Cho77, The Old Spaghetti Factory Get Reviewed

This week in reviews, Scott Mowbray delivers his first restaurant review for 5280 on the trendy and bustling Cho77. After gloating for a sentence or two about his travels in the Southeast Asia region, Mowbray dives into a fairly comprehensive review of Lon Symensma and Ryan Gorby's stab at street food. Mr. Mowbray deems that the essence of Cho77 is "more about riffing than replicating," extrapolating that eclectic ingenuity is present throughout the menu while authenticity in many dishes is lacking. Thai chicken curry, steamed buns, noodle consistencies, broths, and desserts all received praise from the critic, while the satay and a misplaced pickled watermelon slaw on the Szechuan lo mein fell short of expectations. Mowbray closes by awarding points to both the service and the cocktails.

Westword's food critic, Gretchen Kurtz, reviewed an old school, oft forgotten, Denver dining establishment: The Old Spaghetti Factory. As may be expected from a restaurant of this caliber, the portions were massive, "reassuringly standard" interpretations of Italian American cuisine. Kurtz was pleasantly surprised with her heaping dish of Spaghetti Vesuvius, while let down by the meatless-ness of the meat sauce on the Spaghetti Bolognese. Kurtz's children were the real victors here - diving into cotton candy lime-aid and creamy gorgonzola dip vigorously and not being told to 'hush' every five minutes.