Top Five Fridays - Denver Brew Pubs/Bars
In a few hours smoking will be banned in most Denver establishments of ill repute such as bars and brew pubs. So for this top five list, i’m going to throw out my favorite brew pubs and bars in Denver.
- Rockbottom - 16th and Champa, I used to work 11 floors above it so i’m a little biased
- Bull and Bush - Glendale, it’s right of Cherry Creek South and between Holly and Cherry
- Cherry Cricket - despite being in heart of trendy Cherry Creek, the Cricket has the feel of a college hangout
- Fado’s - across from Coors field in LoDo, a good old fashioned Irish pub
- Old Chicago - they’re a chain but they serve Genny Cream Ale. If you don’t know what Genny Cream Ale is, go to Old Chicago and find out.
Crack park gets a makeover
When I read the Denver Post this morning, I needed to do a double take.
One of Denver’s oldest neighborhoods on downtown’s northern edge is experiencing a renaissance as new housing lures young professionals.
Hundreds of housing units are planned or are under construction in Curtis Park, a historic urban neighborhood that, until recently, was known more for its notorious public housing project than for its upscale urban pioneers.
Apparently Curtis Park aka Crack Park is a hotbed for development. I recall fondly the days when vagrants, bodegas and the buses headed for Mexico, were the main attraction to Curtis Park.
Tags: construction, denver, vaFeds raising rates, again!
The Federal Reserve today raised a key interest rate for the 17th consecutive time and signaled that further rate hikes may still be needed to fight inflation.
For those of you who have a home equity line of credit, Prime rate is going to 8.25%
Tags: home equity, prime, rateTop Five Fridays - Tom Cruise movies
When I was a kid, I thought Tom Cruise was a cool cat. As I’ve aged, I’ve come to terms that Tom just ain’t that cool anymore. Collateral was great but I think Jamie Foxx was the reason why. War of the Worlds, Vanilla Sky, Eyes Wide Shut, Magnolia, all stinkers. Here are my top five Tom Cruise movies:
- Top Gun - by far the best movie of Tom’s career, great on DVD with THX surround sound!
- Collateral - very believable as a psychopathic serial killer.
- Jerry Maguire - “Show me the money!”
- A Few Good Men - “You can’t handle the truth!”
- Cocktail - almost made me want to drop out of college to become a bartender in Jamaica
Top Five Fridays - Denver Pizza
This week I’m going to give props to my favorite pizza joints in Denver:
- Original NY Pizzeria - althought they’re in Broomfield, CO which is about 20 minutes from Denver, they the best and most authentic NY style pizza. After all, the owner is from Brooklyn, NY.
- Two Fisted Marios - 16th and Market, don’t be fooled by their looks, the staff is the best!
- Anthony’s - Various locations throughout Denver but I like the one by Kennedy Golf Course on Dartmouth and Hampden. Two slices and a cold Coors won’t set you back much.
- Pantaleones - tucked in a small shopping center by Evans and Holly, these Jersey guys have the best crust.
- NY Pizzeria - somewhere on Leetsdale, the place is always packed at lunch.
Whose fault is it?
Foreclosure and the real estate market is a hot topic in the Denver news (print, radio, and television) lately. One reader of the Rocky Mountain News shot back that realtors need to take responsibilty for the foreclosure problem:
Tags: commercial, denver, foreclosure, lending, rate, real estateReal estate market in normal part of cycle
I read the article last Saturday, “Foreclosures up 32 percent in first quarter.” It oversimplified the problem. One very big problem that has repeatedly plagued Denver is jobs, or lack of them, and how our booms and busts have determined our market.
Every real estate market - local, regional and national - goes through cycles. This results from the market pushing supply and demand curves to a natural state of equilibrium. Residential growth and purchasing will always follow commercial growth. Since we now have a more diverse job market, we should see a more moderate cycle in comparison to the last 2 1/2 decades.
Everyone wants to tell everybody what the problem is, and it is never their fault. Is the lending environment a factor in foreclosures? It is certainly part of it. Is the overbuilding along the Front Range part of the equation? You bet.
I often get into arguments with Realtors who blame the problem solely on lenders. But did they mind when they got their commissions for putting people into these homes? I don’t think so. We have to consider a number of factors when engaging in public discourse over a subject that scares and intimidates people. Simply put, history repeats itself and the Denver real estate market is no different - we are just going through a normal part of the cycle.
Dan Narsete
Esox Investments
Top Five Fridays - Pizza toppings
I try to read the business sections in the Rocky Mountain News and Denver Post on a regular basis. Lately, the articles are so down on the Denver real estate market that i’ve just glanced at the articles. So for top five fridays I’m steering clear of real estate.
Pizza is my favorite food, I even blogged about the best pizza in Denver. Here are my top five pizza toppings:
- Pepperoni
- Sausage
- Green Peppers
- Onions
- Meatball
If a pizza has pineapples is it really a pizza?
Tags: denver, real estateTop Five Fridays - NY Jets QBs
As we finally hit summer, i’m aching to see football seasoon start and despite living in Denver, I’m a huge NY Jets fan. I’ll watch the Broncos but they’re not the team I rooted for since childhood. I firmly believe you’re born a Jets fan cause there’s no way you actually become one. The Jets haven’t really had a decent quarterback since Broadway Joe. Here are my top five NY Jets QBs:
- Vinny Testaverde: #16 is my all time favorite athlete, he’s just a class act.
- Boomer Esiason: #7 played for the Jets for a handful of seasons but played with passion.
- Ken O’Brien: #7, part of the famed class of 83. Always played great against the Dolphins.
- Pat Ryan: #10, backup that always played with a glove
- Chad Pennington: #10, led the Jets to 2 playoff wins.
Autumn is a windfall for best home prices
Bankrate.com has a great Q&A section on real estate. One reader inquired when was the best time to buy a home, the answer was fall
Tags: mortgage, rate, real estate, va…sellers are more motivated at the end of summer or early fall, especially families with young children who they need to enroll in a new school, in a new area of town or a new city. Some sellers might be especially anxious if they have already moved away to a new locale and find themselves paying two mortgages.
All of a sudden, that lowball offer they turned down a few months before will start looking more attractive. And that’s where you come in with a tougher negotiating stance.