I aim to give each more attention, but briefly, since I've moved here, I've been more than a little surprised at Fort Collins' eating options. (Maybe it was low expectations?) But anyway, here's some of the (brief) highlights of my month and half so far:
Sushi: Jeju.
If you skip the dons and stick to sushi, you'll find some really fresh & tasty fish-- sushi that doesn't just hold up in the bush league "Northern Colorado Sushi" category, but holds up, period. We went for lunch, when they had some $1 sushi specials that made the meal extraordinarily cheap. Everything was of excellent quality, and the place was packed.
Barbecue: Hog Wild
The name is just terrible, but this was the surprise of the month. Real, wood-smoked barbecue, from a very small (6 table?) operation located in a short industrial corridor, with the smoker & wood piles sitting out front. I can only recommend the ribs and the cowboy beans (slaw and cornbread were fine, but nothing special), but I'm looking forward to going back, and recommending more. Ribs come sauceless.
Ethiopian: Nyala
Admittedly, I've really only had
bad Ethiopian once-- in Cambridge, MA-- but still, this stands among the upper ranks of the Ethiopian I've tried, up there with Ethiopian Diamond. The menu was a little more extensive than seems to be typical. We tried an Ethiopian pilsner beer, Harar, which I didn't much care for as a beer, but was fond enough of the label to bring home and use as a bud vase:
West Indian: 2mayto2mato
Sporting another terrible name, this place is probably the most improbable restaurant in all of Fort Collins, CO-- basically a lunch counter, minus the seats, that sells delicious homemade rotis & other Trinidadian standards. It appears to be an outgrowth of a salsa/chutney business. The roti bread was flaky and delicious, the filling generous and spicy-sweet. When I was there, just before closing time (2:00 PM on Saturday), the only person working was the owner, who took my order, disappeared into the back for five or six minutes, and then emerged with my lunch.
Also of special mention is the Charco Broiler, a top-of-the-line 1965 steak house, beautifully preserved. I have a feeling the food is really pretty good; they cut their own fries, and bake their own bread, two good signs. But the steak sandwich I had on my one visit-- fine, but not great-- just didn't seem like a fair sampling, so I'll hold off on offering opinions. But I can say unequivocally that the decor in its several, separate, cavernous rooms is worth the price of a steak, for sure. The parking lot is packed with SUVs and pickup trucks, every night. The only picture I took that came out was of the CHARCO BROILER sign, by the road:
There seems to be a lot of crap in Fort Collins, too, but so far, I've had really good luck. More to come, hopefully.
Jeju Restaurant
238 S College Ave
Fort Collins, CO 80524
(970) 416-7733
http://www.sushijeju.com
Hog Wild BBQ
223 S Link Ln
Fort Collins, CO 80524
(970) 493-6029
http://www.hogwildcolorado.com
Nyala Ethiopian Cuisine
2900 Harvard St # A
Fort Collins, CO 80525
(970) 223-6734
http://www.nyalafc.com
2mayto2mato
Scotch Pines Village
2601 S. Lemay, #3
Fort Collins, CO 80525
(970) 282-6944
http://2mayto2mato.com
Charco Broiler
1716 E Mulberry St
Fort Collins, CO 80524
(970) 482-1472
http://www.charcobroiler.com