Rioja — Restaurant in Denver

Visited here during the week to celebrate a birthday. I’m not really familiar with a lot of downtown restaurants so I had to go based off of reviews. After making reservations at 3 different restaurants, I finally settle upon Rioja. I took a look at their menu beforehand to make sure my dinner guest had choices I knew they would most likely pick and enjoy. I liked the fact that they had pasta choices and from the pictures the ambience looked romantic which is what I wanted. We arrived at 7 for 715 reservations, got seated quickly. We were seated rather close to this other party of 4, the place was not crowded so not sure why we were seated there. I did not like being seated by this gentleman who was way too close. I felt like we couldn’t have an intimate conversation because we were that close. Our waiter came and introduced himself, which I would give his service a 7/10..he was very bland at times which made it seem like we were either a bother or he had a long day..I wanted to try a different drink after ordering but changed my mind because I felt like the least interaction the better. The drinks were good, I had wine and my guest had a warm rum cocktail. We ordered the Amish Chicken and the Tortelloni…I was disappointed when the pasta dish arrived because it was literally 4-5 tortelloni’s and I expected a bit more. I ended up having to share my chicken with my dinner guest because he was still hungry. My chicken was tender and the mashed potatoes were great but a very small dollop of course. I ordered the Rioja house salad which was a mistake, I could not even eat it..I offered some to my guest and he even refused. I was not satisfied with the food at all…I carefully planned this dinner and I was discouraged after every bite. Then we were offered bread, had a choice of lavender sourdough, which tasted if I were to squirt some soap into my mouth and chew a piece of bread right after. It was just disappointment after disappointment…I guess I ordered the wrong thing which was something my palette did not agree with. I ended up letting my partner take my Amish chicken home with him. He said he liked the food, but felt like he was just saying that cause he knew how much I wanted him to enjoy. Lastly the dessert menu came, based off the already poor experience I was very hesitant to try anything else. I caved in and got the blackberry ice cream on top of a cookie. The sorbet was EXTREMELY sweet, it tasted like I ate out of a smuckers jelly jar. It was good but needed help eating it cause it was way too sweet…the cookie I was expecting it to be a bit soft but it was really hard and crispy.. I really wanted to have an enjoyable experience especially after reading all the positive reviews but it was nothing I enjoyed…not even my partners food. I wish I had a better experience maybe I need to try another dish but that won’t happen because I will not be back. Our bill totaled $121 and we still left a generous tip. I felt like I wasted my time and money and my partner a poor birthday dinner which really sucks more...

My husband was in Denver for a conference, and I later came up to join him for the weekend. He had already gone to Rioja earlier in the week, and had such a wonderful experience that he made sure to take me again once I was in town.

We had such a good time that unfortunately I only took photos at the beginning and end of our food journey!

Before you even start, you are brought a tray of fresh, home-made bread to choose from. I definitely recommend trying more than one! You can definitely do this, just ask the server. They are happy to give you two. There was a lavender one that was interesting (I'm used to smelling it, not eating it!) and another one, that I can't remember, but it's C-shaped and has seasoning on top... you can see in the picture of our appetizer. Delicious!

To start, we ordered the foie gras torchon, with porcini funnel cake and apple-beet chutney. Really lovely presentation, really interesting and balanced taste when eaten all together!

I ordered the artichoke tortelloni as an entree - hand made pasta with artichoke mousse, white truffle brodo, queso de mano, and chervil. My husband had it the first time he came, and told me that I had to have it as he knew I'd love it. He knows me well... IT WAS AMAZING!! If you come for one dish, this is the one. I can't sing enough praises for it. My only complaint is that I wish the portion was bigger. Apparently he had ordered it as an appetizer course and it came with 4 pieces. The entree size was about 6. I understand wanting to leave the diner wanting more... but just 2 more pieces! That would have left me wanting more but not feeling unsatisfied.

I honestly can't remember what my husband ordered... I was so in love with my pasta, lol.

For dessert, we ordered the beignets and the chocolate peanut butter tort (pictured)

beignets, sweet goat cheese and black mission fig filled pastries, ruby port wine reduction.

chocolate peanut butter tort, flourless chocolate cake, peanut butter ganache, salted caramel, dulce de leche ice cream

The beignets were wonderful! Warm... freshly soft... and sweet (but not too sweet!). The chocolate peanut butter tort was also delicious, but the beignets won me over.

At the end, they brought a sugared mint leaf. To our surprise, when I bit into this, I discovered I didn't taste anything. My husband was in shock, because it was apparently incredibly minty. I was sick with a cough at the time, and I guess this severely diminished my taste buds!

So... to me, that just spoke even more highly of this place... if I - with my limited taste - was already so in love with the food, I can only imagine how good it must actually taste when you have all of your taste buds! lollll

I wish I could have a redo! :(

Definitely one to have on the top of your list if you're...

I absolutely love this place and it is my husband and I's go-to for anniversaries, birthdays, etc. However, after this past service, I will probably re-think this as my go-to. When we walked in, we were coldly greeted by the man standing at the front; he actually didn't say anything as we approached, I told him hello and that we had reservations & the name. He grabbed menus and took us to the table. Once my husband and I sit down in a restaurant, I like to place my jacket & purse and then immediately go to the restroom to wash my hands. Right as I was getting up, the waitress approached and said, "Sit down." I actually was taken aback and waited for the laughter from her, which if any, was too small to hear. I'm the type of person that jokes consistently & is probably joke with unbridled sarcasm myself. But this actually just felt rude and set the tone for the pretty terrible service. After she finished, she said, "Now you can get up." Perhaps it was just her demeanor that made it seem more cold than she meant to. However, during our entire meal, I felt that the waitress could not have been more uninterested & inattentive. My husband and I watched every single table be greeted with, "Welcome to Rioja," and served an amuse bouche; we were never given one or welcomed. I honestly look forward to them, because they have always been a bite of heaven & I love the creative aspirations behind them. I didn't bother to inform our waitress, because, again, we got the, "Don't care" vibe from her at every turn. Things we asked for also, didn't get delivered or ignored. We were asked if we wanted more bread, which we said we'd love because we are in love with the lavender bread; it never came. Our food also seemed to take an extremely long time; we sat there for over 2 hours for 3 appetizers, 2 entrees, & a dessert. I will say, my husband ordered the short ribs and they were to die-for. I ordered the sausage stuffed quail and was equally as happy. The dessert was by far my favorite, so hats off to the chef! I watched a drunk man talk to the chefs & get more respect than I felt we got. I work in customer service & have worked throughout this pandemic with travelers; I know how hard it's been for businesses, which is why I felt honored to give my business to Rioja because it's one of my favorites & I always recommend it. However, I will go back to Bistro Vendome as my only go-to for special occasions, as this last experience has left an extremely bitter taste...