The concert that was not meant to be...

Back in March, we bought tickets to see Sting at Red Rocks on June 9th. He's performing with the Royal Philharmonic. They weren't great seats, but I was really excited to go.

Then our schedule for our trip out to the study Max is in at the NIH got finalized, and we decided in order to get there in time, we would need to be driving on the 9th. So I put the concert out of my mind.

Then Max got a couple of overnight stays at Children's...which almost always puts his doctors on high-alert. This means we were asked to please not travel with him right now. That meant that visiting with family was off...visiting with friends was off...but the concert was ON!

I wasn't holding my breath for the concert, as Max is still full of surprises, but he did great this week, so I was comfortable with us going. Then yesterday happened.

With Max having been in the hospital a couple of times in a week...Steve traveling to a conference...and another time for meetings this week, his work all came tumbling on top of him yesterday. He was in 11 straight hours of meetings. Around hour 8, I posted the tickets on our neighborhood email list.

The concert didn't even start until 8:00pm. And Steve was due to be up and out of here again this morning at 5:00am. Nothing was adding up to go to this concert.

A guy answered the ad, and came and purchased the tickets at the same price we paid for them...and I kept our date night scheduled. Just not out amongst the stars with the Royal Philharmonic and Sting serenading us.

My friend Susan came over to sit with Max, and Steve and I took that ticket money to one of my favorite restaurants in Denver, Table 6! It is one of those only go there once a year, special event, type places.
It's in the neighborhood I would most love to live in Denver, and just always an exceptional time!

Now, on to the menu choices...because I couldn't have hoped for better choices for me!

Starter:
Fried Green Tomatoes, with Watercress, goat cheese, and a Toasted Cumin Dressing

Main Course:
Roast Angus, with Spring Pea puree, and Roasted Vegetables

Dessert:
Fried Cheery Pie with Almond Milk Shake

(Steve had a Green Goddess Salad with the tiniest avocados I've ever seen...Striped Bass from Hawaii with a spinach/fried garbonzo beans and jalapeno mixture, and Blackberry Crumble with homemade yogurt and honey.)

I usually go for the "homey" version of meals when we're there...because they do such amazing things with what could be such a boring dish! Like on the fried green tomatoes, A sweet and sour goat cheese was spread on the long plate, with the 5 slices of fried tomato layered on top, then the peppery watercress on top of that, and the toasted cumin dressing drizzled over it all. If I were at home, I could have eaten another 15 of those fried green tomatoes...but in that sort of presentation, it was just right, and all the flavors went together so well!

The roast beef was obviously cooked in a red wine...I could tell by the flavor, so rich! The sweet spring pea puree was a nice change to the usual mashed potatoes with the dish. And what I thought were tiny baby potatoes, turned out to be tiny baby bread rolls placed around the dish! But the killer piece to this dish, was the fresh basil torn up and sprinkled around. The first bite I took with roast and basil, I thought, I can never eat roast without fresh basil again!

Then came the dessert choices. I hardly need a reason to have dessert, but when it comes to restaurants, I rarely get dessert. Except for this place! They make everything by hand...and I love to watch them prepare it. I had narrowed my choices down to three. The Chocolate Raspberry beneigts...the blackberry crumble...and the fried cherry pie with almond milk shake.
When Steve found out they would make his blackberry crumble wheat free, I decided on the cherry pie and milk shake.

Now, before you think I must have a bottomless stomach--quiet you family who know I do in fact have a bottomless stomach--the plates were all smallish, just enough to leave you ready for the next course. Which is my favorite kind of eating!!

The dessert was no exception. Our waiter brought out to piping hot miniature fried cherry turnover pies, dusted with almond flour, and a juice glass full of a milkshake made with vanilla ice-cream and amaretto flavor, with a candied black cherry on top. I demolished it! Out of this world perfect dessert!

After the meal, I told Steve that my dinner choices were all just grown up versions of my childhood favorites! And a perfect night out...even without the Royal Philharmonic and Sting. We'll catch them some other time...or not. If I've learned one thing with Max...hold very loosely to your plans! And make the most out of what those 'plans' sometimes turn into!