The highly anticipated Boulder restaurant Emmerson launched full speed at 1600 Pearl Street. A café, a cocktail bar, and a neo-bistro, serving open from 7 a.m. until midnight, this ambitious project brings together two talented chefs, Michael Gibney and Jeb Breakell. The two collaborated on a menu that takes diners on a fun ride through the day, one that could keep someone there just to keep on trying the next menu.
Breakfast, served from 7 a.m. to 2 p.m. (cause why not have breakfast for lunch after all), brings dishes like the fresh cheese toast pictured in the gallery. There is also corned beef hash, duck leg congee, a scotch egg, and avocado toast topped with furikake. For lunch, which starts at 12 p.m., the options range from a pasta du jour (the restaurant specializes in pasta) to a burger, a pastrami brisket Reuben, and a couple of salads.
Dinner is where the gloves really come off. Highlights include the dry-aged carpaccio, the marinated broccoli stem with pickled sunchoke, the charred cucumber with pumpkin seed, and the squid ink agnolotti (all pictured), the octopus a la plancha, and the lamb loin with miso, nori, daikon, and black eggplant.
Chef Breakell likes to surprise diners with interesting combinations on their dessert plates. The malted barley Pavlova (which includes matcha), the stawberries (with black olives and basil), and the shiro miso flan (with bonito caramel, pear, and yogurt) are among the most adventurous desserts out there.
Wine and beers are aplenty but it is worth trying out one of the creations of Nancy Kwon, presented in a menu that looks like a booklet-sized collection of stunning sci-fi movie posters.
Here’s a fun fact: Gibney, the executive chef of the restaurant, is also an author of Sous Chef: 24 Hours on the Line, a popular and well-reviewed memoir. It would make for a good post-dinner read.