Shazz Cafe and Bar

I love supporting businesses that strive to sell organic and local ingredients, but I must say that Shazz Café was a bit of a disappointment. Even for organic, the prices here seem pretty steep. And despite using such high quality product, the food was relatively unmemorable.
The fact that the restaurant was completely empty on a Sunday evening, and remained that way throughout the duration of our meal, might back up the issues I have addressed above. I can’t say the service brought any high points to the experience either, as we felt a bit ignored despite being the only table in the restaurant.
I ordered the beet gnocchi with duck confit. Good size for a half order. The gnocchi was well prepared, but the dish in general was a little greasy. Would’ve been nice to add a vegetable or an acid to cut through the fattiness. My friend ordered the polenta dumplings, which were deliciously crispy on the outside and just a tad gooey in the middle. The meal was well prepared and had a lot of fresh ingredients, but I felt the flavor was lacking in pretty much every dish we tried.
With most fine dining experiences, I try to find that one signature dish which is the highlight of the meal and keeps me coming back for more. But nothing stood out to me at Shazz Café, and there are just too many good restaurants in Denver to give this one a second chance.

Wow, what can I say? I read some reviews of this place before while we were there and I should have just left, but we had a groupon so we stayed.
The décor was… different, to say the least. At night the walls and tables looked orange but I was told they’re actually red. There is metal art work on the walls of some trees and a couple of doors hanging in the middle of the room, against one wall was an old looking cabinet/​shelf that looked out of place but then everything looked out of place.
When we arrived we had just missed the dinner rush (according to our waitress). So we had to stand and wait for someone to clean off a table. I though she was going to do it but instead she walked into the back for a few minutes. the bartender who was busy with two customers came over and looked at us but said nothing. Finally after about (literally) 10 min. the original waitress came out and wiped off a table. Then the bartender came over and sat us after a few minutes more. By now I am pretty irritated.
There were about three other couples there, and as I said two people at the bar and only one waitress. As it seemed the other three couples were already eating I felt the waitress should not have been too busy to help us. Apparently I was wrong. It took her another 5 min. to bring us water and ask what else we wanted to drink. I ordered some sort of tequila drink that was weak and my wife ordered wine.
When the waitress came back she informed us that they were out of about half of the menu. I was getting more and more irritated. I ordered the Duck meatballs and my wife had some soup. the meatballs were good but not enough, especially for the price. My wife said the soup was good as well.
Because they were out of most of the menu and we don’t eat pork there was not much selection for us so we were unable to eat anything else. It was just as well since our service was so slow we would probably still be waiting for our entrée.
So there you have it, our service was slow and bad, they were out of food, the décor was odd and to top it off our table candle died out. so they took one from another table and that one died out. My wife and I laughed and took another one from a different table and that too died out; but we noticed the other tables that had customers also had burning candles.
This was not a good experience.

their spring menu is fanastic. grilled artichokes & fried capers, flatbread, sunchoke soup all delicious and the chicken– with some kind of mustard sauce, apple risotto, and veggies, was *fantastic.*
Quality of the wines by the glass are well above what you find at most places.
Overall — can’t recommend this place enough.

I have been to Shazz three times now, ordered different dishes each time, and would not hesitate to rate everything I have eaten there a ¹⁰⁄₁₀. They have an unimposing one page menu that changes four times a year (I think), and in spite of being comparatively short, it offers richly-​diverse choices. Shazz has unique seasonal and local fare, so you can always potentially try something unlike anything you have ever had. The menu always features several vegetarian and pescatarian dishes, enticing appetizers, and wholesome seasonal soups and salads. My only reservation about Shazz is that their drinks are overpriced. That said, they have an exceptional drink menu to compliment their dinner menu. Also, in spite of being in not the most charming part of town, the ambience and service make for a great dining experience.
In sum, unique, satisfying, charming, and worth the price.

With the exception of the rather over-​chewy sourdough bread, everything we ordered had fantastic, layered flavor and beautiful presentation. The server was quite knowledgeable about the menu and the wine list. The sea scallops appetizer was amazing, as were the two pasta dishes our table ordered: beet gnocchi and chicken tagliarelli. The pasta can be ordered as a half-​order ($ 9) or full order ($ 18). After a nice appetizer, I opted for the half-​order and it was plenty for me. Others at our table had the pork chop and raved about it. Everything in the restaurant is organic, with the majority of ingredients sourced locally. That may account for the prices that are not on the low side. It’s a shame this place isn’t more widely known.

Also courtesy of Living Social, I purchased a voucher for Shazz Café. Trusting the Unilocal reviews which seemed to give the restaurant a solid 3 stars, I gave it a shot.
I ended up using the voucher the day before it expired. I found the reservation system (OpenTable) very simple to use and the restaurant was expecting me upon arrival.
I had wonderful service with a slightly hippy-​dressed server, which was fine, but quite entertaining for me. I had a drink from the drinks menu, which was just ok. I wasn’t bowled over by it. I really enjoyed my meal, which I decided upon the buttercup squash gnocchi with chicken.
While awaiting my food, I was served a side of bread with a trio of butters. the most interesting of the three was oxtail butter, which I would have never tried, if given the choice, but it was actually pretty good. Once the pasta came out, I was in heaven.
I can never resist a good dessert menu and the restaurant had my favorite (crème brûlée) and I opted for the chai tea crème brûlée with black tea cookies. It was absolutely amazing. I can never get enough of crème brûlée and the addition of chai tea was inspired.
Overall, it was a great restaurant. It is a little spendy, but good. I definitely recommend this place.

Yes, the prices are steep. But, this is a nice restaurant with very unique fare. So, you get what you pay for.
I had a Groupon about to expire, so some friends and I invaded the bar on a Friday night. Our bartender was a very sweet girl that just laughed along with all of our strange jokes. The other patron at the bar even chimed in occasionally. Everyone was really nice and fun.
The oxtail butter is… different. But, I never would have tried something like that, had I not come to Shazz. We got a flat bread pizza that was quite good and the sausages & peppers were fantastic. But, the highlight of our evening was the local, organic, peach brandy from the Palisades. Mmmmmm!
We got a little sticker shock when we got our bill, but all agreed that we had a great time and great experience here. I will definitely be back.

So if Unilocal gave half stars I would give this place 3.5. Even with rounding the 3.5 to 4 I just couldn’t.
Came here last week with my friend pretty late, around 8:30PM. It was their second year anniversary so they were closing the restaurant down at 10PM for a «dance party». Ok, fine. So we sat at the bar.
We ordered drinks, which took a little to make. No big deal, she was a busy bartender with other drinks to pour. Took our order and the app, which was bread too FOREVER. I mean literally 20mins for the smallest loaf I’ve seen in my life. Food was really good. Nothing I would totally rave and send people back to, but it’s nice to try.
I don’t know what it was. The atmosphere just wasn’t really me, which I guess affected the food. Like I said, the food is good and I’ll possibly be back to give it one more shot.

On Sunday, I had a Brunch reservation for 11:30. I showed up at 11:30 and after a few moments, a waitress said she would be right with us. There were plenty of open tables inside and out.
We watched the waitress clear tables, make coffee and other beverages, wait on other tables. After standing up front for 15 minutes and being completely ignored and passed by several times — WE WALKED OUT.
This place is fairly new. I live in the Highlands neighborhood. I will tell all of my neighbors not to bother.
In this economy, service should be the last thing I am dissatisfied with!

Where do I start with this culinary train-​wreck??? My boyfriend and I decided to try out a new restaurant he had looked up. We made reservations on a Friday night last minute which I should have taken as a sign that this place may be questionable.
We arrived and were seated amidst a interior-​decorating nightmare. Mismatched to the max I shrugged off the aesthetics and focused my attention to the menu. As I took hold of my water for a sip, I was surprised that it was ROOM-temperature…nice. The waitress proceeded to give us some sour-​dough bread and two kinds of butter to snack on while waiting for our meal. Wow, this bread was BOTH undercooked AND hard as a rock. My throat ached as I tried to swallow this garbage. The scallop ceviche appetizer managed to lack the tang and citrus hallmark of any decent ceviche dish. My entrée (gnocchi) was overly sauced with what tasted like a cheap can of tomatoes. Needless to say… I wasn’t going to add insult to injury with a dessert since my stomach had been punished enough for one night. A return trip in the future… I think NOT.

FIVE stars all the way! We loved this place, i can’t believe it wasn’t more busy!
I love how all of the food is based in colorado (except the seafood)
The staff was knowledgable and kind.
we did have trouble getting someone to answer the phone when confirming reservations however.

I think it’s time for me to finally review Shazz. I don’t understand why this place isn’t busier. They just started serving brunch and have a super cute outdoor patio and the brunch menu is simple but awesome. I had the B.L.A.T.E.C sandwich. house cured bacon, leaf lettuce, avocado, heirloom tomato, fried eggs, white cheddar, sourdough YUM!
It’s a little on the expensive side for dinner but right on par with everything else in Denver for brunch. And according to their website, they support all local suppliers for their menu and when they go out of CO it’s all «from at least 1000» miles away. Ok good effort Shazz. And delicious food! Still need to try dessert here…

What a splendid surprise! Shazz is a thoughtful small diningroom and bar in a former storefront. The service is friendly and efficient, and the food is a revelation. The standout in my meal was the Steak Tartare with Duck Egg. Every flavor was balanced, fresh and totally indulgent. I also ordered the Beet Salad, which lived up to every rave posted. Finally, I had the Vegetable Napoleon, which arrived with a salad of finely julienned Haricots Verts tossed in olive oil and perfectly salted. The only thing I missed was the Strawberry Rhubarb Pie — while all of the other dessert offerings were tempting, I was mentally set for a slice of SRP, because fellow Unilocalers are so crazy about it.
A diner nearby ordered Lamb Chops, but tonight Braised Lamb Shank had been substituted. I asked her how it was and she replied, «Heavenly.» I almost couldn’t stand the aroma, it was so tempting. Some friends came in and had a Pizzette for appetizer, and said it was the best pizza they have had… and they are not coy when it comes to criticizing food.
Thanks for a wonderful dining experience with top of the trade foods! Shazz is definitely on my list of restaurants to recommend.

We went to Shazz recently during Happy Hour and were seated immediately. When we asked, we were told that happy hour prices don’t apply in the «dining room», so we had to sit in the bar, 15 feet away. Okay — a bit strange for a place so small, but I guess I understand wanting to keep the happy hour patrons out of the «dining room «on a busy night.
Once we were re-​seated, we ordered a few happy hour appetizers and drinks from the very friendly bartender. No complaints here — the apps were delicious and the drinks are great. Shazz has a number of interesting looking cocktails on the menu — the two that we tried were both well mixed and tasty.
For dinner I ordered the special, which was a soft shell crab dish. It was well cooked and very flavorful. Again, no complaints with the food. The bill was a bit pricey in my opinion, but not too outrageous, especially since we had some happy hour drinks and entrees.
Bottom Line, the food and service are great. Eating here is a bit pricey, but not terrible. We will definitely be back for happy hour to try out some of the other cocktails.

I love the idea of this restaurant! I love the drinks! And I love the atmosphere.
Shazz has a wonderful idea and concept and they are getting close to fulfilling that vision but they fall short in a few areas. The atmosphere is comfortable and not too pretentious. The bar area is adorable. The cocktails are fantastic and many of the liquors are local. Try the vodka martini (I can’t remember the name) because it is divine! The Honey is also delicious if you like a sweeter drink. I was very disappointed in their wine by the glass options. If you are going to tout being a local consumer — you should offer wine by the glass that is at least grown in the states. They have a few bottles from wineries in the states but nothing by the glass. Please add that to the menu!
As for the food — thank you for trying to be a local consumer! I love the idea of supporting local farmers and having farm fresh ingredients. I was surprised to see asparagus as one of the sides to my dinner since I don’t think that is currently in season in CO but I did notice they only had a couple of spears and filled the rest in with summer squash (which is more more in season now). My mean with the vegetarian grilled tempeh with fennel salad. The tempeh and the marinated was perfect! So good! The rest of the dish was so so. The oranges didn’t have any flavor so they didn’t help balance out the fennel. The fennel salad could have used something… not sure what… to mix the whole dish together.
My boyfriend had the chicken spinach fetticini. He raved how good it was but it was definitely lacking in size. The menu lists a full and half size serving. The full is $ 18 the half $ 9. I am not sure what the half looks like but the full probably only had about 3 noodles in it. Seriously — it was the smallest full portion I have ever seen and I am not one of those folks who expects or even likes gigantic portions like those rumored to be served at Cheesecake Café (which I refuse to go to for that reason and others…).
One amazing piece of food was the sourdough breadstick and the cherry infused butter — seriously amazing! If Shazz could put that type of flavor in the fennel salad — I would be hooked. The beet infused butter is beautiful to look at but lacking flavor.
Would I go back — definitely for cocktails with my girlfriends on a low key night. Would I pay that much for okay food or small portions — no.

I’m a perennial restaurant visitor. I am intrigued and like anyone else hoping for excellence and delight in each bite.
I like to cook and enjoy the process and eventual plating. But I know how my food will come out – I like eating other people’s prepared food because there is always the promise of something new. I like to see how the admixture of ingredients yields a final dish. I also like attention to detail because I think that signifies a love for the preparation and a love for food.
Shazz is one of these hidden gems you never expect to find; long to find and when you do find a place like this you think about everything that encompasses that visit. Don’t judge a book by it’s cover – isn’t that the case with most things? It’s all about the content. My years of restaurant jaunts and sojourns has taught me to look for gems in hidden and the most unexpected places.
My cousin and I arrive for dinner and we were asked if we had a reservation and we did not. They were booked for the evening but were very gracious and we were seated outside.
I reviewed at the wine list– small and well edited. I asked for a splash of the Nero d’Avola – while I enjoyed it – I wanted something more definitive. I saw a Counoise on the menu but unfortunately they had sold out. Then I spotted the Bodegas Ateca Atteca Calatayud Old Vine Garnacha 2007 which was the right selection – it can be hard to bring together a wine that can bring together and enhance the food enjoyment experience and this wine certainly accomplished the tall order of diverse flavors that we ordered.
We started dinner with the Spanish Tapas plate – Tortilla Española, olives, almonds, Manchego cheese and Sardines. A beautiful presentation. Though all restaurants should have excellent presentation this is not always the standard fare. The presentation was a promising start prior to plates one and two. Just the right portions – I want a lot of little flavors – loved the Sardines. We also had warmed flatbread spears with two butters; chive and garlic and almond and honey.
The first plates were a Cauliflower soup; a cream soup with a sweetness of corn, yellow and white Cauliflower on top, drizzle of olive oil; I have had many cauliflower soups but this was so well composed that I will try to recreate – not sure if I can match this excellent soup. The next plate was a roasted red and golden beet salad; long flat rings of red beets and delightful earthy golden beet cubes, local greens and Fontina cheese. Like the combined beets – one uptakes the sweet (red) and the golden stitches together earthiness.
We then had an intermezzo of Strawberry Granita; fresh strawberry-​slightly floral and a perfect palate cleanser.
The second plates were a Gnocchi with the singular most beautiful poached egg I have ever seen. Gnocchi is a tough dish to convincingly prepare and present. It can be made but the more important question can it be served? This Gnocchi was in the must serve category — the lardons and wild mushroom complemented the slightly sweet caramelized notes.
I was excited to see softshell crab on the menu – I always hope it is going to be delightful and then I ask questions later. I got not just one but two softshell crabs! Each perfectly cooked not oily and the flavor of each crab came through– delicate, fresh and with a pleasant brininess. This was served with Risotto and Swiss Chard — an excellent accompaniment – some sweet and definite earthiness with the Swiss Chard.
We both wanted room for dessert but had no additional room – I think back and somehow should have made room — if everything we had was superbly prepared I am sure the finish would have been a delight.
The service was gracious and extremely nice and a fountain of knowledge that is approachable and friendly. I love these experiences. And as much as I dine out I don’t always have these memorable dinners. I do find that I savor and remember these meals for a long time. So many things to recall and I truly enjoyed the simple and gentle touches – it shows me a love for the art they do.

Another amazing dinner at Shazz.
Superb house-​made paté in a 3 layer slice; 1 layer of goat (!), one of chicken, and one of duck; served with homemade flat bread, this dish rocked. My honey’s beet and goat cheese salad was served with one of the finest dressing’s ever constructed. Simply but perfectly made of olive oil, lemon and dill. Who woulda thought anything with those plain 3 ingredients could taste so incredibly good?
Our entrees were as wonderful as the first course: a humongous pork chop perfectly grilled medium rare and served with wild rice, fiddlehead ferns (another «!»), and butternut squash, with an orange and fennel top garnish, was so good because you could savour the organic freshness and deep taste of each of the separate ingredients, but the blend of them together brought the dish over the edge of sublime. My baby absolutely loved her soft shelled crabs, again, simply, but elegantly sauteed, and served over the most unusual, and fantastic apple risotto. (Ever had apple risotto? Me neither. Wow, was it good).
Finished dinner with a fresh rhubarb and strawberry tart (not too sweet; not too sour; just friggin’ right:) and a cappuccino, and couldn’t have been more pleased.
So here’s my worry: All 3 times we’ve been there in the last few months, the place has been lightly used. People need to start going to Shazz. It’s as good as Table’s or Fruition, but it still seems to be somewhat undiscovered. Check ‘em out. You’re gonna love their food.

Shazz was restaurant three in a series of three for Denver Retaurant Week and probably the most underwhelming of the three.
It was, by all means, not a bad restaurant — their philosophy of sourcing ingredients from less than 1,000 miles away is certainly commendable — but there are other restaurants doing similar things that I would pick over this one… like Potager or Root Down.
They started us off with some bread with spreads. This actually made me and my friend giggle. The little loaf of bread was itty bitty! I’m not one to condone filling up on bread before a meal, but this was seriously about three inches long and maybe an inch in diameter. On the plus side, you could really taste the spreads thanks to the bread to spread ratio.
I went for mussels and brussels as my starter and my friend got the fried hallumi cheese. Both were small but tasty. There were two small pieces of grilled bread in my mussels that satiated my bread craving, but no real discernable pieces of brussel. The broth was delicious and the mussels were nice and plump.
As for entrees, I was debating between the vegetarian cassoulet and the prawn with risotto dish and went for the cassoulet (I’ve felt a cold coming on all week and opted for something warm and hearty). I regretted my decision when I saw a prawn dish go out and then received my small bowl of beans, mushrooms, and squash. It didn’t taste bad, but nothing really popped. There was some creamy truffled sauce on it, but I really don’t think that sauce with truffle oil is more tasty or flavorful than anything else. It’s just more expensive.
We got one of each of the dessert and my favorite was the orange flavored one… it was a tart crust topped with some orange custardy stuff with a dollop of cream. Very refreshing finish! The other dessert was a hazelnut cake which was a bit too hazelnutty and not enough other stuff for my taste.
Fortunately, the courses were so staggered that we felt full after everything, even though it was all so small. However, there are about a dozen other restaurants in Denver that immediately come to mind that are the same price with similar sorts of menu items, but the food has much more of a WOW factor. I really wanted to love Shazz, but I probably wouldn’t go back on a normal night.

Shazz must not be on many people’s radar for a great night and food. Denver, you should try this place out. Try it, you will like it.
We went on a Saturday, it is just not right for a place this good and different to have so many empty tables on a Saturday night. The food was really good. In particular the dish that I had, the lamb pumpkin gnocchi was outstanding. Don’t let the odd combination of lamb and pumpkin fool you. This was a really good meal for about 20 dollars.
There is one downside to the place, and that is that an initial glacé as driving past it looks like it could be a laundromat. In fact I had to slam on the brakes and make a hard right when I almost passed it. The passenger in my car almost landed in my lap. But, there it was near the corner of 44^th and Lowell.
The chef buys all of his food product from Colorado Farmers and Ranchers. For everyone that wants to support the Buy Local Buy Green movement… Shazz is the place.
I hear that this location was once the original location of Parisi’s. So Shazz has some big shoes to fill, but this customer thinks that they will make it into their second year for some more great dinners.

I thought this place rocked. For one thing, we could walk right in on a Saturday night — good for us — maybe not so good for them.
The staff could not have been more delightful from the welcome at the front desk, to our very lovely lady server, to the very smart and efficient wine guy — all excellent. The owner/​chef even came out to check on us — very nice.
OK — so here it is. The place is plain — a former U-​tote-​Em (or however you spell it). It’s pretty much unchanged. A little paint here — a few old doors hanging there. You’re here for the food, not the ambiance. Maybe nicer when you could sit outdoors.
As I said, It is really about the food and wine and both are very good and totally professionally served. We started with a shared fried halloumi cheese with heirloom tomatoes, lemon juice, and caper berries ($ 8). We were starving after being turned away at LoHi, Squeaky Bean, and Duo. So much for trying to eat out on a Saturday night. Anyway, the cheese lasted all of 30 seconds while we enjoyed perfectly prepared cocktails including my somewhat obscure request for Lillet blanc — no problem.
Did we need another appetizer — well, duh? One half order of pumpkin gnocchi with lamb ragu and broccoli rabe and asiago — oh my god. And, my lady friends’ pizzeta and butternut squash soup. Both very nice. Starters run around $ 8.
Entrees thoroughly enjoyed — grilled NY strip with wild shrooms, swiss chard and truffled leaks, Walleye pike with different squashes and fava beans, and seared ahi with peach risotto, mascarpone cheese and watercress salad. All in the $ 25-​$ 30 range. The pike and the steak were flawless — the Ahi was basically raw — if that’s how you like it, cool but too raw for moi. The pike was a little bland but it’s my fault for not reading the menu more carefully because it was obviously not going to be spicy.
Two incredible wines. They only had one bottle of the first we ordered (very good Italian but quite dry and tannic at first tasting but perfect after decanted) and a second which was a little more accessible California which probably should have come first but that’s not the fault of the wine steward since he didn’t know we were lushes and we’d drink two bottles.
Only one of us had room for dessert but it looked amazing — a lemon verbena custardy thing that I totally would have destroyed if I had an ounce of room.
All things considered — a really lovely, peaceful evening considering the mayhem that we were turned away from. No more dinners out on the weekends with all of the amateurs.
If you’ve never tried Shazz — you really should. The food is top notch and the service very accommodating. It’s not cheap for a little neighborhood spot but I think you’ll find their commitment to fresh, organic products and careful attention to preparation admirable.