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When I learned that Morin would soon start serving lunch—the new menu rolls out on Monday, March 25 at 11 a.m.—my first thought was: What does lunch at Morin look like?
It’s a glamorous, upscale restaurant, for one thing, fitting seamlessly into the sparkly new LoDo culinary scene that encompasses Jovanina’s Broken Italian, LeRoux, and Tavernetta. A place where you can add Périgord truffles or seared foie gras to your supper for a supplemental fee, and where caviar is an hors d’oeuvres (albeit a pretty damn reasonable hors d’oeuvres at just $8). At Morin, chef-owner Max Mackissock anchors those high-end ingredients with contemporary culinary techniques and a playful vision of what modern French food (and drink) can be. All of which leads to a lunch offering that is far less stuffy than you might assume and, from what I’ve tasted so far, downright delicious.
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Here’s a sneak peak at the midday meal as imagined by Max Mackissock, chef de cuisine Charles Matthews, and the culinary team at Morin.
![](https://cdn.5280.com/2019/03/Morin-lunch-Vietnamienne-salad_Denise-Mickelsen-960x683.jpg)
![](https://cdn.5280.com/2019/03/Morin-lunch-croque_Denise-Mickelsen-720x720.jpg)
![](https://cdn.5280.com/2019/03/Morin-lunch-croustillant_Denise-Mickelsen-960x720.jpg)
![](https://cdn.5280.com/2019/03/Morin-lunch-tomato-soup-grilled-cheese_Denise-Mickelsen-960x720.jpg)
![](https://cdn.5280.com/2019/03/Morin-lunch-tuna-tartine_Denise-Mickelsen-960x720.jpg)
![](https://cdn.5280.com/2019/03/Morin-lunch-bouillabasse_Denise-Mickelsen-960x720.jpg)
Beverage director Mclain Hedges has been tinkering too, creating an in-house library of fermented kombuchas, kefirs, and the like, as well as a line of non-alcoholic options with the depth and oomph of the original spirits. Think: an N/A “Champagne” and an Americano made with Hedges’ own “vermouth” and “Campari,” the former made with a verjus base and the latter concocted from three kinds of tea—created by Hedges, of course—and a gentian-rhubarb syrup.
As if that wasn’t enough, as of March 25, Morin will remain open on weekdays from the start of lunch service through dinner, featuring a revamped happy hour with $1.50 oysters, a host of refined snacks for less than $10 (including the aforementioned tartine, soup-and-grilled-cheese combo, and croustillant spuds), and a killer $10-or-less drink menu spanning aperitifs, natural wines by the glass, and Hedges’ excellent cocktails.
If you go: As of March 25, lunch runs from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m., Monday through Friday; happy hour on those same days is available from 2 to 6 p.m.