Rant:  Downtown pedestrian lights

Did we miss something? One year ago, Denver supposedly eliminated the “Barnes Dance” crosswalks—the four-way stoppages that let pedestrians traverse intersections diagonally—when the city realized that almost no one was taking advantage of them. So why isn’t it any easier to escape from LoDo by car? Plenty of downtown streets, particularly along 17^th and 18^th, still have lights that run one or two cycles too many. This is especially maddening later at night or on weekends, when drivers have to wait these out even when neither cars nor pedestrians are present. Denver’s cockeyed grid layout already has enough quirky angles to slow traffic; the least the city could do is sync the lights better to make everything flow more smoothly.

Rave: Tony’s Market

Despite its multiple locations, I’ve only been to the Tony’s on Broadway, because why mess with perfection? Whether it’s the prepared veggie medleys or fruit salads; the succulently marinated cuts of chicken, pork, beef, or fish served as filets or pinwheels or kebabs; or, of course, the ever-decadent dessert lineup, Tony’s never disappoints. If that weren’t enough, the service is friendly, helpful, and superb. Even their prepared holiday spreads surpass anything I can get at home. (Sorry, Mom.) If I lived closer to it there’s a good chance I’d eat every meal there, and I might anyway. Multiple locations, tonysmarket.com

—Image via Shutterstock.