The Kitchen

The KitchenThe Kitchen
The KitchenThe Kitchen
Bar, Eatery

1039 Pearl St
Boulder, Colorado, 80302-5110
United States

(303) 544-5973 | map
thekitchen.com
PLACE STATS
Average:
4.28
Reviews:
7
Ratings:
14
pDev:
9.11%
View: Place Reviews
Recent ratings and reviews. | Log in to view more ratings + sorting options.
 
Rated: 4.13 by Spreetaper from New York

Sep 05, 2016
 
Rated: 4.54 by Jordantb313 from Colorado

Mar 19, 2015
 
Rated: 4.33 by eawolff99 from Minnesota

Feb 22, 2015
 
Rated: 4.5 by outoffocus from Pennsylvania

Sep 09, 2014
 
Rated: 5 by afsdan from Colorado

Aug 19, 2014
 
Rated: 4 by RickyBell from Colorado

Jul 03, 2014
 
Rated: 3.75 by GRG1313 from California

Nov 02, 2013
Photo of msubulldog25
Reviewed by msubulldog25 from Oregon

4.29/5  rDev +0.2%
vibe: 4 | quality: 4.25 | service: 4.5 | selection: 4.25 | food: 4.25
Visited June 24, 12noon - 1:30pm

We parked almost across the street; The Kitchen is located on a section of Pearl Street just west of the pedestrian mall. The exterior is an old (ca. 1900-era) storefront, painted grey, with a couple of small, umbrella-covered tables out front. Inside is aged ceramic tile in the front room, with a bar to the left, then wood flooring and exposed/weathered brick walls throughout. Comfortable, cosmopolitan vibe.

We were here for lunch on a Monday, so there was no wait - although the place was nearly full. We had skipped breakfast, so we were both pretty hungry and ordered right away some chunky hummus with grilled bread that was delicious ($8). I chose the Roast Koberstein Ranch Beef sandwich, which was piled high with meat and slathered conservatively with horseradish aioli, topped with caramelized onions. My wife chose (wisely) the asparagus/pea-laden spring penne with and added slab of salmon. She picked a wine to accompany, but I got the local Wild Woods Ponderosa Porter (terrific smoky chocolate and vanilla flavors). Later, my wife asked for and received an Affogato blending of the house vanilla gelato with a generous pour of the same Ponderosa Porter - excellent and worth a try!

For a beer geek, this place is good but probably not outstanding. I believe there were three draft choices: besides Ponderosa, I believe it was Odell Lupulin and Elevation 7437 DIPA. On the printed menu, there are about 50 more beers in bottles, divided up into manageable categories like "Barrel Aged/Wild Ales" or "Abbey Ales" or "Wheats & Blondes" or "Stefan's Picks" - many very good options, but prices vary and veer toward the high end. Check the website for what is current.

Our service was excellent, very attentive and pleasant. The young woman waiting on us (Crystallin) wished us well at the end of our lunch and hoped that we'd "say hello to Powell's Books for her" (since she's originally from Portland, where we're visiting from). Tab wound up being around $70, but food/drink quality and service made this tolerable - a "vacation" dining experience for us, or as we saw at several adjacent tables, a business expense/"mom & dad are visiting me at college and paying the check"-type of place! :)

A restaurant that deserves its fine reputation - we'd gladly return!
Jul 01, 2013
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Reviewed by StoneTSR from Colorado

3.8/5  rDev -11.2%
vibe: 4 | quality: 4 | service: 3 | selection: 4 | food: 4.5
After living in Boulder for a few months now I finally managed to get to The Kitchen [upstairs]. I had read their menu online several times before, but never got around to it. I'm glad I did.

The atmosphere was nice, but it was a bit cramped and I was not a huge fan of the backless seats after working on my feet all day long. I did, however, appreciate the light. Some people like it, others don't, but I prefer to be able to see what I am eating and drinking.

The service was not bad, although our backwaiter seemed to be more attentive and prompt than our actual waiter.

The beer menu was extensive and diverse. It included some tough to find Colorado beers and wide variety of Belgians and American Craft beers from across the country. About 50 beers on draft and bottled overall. The menu is organized by style, not by serving type.

I had three small plates and tried a few bites of my girlfriend's food. Everything I ate was very tasty. The mac & cheese was creamy and delicious, the fries were nice and garlicky and the blue cheese plate was the ideal companion to my beer.

The experience at The Kitchen is very enjoyable and the food and beer are fantastic, but the cost is on the high end, particularly the food. I would probably hang out there a lot more if a small plate of blue cheese and an order of fries didn't cost $15.
Sep 25, 2011
Photo of rhinos00
Reviewed by rhinos00 from Colorado

4.13/5  rDev -3.5%
vibe: 4 | quality: 4 | service: 4.5 | selection: 4 | food: 4
My wife and I decided to head upstairs for a drink before going to Jax's Fish House.

A- Interesting vibe. Has a nice classy, but modern feel, with the individual water pitchers and extraordinary display of hard liquors. Definitely a place where you should "dress up."

Q- After months of following the bottle list, I was pretty let down. There was not one vintage bottle and the most note worthy beer was Consecration, which was going for $35. There was a bottle from De Molen, but not too many out of the ordinary bottles. Now if we were talking liquor...holy crap! Pretty much anything you can imagine. I had the a 12 oz. bottle of Avery's Beast.

S- The bartenders were on top of it and made you feel pretty welcome. No cons here.

S- If the on-tap selection matched the bottle list, this place would definitely be a must stop destination. There were only 3 taps, one of them being Victory Hop Devil.

F- Did not get a chance to try the food, but will give them the benefit.

V- One of the major downsides to this place is the price. It is extremely expensive. This is definitely one of those places you come for a special occasion.
May 15, 2009
Photo of Floydster
Reviewed by Floydster from California

3.63/5  rDev -15.2%
vibe: 3 | quality: 4.5 | service: 3 | selection: 3.5
Last place we visited while being in Boulder, it did not open until 5 pm, so we pretty much stuck around to check it out, walked up a flight of stairs to a bar area above the Kitchen itself, they only had three taps which were Bitburger, Gordon from Oskar Blues, and Boulevard Wheat at the time, atmosphere was a little snoobish and it did not seem fitting in this cool part of Boulder, felt out of place in here, place is super clean and they have a nice selection of wines in addition to their bottled beers, bartenders came off as knowing a lot but when it came down to it, they did not, number of taps were disappointing but their bottles made up for it, would have been better if they were not so expensive, but it was expected after seeing the inside of this place, some of the highlights in the bottle were Dogfish Head 120 Minute IPA, Mikkeller Not Just Another Wit, Boulevard Sixth Glass, Left Hand Widdershins 2007 vintage, Avery Brabant, La Folie, and Russian River Consecration which was over thirty-five dollars, most expensive I had ever seen it, other than being pricey and a bit too fancy for my taste, this place was pretty cool, probably worth checking out when in the area
May 10, 2009
Photo of rowew
Reviewed by rowew from Colorado

4.33/5  rDev +1.2%
vibe: 4 | quality: 4.5 | service: 4 | selection: 4.5 | food: 4.5
Stopped in for a late drink after dinner. For a Monday night, the Kitchen upstairs was packed. Finally snagged some seats at the bar. The atmosphere is very nice. Modern, but still inviting, lots of candles and other light sources, nice seats overlooking Pearl Street. Only 3 taps, but they are Avery Old Jub, Pyraat, and Delirium Noel. The bottle list is extensive, with some great locals, lots of seasonals, and many Belgians. Everything here is pricy, but it seems worth it for what you are getting. One example I noticed was a bottle of La Folie for $24, not bad. Food is also pricy, but high quality with lots of organic and local ingredients, and many things made in house (including the olives). Don't go here expecting a cheap tab - but if you are feeling like an upscale place this has some great food and drinks to offer.
Dec 23, 2008
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Reviewed by RicoBrew from California

4.83/5  rDev +12.9%
vibe: 5 | quality: 5 | service: 4.5 | selection: 5 | food: 4.5
The Kitchen is divided into two parts. The Kitchen itself is on the bottom floor and is a very nice restaurant that serves organic or local food with a good wine and beer selection.

The other part is called The Upstairs (which is, surprisingly, above The Kitchen). I highly recommend The Upstairs to anyone who loves beer.

The Upstairs has a very warm atmosphere. They have a lot of candle sconces and non-direct lighting with a fireplace in the back corner when it's winter. The bar is nice and long, but it's almost always full to the brim. They serve non-traditional beers on tap. You won't find any Coors or Bud, but Avery or Dogfish Head seasonal beers and Chimay Red or Blue.

The seating around the bar is contemporary, with booths and simple padded chairs with no backs.

The service is very friendly and they have great knowledge of the huge beer list. If you order a 750mL bottle of a beer, they will have you sample a little bit then pour the rest; just like if you ordered a nice wine. The food here is amazing, but it's appetizer oriented.

The only drawback is the price, although for the quality of the beer list and the great food, I'd gladly pay the price.

They host beer dinners about once a month and sometimes have guest brewers from around the area talk about great food and beer pairings. I went to a beer dinner here the day before the GABF that was hosted by Adam Avery of Avery Brewing and Sam Calgione of Dogfish Head. It was a beer geek's dream.
Dec 02, 2008
Photo of jkendrick
Reviewed by jkendrick from Colorado

4.63/5  rDev +8.2%
vibe: 4 | quality: 4.5 | service: 4.5 | selection: 5 | food: 5
The Kitchen is a great Boulder restaurant and the more recent addition of the The Kitchen [Upstairs] is a beer lover's dream. With a huge selection of beers most likely topping 100, there is something for everyone and beers that are often difficult to find elsewhere. The food is outstanding and the service friendly and helpful. The only gripe would be that the vast majority of beers are only available in bottle. There are probably five beers or so on tap at any given time. I'd love to see more. Additionally they have some great beer focused events. For example, in October '08, they had their Gold Medal Beer Dinner to coincide with the GABF. From their website:

In honor of October's Great American Beer Festival, The Kitchen [Upstairs] welcomes five of the nation's most progressive breweries and their brewers, for an unforgettable night of food and beer. Named the "Brett Pack" for their unabashed love for the wild yeast strain Brettanomyces, these five brew masters Adam Avery (Avery Brewing), Rob Tod (Allagash Brewing), Sam Calagione (Dogfish Head Brewing), Tomme Arthur (Port Brewing), and Vinnie Cilurzo (Russian River Brewing) will be on hand to pour and discuss their favorite beers, most of which are rarely seen within the State of Colorado.
Dec 02, 2008
The Kitchen in Boulder, CO
Place rating: 4.28 out of 5 with 14 ratings