-1487;

105 Edwards Village Blvd., Edwards, 970-926-9336

Herb’s Meats and Specialty Foods, Boulder’s beloved mom-and-pop butcher shop, is pulling up stakes after 34 years.

Founded in 1975 by Herb Dillard, the spot has focused exclusively on all-natural, antibiotic-, hormone-, and steroid-free meats and poultry long before the idea became trendy. In addition to a full array of custom-cut meat, Herb’s is also known for raw, gourmet pet foods and all-natural frozen foods, such as flaky chicken pot pies, rustic pork and chicken green chiles, earthy tamales, and soulful homemade soups.

In its hey-day during the 1980s, Herb’s drew long lines and boasted 16 employees—more than five times the size of the current staff. Over time, however, increased grocery competition, fewer meat-eaters, and higher rent have worked against the tiny store’s bottom line.

Originally slated for an August move (as still noted on the Web site), Herb’s owners Richard and Kristine Grass are currently scouting for a new location in Broomfield—where taxes are favorable and rent is half the cost—and hope to be open by early 2010.

2530 Baseline Road, Boulder, 303-499-8166

As the 2009 Tour de France comes to a close on Sunday, July 26, the fervor over the punishing bike race is at an all-time high. Join in the excitement with a ride of your own—with a few stops along the way for some Francophile-inspired eats.

Hit Highway 36 north of Boulder (home base for team Garmin-Slipstream) before pedaling back to Amante Coffee for robust French-press coffee and a Tour recap. Watch the live feed on two flat screens with replays all day long. (There are even speakers in the bathroom so you won’t miss a beat.)

Trade your road bike for your cruiser, and extend your homage with lunch at Brasserie Ten Ten. Order the oh-so-French vichyssoise or satisfying comme a la maison (a grilled cheese made with fresh burrata, fig jam, and tomato cream).

For dinner, park your wheels at L’Atelier for chef-owner Radek Cerny’s lobster ravioli with beurre blanc. Then, zip over to Mateo, where the Provencal-style restaurant bakes up seasonal, rustic tarts. Magnifique!

Amante Coffee, 4580 Broadway, Boulder, 303-448-9999

Brasserie Ten Ten, 1011 Walnut, Boulder, 303-998-1010

L’Atelier, 1739 Pearl St., Boulder, 303-442-7233

Mateo, 1837 Pearl St., Boulder, 303-443-7766