5281 STEAK SALAD SEAFOOD — Restaurant in Colorado

This quaint little place was a delightful find. Our first visit we arrived on a Tuesday evening just past 6 and had to wait 20 minutes to get a table. Obviously, they're doing something right. The prices were quite reasonable and people seemed to be enjoying themselves and their meals. Since it's in their name, I went with the steak salad with shrimp ($15). This was my third time in as many days getting this same(ish) meal. The other places were better, but they were also (far) more upscale places and more expensive. To be clear, I absolutely enjoyed this meal. I would have liked some cucumbers in my salad and the use of better tomatoes (maybe cherry tomatoes) instead of the more finely chopped tomatoes. They weren't bad, just thought they could be better. It came with shredded cheddar cheese--again, better cheddar, or even bleu cheese crumbles would have been a better choice (and if you're doing that, throw in some bacon). But based on the price (at least $6 cheaper than the fancier places), it was exactly what it should have been. Again, I'm just talking making it even better--I really enjoyed it. My shrimp was peeled, cold, and tasty. My only real complaint was my steak was thin (which was fine), but was on the dry side--not overcooked, just dry in this format. I ordered medium, but medium-rare would be a better choice here. My wife ordered a cheeseburger of some kind (I don't actually know what specifically). We were surprised that it came on Texas Toast instead of a standard burger bun. Not a bad thing--just didn't read the fine print and it was a surprise. She enjoyed her burger. We both ordered a cup of green chili ($5) and that was excellent. It's not the fanciest place, but I appreciated the humor in the restroom. Overall we enjoyed our meals and I'm looking forward to returning next time I'm...

Wow! What an incredible restaurant! We stumbled across this hidden gem wanting to try something different while on the West side of town. The minute we walked in and saw all smiling faces on both the staff and patrons, we knew this was going to be a great experience. Our waitress (Nicole) was simply amazing and extremely helpful with the menu items including their specials.

We opted to kick things off with their Walleye bites. These were as good as pulling a Walleye out of Rush Lake up in Ottertail County in North Central Minnesota, where I spent every summer growing up. We couldn't believe how fresh the bites tated, not to mention the tartar sauce was a perfect complement with their batter. SOOOOO GOOOD!

My wife had a perfectly cooked medium rare filet that seem to melt in your mouth before you took the first bite, and I opted for their wedge salad with a salmon filet over it. I could not believe how simply delicious it was.

We then had the pleasure of meeting the manager who was maki g rounds introducing herself to each table. Lindsey gave us a bit of the history of the restaurant then proceeded to bri g us a sample of another signature/staple menu item of theirs, their pork green chili. Oh boy! Now we have to go back for their Sunday breakfast or for their smothered hamburger!

Then we got the bill. Wow, very reasonably priced, especially for the quality of food!

We will certainly be back soon!

Thank you 5281/Nicole/Lindsey for a near perfect meal...

At first I couldn't decide whether to give this four stars or five stars, one star off mainly due to the lack of ambience. After a little reflection, it became clear to me that this is very much like a small town diner. It's not supposed to be fancy or flashy. It will make you forget for an hour that you're living in a metropolitan area with 2 million people. So, I've been in here three times now and cannot say that I've had a bad meal. The steaks are very good, especially given the fair price tag. It doesn't taste like a Capital Grille steak but of course it's not $80, either. The steak was cooked precisely medium rare the way I asked for it and it was very flavorful. On another visit, I found the chicken fried steak to be very satisfying and again reminiscent of maybe a small town in Arkansas. As others have pointed out, the green chili is excellent. The open face burger smothered in green chili is a sinful delight. The only minor suggestion I would have is to stay away from the reuben, I don't think it's their forte. But otherwise all the food and desserts have been excellent. I would recommend this anytime you have a hankering for...