mmm…COFFEE! is the first (and only) Paleo restaurant in Denver, CO and I’m glad our friend Nick told us about it.
Come take a tour of mmm…COFFEE! A Paleo Bistro (video below!). We will introduce you to the owners Derek & Jami, learn about how they got started and of course take a visual tour through all they have to offer on their Paleo menu.
mmm...COFFEE!
910 Santa Fe Drive, Denver, CO 80204 (in the 910 Arts Building)
While we were in Denver attending the Authority Conference by Copyblogger Media, we rented this Mad Men style Airbnb condo with a fabulous kitchen. I had made a batch of my Carrot Origin Bars before we left home, to have some snacks available while traveling, but I was looking forward to cooking in the chef’s kitchen at the condo and also venturing out to try some Paleo friendly restaurants in Denver.
A few months before this trip we were in Austin for Paleo f(x), where I demo’d my Personal Paleo Meatloaf. While we were at Paleo f(x) I got some Denver restaurant recommendations from Juli and at one of the parties prior to the start of that conference we met Nick, who lives in Colorado. When we posted our first photo on Facebook saying that we were heading to Denver, Nick sent me a message letting me know I should check out mmm…COFFEE! A Paleo Bistro. So while Dave was working on finalizing a few projects, Jeff & I left the condo and went to check out the first Paleo restaurant in Denver!
What is a Paleo Bistro?
Bistro means small restaurant so mmm…COFFEE! is simply a small Paleo restaurant.
They are located in the art district of Denver so walking down the street as you come up to the entrance you’ll walk past many different art shops with artistic graffiti on the walls. The entrance can be a little hard to find since mmm…COFFEE! is located inside an open air area. So look for the banner below on Santa Fe and you’ll know you’re in the right place.
When we walked in we were greeted by Kat. She was the first person hired by owners Derek & Jami right after they opened. Kat was energetic, quite knowledgable about the history behind the shop and really fun to talk to, which you can see in the video below.
An Interview with Derek & Jami, Owners of mmm…COFFEE!
Kat told us her Paleo story while we were checking out the menu. She went Paleo about a year ago, currently trains at CrossFit Broadway with Juli Bauer, has completely immersed herself in the Paleo lifestyle and clearly has a love for her job!
After talking to Kat for a bit, she introduced us to Derek and we all decided to wait for Jami to arrive before we jumped in to talk all things mmm…COFFEE!
While we were waiting for Jami we decided to start by tasting the coffee. Before we left the condo I had pulled the mmm…COFFEE! website up to familiarize myself with the menu. Specifically, the details about the coffee caught my eye.
“They are the first restaurant to serve ReishiSmooth Coffee – a revolutionary process that uses Reishi mushrooms to remove the bitter and acidic compounds from green coffee beans, and impart them with the immune stimulating Beta-glucans found in the gourmet fungus.”
So I ordered a cup and asked Derek all about the mushroom coffee while Jeff ordered a cup of bulletproof coffee. Derek prepared the ReishiSmooth Coffee using the Aeropress and if you’ve never seen that done before, you can watch and listen as Derek walks through the process in the video.
mmm…COFFEE! also offers Bulletproof Coffee and we took full advantage of that fact and we even had them mix in our travel size Vital Proteins collagen we brought with us. On our first time there, we were kind of starving so beyond coffee, we also ordered a few different dishes for lunch off the menu.
The Sardines on Greens Salad was exactly what I was looking for! A huge spinach salad with red onion, capers and topped with sardines. Just like what I would make at home.
We also tried one of the Turkey Bacon Wrapped Dates. This reminded me of the mini meatloaves we tried when we were at Hu Kitchen. They are the perfect little package of protein that you can easily travel with or take to go. Jeff loved them!
Kat gave us a sample of both of the soups of the day: Ginger Root and Creamy Chicken Tomato. Typically I’m not a huge fan of ginger (although Jeff loves the stuff!) but the Ginger Root Soup was very smooth and delicious. It reminded me of my Carrot Soup in Pigskin Paleo with a more mild flavor plus a burst, thanks to the ginger.
The Ginger Root Soup is a vegetable broth based soup made from carrot, parsnips, ginger, celery and red onion which made this soup not only Paleo, but also vegetarian and vegan friendly too.
The soups change daily so these specific soups may not be available on the menu the day you arrive but I guarantee whatever’s on the menu will be just as tasty.
Calling Your Paleo Sweet Tooth!
Holy Smokes! The grain-free, gluten-free Paleo desserts available at mmm…COFFEE! are so freaking good!! If you’re reducing your sugar intake for a 21 Day Sugar Detox or something of the like, just know the sweets will definitely tempt you. :)
Derek & Jami make their own chocolate chunks and Paleo Mexican chocolate syrup (that has a hint of spice). They use their house-made chocolate syrup for mocha’s and other recipes. Derek developed the Mexican chocolate syrup “to put Hershey’s out of business”. ;)
Jami let Jeff & I try a spoon full of the syrup, on it’s own, and then mentioned that they also bottle and sell the stuff in shop! It is a honey base mixture that also includes cocoa, cinnamon, cayenne pepper, nutmeg and salt. To say it’s delicious would be an understatement. :) If you’re interested in making your morning Mocha with a Paleo chocolate sauce, I’d highly recommend you contact Derek & Jami or just stop in and pick up a bottle.
I’m a sucker for chocolate chip cookies so of course I loved the Chocolate Chunk Cookies but out of all the desserts the Paleo Granola was by far my favorite. On each stop into mmm…COFFEE! while we were in town I added a cup of granola to our order.
The last item on the naturally-sweetened dessert menu I want to talk about are the Survival Bars. These fruit-roll-up-esque bars are the perfect snack to serve in Denver, where hiking is a serious sport! I can imagine taking a few Survival Bars to go. The combination of fruit and nuts remind me of our friend Anthony’s F’n Bars. :)
Paleo Cookbook Library
For Christmas, Kat purchased a whole host of Paleo Cookbooks for Derek & Jami to fill the mmm…COFFEE! bookshelves.
Customers can browse the cookbooks while they sit and enjoy a bulletproof coffee. You’ll even find my cookbooks Pigskin Paleo and Los Paleo sitting on the shelves. :)
Head over to mmm…COFFEE! A Paleo Bistro in Denver
The next time you’re in Denver you should absolutely stop into mmm…COFFEE! and give their Paleo goodies a taste. Whether you need a morning fix of coffee (like we did every day we were in town), or maybe you want to feed your Paleo sweet tooth with a choice of their Paleo desserts or grab a quick snack or lunch to go…regardless of your reason, Derek & Jami will have you covered with a delicious Paleo option. We can’t thank them enough for their generosity and love for supporting the Paleo community! :)
Don’t forget to watch our video interview with Derek & Jami in the video above!
Are you interested in more Paleo friendly restaurants? Have a recommendation of someplace we should check out? Let us know!
mmm...COFFEE!
910 Santa Fe Drive, Denver, CO 80204 (in the 910 Arts Building)
