The Colorado Food Experience

Working Up an Appetite is Easy in Colorado

The options regarding Colorado are almost endless, just like the sights and many activities to choose from. So, is it surprising that restaurants, bars, and dining choices are just as varied? Colorado has got you covered regarding the best Colorado food in restaurants and cuisine, from fine dining to food trucks. The best places to eat in Colorado aren’t necessarily the ones that appear on every online blog or magazine. Often, they’re the ones you discover while exploring a new small town, chatting with a local on a chairlift, or just stumbling upon a deli after a long day of hiking. Working up an appetite here is easy with all the high-energy activities we all look forward to. This driving appetite has created more than 12,400 eating and drinking establishments, and with the state’s ever-growing population, that number is sure to increase. For locals and visitors alike, options are available when deciding where to go for breakfast, lunch, or dinner. With an abundance of rooftop bars and patio seating to accommodate the year-round sunshine and a vast variety of swanky, creative, or intimate dining rooms. Everyone eating out in Colorado will find something to suit their tastes and taste buds. Historic hotel eateries, quaint coffee shops, classic greasy spoon diners, and loud, hole-in-the-wall food joints are all within easy reach, and each has something unique to offer its guests.

Famous Colorado Food

Colorado is known for a number of dishes, drinks, and specialties unique to the Centennial state. From produce to meats, here are a few delicacies that everyone—whether a tourist or native Coloradan—should add to their list of things to try while in Colorado.

Colorado Food - Meats

Colorado Lamb

Colorado is one of the top lamb producers in the United States, and Rocky Mountain lamb can be found at restaurants everywhere, from New York to California. The Colorado Lamb Council (yes, that’s actually a thing) promotes the local livestock to restaurants and vendors everywhere, encouraging them to buy meat from domestic, mountain-raised sheep. Unlike producers in most other places worldwide, which breed their sheep for wool, Colorado lamb is bred for the meat. The difference is remarkably clear in the quality of the lamb, which is rated among the best in the country.

Bison

With less fat, fewer calories, and none of the hormones or fillers often found in beef. Bison is a lean, delicious, flavorful meat frequently offered on Colorado restaurants' menus. The grassy plains of Colorado are perfect for raising bison, and Colorado is the fourth largest producer of animals in the country. Whether ground and molded into a burger with a myriad of delectable toppings or hand-cut and grilled as a perfectly cooked steak, Colorado bison is something that can be hard to come by in other parts of the country and should be on your Colorado food list to try while visiting.

Rocky Mountain Oysters

Colorado may be landlocked, but that doesn’t mean we don’t have access to great oysters! Despite the misleading name, Rocky Mountain Oysters don’t come from the sea. In reality, these little Colorado food delicacies are - and stay with me here - deep-fried bull or bison testicles. Take a moment to let the ‘eww’ factor sink in, but they’re packed with protein and quite tasty! Rocky Mountain Oysters are a popular snack or appetizer in bars, and they usually come served with a delicious array of dipping sauces. You might find your new favorite food if you can get over the idea of what you’re eating.

Colorado Foods - Produce

Palisade Peaches

In the Western Slope region of the Rockies, just east of Grand Junction, there is a small town called Palisade. In the 19th century, Palisade was rocky and desertlike until John Harlow created a canal to redirect part of the Colorado River and irrigate the land. In 1882, he planted his first peach trees; thus, a Colorado legend was born. Palisade Peaches can be found all over the country, and every year, this one small region, with its sunny Western climate, produces thousands of pounds of delicious fruit that can be found at road stands, grocery stores, and farmer's markets all over the state. For a special treat, visit Palisade each summer during August for the annual Peach Festival.

Olathe Corn

Olathe corn comes from Olathe, Colorado, between Delta and Montrose. This area is famous for producing some of the best sweet corn anywhere. You can order Olathe corn online or look for it at local Colorado grocery stores and farmers' markets.

Colorado Farmers Markets

Colorado is blessed with fertile mountain valleys and high mountain tops. The list of fruits and vegetables grown in Colorado is long and can be seasonal. As you travel around Colorado, you might notice various fresh produce stands. These farmers' markets will be the best way to sample what Colorado can produce. Check the Farmers Market Guide to find a market near you.

Colorado Food - Dishes

Green Chili

This one is a hot topic - pun intended - because this spicy green chili is vehemently claimed by both Colorado and New Mexico. The Hatch Green Chili, grown in the Hatch Valley in New Mexico, and its slightly hotter counterpart, the Pueblo Green Chili, grown in Pueblo, Colorado, are very similar, and the delicious sauce made from them can be found all over Colorado. Green chili is often made vegetarian-style or with pork and can be served as a soup or a topping. You’ll most often find it served on top of a burrito, and to order it like a local, make sure to ask for it to be ‘smothered.’

Mountain Style Pizza

There’s a classic pizza joint that originated in Idaho Springs called Beau Jo’s, which has created a genre of pizza called the Mountain Pie. Beau Jo’s now has several locations throughout Colorado where you can order your pizza by the pound, and it comes packed with toppings and edged by the thickest, most decadent braided crust you’ve ever seen. As if that’s not enough, they serve their pizza with a bottle of local honey, so you can drizzle it over the massive crust after you’ve eaten the rest of your pizza slice. A true Colorado food favorite!

Notes on Colorado Food and Dining

The Best Drinks in Colorado

Whether you’re looking for a pint of beer after a hike or an artistic, handcrafted cocktail on a patio with friends, Colorado is home to many bars, breweries, distilleries, and other businesses ready to serve. From historic saloons in mountain towns to rooftop nightclubs in the heart of the capital city, visitors will love the drinking culture in Colorado. Name the kind of bar you’re looking for, and Colorado probably has it. Some bars have been slinging drinks since the Gold Rush, bars that feature nightly live music from local, nationally, and even internationally touring musicians, and quiet wine bars where you can sip your drink and catch up with a friend. There are dive bars with dusty neon signs and cheap drinks, pool halls lined with tables where you can rent balls and cues by the hour, speakeasies hidden behind bookshelves or the facade of an ice cream shop, and swanky lounges where one-of-a-kind cocktails are crafted by mixologists and served with impeccable presentation—looking for a wide variety of destinations during your visit? Plenty of walking, biking, pedal bar, and bus tours will happily guide you and your [legal drinking aged] friends or family to all the best local breweries, bars, and spots you’d never find on your own.

Dining and Nightlife in Colorado

Visiting Colorado means you’ll have a constant stream of options at your fingertips, whether you're looking for a quick bite to eat, a refreshing drink, a casual family dinner, a savory meal, or a gourmet four-course dinner cooked in a backcountry yurt. When it comes to wetting your whistle and even dancing as well, Colorado is renowned for its saloons and nightlife. The state’s ski resorts have more choices than you can shake a ski pole at for bars, musical venues, and unique meals and drinks. Nightlife sparkles all over the state, with great fun to be had in the city, along the front range, or up in the mountains. It doesn’t matter if you’re here for business, pleasure, outdoor activities, or a family vacation, Colorado has everything you need to keep you fed and make your trip memorable for years after you’ve gone home (but who are we kidding, we know you’ll be back to Colorado).