Chop Shop Casual Urban Eatery — Restaurant in Englewood

This review is going back at least 2-3 years, after dozens and dozens and dozens of orders I have made since that time. So, 2-3 years ago, I would have given 5 stars, hands down. I ordered several times per week. The food was very consistently great and high quality. Over the past year or so though, it has taken a total nose dive downhill, and it appears the quality of meat and ingredients they order for their food has changed. Also seems like the staff/cooks have just stopped caring as well. I will go over some examples: -The chop shop burger used to be amazing....perfectly cooked (medium) with a little bit of pink in the middle. These days, it is way overcooked (very well-done) and just sloppily put together. One time recently the burger patty was straight up burnt on one side. -The 48 hour slow cooked short ribs used to be one of the best meals you could order in the state of colorado. The meat was SOOOO tender, and would be nice and pink and cut into nice clean thin strips. It would seriously just melt in your mouth and was soooo delicious. But........The meat they use for this meal has changed over the last year or so though. Now, these days, it has to be sourced elsewhere, and they serve big thick chunks of beef that have tons of inedible chunks of fat....there is no pink at all its just dark thick nasty chunks. Half of the pieces seem to be end pieces (as opposed to center cut pieces) that are dry and tough. Not only that, but they decreased the amount of potatoes and added more vegetables (used to be just a few carrots) and now it seems like half of the entire portion is just veggies. It is so disappointing to see the quality of this meal decrease so drastically. They must have changed the meat they use for this, and buy cheaper cuts of meat for this…..yet they are still charging the same amount of money to customers. I would be ashamed if I was serving what they serve now compared to 2-3 years ago. -The crispy fried chicken meal has changed, specifically the chicken that is used. It used to be 2 round pieces of nice big/thick fresh chicken. Now, it is 3 smaller and totally flat pieces of chicken that seem like its been in the freezer too long. The batter/crispy coating used to be nice and thick and crunchy, but now it is just a thin layer. The consistency of the polenta is very inconsistent. Sometimes its watery and sometimes its thick. The honey that comes with it has remained really good though, so I will give it that. -The loaded whipped potatoes used to be AMAZING. However, the last time I ordered this, not only did they not put any of the crispy onion straws in there, they straight up just jammed a BAKED POTATO (without the skin) in there and tried to disguise it as whipped potatoes. They didn’t even bother trying to stir it up or anything, just jammed the potato in the cup and dumped the other ingredients on top. -The service has gone downhill too. For example, there was a time recently where I ordered the 48 hour short ribs, and instead of putting the 3 peppercorn hoisin demi glace, they put some other kind of disgusting asian sauce on there that was totally different, to try and disguise it as the normal sauce. They cut corners and half-ass things all the time, and just seem to not care or be very professional anymore. I’m not sure if the owner/management has changed in the last couple of years, but I would bet that it has, because it is just not the same restaurant it used to be. I used to describe this place as “Michelen star worthy fast food”, but over the past year or so I would say this place would most likely be a great candidate to be on that show Kitchen Nightmares. I think we would all be appalled if we could actually see what has gone on behind the scenes over the last year or so. Very sad to see my favorite restaurant in Colorado become so poorly run. It still gets 2 stars because, it's better than Burger King and places like that. But obviously that isn't saying much. If the prices were cut in half, it would be more reasonable and I might give it another star. Never...

We ate at Chop Shop, Casual Urban Eatery on South Broadway for lunch over the weekend. Chop Shop is one of Denver's premier chef driven fast casual/quick serve restaurants and has three locations - South Broadway, East Colfax and Quebec St.

We arrived at Chop Shop South Broadway, ordered our food and sat at a booth in the main dining room. The aesthetic of the restaurant was lively & fun with a vibrant Chop Shop mural on the wall & a huge patio. Clint Wangsnes, Owner and Executive Chef at Chop Shop gave us stellar recommendations and ensured our meal ran smoothly. Manager Alisson assisted Clint & both were active on the restaurant floor throughout our visit.

I started off the meal with a Lemon Berry Froze. This vodka cocktail was tart on the tongue with the cooling taste of citrusy lemon & sweet berries.

For Specialties we had the Sirloin French Dip, 48 Hour Slow-Cooked Short Rib, & the Grilled Achiote Salmon Filet.

The Sirloin French Dip was made with House Roasted Top Sirloin, Horseradish Aioli, Provolone, Pan Dripping Au Jus, & a Toasted French Roll. This is a new sandwich on the Chop Shop Menu. OH MY GOSH. Even just thinking of this Sirloin French Dip has my mouthwatering - it was phenomenal. The French Dip was stacked with all the best elements of a sandwich: thick slices of succulent top sirloin, melty provolone cheese & flavor packed au jus. The crusty French roll absorbed the savory au jus with each dip making for the juiciest bites. The creamy horseradish aioli added a subtle spice to the sandwich. A must order!

For a side we had the Crispy Brussels Sprouts made with Nuoc Cham & Ginger Dill Yogurt. The Crispy Brussels Sprouts were fabulous - they were tender little orbs with crisp exteriors and a mildly sweet, nutty taste. Their lightly crunchy exteriors complemented the creamy dill yogurt that topped them.

The 48 Hour Slow-Cooked Short Rib was made with Grilled Baby Carrots, Whipped Potatoes, Crispy Pickled Onions, & 3 Peppercorn Hoisin Demi-Glace. The Short Rib made for fork-tender, beefy bites. The short rib had a deep, meaty flavor and was served over fluffy whipped potatoes. The potatoes had a velvety mouthfeel against the chew of the meat. The fried pickled onions added nice crunch while the grilled carrots added a delicate snap.

The Grilled Achiote Salmon Filet was made with Teriyaki Glaze, Sautéed Mixed Vegetables, Steamed Jasmine Rice, & Furikake. The sweet salmon flaked easily and had a warm, tangy Teriyaki flavor. The mixed vegetables were fresh and added bright color to this specialty dish.

The Southwestern Chop Salad was made with Mixed Greens, Tomato, Roasted Corn, Black Beans, Green Onion, Cilantro, Crispy Tortilla, Shredded Cheese, & Chipotle Buttermilk Vinaigrette. This was a fresh and flavorful salad tossed in a deliciously, creamy Chipotle Buttermilk Vinaigrette that was...

This place is usually pretty good. I’ve tried most entrees (that don’t have bacon) and they always have a unique flavor that is great in concept.

Unfortunately I’ve had quite a few misses from here too. For one the burger is not so great. It’s similar to Larkburger in concept but the execution is nowhere near as good. This most recent visit asked for medium well and got a charred patty on the outside, but on the inside it was medium well on one half and medium rare on the other. The bun was stale/dry as well. If you want this kind of burger I’d highly recommend Larkburger instead, with the exception of the veggie burger. Chop Shop’s veggie burger is very good and there’s nothing like anywhere else I know of.

Another time I ordered achiote salmon and it had way too much glaze. The Mediterranean grilled chicken was very tasty and I’ll probably order it again. Brussels Sprouts are very good and the parmesan fries are great. Chicken pastrami was also very good. I’ve had a few other things that are no longer on the menu like the bistro filet which were also really good.

I definitely recommend trying Chop Shop, but I do feel like having been there so many times that the quality might be slipping and because they change up the menu some of my absolute favorites are gone so I never know what to order. On the one hand I look forward to trying new things but I also miss the consistency and knowing what I’m going to get. I really miss the bistro filet, that was one of the best things...