Editor’s note: This is part of The Know’s new series, Staff Favorites. Each week, we will offer our opinions on the best that Colorado has to offer for dining, shopping, entertainment, outdoor activities and more. (We’ll also let you in on some hidden gems).
Jazz fans will be happy to hear that Dazzle is still the place to hear live jazz and big band music in Denver.
Of course, since the new Dazzle moved to the Denver Performing Arts Center in August, many die-hard jazz lovers have already seen that for themselves.
Sure, we miss downtown’s Jazz at Jack’s and the Crimson Room, and La Cour on South Broadway, and, of course, El Chapultepec, and others that haven’t survived. But we’ve been getting our live music fix at Nocturne, Soiled Dove Underground and Herb’s Hideout, as well as biking over to City Park in the summers for its Sunday series. And, of course, catching those mountain jazz festivals when we can manage to land some hard-to-land tickets. (Tip: If you’ve never been to a KUVO jazz concert at Balistreri Vineyards, check it out; The Monty Alexander show a few years back was solid gold, and this summer the Count Basie Orchestra just slayed the house.)
But there’s something special — constant — about Dazzle. After all, it’s been around since 1997, in other locations. Who could forget the dank, dim, somewhat shabby black box (that we all loved) that was Dazzle 1.0 on Lincoln Street? And the cleaned-up, sprawling Dazzle 2.0, where it moved to in May 2017 at Baur’s on Curtis Street, with its two stages, booths, high-tops and its low tables nestled right up against the stage?
Over the years, Dazzle has hosted top-notch musicians like Jane Monheit, Purnell Steen and the Five Point Ambassadors (with legend Charles Burrell sitting stage front), Ron Miles, East High’s own Keith Oxman, Nelson Rangell, Chris Botti, Cyrus Chestnut, Hazel Miller and So. Many. More.
In August, we attended a Duke Ellington/Ella Fitzgerald Tribute at the newly reopened Dazzle, featuring the Flatirons Jazz Orchestra and vocalist Deborah Stafford. The venue — with a bar and listening area (in honor of El Chapultepec); comfy banquettes facing the stage along two of the walls; and tiny bistro tables and chairs on the sides — feels, well, somewhat antiseptic. But there is some very cool art by locals on the walls (check out the 3-D bighorn sheep with scenes of all the Dazzle locations right when you walk in, which reads: “Thank you, Dazzle, for bringing the biggest horns in Denver”). Photographs of musicians and LPs line the walls.
Oh, and that mural of the late, great Ron Miles? So well done. (And, yes, any space needs time to feel lived-in. Tip: Spring for the banquettes; it’s worth the extra cost.)
And, sorry Dazzle. I love ya, but the current menu leaves a lot to be desired. You had us spoiled with the menu at Dazzle 2.0, truthfully. The small plates (and I mean small) that we ordered were disappointing: The watermelon salad ($14.25) was made with limp arugula, and the fruit was past its expiration date. The beer “fondue” ($14) was a lukewarm dip served in a little high-school-cafeteria dish with a few thin apple slices, carrots and a small baguette.
Our neighbor’s sliders looked more appealing, but there was a lot of bread left on the plate when the diners were done. And the drinks were overpriced: $14 for a 6-ounce pour of California pinot grigio, and the same amount for a too-sweet Cosmo that didn’t even come halfway up the glass. (Sure, it was bad, but I expected more of it!)
To be fair, this menu is new, and the staff and kitchen should be given a chance to work out the kinks. So here’s hoping that down the road, Dazzle can bring in more delectable dinners and small plates, ones that better match the delicious sounds.
And, really, that matters little. After all, I never did go to Dazzle for the food. It was always about the cool sounds. And Dazzle 3.0 delivers.
Dazzle Jazz, 1080 14th St., Denver. dazzledenver.com
