Amass Gets Two Very Different Reviews on the Same Day

The French bistro located in Jefferson Park, in the former home of Corner House, is definitely the talk of the town. Both the Denver Post and Westword released reviews on the eatery helmed by chef Joe Troupe this week, on the same day, with some seriously different results.

Bill Porter, restaurant reviewer for the Denver Post, awarded the restaurant three stars. To put it into perspective, Mercantile Dining and Provisions and Brazen also received three stars. Porter found the dimly lit room to have a warm glow, noted the cozy bar with good cocktails and smartly edited wine list, and pointed out that the staff is friendly and knowledgeable. When it comes to the food, the beef Bourguignon and duck breast really stood out for the critic. A less successful dish was the mushroom soup: "it was puréed almost to a fault - more sauce than soup. It would benefit from some identifiable mushroom bits and perhaps a lighter, brothier texture. Still, there was no denying the delightful intensity of the mushroom flavor," Porter said.

The same room that seemed to glow to Porter appeared unwelcoming for a French dinner to Gretchen Kurtz, Westword's critic. She found the beef Bourguinon to be lacking in depth that would come from marrying the sauce to the sous vide-cooked short ribs for a longer period of time. Other dishes, including the lamb loin and sous vide pork tenderloin, are called "equally superficial." One thing she really liked? The same mushroom soup Porter spoke of not-so-highly. "The mushroom bisque was spectacular, thickened with cream and breadcrumbs and finished with truffle oil," Kurtz explained.