Tiffany "Ladyhawk" N.'s Profile

I'm a fan of Sweet Tomatoes for one reason - I'm a fan of pretty much any salad bar. You let me get all mad creative with my greens and I'm just gonna like your business, that's how I work.

So the salad bar is fairly standard for me with items I expect to see at any self-respecting salad bar, but they do offer about 3 seasonal salads that change each month I believe. These are pre-made and you can add them to your plate in addition to or instead of making your own salad.

Beyond salads they have a soup bar (usually with 6 - 8 soups), baked potato bar, pasta bar (usually about 3 options here, 1 of which has always been mac and cheese in my experience), what I call the "bread" area which has about 4 kind of muffins, a couple of varieties of sliced bread from loaves, the equivalent of a cheesy bread selection, and a dessert area that includes fresh fruit and soft serve ice cream with simple toppings (like sprinkles and/or caramel.)

They do advertise that everything they have is made from scratch daily, but honestly I'm just there to eat the salad. Lots and lots of salad that I'm mixing and matching myself. And just in case you're wondering you can go through the salad line more than once as it's all you can eat here.

When I was here over the weekend it was seat yourself and there were plenty of open tables so it was a nice option for a fast lunch that didn't leave me feeling full of grease and grossness.

Fireside Kitchen is the casual, sit-down restaurant inside of Ameristar and it's on the second floor of the building. They have a fairly large menu full of traditional American foods like burgers, wings, meatloaf, sandwiches, mac 'n cheese, and breakfast staples. Breakfast, by the way, is served all day long while they are open. They also do some interesting shakes/malts like turtle (vanilla ice cream, caramel, hot fudge, and candied pecans) or cherry cheesecake if you're looking to get serious with your caloric intake.

Nick and I ate here our first night in Black Hawk and we were in and out in no time, they definitely are quick to serve you. They were also more than accommodating for special requests. I wanted chicken tenders shaken in hot sauce like wings and even though it wasn't on the menu the server was more than happy to order it for me, and the kitchen was more than happy to make it.

The space is easily big enough to accommodate large parties, too so if you're here with a group this might be a good option to look into. Just be aware that they close fairly early. On a Sunday night Nick and I went by around 9 and they had already closed up shop for the night, although the website does say they are open until midnight on Fridays and Saturdays.

Waypost Deli is where you go in the Ameristar resort if you want a quick bite to eat. Or a late-night bite to eat. Or a casual bite to eat. It's basically a cafeteria styled eating place where you place your order at the cash register, pay, get a number, and wait for your food.

While the food isn't anything crazy it definitely suffices for many needs such as a morning yogurt parfait or an late night pizza. The menu is pretty varied, containing everything from all-day breakfast items (such as a sausage-egg muffin or breakfast burrito) to salads, soup, pizza and sandwiches. It's rarely so crowded that you have to wait long in line or for your food. And they have curly fries, but you have to ask for them special.

You can also get vitamin waters or Mexican cokes here. And like all the casinos in Black Hawk, fountain drinks, coffee, and tea are free from the machines where you help yourself which is awesome in my opinion.

Have you ever wanted to gamble in jail? Then you should head to Golden Gulch Casino. While it's not really real jail the old, historic Black Hawk jail is actually located within this casino and is now filled with slots instead of criminals so you have the opportunity to scratch that off your bucket list if you're interested.

Golden Gulch is practically engulfed by it's two sister casino sites - the Mardi Gras and Golden Gates, but there is a small table area where the dealers are about as similar to Vegas girl dealers as you can find in Black Hawk, meaning they are called "G Girls" and wear rather skimpy outfits.

It's definitely a low-key gaming place with very few tables, $5 tables, and friendly folks working here. There is a snack bar and a regular bar, but no actual restaurants so if you get hungry you'll most likely have to go somewhere else unless you just want a snack. But, truthfully these are the kinds of places I like to gamble. It's like gambling in old downtown Vegas versus on the Strip.

I played blackjack at The Gilpin for many, many, many hours in a row this past weekend for two reasons.

1. I kept winning.
2. The people playing at the table with me were the most entertaining guys Nick and I met all weekend. One of them doubled down on a hard 19. He drew a 3, which is heartbreakingly close to an amazing feat. He would also randomly stay on 12s when the dealer was showing an 8 or even a ten and somehow seemed to be one of those people that made the right call causing the dealer to bust even with those hands rather than playing by the book. I always find this entertaining to watch because everyone at the table, dealers included, get involved in this joyous rush of good fortune and happiness. And they all thought my baby bump was good luck.

They have a small table games area that holds one craps table, one roulette table, and three blackjack tables. The minimum bet for blackjack, even on a Saturday night, was $5 and the maximum was $100 (just like everywhere.)

And The Gilpin is supposedly haunted so you just might see a ghost...

Sir Nicholas and I decided to take a small "staycation" for a weekend before Little Man N comes to town and we don't have that luxury any longer. Since I'm so close to my due date though we wanted to be an easy drive away from the hospital and decided to head to Black Hawk for the weekend. And we also decided to really live it up by staying in the newest hotel up there - the Ameristar.

I will say for the location this is a 5 star hotel - I don't think there are any places that will be nicer, especially if you get a deluxe suite. We did and it had a jacuzzi tub with a "mountain" view (although that word is used liberally here), a fireplace, 2 bathrooms, spa-styled shower, king sized bed, and all the works. Definitely a nice place to relax.

As for the amenities they do have a rooftop pool, spa, and workout facilities, all nice options. Room service is a little odd, they only serve it until 10 PM Sunday - Thursday and until midnight on the weekends. The restaurants in Ameristar close even earlier than room service does, at 9 PM on the weekdays. That seems strange to me as there were places open in plenty of other casinos and gambling tends to throw lots of people of normal eating schedules.

Although Nick and I are both fans of black jack we didn't play here as the cheapest tables, even on a Sunday morning, had a $15 minimum and were always so packed we had a hard time finding 2 seats next to each other. Considering most of the other casinos have $5 tables during the day it might be a better option to go elsewhere if you aren't used to or comfortable making bigger bets each hand.

All in all it was a nice getaway and one I'd be more than happy to do again, as long as I can get some grandparents to babysit...

Nick and I have some very good friends who are serious regulars at The Saucy Noodle so it's rather odd that neither of us had been until last week. While our friends do enjoy going here often I think they set the bar at just the right height for our expectations with the following sentence I'll impart to you:

"It's not fancy, it's more like everyday Italian food that is just no frills, pretty good stuff."

The atmosphere is comfortable and feels very old school, casual Italian with red booths all around the place. It's definitely family friendly with booths big enough to accommodate a baby seat and crayons for coloring if you happen to be with kids a bit older. The servers are friendly and efficient, but it's definitely not a place people make a career out of serving. And the menu is pretty big with lots of options in my opinion for an Italian restaurant.

I loved the breadsticks they brought out with our salad (they also bring out garlic break that's Texas toast style with your pasta so get ready to carb up!) And I loved the gorgonzola dressing on my salad although there was way too much of it so you might want to get it light or on the side if you aren't a fan of loads of dressing. And I went simple with my menu ordering and opted for cheese ravioli, a half order in fact. They allow half orders for all the pasta dishes which I really appreciate. And they offer a gluten free menu that is a decent size and includes everything from pizza on gluten free crust to fettuccine with various sauces and other options in between.

I might not become quite the regulars that our friends are, but I definitely would be happy to head back to The Saucy Noodle again!

When I walk into Rocket Fizz I am literally a kid in a candy store. And boy oh boy is that exciting to me!

They have all kinds of new and old classics to choose from so it's safe to say there is something for every kind of sweet tooth here. They also have some seriously gross flavors of soda that I would never dream of drinking, but would love to watch someone else taste, especially on a day (hot wings soda or bacon soda for example.)

And one of my favorite things is that they have bin candies that you don't pay for by weight. You pick a bag from the two size options and pay a set amount. You can then fill that bag up to the brim, or leave a little room if you don't want that much candy. Either way it's a flat price.

On my recent trip I picked up all kinds of fun things from salt water taffy to Atomic Fireballs, from giant chewy Sweet tarts to candy cigarettes, from Freshen-up bubble gum with that weird liquid-y center to  Pop Rocks, and that was just the beginning of it. I bet my dentist sure is glad Rocket Fizz has opened up in Denver!

The biggest difference in Emerald City Smoothie for me is how many smoothies they make that include peanut butter as an ingredient! Sure, they've got tons of fruity options, but it's refreshing (ha!) to see the savory choices as well.

The other big difference is that it seems every smoothie has a purpose - to help one lose weight, have more energy, bulk up, etc. And they do this by including various types of protein powders or things like that.

All the calories and ingredients are listed out on the wall which is nice and can help you track that stuff if you are interested in doing so. And the gal working here when Nick and I stopped in was very pleasant. It's another chain like my friends over at Jamba Juice, but definitely different and worth a try!

This is the biggest Dollar Tree I've ever been to. Ever! Honestly though I don't spend a lot of time in dollar stores so I'm no expert. While the quality is definitely low (what do you expect for $1?!) I find that this is a great place to go for party needs, fun props, and candy. So, if you are looking for balloons, gift wrap, plastic table clothes and so on I'd say you just might find what you need here. Just don't expect it to last more than one day/one use.