Legacy burger 🍽

Denver dive Cherry Cricket celebrates 80 years with the opening of a new location in Broomfield. A Side Dish guest writer (and first-time critic) files a field report for us.

Photos by Nicolas De Castro.

A guest review by Nicolas De Castro

I’m a longtime foodie, first-time food critic. I met Mr. Schniper in the spring of 2021 when I was visiting Colorado Springs and was scouting the area for my eventual move from Florida. While I initially thought he was just a local who knew a few good spots, I soon learned it was actually his job to scour, analyze and review the Springs’ restaurant scene as a critic working for the since-closed Colorado Springs Independent. This gave his recommendations more clout and credibility than your average Joe. We both share a love for food and the analysis and comparison of restaurants. Not wanting to lose touch of the happenings of the Springs, I added him on Facebook and kept an eye on the area restaurant scene.

Now that I finally live and work in Broomfield, I have access to this beautiful state’s outdoor activities and culinary landscape. I have subscribed to Side Dish since day one, and seen how Schniper would sometimes venture outside the Springs for reviews, from Fort Collins to Spain. I decided I wanted to volunteer my time and effort to try a new restaurant and write my first review. This was also a break from my nine to five: the writing of information-security Standard Operating Procedures (SOP) on everything from phishing emails to software vulnerabilities.

I was aware of the recent expansion of the Denver burger institution known as Cherry Cricket. It was founded in 1945 and is currently celebrating its 80th anniversary. With its flagship location in Cherry Creek, the “Cricket” has since expanded to the Ballpark (Coors Field) district, Littleton and now Broomfield — which just opened on August 25. Alex Bunn, CMO and Head of Brand Strategy & Growth for Breckenridge-Wynkoop (Cherry Cricket’s parent company since 2000), said in a public statement they selected Broomfield out of all the Denver metro areas because of its “strong sense of community.”

The newest location takes over what was once an Old Chicago Pizza + Taproom. It’s a standalone, 8,500-square-foot building with a covered patio, full bar, seating for 325 guests and a “Burger Garden.”

Cherry Cricket offers award-winning burger staples on the menu, and build-your-own burger options. They’re being extremely liberal when they say “build-your-own.” We’re talking 40 options for toppings, with some oddballs you won’t see on a typical burger restaurant menu, like peanut butter, grape and raspberry jam. The outfit’s also known for their mixed baskets of French fries with onion rings (called “Frings”), as well as green chili, and mac-n-cheese bites.

Man vs. Food

Before my visit on September 10, I happened to be scrolling through the streaming service Tubi — yes, I actually watch that, it’s free! — and I encountered the old reality show favorite Man vs. Food: the Adam Richman version that used to air on the Travel Channel. To me, Richman was sort of an early food influencer, except he did it in what is now considered an old-fashioned way, with a camera crew and a cable broadcast medium. He visited all kinds of iconic and local restaurants across the country and not only accepted the binge eating challenges (likely endangering his health along the way), but he’d go into the kitchens and see how the sausage was made. I chose the Denver episode to see what restaurants he selected in his 2009 visit, and lo and behold, the first restaurant he visited was Cherry Cricket.

Frings and a basic burger.

Not that I have a camera crew following me, but my rule of thumb when trying new burger establishments is ordering the simplest burger they offer. I feel that ordering more complex ingredients like mushroom, Swiss, bacon or guacamole (all good choices, don’t get me wrong) would skew my perspective. Cherry Cricket’s multitude of burger options that I mindfully sidestep reminds me of a chain I frequented growing up, called Fuddruckers, which closed its Colorado locations in 2010.

I sit at a high-top round table between the bar and a row of deep green booths. I order my basic burger with Frings. The burger patty is thick and juicy while the bun melts seamlessly with the meat rather than being a dry contrast in your mouth. The fries are peppered in signature Cajun cayenne spice, which my server had to go inquire about in the kitchen when I asked what it was. (He mistook my question for an allergy concern.)

For dessert, I order a chocolate milkshake, which comes with a free topping. I select Heath bar crunch. It arrives in a tall, clear glass. The chocolate is rich, with the crunch providing a welcome texture. Overall, the meal feels like a great value to me, and I will definitely return to try Cherry Cricket’s various burger combinations now that I’ve completed my litmus test with the basic burger. I’d also like to check out their non-burger options, like a chicken sandwich.

Aftertaste

This was a passion project. I do not possess the street cred of Mr. Schniper to request an interview with any of the chefs or owners of this restaurant, to discuss the behind-the-scenes operations. (Cut a rookie some slack!) As much as I would love to launch my own food-themed newsletter, my main writing priority for the past few years has been a sitcom-turned-novel that I hope to publish as a series of books in the future.