American Elm — Restaurant in Denver

American Elm is a must visit restaurant in the Highlands. From the ambiance to the food, we always stay for hours & can’t wait to go back.

We arrived at American Elm and were seated inside the main dining room which directly opened up to the patio. American Elm is aptly named after the massive American elm tree that graces its exterior - the tree is one of the last & largest American elm trees in Denver. The aesthetic of the restaurant was fun & unique with a laid back attitude, impressive cocktail program and elevated menu that knocked our socks off.

Our server Beau came to play - he had a great demeanor and extensive knowledge of the menu. We ran with his recommendations all evening.

My favorite cocktail at American Elm was from the Tropical & Tiki selection - The Pandan Chi Chi made with Community Spirit Co. vodka, pandan, coconut, pineapple, & lime. Whenever a Pandan Chi Chi is brought to the table, it has the effect of "I don't know what that is but I have to have one!" - just look at that lime green coloring! This cocktail delivered on its visual promise; it tasted as good as it looked. The taste was comparable to a vanilla creamsicle with notes of pineapple & coconut.

Tanya had the Down the Rabbit Hole which was bright orange in color and flavor.

The Pickle Sipper was made with Pickle infused vodka, Svol Swedish-style dill Aquavit, & pickles. This cocktail was a classy upgrade from a pickle shot with a pickle spiced rim that brought real zing.

The Paloma was made with Tequila Arette blanco, grapefruit, lime, salt, & bubbles.

From the Raw Bar we had East & West Coast Oysters. The Skookum, West Coast Oysters were buttery with low brininess. The WiAnno, East Coast Oysters were plump and firm with moderate brininess & a sweet finish.

The Deviled Eggs were made with smoked yolk, mustard seed, & house pork belly. The deviled eggs were a mouthful of flavor. They had a creamy, rich yolk filling with a velvety texture that complemented the crunch of the house pork belly.

The Portobello Wraps were made with Bulgogi marinade, grilled portobello, bibb lettuce, carrot, sprouts, radish, cilantro, & toasted garlic chili oil. These veggie packed wraps were fresh, bright, & filled with savory Portobellos.

The Grilled Spanish Octopus was made with fried fingerlings, chorizo, garlic aioli, gremolata, & Calabrian oil. The octopus had a meaty chew with a spicy kick from the Calabrian oil.

The Crispy Pork Belly was made with jalapeno crema, grilled peaches, pickled fresno chile, mustard seed, & radish. The pork belly was tender with a crispy outside layer. The smokiness of the pork was brightened by the grilled peaches.

For Housemade Pasta I had the Carbonara made with river bear guanciale, pecorino, parmesan, egg yolk, & chives with the addition of scallops. The carbonara was utterly delicious. The creaminess of the egg yolk, thick pasta, and tangy pecorino topped with buttery scallops hit the spot.

The Roasted Half Chicken was made with haricot verts, trumpet mushroom, mashed potatoes, gremolata, & bordelaise. Do not miss out on American Elm’s chicken - the skin was golden brown and the meat was oh so juicy.

The Crispy Trout Almandine was made with almond crusted trout, carrots, snap peas, quinoa, toasted garlic chile oil, pickled red onions, beurre blanc, & charred lemon.

For dessert we had the Killin' Me Smalls made with chocolate ganache, toasted marshmallow, graham cracker, & butterscotch ice cream. YUM. This dessert was a fancy nod to a S'mores. The decadent chocolate ganache was topped with sugary sweet butterscotch ice cream. The toasted marshmallow fluff was sticky and paired well with the smooth ice cream and crunchy...

Looking for a romantic date or double date night spot? American Elm's patio offers private, heated greenhouses that will have you enjoying a beautiful winter night, all the while cozy warm inside, sipping on fab cocktails & eating great food.

We arrived at American Elm and were seated in our cutie lil' greenhouse. Each greenhouse had their own space heater & speaker. Our server Drew was lovely - she was attentive and had great recommendations on the menu.

My favorite cocktail at American Elm continues to be The Pandan Chi Chi (a must order). The Pandan Chi Chi is made with Community Spirit Co. vodka, pandan, coconut, pineapple, & lime. This cocktail was visually stunning and tasted like a vanilla creamsicle with notes of pineapple & coconut.

Tanya got the Metal Heard made with Uruapan Charanda & Rum Fire Jamaican rums, Clément Mahina coconut, pineapple, lime, bubbles. Smoky and Sweet - served on crushed ice in a Collins glass.

The Portobello Wraps were made with bulgogi marinade, grilled portobello, bibb lettuce, carrot, sprouts, radish, cilantro, & toasted garlic chili oil. These veggie packed wraps were fresh, bright, & filled with savory portobellos.

The Crispy Pork Belly was made with jalapeno creme, grilled seasonal fruit, pickled fresno chile, mustard seed, & cilantro. The pork belly was tender with a crispy outside layer. The smokiness of the pork was brightened by the seasonal fruit.

The Artichoke Dip was made with three cheese blend, charred pepper, crostini, & crudites. This dip was solid - warm and cheesy with a delicate artichoke zing.

The Deviled Eggs were made with smoked yolk, mustard seed, & house pork belly. The creamy, rich yolk filling was velvety texture and went well against the crunch of the pork - a mouthful of flavor.

The Caesar Salad was made with romaine, roasted garlic croutons, cherry tomatoes, & parmesan crisp.

American Elm makes all of their pasta in house, and you bet we were getting after it. The Duck Ragu Pappardelle was made with confit duck leg, burrata, pecorino, & basil. This was my favorite pasta of the night - the pappardelle was beautiful & generously coated in hearty rich sauce & smooth burrata.

The Steak Frites were made with ribeye cap, bone marrow butter, arugula salad, & fries. The steak was cooked perfectly, and the bone marrow butter added a mouthwatering sweet, nutty flavor to the meat.

The Creamy Casarecce was made with River Bear bacon, spring peas, local mushrooms, roasted garlic, & parmesan cream sauce. This savory pasta dish combined thick pasta, bacon pieces, & locally grown mushrooms which made for creamy and satisfying bites.

The Lemon Maiale Rigatoni was made with sausage, spinach, heirloom tomatoes, confit garlic cloves, & parmesan. This pasta dish was characterized by creamy lemon butter sauce and a flavorful combo of Italian sausage and tender rigatoni.

For dessert we had the Buttermilk Pie made with brown butter whip, nilla wafers, & strawberry gastrique and the Creme Brulee. A sweet ending to a...

The Short: The food is good, the service lacking The Long: We made a reservation for 2 on a Tuesday night. When we arrived it was pretty busy especially considering that it was the middle of the week. The place was lively, the receptionist friendly. When we sat down the receptionist said she would grab us some water, we waited about 5 minutes, no water, no big deal. The server came and introduced himself, he was very friendly as well and said that he would be back with water, we needed some more time with the menu for drinks. He came back about 5 minutes later to take our drink (old fashioned and date of the night) and appetizer (animal crackers) order. Move forward about 20-30 minutes, we haven't received our drinks, now while it is busy here it is also a pretty intimate space so I wouldn't expect drinks to take so long. Our server also never checked in during this time but does after the aforementioned 20-30 minute wait to take our dinner order. He assured us he would fire it correctly (and did). Maybe another 5-10 minutes our drinks and appetizer arrived. The drinks were great, but I was disappointed with the appetizer. The description of animal crackers is, "pork chicharrones, crispy duck skin, puffed beef, house hot sauce, lime salt", unfortunately, when the dish arrived we were informed that it was just pork and chicken. I would have preferred to know that up front so we could've ordered a different appetizer and didn't want to send it back because of how drawn-out our meal was going to be already. So we ate the animal crackers and enjoyed the chicharrones. Our mains (steak and frites and french dip, we both subbed brussel sprouts for fries) come out promptly and are delicious, if perhaps a tad salty. The server never checked on us after the mains arrived. He swung around when we had finished eating at which point we ordered another drink which only took about 5 minutes to get to us. So not sure what to think about that first round. When the bill arrived there was a 1.5% added charge, I asked our server what the charge was and he said it was for the kitchen but couldn't go into detail. This doesn't really bother me but I think it would be more professional to either let people know up front, when they receive their bill, or just inform your servers of what this goes towards so they can give a more detailed answer. Overall the food was great but the service was really lacking, we felt and joked that we must have been in the black hole of the restaurant, though we were seated at the first table next...