Odyssey Italian Restaurant & Wine Bar in Denver, CO

facebooktwittergoogle_plusredditpinterestlinkedinmailby feather

First published September 15, 2013

Odyssey Italian Restaurant & Wine Bar
603 E 6th Ave
Denver, CO 80203
(303) 318-0102

Odyssey Italian Restaurant & Wine Bar
Odyssey Italian Restaurant & Wine Bar

A funny thing happened on the way to a longtime, favorite, hideaway restaurant on 6th Avenue in Denver: the new owner’s renovations were a bit more extensive than we thought they would be. The “new” restaurant’s ambience exceeded our comfort level so we left.

Standing at the curb, feeling forlorn and betrayed, we were trying to regain some level of composure as I gazed across the street. Lo and behold, a sideways banner, silently shouting “pasta,” was beckoning to us. Across 6th and a half-block to the west, a world of promise was possibly opening. It was Odyssey Italian Restaurant & Wine Bar.

I said, “Let’s go!” We went.

Upon entering Odyssey, my first thoughts were of a cozy eatery in West Los Angeles—Hollywood to be more specific, The Sunset Strip to be even more specific—where clean water runs down the curbs, and the restaurants are so fancy one hesitates to enter if one is, say, homeless and wandering, or on a lessor note, just not dressed appropriately. (A couple of days later, I thought of the well-worn Alexander Graham Bell adage “When one door closes, another opens.” Perfect!)

At that moment a very animated and over-the-top gracious young man introduced himself and gave us a quick tour and brief history of the restaurant and the owners—his father and himself: Executive Chef Ignazio Mulei (father) and Michael Mulei. It is a good thing.

This little bistro on East 6th Avenue is in an old, established neighborhood in a turn-of-the-century house that proudly displays exposed old-brick walls; worn wood; many wine bottles, photos and paintings; a small cave-like corner bar; white tablecloths and sometimes candles on the tables glowing in champagne glasses.

Odyssey Dining Room
Odyssey Dining Room

Cozy interior of Odyssey Italian Restaurant’s main dining area

Odyssey's cozy little bar
Odyssey's Cozy Little Bar

A half-dozen tables, a few booths left over from other restaurants that have occupied the space, and the bar complete the main dining room. Another dining room sits up a short flight of stairs, past photos of Dean Martin and Saint Francis (F.S.) with other members of the The Rat Pack, and past a kitchen door. Here are more tables and booths, a fireplace, and a special deeply recessed space with a U-shaped booth—an intimate, private, mini dining room with curtains. Guess where I’ll be next visit, and I guarantee there will be a next visit. Three slanting tables out front (the sidewalk slants, see top photo) and another half-dozen on a raised patio are there for fresh-air romance on 6th Avenue.

Odyssey's upper level fireplace
Odyssey's Upper Level Fireplace

We didn’t stay that first evening, but we did return for the following Monday Night Pasta Special—pasta dinner with Caesar Salad and bread for $8.99.

Let the Odyssey begin. We chose the table in the middle of the room. Not my usual favorite place but the other choices were right up in the other diners’ business, so to speak, so we drew our cards and sat down. A lovely, petite server warmly greeted us with the menus and the standard opening gambit of asking if we would like to order cocktails or wine before dinner. Sure! We both ordered a glass of wine from the bottom of the menu, the $5.00 house red for me and a $6.00 Little Black Dress white for Sue Ann.

Bang! Chef Ignazio appeared out of nowhere with an appetizer plate of calamari. As East Coast-animated and gracious as his son, Chef Ignazio told us that he’d like to have us try the calamari, on the house, and launches into a bit more history of his life and of the restaurant, speaking to us like an old friend or a relative. It was good. The calamari were perfect – velvety golden-brown, tempura-like on the outside, and on the inside the meat was not too soft and not too hard, served with a light marinara and wedges of lemon. The portion size was decent.

I was there for the pasta special, however, after perusing the menu and listening to the recitation of the night’s other special entrees, we decided to split a dish called Red Snapper Florentine with roasted seasonal vegetables (Caesar Salad & bread included ($16.00).

After savoring the calamari, sipping the wine and taking in the sweet vibe of the restaurant, the fish dish arrived. The Red Snapper was swimming in an ocean of spinach, with a few long green beans, resting on a bed of (whole-wheat, my choice) spaghetti in an Aglio E Olio sauce. The portion was very generous.

Chef Ignazio offered to share a Sambuca with us. After waiting a while, we decided that he was busy in the kitchen, so we paid the check and left knowing we’d be back.

The next Monday we returned with a guest, a food and travel writer. This time I called ahead, reserving a corner booth for 7 p.m. Once again, we were cheerfully greeted by the servers and Michael, who immediately began chatting in Italian with our guest like a long lost friend. He entertained us with stories of his family—mostly stories of the family kitchen—and there was the kissing of the hand and conversation about the due baci (the kissing of both cheeks).

Once again, Chef Ignazio appeared with a complimentary appetizer, this time a Sicilian dish of sausage slices, cheese, salami, green peppers, onions, and . . .raisins, which were the coup de grâce. The sweetness and flavor of the raisins, juxtaposed with the other spicy flavors imparted a memorable taste.

The Beautiful Eggplant Caprese
The Beautiful Eggplant Caprese

After much chatting in Italian between the guest, the chef and the son and many stories told—and we hadn’t yet ordered dinner—Chef Ignazio announced that he was going to cook the guest’s dinner tableside. OK. In the meantime, we ordered an appetizer. It was a beautiful Eggplant Caprese (tomato and mozzarella layered with grilled eggplant with a slightly crunchy outer edge). I could easily do one of these as a meal, or if I needed a bit more, I’d also order the Calamari.

Here’s Open Table’s menu for Odyssey. I don’t know if it’s complete or accurate, it’s the only one I can find since Odyssey doesn’t have an active website.

Chef Ignazio Cooking Tableside
Chef Ignazio Cooking Tableside

This evening two of us split the Veal Braciole, flavorful and tender. It was served over a bed of butterfly pasta. Our guest had a Sicilian Red Snapper dish, prepared tableside over a little cooking plate; Every time the chef added a splash of Captain Morgan’s rum to the pan, a flame would shoot up eighteen inches, instantly creating a show; everyone in the dining room was having a great time.

Red Snapper Cooked Tableside
Red Snapper Cooked Tableside

Impressive and generous entrées at Odyssey Italian Restaurant

Veal Braciole over Butterfly Pasta with Marinara
Veal Braciole over Butterfly Pasta with Marinara

The only thing on the negative side is the very limited parking. There may be some curbside parking across the street or around the corner, but there are no nearby parking lots, or valet service that I’m aware of. Valet would be a good addition and make the over-the-top service complete.

This post was written and assembled by William Carbone
Thank’s to Claudia Carbone for editing

Odyssey Italian Restaurant & Wine Bar is a TrueItalianTable recomended authentic Italian restaurant.


Suite Value Offer: Get a Big Suite. Pay a
tiny price. - Rates from $149/Night
at Palazzo Las Vegas

Full Harvest (Corn Maker) Moon September 19, 2013 at 4:12AM Las Vegas Time

facebooktwittergoogle_plusredditpinterestlinkedinmailby feather
Saguaro Moon
Saguaro Moon - Credit & Copyright: Stefan Seip

From The Old Farmer’s Almanac
Full Moon Names
The full Moon nearest the autumnal equinox (September 23 this year) is called the Harvest Moon. This Moon is not just the full Moon that occurs at the time of the harvest. It is the full Moon that actually helps the harvest by providing more light at the right time than other full Moons do.

The following video, featuring Amy Nieskens is from The Old Farmer’s Almanac

From The Old Farmer’s Almanac
Historically, the Native Americans who lived in the area that is now the northern and eastern United States kept track of the seasons by giving distinctive names to the recurring full Moons.

Each full Moon name was applied to the entire lunar month in which it occurred. These names, and some variations, were used by the Algonquin tribes from New England to Lake Superior.

Full Corn Moon
This full Moon corresponds with the time of harvesting corn. It is also called the Barley Moon, because it is the time to harvest and thresh the ripened barley. The Harvest Moon is the full Moon nearest the autumnal equinox, which can occur in September or October and is bright enough to allow finishing all the harvest chores.

From Western Washington University
American Indians gave names to each of the full moons to keep track of the passing year. The names are associated with the entire month until the next full moon occurs. Since a lunar month averages 29 days, the dates of the moons change from year to year. Here is the information for two tribes:

BACK EAST

Abenaki storyteller and writer Joseph Bruchac
Abenaki storyteller and writer Joseph Bruchac

Abenaki

Northeast, Maine
According to WWU, in the Abenaki language the name for August’s Moon is: “skamonkas” or “corn maker moon.”

OUT WEST

Comanche Spring - a one-day celebration of Comanche culture featuring Benny Tahmahkera, right, and Marla Nauni - will be Saturday in Pioneer Amphitheatre in Palo Duro Canyon State Park.
Benny Tahmahkera, right, and Marla Nauni

Comanche

Southern Plains
According to WWU, in the Comanche language the name for September’s Moon is: “taboo mua” or “paperman moon.“

The Old Farmer’s Almanac
Western Washington University

468x60

From National Geographic Online
4 Sky Events This Week: Harvest Moon, Green Giant, and Fall Equinox
Posted by Andrew Fazekas in StarStruck on September 16, 2013

This week two of the brightest planets join forces, and sky-watchers celebrate the change of seasons with a bright full moon.

Saturn and Venus. Starting on Monday, September 16 after sunset, Venus and Saturn will be having a close encounter that will last most of the week. Low in the southwest sky, the second planet from the Sun will be the first visible—as the brightest star-like object in the entire heavens.

Look carefully next to Venus—binoculars may help—and fainter Saturn will pop out of the glare of dusk. Remember that since the two worlds are hot on the heels of the setting sun, they sink below the horizon less than an hour later.

The lord of the rings will pass only 4 degrees above the goddess of love—less than the width of your three middle fingers at arm’s length. As the week progresses both planets will appear lower in the sky each night with Venus sliding a bit towards the left of Saturn.

Even the smallest backyard telescope will show off Saturn’s iconic rings and even some of its brightest moons—like Titan and Enceladus. Read more…

Access more BLOG Posts by clicking this link
Visit the main pages of LasVegasBuffetClub.Com

America’s 20 Best Italian Restaurants: Number 9) Frasca Food & Wine, Boulder, Colo.

facebooktwittergoogle_plusredditpinterestlinkedinmailby feather

A special thanks to Claire of http://www.culinary-colorado.com for bringing this top-twenty Italian restaurant to our attention – the only Colorado restaurant to make the list. In fact it’s the only restaurant between Chicago and Las Vegas to make the list.

Frasca Food & Wine
Frasca Food & Wine

Frasca Food & Wine
1738 Pearl Street
Boulder, CO 80302

From TheDailyMeal.Com:
“In the Friuli region of northeastern Italy, a frasca is a roadside farm restaurant, serving simple regional food. Frasca Food and Wine captures the spirit of these places while also championing the vast diversity of Colorado’s unique culinary resources. Owners Bobby Stuckey and Lachlan Mackinnon-Patterson have created a warm and inviting space that can accommodate a casual, impromptu dinner or an evening of fine dining, and offer a unique menu that includes salumi and cheeses along with pastas like stuffed casoncelli and entrées like rabbit and veal top round with polenta and romanesco. Whatever you do, don’t miss the frico caldo, a crispy pancake of potatoes, onions, and Piave cheese — a Friulian specialty.”

There will be a full review of Frasca very soon, stay tuned.
Here’s the link to TheDailyMeals’s article for this restaurant.

http://www.thedailymeal.com/america-s-20-best-italian-restaurants

Frasca Food & Wine
1738 Pearl Street
Boulder, CO 80302

This post was assembled by William Carbone
LasVegasBuffetClub.Com