Washington DC Just in Time for the Cherry Blossoms – The Travel Brats
As many of you know, that I co-created the “Who Wear There” Podcast with my wonderful friend, Sofia. I love to share these resources with my followers on Thoughtful Blonde, so here’s the run down – In episode 33, The Travel Brats interview the lovely and well-rounded, Suzi, who is well versed in all things Boulder, Colorado, skiing, adventuring, breweries, and yummy places to eat. In this episode, Suzi shares her insight about making the most out of your Colorado trip by showcasing the best local eateries, CU Campus, biking and skiing hot spots, and must dos.
Travel Brats asked: “Where are we talking about today?”
Suzi said:
“Boulder is a city at the foothills of the Rocky Mountains, in northern Colorado. To the west, are the Flatirons which are craggy rock formations overlooking the city. Downtown’s is the pedestrian Pearl Street Mall which includes art galleries, cafes, restaurants and boutiques. To the north, about 45 minutes away is Rocky Mountain National Park and to the south/southeast is Golden and Denver.Fantastic skiing exits 90 minutes away with half a dozen world class ski resorts nearby.
Boulder is home to the main campus of the University of Colorado, the state’s largest university. The city frequently receives high rankings in art, health, well-being, quality of life, and education.
Boulder was a popular hippie town in the 1960s and re-invented itself as an affluent outdoorsy town, but it’s still very rooted in its hippie traditions.”
Travel Brats asked: “Who lives there? What’s the environment like?”
Today, there’s lots of organic, natural items, as well as a number of breweries, and lots of great restaurants. “I like to say all the hippies had to grow up and wanted education and outdoor recreation for their children.
Additionally, there are world class road cyclists, skiers, and climbers that call Boulder home. Both NOAA and NIST have sites in Boulder and most recently, many tech companies have moved to Boulder and even Google has a large campus in town.”
Travel Brats asked: “What are the best things to do there?”
Suzi said:
- Lots of road biking – anywhere on the Front Range as well as climbing into the mountains.
- Lots of mountain biking – generally one must go up and then come down. Single track and dirt roads.
- Lots of climbers – seek out Boulder to climb year round
- Lots of hiking – can be either flat or up the mountain. Lots of trails from Golden to Lyons.
- Climbing the Flatirons from Chautauqua http://www.protrails.com/trail/138/boulder-denver-golden-fort-collins-lyons-flatiron-1 is a favorite tourist To Do.
Travel Brats asked “ What are more things to do along with the best hikes in Boulder?
Suzi said:
- Tour of Celestial Seasonings http://www.celestialseasonings.com/visit-us/tea-tour
- Etown – NPR radio music show https://www.etown.org/
- Boulder Theater – (Art Deco theater from 1930’s) can be any show https://boulderdowntown.com/go/boulder-theater?gclid=CjwKCAjw5Kv7BRBSEiwAXGDElW339gTT1JaR8sxfRxdetjjm9klXVuN98R2PTL5iVDOE8mPRcpcfNxoCPn8QAvD_BwE
- Fox Theater – music venue – divine https://www.foxtheatre.org/
- Chautauqua Auditorium – any music or show or reading venue https://www.chautauqua.com/happenings/venues/auditorium/
- Eldorado State Canyon Park – south Boulder https://cpw.state.co.us/placestogo/Parks/eldoradocanyon
- Fiske Planetarium – on CU campus https://www.colorado.edu/fiske/
- Favorite Bookstore – Boulder Bookstore on Pearl Street https://www.boulderbookstore.net/
- Rent a bike – great bike paths, road riding, and offload riding
- Danshabe Tea House – good food & historic https://www.boulderteahouse.com/
- Farmer’s Market – Saturdays 8am-2pm and Wednesday evenings 4p-8p
- Colorado Shakespeare Festival – June-August on CU campus – 2 venues https://cupresents.org/series/shakespeare-festival/
- Boulder Museum of Contemporary Art https://bmoca.org/
- Bolder Bolder – 2nd most populous 10K on Memorial Day https://bb10k.bolderboulder.com/
- Boulder Creek Festival – Memorial Day weekend https://bouldercreekfest.com/
- Open Space Trails https://www.summitcountyco.gov/105/Open-Space-Trails
Suzi continued on to say:
“What you find in Boulder is that everybody does everything meaning most folks do hike, bike, ski, climb, and anything else outdoors. The Pearl Street Mall https://www.pearlstreetmall.com/ is a pedestrian mall that has lots of restaurants and shop. Both locals and tourists alike will be on “the mall”. The “hill” is a subsection of Boulder where the CU Boulder students congregate or hang out. Generally, most locals stay away from the “hill” since that area of town borders the CU campus.”
Travel Brats then asked the infamous question — “Where should you eat there?”
Suzi said:
“Favorite Breakfast Spots:
Walnut Cafe – on 30th – known for great pie https://www.walnutcafe.com/
The Buff – great coffee & skillets https://www.buffrestaurant.com/
Dougs Diner – awesome breakfast bowls https://www.dougsdiner.com/
Snooze – nice casual & healthy https://www.snoozeeatery.com/branches/1733/snooze-boulder/
Village Inn – typical counter diner https://www.villageinn.com
Dot’s Diner – good diner https://www.dotsdinerboulder.com
Tangerine – a bit upscale with local food http://www.tangerineeats.com
Lots of Coffee shops –
Ozo Coffee – https://ozocoffee.com
Amante – http://www.amantecoffee.com
Sole – https://www.facebook.com/caffe.sole.1/
Red Rocks – https://www.bouldercoloradousa.com/listings/red-rock-coffeehouse/2124/
Laughing Goat – https://www.thelaughinggoat.com
Tune Up in Full Cycle (Bike shop) – https://www.fullcyclebikes.com/about/the-tune-up-pg148.htm
Favorite Lunch Spots:
Le French Cafe – great lunch (crepe & salad) as well as breakfast. https://www.lefrenchcafeboulder.com
Snarf’s – great deli https://www.eatsnarfs.com
Backcountry Pizza and Taphouse – good happy hour https://www.facebook.com/Backcountrytaphouse/
Verde – Upscale Mexica https://www.verdeeatdrink.com/boulder
Favorite Dinner Spots:
Frasca – Foodie people – creative local food – Italian influence https://www.frascafoodandwine.com
Carelli’s – near Will Vill (dorm on campus) excellent traditional Italian with lots go great fish; awesome garlic toast https://carellis.com
Audrey Jane’s Pizza – carryout – to die for! Just on Diners & Drive in. https://www.thepizzagarage.com
The Kitchen & Kitchen Upstairs & Next Door – real food (Boulder, Denver, Chicago) https://www.thekitchenbistros.com/location/boulder-colorado/
Sushi: Zanmai or Japengo – Both on Pearl Street https://boulderdowntown.com/go/sushi-zanmaihttps://boulderjapango.com
Jax – Oyster Bar – a few in other CO cities https://www.jaxfishhouse.com/boulder/
The Cork – Old school steak house; great happy hour https://bouldercork.com
Favorite Breweries:
Avery Brewery – https://www.averybrewing.com
Gunbarrel – https://www.gunbarrelcenter.com
Upslope – both in town – snacks only – empanadas & soft pretzels https://www.upslopebrewing.com
Southern Sun and Mountain Sun – great beer, burgers, salads, buritto, nachos, & wings. Love the Colorado Kind (AMERICAN E.S.B 6.2% ABV) http://www.mountainsunpub.com/contact.htm
Twisted Pine – good appetizers – pizza https://twistedpinebrewing.com
Oskar Blues Taproom – on Pearl Street. Solid! https://www.oskarblues.com/location/boulder-co-oskar-blues-taproom/?gclid=EAIaIQobChMI5K3JsImC7AIVieDICh3XrAuNEAAYASAAEgIuAfD_BwE
For more information on Boulder, listen to our podcast! Enjoy
After boxing yesterday, my mom and I wanted to try something new for lunch. We wanted to be healthy, but we were also ready to devour some delicious food.
thoughtfulblondesite.wordpress.com 