The Fort

We recently visited The Fort on Thanksgiving for a feast fit for... a barbarian. OK, maybe not quite so... more

We recently visited The Fort on Thanksgiving for a feast fit for... a barbarian. OK, maybe not quite so extreme but the menu items were those that ... more

The reviews posted on 9/25 and 10/5/2006 are obviously written by someone that works at the Fort. What a bunch of nonsense! I have been to the fort several times (unfortunately) in the last 6 years. Don't get me wrong, it used to be very good, and the muffins are still decent. Generally speaking the preparation of the rest of the food has dramatically gone down with each new chef. The veggies are bland and quite often, served cold. On a good night, your entre will be prepared as you order it, but culinary skills do not appear to be required for the fort employees anymore. They always boast about the Summit of the Eight.....and that was an honor for them, but what is new? All the boasting only reminds me of what agreat restaurant The Fort was...... I hope that they get back to what made them great, but they are really on a down hill slide. Location and view is the only thing that the fort has going for it now. Pros: View Cons: Everything else more

THE BEST MEAL WE HAVE EVER HAD!!! Read on if you want the details. How anyone could give this place anything below a 9 is beyone me. This place was suggested to us as a place to have a special honeymoon meal, and what a great suggestion it was. We each started with a drink, unique choices, quite pricey, but very good, and served in oldfashioned drinking jar. Their appetizer menu was very unique....mango peanut butter stuffed jalapenos, bone marrow, even a rattlesnake cake, locally caught, a special that night, but too pricey for an app. You get an option of adding smoked duck or shrimp to your predinner salad, I tried duck, the wife tried shrimp. This was probably THE BEST SALAD I have ever had, wonderful unique options such as jicama, ginger, some type of sweet pepper, roasted nuts, some kind of seed, and more, with homemade jalapeno buttermilk ranch dressing....and with the smoked duck, fantastic!!! Definetly try the pumpkin almond muffins, very good bread option, the sourdough was ok. I tried their customer favorite, the fort game plate for an entree, which came with a buffalo tenderloin, an elk steak and a quail (my wife also had the tenderloin). Maybe not the best steak, but it was the most tender steak I have ever had, one of those melt in your mouth steaks, and I had never had quail before, WOW, the best fowl I have ever had also, unbelievably tender and juicy. Even the sides were prepared perfectly, wonderful potatoes, perfectly cooked green beans with almonds and a wonderful huckleberry sauce to dip in. Dessert was also fantastic, a huckleberry creme brule, so tasty!!! The only complaint I could find was that my espresso was not as hot as I would like. Our service was great throughout, not complaints. One quick recommendation, there was outdoor seating with an amazing view, it wasn't offered to us, but request it if its a nice night, you won't regret it. We might not have lots of fine dining experience, but we know a top place, this is it!!! Pros: Romantic dining, steak, quail Cons: Some loud guests with little class. more

Last Friday we went to The Fort with friends from out of town. Because the founder, builder and owner, Sam Arnold, died last June 2006, I was worried the restaurant's food quality and unique ambiance had suffered from his absence. All that worry for nothing. This is a one-of-a-kind, world class restaurant, a must-see-and-do place for anyone with an adventurous spirit. Dinner began with yummy made-from-scratch pumpkin muffins and square white biscuits along with soup or salad. Not just any soup, mind you. A soup like no other I've tasted. Absolutely delicious with the added bonus of nutritious. It was a meal all by itself. The serving portions were extra large. After the heavenly muffins and soup I was tempted to ask the attentive and friendly wait staff to box up the rest of my meal. Next came a massive helping of a half serving of smoked buffalo ribs, complimented with fresh string beans and lip-smacking baked beans chockfull of meat chunks and different kinds of beans in a mouth-watering sauce that Sam Arnold was famous for inventing. Whoooa! In fact, all the western-style recipes were meticulously researched and perfected by Sam. While stuffing our faces, Eric Herrera, dressed in his gorgeous western garb, wandered around playing his Native American flute, talking to anyone who would listen. He had some interesting stories to share. Two in our party of four were having birthdays and got to wear the 10-lb buffalo bonnet. They even took their pictures and posted them on the Internet for sharing with others near and far. On your way in or out of The Fort, treat yourself to a stop-and-browse session at the Trading Post in the restaurant's courtyard. Yes, the place is a bit expensive but well worth every penny, pound for pound. Don't miss this one even if you have to save up for it. It's that good. A few years back The Fort hosted dinner for the political bigwigs of the Summit of the Eight global meeting. The Fort's website is at thefort. Pros: thumbs up, loved it Cons: not for those who can only tolerate bland, nondescript food more

I have recently relocated to Denver from a city with many fine restaurants.The Fort was suggested to me by one of my employees(I will not hold it against her). Price does not bother me when I get something good. I went to the restaurant with three friends from Colorado who also raved about the Fort(none of them had been there in that last couple of years),and they were excited to go. I was anticipating somethin special! What we actually received was an old west version of the Rainforest Cafe. The restaurant is a novelty.That being said I will address the service and that quality of the food. Food & Dis-Service: We were seated promptly, but it took more that 20 minutes to get a drink or order an appetizer. We did order 3 different appetizers to share and they were OK - A different waiter brought the appetizers to our table and we advised him that we were ready to order our meal. It took another 15 minutes for ""our"" waiter to return to take our order - we were finished with our appetizer before we ordered our entre. The restaurant was not even half full. We also ordered 4 different entres so that we could try different things. I love Bison when it is properly prepared. I ordered a Buffalo Tenderloin Filet rare (the only way to cook buffalo). It was brought to the table with no pink in the middle, at all! It was served with cold potatoes and what appeared to be canned vegetables. I cut into the steak and asked the waiter to bering me one that is prepared properly. He suggested that I try a couple bites first because ""it was cooked to order""-I complied and advised the waiter that it had the texture of a tennis ball. Before he took it back to the kitchen he took the opportunity to whine a little more and to advise me that there ""chef"" knows how to cook. The food that my friends had was decent but nothing special by their standards. We all wondered about the cold potatoes and canned vegies-None of us will return! out of space\r Pros: Has potential to be Ok Cons: Service - Food quality more

It has been over 3 years since I went to The Fort. At the time I said that I would never return. I wish that I had done what I said, but I decided to give them another chance. The food quality went down and the prices went way up. It is almost like they are under new management. The location and ambience is the same but the customer service and atmosphere have changed for the worse. I hope that they can get back to the quality and service that they had 6 to 9 years ago. I know that I will not return until I hear that they have gotten there act back together. Until then, there are several good steak houses and some that serve buffalo. Funny thing is, is that almost all of the better places are less expensive.\r \r Dan - Highlands Ranch, CO Pros: The view Cons: Price, food quality & Service more

This was my first experience at the Fort. The setting was rustic, scenic and warmly inviting. About 12-15 miles outside of Denver and nestled at the foot of the mountian range overlooking downtown. We made reservations but arrived early in the evening just to ""check things out"". We were pleasently greeted and quickly seated. As a group, we sampled several appeitizers and ordered a variety of entrees. Our waiter was attentive, experienced, informative and entertaining. The food was exceptionally well prepared and presented. A sampling included, quail, elk and bison. This was most definately a unique western dining experience appropriately flavored by days gone bye! I would consider it a ""must do"" in places to visit while in the Denver area. Pros: Excellant Food, Great Staff, Beautiful Setting Cons: Gets busy quick, A bit pricey, Can be noisy more

My first time being there and I would definately go back. This place was both romantic and fun. It over looks Denver, which makes the dining experience even better. The service, and food were very acceptable. Not to meantion the Steak. It was definately the best steak that I have had in my life. more

Isn't it nice that you can count on a great restaruant to stay great! There is not many around like The Fort and it food is outstanding and they have a wine list that is even better! It is just a hop, skip and a jump outside the over populated down town Denver seen. My hats off to all at The Fort! As they say it WAUGH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Pros: Good Parking, Great location, Great Food Cons: There is only one more

The food is definately unique and the atmosphere and amience is unforgettable. It is quite expensive, but is great for special events. more

My cousin from back east wanted a ""western experience."" Big mistake. The menu was geared more toward novelty than tase. The preparation was pedestrian which unfortunately contributes to the misconception that game must necessarily taste bad. It took forever to get seated, and once we did, another eternity to get served. High price to boot means we will never return. more

The title says it all - and I ordered rare. NO Thank You more

The overrated expectations of the Fort in Morrison, Colorado is the result of it's previous chefs, however currently the new chefs' abilities seem to show lack in almost every aspect of culinary artistry. With prices so high, you would expect a fine dining experience, but unfortunately it's just not there: You are served malcooked food along with canned vegetables you'd expect at a fast food restaurant. The ambience is quite nice, and yes the potential is there, however the fort has recently become a failure and a mockery to fine dining. Pros: Original Food, Good Ambience Cons: , Cheap Food, Awful Chefs more

We are from Minneapolis and decided to try a good Denver steakhouse. The Fort was a nice change of pace from the average steakhouse. The restaurant was romantic and the steak was delicious. A little expensive, but worth a trip! Beautiful view of Denver.\r \r ****\r \r Went back to the Fort November 2006. I see everyone complaining about the cold vegetables and potatoes, that is because if you walk by the kitchen you see a million plates out ""pre-plated"" with all of the potatoes waiting for the entree to arrive...and you ask why they are cold. Our steaks kind of sucked. Still, the only reason I still might like this place is the view and ambiance...not worth it as far as food goes. Pros: good food more

While I miss the reasonable prices that used to be found here in its pre-trendy days, the food and here is still outstanding. The only recommendation I have here is that you not order the buffalo cooked more than medium rare. since buffalo is so lean, it gets tough if it is overcooked. Pros: Good parking, Great views Cons: Very Pricey!!!! more

I don't know what's going on with the other posters, but we've NEVER had to wait for a table when we had a reservation. We've been going 2-3 times/year for 15 years and never had a bad meal. The service is always good, but they don't hover and drive you crazy. Buffalo strip steak is fantastic, as well as the quail. It can get expensive if you order the game plate, but otherwise it's no more pricey than the Melting Pot or most Indian places. Besides, it's more fun!!! Pros: Great atmosphere, good for guests, Easy to get to Cons: Sometimes noisy more

The night was awful - I took several business associates to the restaurant and felt embarassed when I left. Quantity and quality of food was poor.My client's buffalo steak was rare when ordered medium well. He informed the waiter who apparently took the steak back to the kitchen and had it thrown back on the grill until it was overcooked. When it was returned the vegies on the plate were cold and the steak was described as rubber. I have taken many clients to this restraunt over the years but it has gone down hill. I do not believe that I will take anyone there unless I hear that quality and service become part of the expirience again. more

What a visual delight from the outside with all the luminares -- a bit of Santa Fe right here -- but, somewhat disappointing. Took my husband for his birthday dinner since he had never dined at the Fort before, the food was somewhat better than mediocre...and the big game plate came at a hefty price for the quality...the service was very good even though it was a busy holiday...my fish entree was ""ho-hum"", small portion with very little vegies all for $27.00...I would not rate this place as a good value. more

This place is the best to take somebody from out of town! The entire experience here is not to be missed. Show up a bit early and stroll the grounds. I love the excellence shown when preparing the game meat, although Musk Ox is not my favorite. The Gonzales Steak is out of this world. more