Written by Sydney Bell
PASTY REPUBLIC
Grade: A-
Hours: 9 AM – 5:30 PM Monday – Sunday
Where: 4166 Tennyson St, Denver, CO 80212
Food Type: United Kingdom
How much: $8 – $10
Information: (303) 455-3558
If you’re looking to try something new and filling – no pun intended – in the Tennyson Art District, I suggest Pasty Republic.
Pasties are folded pastries with savory meat, vegetables, and my personal favorite, rutabagas (a mix between sweet potato and cabbage). It’s like a more portable pot pie.
In upper Michigan and the United Kingdom, there are pasty shops everywhere, but outside of those places, there really aren’t any restaurants with them on the menu (unless you make your own, that is!) Then I found the Pasty Republic. My eyes twinkled as I looked up at the orange sign in the Tennyson Art District in Denver. I couldn’t believe what I was seeing, pasties in Denver?! The atmosphere, customer service and food, itself, was just amazing. I couldn’t have asked for a better lunch.
The design of the restaurant is a small, hole-in-the-wall looking place with a park right across the street. You walk in, and there are two small tables with cute little flowers in vases on each table. There is also a bar that wraps around the left side for additional seating, with more flowers on the bar, as well. It has a cutesy hipster feel to it with bright pops of color. There’s a chalkboard menu on the right side with all of the different options listed in bright colorful cursive with detailed ingredients for each type. There’s a big pastry case that you choose your delicious treat from on the right side of the restaurant and they are all in the case organized nicely and freshly made with cute little chalkboard signs to indicate which is which.
It’s somewhat of a small restaurant but pasties are portable, so people like to eat them while walking around the park across the street from the restaurant or shopping in the district. If you’re not around the Tennyson Art District, the Pasty Republic also has a food truck that goes around the downtown Denver area. Just look for the bright orange food truck, or go to their website to see where the truck is located.
The service was wonderful. The people who own the Pasty Republic took my order: a man, a woman and a slightly older woman who were all smiles. As soon as I walked through the door, they greeted me and asked if I knew what a pasty is. Being well aware, I told them yes, and we all started talking about where we’re from, considering I was familiar with the food. We learned, coincidentally, that we’re all from Michigan. We talked some more, then I ordered my food. They gave me my order immediately; the owners went on to tell me they make them fresh every day, and they grow their own rutabagas.
The Pasty Republic has over ten different types of the tasty nosh. I highly suggest the miner pasty. It’s filled with steak, potatoes, rutabagas, onions and seasoning. Being someone from the upper peninsula of Michigan (otherwise known as a “Yooper”), I consider this to be the original. I chuckled a bit when I saw that the restaurant owners called this specific pasty the miner, knowing the history of them in Michigan.
Back in the day, miners would work long hours with no easy way of keeping food. The miners’ wives started to pack pasties, a filling and portable food that can be prepared, wrapped in tinfoil, and frozen months in advance. The miners could grab one from the freezer and carry it down into the mine, let it defrost till lunchtime when it was perfect to eat.
I ordered my food and was given my lunch immediately with a glass bottle of Coke for a drink. The pasty was hot but not too hot. I bit into the crust, and a whirl of savory flavors sank into my taste buds. The filling was perfect; it tasted just like how my grandma makes them back in Michigan. The potatoes and rutabagas were soft and filled with the flavor from the steak. The steak was tender and juicy, making it easy to bite through. I almost inhaled it but took it slow to savor each bite. All I could think was that I wanted to eat here every day.
In conclusion, if you’re looking for a low-key meal in the Tennyson Art District area, I strongly suggest you stop by Pasty Republic. This restaurant has a cool atmosphere, awesome customer service and fantastic food. If I were to grade it, I’d give it an A-.
I finished my lunch and was extremely satisfied. I had never been served by such nice people before; they really made you feel like family. This restaurant has everything you’re looking for in a good eating experience. My only complaint would be please make them BIGGER!
This review was written by a guest writer and will be apart of a weekly series.
