Zac Rates Colorado: Day Two

Recently, Lara and I spent a few days in Colorado for a belated honeymoon. Using Denver as our base of operations, we took in plenty from that city as well as from Boulder and Colorado Springs. Here is the good, the bad, and everything in between.

History Colorado Center

 

Located at 1200 Broadway, the History Colorado Center offers several floors of interactive exhibits that highlight various aspects of Colorado’s history from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. daily. Admission for children is free during the summer, and special exhibits rotate regularly.

With a few obvious exceptions (i.e. the Smithsonian), a good history museum can be hard to come by. Some are staid halls of lifeless artifacts that command reverence but little attention. Others take a lights and sounds approach to draw visitors – particularly younger visitors – in at the expense of educational value. The History Colorado Center thankfully strikes a middle ground, and offers a few surprises as well.

As other reviews noted, there is definitely a family-oriented vibe here. Kid friendly kitsch such as milking a faux cow or sitting in an antique car may evoke eyerolls from well-traveled adults, but History Colorado has plenty more to offer. Authentic old-timey tools and provisions, for instance, give some insight into daily life decades ago. Impressively, the museum does not try to sugarcoat the state’s past. Colorado’s Klan influence, Japanese internment camps, and brutal mining conditions can all be witnessed here.

During our visit, the exhibits on the upper floors – Awkward Family Photos and By Their Hats, Horses, and Homes, We Shall Know Them showcased some intriguingly candid photography. In addition to several truly cringe-worthy shots, the former had a gaudy family sofa straight out of the 70s.

Although not as deep as some museums, History Colorado offers a good variety of exhibits at a reasonable ($12 for adults) price and is well worth a stop.

8/10

Quijote's Broadway

Located at 1043 North Broadway, Quijote’s offers juices, smoothies, burritos, and Mexican fare from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. Monday through Saturday. Catering is available.

Don’t let the rundown location or the sports bar interior fool you: Quijote’s offers some seriously tasty food. The menu features the usual suspects (fajitas, tacos, enchiladas, burritos) as well as an above-average selection of non-alcoholic drink. I went with a smothered (with green chili) carnitas burrito and a horchata while Lara tried the cochinita (marinated pork) burrito. Both burritos were large, fully stuffed, and well-seasoned, the meats were not dried out, and even the requisite accompanying tortilla chips had a nice lime zest.

Neither service nor pricing left any room for complaint. Food arrived and drinks were refilled quickly and our server was helpful. The burritos ($8.25 + $1.75 more for a smothered) were a good value given the quantity, and a $2.75 horchata with free refills is tough to beat.

There are plenty of places to get Mexican in the Denver area, but Quijote’s has the right combination of food and pricing to really stand out.

8.5/10

ink! Coffee Company

Located at 618 16^th Street (with other locations in and around Denver), ink! sells coffee drinks, smoothies, salads, and sandwiches. The establishment purchases sustainable coffee beans from Brazil and roasts them in Aspen.

With at least four Starbucks and two Caribou Coffee locations, the 16^th Street Mall does not lack coffee options. ink! offers a semi-local alternative. It’s a comfortable café with a good view of the street and friendly baristas. Moreover, the blended beverages are superior to national chain offerings. A White Caramel was exactly the refreshing jolt I needed to get through a busy day.

That said, prices here are steep. The blended beverages only come in one size – large – and cost $6-plus. If you want really good local coffee, ink! is worth checking out. But for day-to-day purposes, it is too expensive to be feasible.

7.75/10

Denver Art Museum

Located at 100 West 14^th Avenue, the Denver Art Museum spans two buildings and contains collections from around the world. Special exhibitions rotate. The museum is free for children and is closed on Mondays.

It isn’t the Met, but the Denver Art Museum is fairly eclectic and expansive in its own right (so much so that we lacked the time and energy to explore half of what was here). Amid the museum’s eleven floors (four in the Hamilton Building, seven in the North Building), visitors can take in everything from American Western to Pre-Columbian and American Indian to Contemporary collections. Though some subjects will hold more interest than others, the exhibitions cover a wide range as well. During our visit, they included abstract expressionism, dance, and contemporary chairs.

Given its size and scope, the price charged for admission ($10 for Colorado resident adults and $13 for out-of-staters) seemed plenty reasonable. That said, well-traveled visitors may be disappointed by the lack of marquee pieces, and we found the museum’s layout confusing. Better signage would help, but the Hamilton building’s angular design imposes its own limitations.

The Denver Art Museum may not rank among the country’s best, but given the diversity of the collection here, it would be a DAM shame to pass it by.

8/10

Bonus Tip: Denver Central Library

This isn't a full review, but if you should happen to visit either of the two aforementioned museums, the library, which is located nearby, is worth a look as well. The seven-floor structure includes its own art gallery and idea lab as well as lots and lots of books.