Chow Morso Osteria
Ready to #Chow down readers? Let's do it.
denv.her was V excited to be invited to dine at Chow Morso Osteria - an Italian Eatery located in downtown Denver off of Wynkoop. Chow Morso is owned and operated by the owner of Barolo Grill, Ryan Fletter, so we knew we were in for a good meal!
Chow Morso Osteria:
CHOW(N.)[CHOU]: An especially hearty dish or a meal
MORSO (N.)[MƆRSO] : A bite
OSTERIA (N.) ÄSTƏˈRĒƏ/: An Italian restaurant, typically serving simple food and wine
Chow Morso is a hip place to eat with a social atmosphere in an upscale, casual setting. The Chow Morso staff embodies the hip social scene vibe & was wonderful throughout our entire meal.
General Manager, John Horan, was a gracious addition to our dinner and made sure we knew important details about the restaurant. Our waiter, Ara DeCamillis, was too much fun and had some on point recommendations for our drink and food choices. He also had the coolest mustache we've seen in a hot second!
For appetizers, we started with the GNOCCO FRITTO and the CARPACCIO di SALMONE.
The GNOCCO FRITTO - savory focaccia puff pastries served with thinly sliced prosciutto and horseradish crema = SO tasty. Cristine and I #LOVED these bad boys.
The focaccia pastry is a nice rotund, fluffy piece of dough - but don't let it's size fool you - this pastry is thin and light as air! The prosciutto and horseradish crema paired great with the nutty & chewy flavor of the focaccia. This appetizer was incredibly original and had great taste to match - nice work Chow Morso!
The CARPACCIO di SALMONE - house-cured salmon, fried capers, potato crisps + citrus dill crème fraîche is the perfect light, spring appetizer.
The paper thin, melt in your mouth pieces of salmon were presented beautifully and were deliciously fresh. Then add in the flavor combinations of the capers, crisps, and crème fraîche and you have some solid flava-flav explosions going on!
10/10, would recommend both of these apps - will certainly order both again upon our return!
Cristine and I enjoyed some of Chow Morso's fun cocktails while eating our apps - she went with an olive oil martini and I went with a fruity lemon, gin option with an edible flower garnish.
For our Primi (house-made pasta) entrees - we went with the GNOCCHI & the VONGOLE with grilled shrimp.
Chow Morso Osteria's GNOCCHI is potato gnocchi served with creamy herbed crimini mushrooms + parmigiano cheese. This. Gnocchi. Is. #EVERYTHING. Readers.
The gnocchi had rich texture and the gnocchi pieces were pillowy & tender. The gnocchi was then graciously coated in the creamy herbed crimini mushroom sauce that was hearty and savory. This is a great comfort food dish & we ate every last bite #drooldrooldrool #moreplease !
The VONGOLE with grilled shrimp - linguine, manilla clams, garlic, parsley, pan grattata and white wine sauce was a light pasta, really nice for spring.
These linguine noodles were perfectly al dente and soaked up the white wine sauce for great flavoring - the briny juices from the fresh clams also flavored the dish's white wine sauce nicely. The shrimp were grilled with a great blend of spices and added solid flavor variation to this dish.
Chow Morso has a terrific wine selection, so don't forget to indulge in the wine list while you enjoy your pasta!
Our waiter, Ara, brought us glasses of the Lacrima Christi del Vesuvio Bianco, De Angelis 2016. The Lacrima Christi del Vesuvio Bianco is an elegant medium-bodied wine with a floral and mineral flavor notes that complimented the white sauces of our pasta well. We drank these healthy pours down like nobody's business!
For dessert, we went with the Vanilla Panna Cotta with graham cracker topping and blueberries.
The panna cotta had a great delicate custard texture and the fresh berries paired v well with the sweet vanilla.
I also had a vanilla cappuccino - which Ara whipped up himself - while enjoying the panna cotta!
Huge thanks to the Chow Morso Osteria for hosting us! Our meal was great & the Chow team was too fun! We can't wait to return!
See you there readers!
Chow Morso Osteria
Address: 1500 Wynkoop St, Denver, CO 80202
Menu: chowmorso.com
Reservations: chowmorso.com, opentable.com
Phone: (720) 639-4089