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Breakfast
Coffee at the Point
Ryan Cobbins’ sprawling 10-year-old Five Points shop is a perfect place to start your day (it opens at 7 a.m.), assuming you enjoy a curated selection of loose-leaf teas; house brews made with Coda Coffee Company beans; breakfast sandwiches and grain bowls; burritos from Longmont’s Burrito Kitchen; and cheerful hospitality from the moment you walk through the door.
Grocery Run
Dia International Market and African Grocery
Swing by this tiny sundries store in Aurora—named after owner Mamadou Dia, not the airport—for pantry-builders, including Senegalese-clove- and-Guinea-pepper-spiced coffee, fufu mix (a bready accompaniment for West African soups and stews), and perfect-for-braising, meaty frozen oxtails. 1408 Del Mar Parkway, Aurora, 303-537-5554
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Lunch
African Grill & Bar
Specialties from across Africa are the draw at Ghana natives Theodora and Sylvester Osei-Fordwuo’s 16-year-old restaurant in Green Valley Ranch (their Lakewood outpost opened in 2019). Go for the akwaaba (welcome) plate, piled high with favorites such as fried chicken, sweet plantains, garlicky spinach, and jollof rice cooked in a fragrant, tomato-based broth.
Coffee Break
Whittier Cafe
Millete Birhanemaskel’s homey Whittier coffeeshop—with its sunlit side patio, expertly pulled espresso drinks, and melty paninis—is a perfect spot to linger. Friday through Sunday afternoons, you can satisfy cravings for comfort food, barbecue, and Ethiopian fare, thanks to the Black-women-owned food trucks that park there.
Dinner & Drinks
Cabana X at Bar Helix
Take a vacay without leaving Denver via Cabana X, owner Kendra Anderson’s tropical-getaway-themed pop-up patio in RiNo. Its rotating menu delivers edible escapes to the likes of Barbados (chicken wings in rum- and passion-fruit-infused hot sauce) and Thailand (bloomin’ onion with bonito aïoli), paired with craft cocktails that are boozy and beachy.
Dessert
Smith & Canon Ice Cream Co.
Curt Peterson, owner and ice cream whisperer at Smith & Canon on East Colfax Avenue, churns small-batch flavors from scratch. His Foxy Brown (a cheesecake and cinnamon roll hybrid) and Black Coffee varieties are sublime served affogato-style with the house nitro brew. Delivery means pints and bags of beans can come straight to you.
