END OF DENVER: TAG BURGER BAR.

ohmygosh, these are the blurriest photos i have ever posted on the blog. not this one, or even the next one, but around photo four you are going to feel like i took these at warp speed.

too bad for your viewing pleasure. but, i still wanted to share, because this was a great meal with even better friends.

i had been to tag burger once during lunch with my favorite coworkers. it was quiet and the service and food were amazing. i thought i had found a little undercover gem. suffice to say i was a bit surprised when we walked in last week and it was bumping. advice to denver people that want to eat there for dinner: make a reservation.

our waitress was awesome! i got the cocktail she recommended - the black rose, a blueberry/prosecco mixture - and the burger she said was her favorite - the colorado proud. i loved both very much.

duck fat fries. addictive.

and because, when in rome, deep fried oreos with nutella topping! they were as bad/good as they sound.

aand, apparently it only took one drink for me to get the blurs! but, look who it is: andy and anna!

tag burger bar: a great choice for our last night in the mile-high city.

ON SAYING GOODBYE.

there is a lady at work who arrives the same time i do every day. she gets dropped off right in front of the building by her husband. each morning they have the same routine: kiss in the car, hug, she gets out and says "i love you" while gathering her things, then she stands and waves goodbye with her hand in the air until he is out of the parking lot.

i mean, i am very into baker, but my first thought was "geeez lady, give it a rest!" i have watched them do their morning routine for months. then one morning she was being dropped off by what looked to be her mother. she hugged her, said "i love you" and then proceeded to wave until her mom drove out of sight. i was so taken by this that i waited to walk in with her and said with a laugh, "you are very passionate about your goodbyes!"

her response: "you never know when it may be the last time you see someone."

today is my last day of work. i had my last prsa committee meeting a week ago. the final cocktail club hung out earlier in january.

it is very strange to leave a city where you have no roots. with nashville we knew we'd be back. but, we won't even have lived in denver for 365 days. it is like 2012 is this weird lost year. so much happened and we built an incredible life here. but, now it's over.

so, when i say goodbye today, i hold it in my heart that it's not goodbye forever, but just for now. thanks for everything, denver.

colorado sunset watercolor.

END OF DENVER: LINGER.

linger is one of the hottest denver restaurants right now. so hot, in fact, that you can't even get a reservation. typically when a place gets that big, it has to be overrated. so, i wasn't interested in rushing there, until i knew we were moving. then, i knew we had to try it before we left.

the earliest reservation we could get in the weeks before we head to seattle was at 8 p.m. i'm not going to lie, i am sometimes in bed by that hour. but for the amazingness that we had heard linger is, we took the 8:00 reservation. by the time they brought out the complimentary ranch popcorn, i knew we had made the right decision. {popcorn is a top 10 favorite food for me.}

check out our coat check ticket: lucky number 13! i got "the rum diary", which was fantastic. i hate sweet drinks, so this was perfect. it's a mix of liquor with some lemon bitters.

linger is known for small plates. we basically ordered one of everything, so prepare yourself for food photos. these were the sweet potato fries with chipotle ketchup, which were wonderful. we couldn't even finish the serving.

scallops with acorn squash. i'm not a fan of squash, but b really loved it.

felafel! coincidentally enough, the last time i ate felafel was in seattle in 2009. this was incredible - one of my favorite bites of food from the evening.

 

saving the best for last: mongolian bbq duck bun. i haven't had a desire to have duck since eating it for the first time in china, but this was mind blowing. just, so perfect. sigh. i could eat a million of these mini buns right now.

linger: housed in an old mortuary and killing it with their food.

END OF DENVER: PEAK'S LOUNGE

this weekend we got to check something i've had on my denver to-do list for a long time: peak's lounge.

the bar is ranked as one of the best places to see the sun set in the city. here's the view when we first arrived, around 4 p.m.

pear martini, a house specialty, for moi and a dark beer, per usual, for b.

pretty sky, just 30 minutes later.

this good-looking man. dressed up in christmas presents from his momma.

dessert splurge. a lemon meringue, a guinness with caramel and a maple with chocolate-covered bacon. 

goodnight beautiful city.