The Pour Kids are all grown up. Introducing Atticus by Table to Tavern
“Atticus will offer breakfast, lunch and dinner. In continuing with the “Statriotic” theme established by Pour Kids, Atticus will place an emphasis on locally-sourced produce, meats, craft beers wines and spirits.”
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Rob Lanphier is a long-time supporter of South Stands Denver. As the principal of Pour Kids bar group, Rob took a fantastic risk by agreeing to sponsor this web site. He’s one of the reasons South Stands Denver exists. In return for his confidence John Reidy, Scott Stafford, Jennifer Eakins and I have done our best to refer business to the Pour Kids taverns, the Handlebar Tavern on Downing and Alameda and Boone’s Tavern on Downing and Evans.
Our readers and listeners have had responded. South Standers have flocked to Boone’s Tavern and the Handlebar to watch games, get together, meet up with one another and to their draft their fantasy leagues and we appreciate it. You have helped demonstrate that a goofy sports site like this one can offer great value by creating a unique kind of customer loyalty.
Last year Rob Lanphier partnered with Brian Midtbo. Together Rob and Brian formed Table to Tavern, a brand new management partnership, and set out to remodel both the Handlebar and Boone’s Taverns, upgrade the menus, and create a brand new restaurant adjacent to Boone’s called Atticus. Many of you have seen Atticus under construction.
It’s right at the intersection of Downing and Evans, just South of Washington Park and just West of Denver University in what used to be east side of Boone’s. Atticus is in the same space where we held the 2013 South Stands Denver Fantasy Football League draft with FootballGuys.com and 102.3 ESPN insider Cecil Lammey – but you would never know it. It’s now a European style sixty-seat eatery with an atmosphere that’s warm, comfortable and distinctive.
I was fortunate enough to be invited to a “friends and family” preview at Atticus on Thursday night. It reminded me of places my wife and I dined in Italy back before we had kids. Atticus is too rustic to feel formal but too tasteful to feel like a bar. It’s welcoming and romantic and cozy.
Brian Midtbo recently explained to Westword, “This is going to be the kind of place where you can get a pastry and coffee or cappuccino in the morning, spread out your newspaper, and kick back and work, but it well evolve as the day goes on, and at night, it’ll become more bar-centric. It’ll be open all day, but there will be a different feel at different times, and we’ll definitely dress it up a bit more at night.”
Atticus will offer breakfast, lunch and dinner. In continuing with the “Statriotic” theme established by Pour Kids, Atticus will place an emphasis on locally-sourced produce, meats, craft beers wines and spirits.
Among the highlights of Atticus is it’s cocktail menu featuring both “classics” and “originals”. I ordered the classic “Blood and Sand”, with Johnny Walker Red, Noilly Pratt Rougue liquor, cherry herring and fresh blood orange juice. It was delicious, tart with a boozy bite. My wife enjoyed a Denver Mule, Spring 44 vodka, fresh lime juice, sage and ginger beer. I might have also had a Breckenridge cherry oatmeal stout and a Telluride rye pale ale. 
As an appetizer we shared the “large Charcuterie”, a wooden platter of cured and uncured meats (capicola, salami, prosciutto, culatello), gherkins, pickled carrots and a variety of delicious European cheeses and spreads. It was out of this world. It was a perfect conversational dish to begin our meal. We luxuriated over the platter and sipped our cocktails while we looked over the dinner menu selecting between the many tempting sounding dishes Atticus will offer.
My wife, who is a vegetarian, opted for the roasted beet salad, several thick slices of red and yellow beets drizzled with a yummy red sauce and topped with nuts. It came out piping hot and very nicely presented and she loved it. I had the house smoked salmon.
The location has one of the very few commercial smokers in Denver and Atticus takes full advantage of it. I was already familiar with the smoked wings and smoked fish tacos at Boones, as well as the smoked chicken they use on their nachos, so I knew that they knew their way around a natural wood smoker. Still, I was surprised at how delicate the salmon was. The smoke flavor was just right and not a single bite was overcooked. My salmon was served with a fresh peach rosemary chutney, the best damn garlic spinach I have ever tasted in my life and a little jasmine rice cake which I shared with my wife (she suggested a rice cake and asparagus platter would be a great veg entree).
Some items I wrestled over ordering were the proscuitto wrapped prawns, cioppino seafood stew, smoked short ribs, coffee and coriander crusted local lamb loin and grilled hanger steak with cheery whiskey butter, roasted red potatoes and PORK BELLY BRUSSEL SPROUTS.
Atticus also offers a full menu of deserts and digestifs. We didn’t have room.
Breakfast will include pork belly biscuits, chorizo French toast, eggs benedict and a local orange and honey granola bowl. The Brian Midtbo and his wife, Angie seemed most proud of the enormous stainless steel Italian espresso machine behind the bar. No doubt Atticus intends to serve a mean latte.
The service was over the top. We had a wonderful time. I am certain that you will, too.
We are calling on your loyalty again, South Standers. Please visit and support Atticus at Downing and Evans. We promise you’ll be glad you did. It’s a really great place and the people that run it are clever enough to support us. Help us show them that they made a really great call. The new restaurant opens to the public on Monday and we hope you will go there. Make a point of it. And, please, tell them the South Stands sent you.
