Ninth Door

From the moment my party was seated till we left, everything was first-class - the food, the bar, and the staff. Each dish we ordered was exquisite, with extremely deep and powerful flavor, accented by perfect texture and lovely presentation. Service was spot-on, with no mistakes, even when taking multiple orders from 10 people without paper/pen. The bar, by the way, makes a killer Lemon-drop martini. This restaurant is absolutely amazing. Nearly perfect. The only negative is you can expect your wallet to be noticeably lighter when you walk out the door. But, it is worth it, every penny. Pros: Food, staff, service, drinks Cons: cost more

Showed up to Vesta Dipping Grill about an hour early and decided to drop in here for a drink. \r \r GREAT IDEA! Amazing cucumber martini and very reasonable appetizers on the happy hour menu that are delicious. The bartender Revis was wonderful, great to talk to and a hell of a mixologist. \r \r Didn't have dinner but definitely have plans to return! Pros: Great happy hour! Cons: None that I could find more

I am reading reviews on this because I am in the service industry and like to know what really gets people.I like to keep up with my favorite places and I constantly maintain and improve my own service by finding out what works and what doesn't. I look for likes and dislikes and constantly make a point to do all that I can to make people's experiences amazing, You know it's good to give them something to come back to. I have to say, that it's individuals that blow things out of proportion that make it difficult to get a fair assessment. This place runs the way it does and it is successful and usually pretty busy. If you go to a friends house, are you going to complain about their dining room and the music? Doubtful. I kinda see it as going out to enjoy yourself. They offer what they offer and if you don't like the offerings, maybe you shouldn't be there in the first place. If you are that interested in the specials, grow a set and ASK. yeah it's their job to inform, but it's also your responsibility to say what you want. In my job, I like to get a feel for what people want. Which is why I ask. Some people however come across as so unapproachable that you just want to get their order and leave them be! I personally love the guests who come in and order, but then change it all up so that they in fact are getting nothing remotely close to the initial chef's conception. Does anyone ever take into account that some things don't come easy? I personally am a loyal patron at a few places and I can say that like every other establishment, they have their bad moments. But take into account that those moments usually occur when it becomes suddenly busy, or a guest is so high maintenance that it can literally detract from a server being attentive to their other guests. Granted, rude is never the way to handle this, but sometimes you just wanna snap when you are treated so crappy by individuals with such high and unrealistic standards who have probably never worked a day in their life in an actual busy restaurant. It is absolutely the server/ bar/ and overall staff's job to maintain professional, consistent, and service worth coming back to. But trust me that there are the rare handfuls of guests that most would never want to have to wait on again. So remember that when you come into a place and get ""crappy"" service, is it really all the service? Or did you have something to lend? And reeeeeeeally??? Making assumptions about a place and how it ""thinks"" in order to vent really gets you nowhere.... Pros: Amazing staff, fabulous food, Love it! Cons: Can be a bit hard to get a table on weekends. more

My husband and I came for happy hour for the first time thinking to spend some time trying tapas and having a glass of wine while waiting for the Rockies game to start. It was NOT busy, there were plenty of empty tables, but as soon as we walked in, our snooty server started to rush us through our seating, ordering and eating. Some of their tapas were indeed half price for happy hour, but then they were also half portions, so no bargain there!!!. Some of the tapas were tasty but monotone (the chef's entire repertoire seems to consist of various uninspirational combinations of goat cheese, garlic, basil and tomato with either fish, ham or toast points) but did not seem firmly rooted in any identifiable major world cuisine (not traditional Spanish at least). In fact, the major taste sensation I came away with after consuming 5-6 different small plates was ""goat cheese""! They do serve some other dishes here (paella) but our server couldn't be bothered with mentioning those to us. Forget about lingering even 20 minutes over a meal and wine here, no matter how inviting the ambiance; they really act like they don't want your business!!. Pros: Some tasty tapas; beautiful decor Cons: Poor service; inflated prices more

The 9th Door has my heart! Everytime that I have been here, it has been consistant with amazing food, servive, drinks and atmosphere. Yes, weekends are great but my favorite days have been Mondays (1/2 price wine and a GREAT deal) and Tuesdays with live Flaminco (it takes you away and into another relm, love it!!) The food is one adventure after the next. My favorites, queso de cabra(only for happy hour), pimentos rellanos, pera rollos, quesos mixtos, datilles, crouqetts and the alcachofas, all to die for! The atmosphere is very intimate, rich dark colors, and romantic lighting. The staff always tops the dining experience off, they are friendly, attentive and have so much knowledge of the wine and food, you can't go wrong! Bottom line. AMAZING!! Pros: food, drinks, service, atmosphere Cons: can't think of one more

My husband and I love the 9th Door. We have trouble going anywhere else to eat because we hold other restaurant's food the same standards. We are usually disappointed. Where else can you have risotto and mushrooms, fried, topped with truffle oil and mushroom sauce. (Yummm, they had me at truffle oil). Oh, and the fried goat cheese during happy hour with honey. These are just a couple of our favorite things. We've been coming here since they opened, 3 years ago, and they're even better than before!\r Pros: Food, service Cons: Can't think of any more

As I read over the other recent reviews on this site I feel a sense of solidarity with these disgruntled patrons. My brother and I took our wives out to eat for a very special meal for 2 very special women. We knew it is a busy night but we were not prepared for the pandemonium that was contained inside of this restaurant. It was crowded and when we did get seated (45 minutes later than our reservation) it felt like we were squeezed into a space for 2 people even though we had made the reservation (way in advance) for 4. To top it off the service and food were really bad and we were disappointed all the way around. I am very sad about this because I had dined here before and I was looking forward to showing my family a good time. We all left unhappy and dissatisfied and will never return. Pros: They served food Cons: They made us feel like serving us was an imposition and hat they were doing us a favor more

My husband and I were counting on a romantic Valentine's Day dinner for 2...What we ended up with was an over crowded over booked nightmare! The restaurant did not live up to the promises that they made when I booked or reservation such as where we were to be seated & the time of our seating . This in itself was bad enough but when we complained to the hosting staff they were rude and dismissive. We were told basically that we could either deal with it or leave. Since it was getting late we decided to tough it out and let me tell you it was the worst meal of my life! I do not know if the kitchen was understaffed or the fact that they were so over packed (fire code anyone?) but the food did not live up to our expectations. The service staff was unfriendly and scarce. I will not be going back and I will be telling anyone who will listen to not return either. Pros: Can not think of one... Cons: Bad service, horrible host staff, cramped seating & sub-par food more

My fiance took me here for my birthday in the fall of 07. Since we had a nice experience, we decided to book reservations early for Valentines Day in DECEMBER. My fiance calls the restaurant 2 weeks before VDAY to confirm our reservation with the seats we had requested in Dec. and they CANNNOT find our reservation. They won't give us our preferred seats. They give us a choice of seats by the bar (you do not want to sit here, as people are brushing your elbows getting to the bathroom, and hanging out in hoards next to the bar) or a single, 2-seater at the front of the restaurant near the entrance. We take the lesser of the two evils, upset that our reservation in December was somehow ""lost,"" but still excited to share V-Day here. Fast forward to day of V-DAY. We walk in, and then they can't find our reservation AGAIN. Then they finally locate it, and the hostess directs us to the front of the restaurant and sets our menus down on 4 tables PUSHED TOGETHER with three couples already sitting there. She declares that this is ""European Style"" seating and to enjoy. WHAT?? I nearly cried. These people were situated closer to us than a meal at the family dinner table. We then asked the hostess if there were any other available seats, as we had just confirmed two weeks prior a single, 2-top table, which was already a compromise from our lost reservations from DECEMBER. She said that ""We are triple booked, and I don't know what else to say."" Then we walked out. I will never return. I am absolutely floored by how they treated us. Cons: They have NO INTEGRITY. more

I called in December to make reservations for Valentine's Day. They said they did not have a list created and thought it was very early for me to call (Although most fine restaurants already take reservations in advance much sooner). We're talking two months before Valentine's Day. I can think of a few places that would already 90% booked. They said they would followup woth me in January to confirm the reservation and started the list with myself. I asked for a couch area - which I think was the best place in this establishment. Towards the end of January, I started calling to confirm my reservation. It took me several tries to reach someone (granted I could have left a message, but how many times do those get returned). When I finally reached someone - they said I was not on the list (Surprise) and they had a few spots left for me to choose from. No offer to correct the issue after I told her I called in December. During that call, I was told that everything was going to be single dining so that each couple had a table to themselves. I was still very happy that I was able to secure something. Las night we arrived on time and they could not find me on the list (Surprise), but eventually did. They proceeded to seat us on a large table where three other couples were sitting. Are you kidding me? I immediately asked for a different seat - they checked and came back and told us they were triple booked and could not seat us anywhere else. I explained my frustration with the reservation issue and we left. No offer to fix anything. I don't want them to give me something for my inconvenience, but my fiance was in tears, because they ruined our evening. I expected an apology and did not get one. We were looking forward to this for several months. All was ruined by poor accomodations. \r \r I will note we were there once before and had the best server ever! That one time there were some reservation issues as well, but they had plenty of room to accomodate us. Pros: Service Cons: Reservations more

The food at 9th Door is out of this world. Everything is cooked and flavored with absolute precision. I especially like the mushroom risotto cake (what it's actually called, I don't remember). I spent a week in Spain this past summer, and, no, the tapas are nothing like I had in Spain - in my opinion, these are better. Almost all of the tapas I had in Spain were casual, cheap bar food - cold or stale and had been sitting out for half the day. In Spain, I got the impression that tapas were something with which to fill your stomach but not to savor and truly enjoy. No offense, but, frankly, I'm glad the tapas at 9th Door are not authentically Spanish. I have never had a bad experience at 9th Door - this place is a true gem! Pros: food, ambience, drinks, people watching, service Cons: parking more

The 9th Door screams ""First Class"" all the way. The service is impeccable, the atmosphere divine and the food superb. The wine list is extensive - there is something for everyone and it won't sink a hole in your wallet. The waitstaff are knowledgable and friendly and they don't rush to get you out of there. They have a great happy hour and it's a perfect place for a girls night out or a funky dinner for two. If I had to say something negative about it I guess the downfall is parking - if you're lucky you can get a metered spot but just a few doors down is a $10/nt lot. Completely worth it and then some. Enjoy (and make sure to try the Sangria). I hate red wine but love that sangria! Pros: Everything Cons: Parking more

If you are looking to have tapas, look elsewhere. The menu has a very small selection of tapas, unknown Spanish wines, the supposedly serrano ham is plain prosciutto and forget about ordering the paella. All this rated by my wife, a native Spaniard. We have given this restaurant a couple of options and it is really very far from being a Spanish restaurant. The place is nice, the bar is cool. Won't go back to eat, might return for a few drinks. Pros: good bar Cons: shouldn't call itself a restaurant. more

Wow! the atmosphere is awesome. The tapas is amazing. the bartenders and quick and friendly. This is my favorite hangout on the weekends. Pros: Glam, Glam, Glam Cons: Not enough seatings more

A group of my friends and I, nine in total, made reservations to eat at the 9th Door. We had been looking forward to it as soon as we heard about the place. We arrived at the designated time only to be ignored by the hostess. We finally got her attention and were told to wait while the table cleared. Just as we were about to be seated the music's volume suddenly went up drastically to the point of being annoying. I asked the hostess if the volume could be turned down, to which she replied that it was beyond their control. We sat down anyway, right below one of the blaring speakers, and tried to decide what to eat. We couldn't hear each other speak. Someone from the group couldn't take it and decided to leave. The rest of us stayed in the hopes of being wowed by the food. The waitress came over and began to take our orders. She was nice enough, but was annoyed when we mentioned the volume. She stated that the restaurant becomes a kind of club after 10pm on the weekends, and that the music would normally be muffled by a bigger crowd. Well, it was pretty slow, so there was no reason to keep the music at that level. One of the tables next to us also complained about the music, but got the same canned response. Well, moving on...the food was decent. The only thing I could rave about was the croquette with mushrooms and rice. That was fantastic! Everything else, like the tortilla espa?ola, patatas bravas, calamares a la romana, chorizos, and the espinaca salteada were average. The gambas al ajillo, which I had high hopes for turned out to be cooked in rendered chorizo fat (at least from what I could tell). It had no olive oil or garlic taste to it. It, along with the sangria, were disappointing. The portion sizes were about what I expected with most dishes being priced well. The waitress was competent and friendly, once we got past the music issue. All in all, I have to say that 9th Door is an average tapas bar with serious customer service issues. Don't go! more

My husband and I have been to the 9th Door four or five times, and find their tapas to be consistently good, both in ingredients and execution. We particularly like the chorizo, the delicious fried artichokes and the stuffed peppers. Their sweet-salt combinations are also good, such as the dates stuffed with ham and cheese. Our service has been friendly and helpful, and the wine list is excellent.\r \r However - on a recent visit, in which we took two friends for a birthday dinner celebration, we were unexpectedly ""carded"" before we could order wine. As our ages range from 45 to 70, this was somewhat odd - and one of us, 50 years old and not having been carded for 25 years, hadn't brought one. OK, an 'exception' could be made, no problem. Our server summoned management, and when the manager arrived she was bizarrely rude to the customer without ID. When it was politely suggested that it would have been nice to have been informed about the new policy when making the reservation, she became angry and suggested that only an idiot would go anywhere without an id (!).\r \r We would have left at that point, but had our birthday guests to care for - but the unnecessary rudeness of the manager will keep all of us from returning...which is too bad, we all enjoyed the food. Pros: Food, ambience, service Cons: Noisy, management problems more

As someone who has lived and traveled extensively in Spain and Latin America, I was very disappointed by the food. I didn't expect it to be exactly like tapas in Spain, but I've had fantastic experiences at other Spanish restaurants, especially in Los Angeles (Courtyard in West Hollywood is fantastic!). I was excited to see manchego, jamon serrano, and membrillo on the menu, only to find the jamon pan-fried, which overwhelmed the taste of the other two components. The asparagus wrapped in salmon was good, but very small. The chorizo was not too bad, but tasted more like Portuguese linguisa than real Spanish chorizo. I thought the portions could have been slightly more generous, even for being a tapas place. However, the decor and drinks are fantastic! Try the cocktails with basil and blueberries (arandanos). I will only go back if they improve the food, but it would be a good place for pre-dinner drinks before heading somewhere else! Pros: cocktails, ambiance Cons: food more

This place has a great ambiance, trendy and relaxing. The tapas are good, not great, but the driks are the corner stone of the restaurant.\r Pros: Great bar layout, drinks Cons: Parking, but like any other place in Lodo more

I have been to the 9th Door a few times and each time has been wonderful. The service is friendly and helpful. The food is real, flavorful, and filling. The atmosphere is hip but nor pretentious. The flights of wine are a great way to try new wines while tempting your palate with the small plates. Pros: Wine flights, variety of flavors in small plates Cons: Tight spaces, parking is tricky more

My husband and I visited the 9th Door last week on a Monday night. The hostess informed us that every Monday all the wine is half price. We started out with a bottle of Cava (Spanish sparkling wine) and serrano membrillo which was reccomended to us by our server and was an excellent pairing. We moved on to a great bottle of wine from their cellar selection list (why not, it was half price) and discovered a wonderful tempranillo Berceo (we wrote it down hoping to find it at the store!) It accompanied every tapa very nicely. The service was excellent and the food was incredible. Try the paella. We were told it is a special Mondays through Wednesdays! We'll definitely be back and especially on Mondays to try more bottles of wine we normally wouldn't buy at full price. more