Eating Good in the Denver Neighborhood

The following is a post sponsored by Silk. For our sponsored post policy, click here.
Of all of the places in the U.S., one of my favorite areas of all-time is Colorado. From Estes Park to Boulder to the big city of Denver itself, I love it. The people are friendly and active, the exercise options are endless, and they’re known for really good food and drink. Plus, a bunch of hippies/granola-types are there (my fave!), so asking for their gluten-free menu or requesting a vegan substitute is more normal than it is head-scratching. I’ve already recounted a lot of what I did during my recent trip to Colorado for Silk, but I haven’t yet shared much on what I ate. And, guys, I ate super well.
I flew out to Denver in the morning and fueled up with my usual green smoothie (kale, strawberries, blueberries, coconut milk and protein powder) and a cup of coffee. On the flight, I munched on a handful of almonds and a big ol’ ruby red grapefruit that I’d packed from home, plus gobs of water. (I always splurge on Fiji Water when I travel — a weird quirk of mine.)
Despite the short flight, once I landed, I was starving. I met up with some of the other Silk bloggers who were also feeling a bit hungry and thirsty, so we all dropped by Crema coffeehouse. This place was too cool for school. And, probably, a touch too cool for me.

I ordered a big ol’ iced tea.

And then gazed at the awesomeness that was this chandelier and funky ceiling.

After our caffeinated pit stop (the best kind!), we headed to WhiteWave Foods (WWF) HQ, the home of Silk, Horizon Organic and many other companies, in Broomfield, Co. Set just outside of Boulder with a backdrop of the Rocky Mountains (GOD, I love the mountains), I kind of fell in love. So much so that getting a guest badge to WWF was pretty dang exciting to me. Exciting enough to take a photo.

After geeking out and getting checked in, all of us bloggers settled in for lunch with the nice peeps from Silk. I loaded up on salad, roasted veggies and grilled salmon. Super yummy.

After learning more about how Silk is made (Did you have any idea that one carton of Silk uses 77 percent less water than producing one carton of conventional U.S. dairy milk? And that all Silk products are non-GMO? True story!) and giving our thoughts on trends in healthy eating, fitness and blogging, we headed out for a hike at the Marshall Mesa Trailhead. It was warm and nice and sunny, so I sunscreened up (Neutrogena, of course). So pretty!

The trail had just the right amount of incline — a little so that you felt like you were going up, but not so much that those of us (me!) who weren’t acclimated were feeling the effects of the altitude. On the hike, I got to know all of the other awesome and talented Silk bloggers. From left: Run Eat Repeat, Carrots ‘N’ Cake, Oatmeal After Spinning, Rebecca Scritchfield, Cook Like a Dad, Skinny Mom, me and Sharon Palmer. Great group!

After the hike we hydrated with some water — and tried the Silk Mocha Iced Latte. GUYS. This stuff is delicious enough to make me angry. Rich, creamy, chocolaty and with just the right amount of coffee kick, it is delicious after a workout. Or, who am I kidding, any time.

A quick trip back to the hotel, a shower and we were all ready to go again — this time out to dinner! The Silk team took us to Salt Bistro in Boulder. It was perfection.

Fresh and using only local and seasonal ingredients, you know I was sooo digging the farm-to-table concept. I was also digging the custom Silkology Strawberry Mint Slush that they had for us. (Blend all until smooth or shake well and strain: 1 cup Silk Pure Almond Unsweetened Original, 1 cup fresh strawberries, 2 mint leaves, 2 tbsp agave, 1 tbsp lime juice , ½ cup ice, 1 oz tequila.) Sounds like an odd combo, but it’s super refreshing and perfect for summer.

I shared some apps with the group. Here’s my little plate of tasting this and that — a lot on the menu was gluten-free, which rocked.

As a next course, I had the Warm Roasted Organic Beet Salad — I forgot to take a photo, but it was heavenly and fueled my beet obsession yet again. It was followed by this masterpiece: the Seven-Hour Braised Flatiron. Lordy, lordy, it was sooo tender and flavorful. And made even better with a nice glass of red wine.

For dessert, I couldn’t resist the g-free beignet. I mean, how could you? It was kind of like a jelly donut — a super fancy jelly donut.

After that, it was back to the hotel with full bellies! I slept like a baby. A well-fed baby.
Love the Boulder and Denver area like I do? What places should I check out when I visit next? (Because, um, I’m sooo going back.) —Jenn