Rock Rest Lodge

Elite '08

32

41

Bryan M.

Lakewood, CO

Sometimes I can get a touch on the side of long winded.

I can hear my wife sigh, roll her eyes and mutter, "Sometimes?"

So be fore warned, I am going wax a little philosophical before I get to my actual review.  If you would like to read just the review, scroll down and skip this crap (look for ACTUAL REVIEW).

Life is about expectation.  Everything.  So many times you are either disappointed or pleasantly surprised based solely on your expectations.  Movies, relationships, jobs, and most often... food.  If you read 17 great reviews about Frasca, go there and have a server who is obviously not happy to be there and makes your experience less than it should be, you will be disappointed at all the 5 star reviews.  'Sure the food was good,' you'll say, 'but the service was shit.'

For this reason I try to look at each meal and each establishment with as much of a level head as possible, but sometimes a place gets past my "bias defenses."  The Rock Rest Lodge is one of those places.  Had a number of people told me it was the most amazing bar ever, I would have been sadly disappointed at the self service, the dim-witted bartender and the not-fastened-to-anything flyaway umbrellas on the deck (we had to dodge three of them while we were there). I could have easily written a 3 star review.

But because I found this place by accident... I loved it.  I went in with zero preconceived notions about the service or food quality.  

ACTUAL REVIEW:
The food portions and quality were great... and at the price it felt a little like I was robbing them.  They have something like 36 beers on tap, including Barmen, a rare treat for me.  

The baked beans were good.  The croutons for the salad were home made.  The pork sandwich was cook slow as were the ribs.  If you love BBQ like I do, you can tell when it has been handled with some care and when it was thrown together to please the masses (cough... Brothers... cough)

The atmosphere was classic pub... open areas to not sit, but stand.  Some games tucked away in corners. The deck was big and open and when its a perfect day in CO, I have a new place that I would like to go sit outside... because I can't blame the server for being slow... I'm in charge.

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Elite '08

23

36

Lacey M.

Lakewood, CO

It was a beautiful sunny day in Colorado, after my husband and I made a Saturday morning stop at Sears, he just started driving.  Not really going anywhere, with no destination in mind.  Suddenly we drove by a great looking hangout with a huge beautiful deck.  We kept going just in case something else caught our eye...which it didn't.  So we turned around for some beers and bbq.  

This place has such an interesting atmosphere inside: huge, wide open, tall ceilings, all made of wood.  (Apparently this place used to be a brothel and speakeasy back in the early 1900's.  Very cool)  We quickly find out it is self service.  Order your drinks from the bar, and your food from the kitchen.  Our choice in beer?  Barmen.  Made by Coors, only comes on draft.  Go ahead and Google that....it's very interesting.  Price for Barmen?  $4.25, which is actually a great price.  Last time we had it we paid over $6.00.  

Their menu ranges from bar food appetizers, salads, sandwiches, and bbq.  I ordered the 1/2 rack of ribs, and my husband ordered the pork sandwich.  They both came with choice of 2 sides and cornbread.  If you don't order the tater tots, you are doing yourself a disservice.  They were perfectly cooked: golden and crispy.  Amazing.  The portions are huge, and the food was excellent.  The ribs were absolutely delicious, and I could tell that they were slow cooked to perfection.

The best part about this place was actually not the ribs, although they were f-ing fantastic.  It is the large deck outside.  Tons of space, tables, and seating.  It was the perfect place to dine on our huge piles of meat, tots, and beers.  Can it get any better than that?  I think not.

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Elite '08

18

87

Becky S.

Golden, CO

I only have experience at the Rock Rest for their nightlife.  I usually arrive here for the post-midnight dancing.  All I know is the pole gets a lot of action, and the music is so loud and the bass is so invasive I think my heart struggles to keep its own rhythm.  The drinks are expensive, the decor is like my treehouse from my childhood, and the bartenders are snobby.  

But if it's late-night in Golden, you've got a buzz going and a DD to take you home, and you get that craving to go dancing then head to the Rock Rest.   Just be warned that you'll start to reminisce about frat parties back in college...

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