The 9th Door Capitol Hill — Restaurant in Denver

I had always told myself I would never write a bad review as I know the service industry is a hard business to be in and I know people are more generally inclined to write a negative review over positive, but my experience at 9th door was completely unacceptable.

There was a situation that occurred during our dinner, where customers claimed they had paid with a $100 bill and blamed the server for losing such bill. Based off of the conversation and aggressiveness of the customer, I think everyone else in the restaurant would agree that the customer probably didn't actually pay and they were trying to get away with a free dinner, but that's besides the point. What happened after such customer left was the issue. After the customer left, the chef - which was also the manager and possible owner, started screaming, swearing, throwing objects around and creating an extremely uncomfortable experience for everyone in the restaurant.The server involved in the issue was sent home, before being publicly fired in front of everyone. After being fired, the chef continued to yell, swear and talk down on the server and the customers that pulled this on the restaurant. The remaining customers in the restaurant expressed to each other how uncomfortable they were. One group even requested their food to be prepared and packaged up so they could leave. The restaurant ultimately ended up closing early, sending away potential customers that walked in.

The chef had every right to be upset about this situation. In the food service industry this is unfortunately bound to happen. What should have happened is the chef should have cut his losses, learned from the experience, and moved on. What happened was public shaming for all staff, losing potential customers walking through the door and any returning customers who witnessed this go down. I can't support a company who treats their employees like this chef treated his staff. Chef, the gentlemen you fired tonight is a great server, very friendly, informative and helpful. Without employees like him, you would have no restaurant. Your food was creative and tasty. You have what it takes to have a successful restaurant, but instead of all the staff - whom you yelled at because "they always have to ruin it for you" and "you never get to go home early", it was you who ultimately ruined everyone's evening and hundreds of dollars worth of...

Unfortunately, this restaurant is definitively my favorite restaurant ever and I don't even live in Denver or CO. We were visiting Denver last week and accidentally came across the 9th Door while looking for a place to get dinner and it was the best accident one could ask for. Food and service were so great we went 2 nights in a row.

First night we went for Tapas Tuesday (select tapas for $7 all night) and we ordered like 6 out of 9 of the items on that menu and another 4 items from the regular menu. We were super impressed with each and every dish. They were all delicious and exciting with unique flavor combinations. We loved it all so much we couldn't pick any favorites. My boyfriend who typically doesn't like dates or salmon liked the stuffed dates and smoked salmon dishes we ordered. We also tried all 4 desserts and they were delicious 🤤.

The service was top notch! We had Jaime, Zach and David and each one was absolutely lovely. They made sure to explain each dish they brought out. When they had the time, they seemed genuinely happy to make the time to chat with us a bit. They were all so lovely that I didn't even realize all the many times they refilled our water.

We closed down the place our first night and had the opportunity to pay our compliments directly to the chef/owner, Brian. Brian was friendly and sweet. He made sure to check on me when we came the next night as I was recovering from a recent surgery. We really appreciated that he took time to share his background and culinary take on his menu.

This is the longest review I've ever written, but I can't recommend this place enough. Thank you Brian and team for making our trip to Denver...

Dang I toggled between four and five stars for some time because it’s just a hair below five stars but they are definitely doing lots of things correct here. Service is warm and inviting with a natural flow, they seem to always be there when you need them but never annoyingly there.

Now I feel I need to explain why I think they are a hair below 5 stars because it’s an extremely personally reason that may have no consequence for your enjoyment. Basically there were some dishes ordered that had copious amounts of well layered powerfully delicious sauce. I wanted to enjoy every last drop! This required more than the two pieces of bread provided with the dish. So we order more bread, 2 pieces came out… personally I wanted a loaf but 4-6 would have propelled them to clear 5 star status. As I said, this is a small detail for many but boarders on sinful for me.

Happy hr ends an hr before what is listed on the website at the time of writing this and is only at the bar or at the high tops in front of the bar. While the look of this restaurant may be more on the bar end my child was welcomed and catered to with the same warm hospitality mentioned at the beginning of my review.

Cocktails are extrema well crafted and have many hard to find Spanish liquors utilized that pair wonderfully...