It’s a new year. So bring on the new flavors.
Here are some of the best new restaurants recently opened in Boulder County that you want to make sure you try in 2018.
Brickstones
Brickstones Kitchen & Bar opened inside the new Embassy Suites by Hilton & Hilton Garden Inn. As the name implies, this restaurant specializes in wood-fired food, specifically delicious flatbreads, which you can order with local brew and cocktails.
Brickstones is a full-service kitchen and bar that serves lunch and dinner. (Guests at the hotel get a separate complimentary breakfast every morning.)
In addition to flatbreads, the casual menu here features burgers and other bar food.
The Embassy Suites in Boulder offers Boulder’s only saline-based, heated rooftop pool, plus more than 1,500 pieces of art, more than 300 rooms and Boulder’s biggest ballroom.
Next Door, Longmont
Next Door is a restaurant staple in Boulder, and it now has a Longmont branch, at the Village at the Peaks mall. It opened this fall, complete with a bar, outdoor patio, mountain views and capacity for 130.
This is the fifth Next Door location in the state.
Next Door is all about “real food” made by local farms and raised by local farmers. Not just for the diners but also for the planet. Next Door uses wind power, eco-friendly packaging and more. It serves casual American food: the comfort meals that you crave, as well as healthy options and gluten-free spins.
Looking for inspiration? Start with grilled broccolini in sriracha aioli and sesame seeds. For something healthy, try the wild-caught Alaskan salmon bowl, with Tuscan kale, beets, quinoa and lemon. If you need something more filling, Next Door serves delicious burgers. The flagship burger is made with cremini mushrooms, Swiss cheese and balsamic onions.
Next Door offers daily specials, too, like Baja fish tacos on Tuesdays and lamb Philly on Thursday.
The Kitchen Restaurant Group runs the Next Door restaurants.
Emmerson
Everyone’s talking about Emmerson, a new restaurant on the Pearl Street Mall.
Emmerson is a foodie superstar line-up. The chef and co-owner Michael Gibney is a well-known author of “Sou Chef: 24 Hours on the Line.” (In case you missed it, Time magazine named that book one of the best nonfiction books in 2014.) The pastry chef, Jeb Breakell, worked at some of New York’s top restaurants.
Then there is beverage director Ben Foote, who’s a bit of a local celeb, with experience at Blackbelly and Jax. And general manager Tre Gerbitz, who worked at Brasserie Ten Ten and the Med, two more of Boulder’s fave restaurants.
The cast at Emmerson is on fire. And the food shows it.
The restaurant, a self-proclaimed “neo-bistro,” features a spread of styles, from Asian to Euro to America. You’ll find locally influenced options, some pretty innovative stuff (dry-aged lamb tartare with togarashi, furikake and xo aioli), some quite refined for a relaxed town like Boulder (like Osetra caviar).
For the perfect date night dinner, try the dry-aged ribeye for two, served with onion brulee, Jerusalem artichoke and yuzu kosha.
The Post Brewing Co.
The Post Brewing Co. is now open in downtown Boulder — another new Pearl Street restaurant.
Here, you can fill your belly with award-winning gluten-free fried chicken and roasted bird, beer and pies.
Enjoy your birds with farm-fresh veggies and salads or dive deeper into indulgence with richer options like a chicken pot pie, hand-carved prime rib and chicken and waffles (with maple pumpkin seed butter, country gravy and cherry chutney).
The restaurant itself is relaxed and comfy, centered around a brewery. Naturally, the drinks here include Post’s own beer creations. You can grab lighter bar fare, too, as well as cocktails and wine.
Post also serves brunch, Boulder’s fave meal of the day. No regular omelets and pancakes here. Just hash, chicken fried steak, biscuits, mmm. Try the Southern Spank: fried breast, cheesy grits, collard greens, pork shoulder, smoked tomato and an over-easy egg.
Ooh La La at Night
OK, this isn’t exactly a new restaurant, but it’s a new offering at Jill’s Restaurant, inside the St. Julien hotel. Ooh La La at night is a new vegan tasting dinner that’s offered every Monday night. The menu changes every week and includes a glass of wine. This special vegan meal is $29.95 per person.
Vegans may also enjoy the Vegan Friday lunch service every week, which also changes (but that’s not a new menu item).
