A View of Denver from an Almost Native

Denver is slowly changing from the Cowtown image of not too long ago to a city that has professional sports teams for all major sports and a city that even warrants an appearance by Luciano Pavarotti. If you are looking for a part of town that constantly has something going on, visit the 16th Street Mall in downtown Denver. There are some of the city's best restaurants, a few street musicians, perhaps a Rockies game (if you pick the right day), or a variety of upscale shops to suit almost any tatse.

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The Capitol Hill Mansion is a renovated home built in 1891 that is now a beautiful bed and breakfast inn. The furnishings throughout the Mansion are antique and there is even a huge, beautiful stained glass window off the stairwell.

I stayed in the Bluebell Suite, which has a king-size bed and an enclosed porch off the room. The style of the comforter and wallpaper was a clean, contemporary Laura Ashley pattern. Parking is off-street or behind the inn and all rooms are equipped with private showers and/or baths. All of the rooms are unique and some of the pricier suites are equipped with hot tubs. The hosts couldn''t have been friendlier when we stayed there. We decided to order a pizza for dinner and required utensils and plates, they were happy to provide us with whatever we needed.

In the morning, they serve a buffet style breakfast of muffins, fruits, bagels, hot items, etc.

We were some of the last guests to leave and we asked if we could look around at the other rooms, they were happy to oblige. Though we weren''t able to view the Gold Banner room (the most expensive suite), a friend recently stayed in that suite an highly recommended it as well.

The Mansion is located very close to downtown Denver in the Capitol Hill neighborhood. This is the perfect place for a romantic evening treat.

Yanni's is a family-owned restaurant that you would probably drive by without a second glance since it is located within a strip mall and the view from Monaco is obstructed by Wendy's and other fast-food eateries.

The first thing you will notice as you approach, is the lamb grilling on the spit on the front patio of the resturant. This is almost always one of the specialty dishes that is not on the menu. If you visit on a weekend night, I would recommend reservations any time after 6:00 PM. The clientele mainly consists of locals and quite a few of them seem to know Yanni.

Invariably, Yanni will approach your table at least once or twice during your meal with a complimentary shot glass of Ouzo for each diner and instruct you on the official Greek toast, "Opa!"

The wait staff is friendly and always ready to recommend a nice wine to accompany your meal. Another dish that I highly recommend if it is on the menu for the night is the lamb medallions. They are always cooked perfectly and are probably my favorite dish at Yanni's.

If there is still any room after your main course, try the homemade baklava ice cream. It consists of vanilla bean ice cream with small pieces of baklava mixed in. It is heavenly.

The atmosphere is relaxing, the wait staff friendly and helpful, the food unique and tasty, and the prices are reasonable. What more could you ask for?

Casa Bonita is a great place to take visitors, especially those with children. The food is nothing to rave about, but there is enough "atmosphere" to take your mind off of the less-than-spectacular cusine.

As the name implies, this is a Mexican resturant, and if you're hungry, you can choose one of the all-you-can-eat menu selections. Casa Bonita has indoor cliff divers, strolling mariachi bands, and even Black Bart's cave.

Black Bart's cave is a great diversion for the kids after you've eaten dinner while watching the divers and Mexican dancers for some rather unusual dining entertainment. The cave has fairly low ceilings, which makes it perfect for the kids, and it quite dark just as a cave should be. When we took my nephews to visit, they couldn't get enough of the cave and I ended up chaperoning them through it about three times. So, it can definitely be fun for adults as well.

It is impossible to get bored as you walk through the immense restaurant. There are theme dining rooms such as the Palace Room (lavishly decorated for a king), the Mine Shaft (harkening back to the old mining days in Colorado with mining lanterns to dine by), and even the Vineyards Room (grape vineyards, of course).

It is almost impossible to see it all in one visit and not have your senses become overloaded. There is a puppet show, a gift shop, and even more that I have failed to mention here. Take the family and enjoy Casa Bonita!

When I used to live downtown, I visited Racine's at least a couple of times a month for dinner. Now that I live out in the suburbs, I don't get downtown as often and my visits are less frequent. However, I was able to enjoy dinner at Racine's about a month ago and was pleased to see that nothing had changed.

Racine's is a very relaxed restaurant where you can find people from all age groups and numerous young, hip Denverites donned in black leather jackets. The menu is your standard American fare, but the servers are friendly and the food is better than chain restaurant food. I usually order either the fajitas (these come with white cheddar as opposed to plain cheddar) or the roast chicken.

Don't plan on getting in and out of Racine's quickly since there is often a line and the atmosphere is rather relaxed. Their breakfast menu is wonderful, but the waiting list is usually longer than I would like. They serve an Eggs Benedict Florentine that is mouth-watering and always perfect for those who like hollandaise and spinach.

Though Nicolo's Pizza does not have seating and is about 20 miles from where I live, I will happily drive to pick up their pizza. Nicolo's is located in the Capitol Hill area on about 13th and Pearl. I'm not sure how long they have been in business, but it has been over 10 years.

I have ordered their standard crust pizzas, but this is not what I recommend. Those are fine, but the best item on their menu is the stuffed pizza. This is the pizza that sets them apart. The stuffed pizza is 9-inches in diameter, but it is about three inches high. Choose your toppings and then they will cover the top with mozzarella. One pizza makes a filling meal for two adults. If I ever move out of Denver, this is one place I will miss. It's the best! The stuffed pizza is always consistent, always heavenly.

I have never been to a more picturesque venue to attend a rock concert than Red Rocks Ampitheatre. Granted, most of my concert experience is limited to Colorado and Iowa, but I expect this place to remain an all-time favorite.

The name Red Rocks comes from nature's own reddish sandstone rocks. The open-air ampitheatre is about 15 minutes outside of Denver and is open during the summer for rock, classical, and jazz concerts. I have attended more than a dozen concerts here and am awed by the beauty of the rock formations as well as the city skyline whenever I have found myself lucky enough to visit this venue.

Since 1947, there has also been an annual Easter sunrise service. Though I have never attended, I have heard from others that it is an inspiring location for this type of service.

Like I said, I have attended numerous rock concerts, one of them being the U2 concert that was filmed and titled, "Under a Blood Red Sky." The rain drizzled that night, the winds kept us shivering, but we stayed through the final encore. It was a truly unforgettable concert, my first at Red Rocks, that allowed me to fully appreciate the acoustics created by the rock formations.

I don't attend many concerts these days, but would choose one at Red Rocks in a heartbeat if an artist I wanted to see was playing there.