Derecho — Restaurant in Denver

Hit-and-miss...3 stars at best due to inconsistent cuisine and service.

I've been to Derecho twice in the last couple of weeks and have had very inconsistent experiences.

Let's start with the good - the wine list is Spain- and/or Old World-centric, which is awesome. Spanish varietals don't get enough publicity in America.

Moving on...the service is intermittent, depending on staffing levels vs. diner density. They're good when you have their attention, but food can be delivered "out of order" with the wine that should be the accompaniment or they're just "busy" handling multiple floors of table at once.

The food is...stellar to "I could have gotten the same thing for much less money elsewhere."

Seriously, when it's good, it's very good - the Tuna Crudo tonight was really special. The meatballs that are part of the regular menu were pedestrian, at best. The 3 meats plate (can't remember the name) is very good - the artichoke with parmesan special was a "palate bomb" - too much salt, too many strong flavors that can be gotten at cheaper restaurants.

I think Derecho is finding its feet, or can't decide if it's trying to appeal to diners with nuanced palates, or "typical Americans" who dine at Chili's. Cherry Creek could use a stellar, pure-play tapas restaurant with Old World quality and passion but Derecho...

No longer open to the public, and the business at best is negligent for not advertising it, and at worst purposefully does so to create an exclusive atmosphere. Was hoping to check it out with my partner given the good reviews however, there were many red flags ahead of time. Business website displays a broken instagram link and a message saying space is available to reserve privately, on top of that, on three different occasions no one picked up their phone while they were open. We arrived at the venue to only to be turned away after driving through town to find it’s ONLY available for private events. Host was courteous to apologize and say they would speak to the owner, but ultimately it seemed to serve as a front to steer customers to Machete (owned by the same person, per host) downstairs. Last experience at Machete was disappointing, especially for the price, so we elected to window shop another good bar...

I am way behind in posting this review, but we tried this little gem out a few weeks ago. It was spectacular. Service was fantastic, but the food.....I can't say it was for sure a religious experience, but I'll be damned if it wasn't close. We had a charcuterie board, the burrata, the meatballs, and the polenta with braised lamb. If we weren't out in public, I would have licked my plate. One person in our group had a cocktail and said it was perfect, and their blackberry mocktail was so refreshing. We also had the torte de santiago for dessert. Who knew olive oil cake could be delicious?! Only thing I wasn't 100% in love with was the volume of music. Even at a small table it was difficult to have a conversation. Regardless, I'm still absolutely going to be returning. Make a trip here- it's without question...