Disclosure: We were hosted and provided with a complimentary food and service. It was wonderful.
Last week I was invited to enjoy an afternoon checking out Denver’s newest family-friendly restaurant. With roots out of the eastern states, and a huge following, The Rusty Bucket Orchard was eager to make a big impression on Denver’s growing population. Let me tell you, they definitely are making waves and I can totally see why!
The Rusty Bucket Orchard is located in the Orchard Town Center in Westminster Colorado. Walking in, there is a very clean and calming feel. In this particular restaurant there is a lot of older pictures of Westminster in its younger years as well as Denver memorabilia. It really is a hometown type of restaurant. The staff is wonderful and takes us to our private room. As we walk, I notice a wonderful outdoor patio and how busy the restaurant is at just 3:00.
We started the meal off with some drinks and appetizers. There were some great beers from the Left Hand Brewery (one of my favs!) as well as three specialty drinks. From left to right in the photo above are the Pink gin Fizz, Bourbon Raspberry Smash and the Blueberry Bella. I loved the Bourbon Raspberry Smash. It was the perfect blend of sweet with that rich bourbon whiskey flavor. All their drinks are made with fresh ingredients, like freshly juiced raspberries and lemons. They are so good!
I enjoyed this afternoon with one of my awesome coworkers and we really had a nice time just sampling everything and learning all about The Rusty Bucket. My favorite take aways were that Rusty Bucket Orchard came to Colorado because we have a high demand for craft beer (and they have 24 on tap!) and made from scratch foods. They price themselves on making Yes the answer for every guest that enters the establishment and will make anything your heart desires, even if it is not on the menu. All ingredients are fresh and never frozen (except for fries) and all employees are extensively trained in creating everything on the menu.
The Rusty Bucket Orchard food. Oh my the food was fantastic. You can really tell that the ingredients are fresh and that the chefs take huge pride in the food that they are creating. Anything can be made special with no issues from the staff. In fact they like a good challenge and enjoy the creative process. There is something for everyone at The Rusty Bucket Orchard. We sampled so many scrumptious foods an there was nothing I did not like. My favorite was the Buffalo Chicken Sandwich. Whoa was this amazing, the chicken was juicy and the panko covered buffalo crust was cooked to perfection. I also loved the french fries. As the only frozen item they have on menu, I wasn’t expecting them to be spectacular but oh my, even those had a special Rusty Bucket touch with the perfect crisp and seasoning that we ate them all!
Then there was dessert. Our chef Jason who prepared the meal studied as a pastry chef and takes great pride in his career and his desserts. I am a huge chocolate fan so the Triple Chocolate Cake was exciting to me. What I was not expecting was to fall in LOVE with the Sticky Bun Bread Pudding. I have never really liked bread pudding, until I tasted The Rusty Buckets bread pudding. It is perfectly crisp and flavorful, not soggy and is just rich enough that you cannot wait to eat more. I am totally ordering it the next time we go in.
The Rusty Bucket Orchard is at the top of my list for dining out and I love how family friendly and health conscious they are. They have a Kids Live Well option on their menu with healthier foods for our kids, Dum Dums when you enter and a fantastic gluten free menu. In addition, it was wonderful to hear their employees be so incredibly thankful and boasting eagerly about the company they work for. They truly believe in the growth of their employees and you can tell the staff is happy to work there.
If you are interested in checking out The Rusty Bucket Orchard, you can catch their menu online and they also offer a great happy hour from 3-6 with $1.00 off all drinks and 1/2 price appetizers. They are growing exponentially and plan to expand a lot in the coming years. I urge you to check them out, you will not be disappointed!
Interested in other Colorado activities? Check out this Colorado Day Trip!
