Esse Est Percipi

Posted by Athena Scalzi

https://whatever.scalzi.com/2026/04/14/dilly-dallying-in-denver-day-3/

https://whatever.scalzi.com/?p=60156

The title of this post is partially inaccurate, as part of my third day in Denver was spent in Boulder. Before going into Boulder, Alex and I decided to kick the day off with a mani pedi, and get matching colors. Cat eye polish, of course:

I was obsessed with this color, and I think it looked especially good on Alex’s longer nails. I mean just look at these bad boys:

Sparkly!

With fresh nails, we finally headed towards Boulder. Our first stop was the Boulder Museum of Contemporary Art. This art museum is “pay from your heart,” which means you can pay as much as you feel like for admission. I love this idea because it makes art so accessible, especially for Boulder college kids. Art museum prices can be pretty intense, so being able to price the admission for what fits into your budget is really nice.

While I didn’t photograph any of the actual artwork, I did capture the summary of this specific exhibition they had going on called “Yes, &…“:

I liked the theme. It was interesting, and all of the pieces I saw were definitely very unique and full of different mediums and mixed media. Very cool stuff all around, and the gift shop was awesome. I got some cute cards and stickers!

Right next door to the museum was the spot I was most excited for, the Boulder Dushanbe Teahouse. I have a hard time liking tea, but I love tea houses and tea time. It’s more of an aesthetic thing, really. And Dushanbe is, in fact, an extremely aesthetic tea house. With an ornate, colorful, interior filled with plants, statues, and high, hand-painted ceilings held up by hand-carved cedar columns, the artistry pours out of every nook and cranny. On their website, this page talks about the 40 different Tajikistani artists that created the art that makes this tea house so beautiful, as well as the capital of Tajikistan, the teahouses namesake.

Look how wild these details are!

The tea house is very popular, and their daily Afternoon Tea requires a reservation 24-hours in advance. Their even more coveted weekend Dim Sum Teatime is only offered on select weekends throughout the year, and reservations are required 60 days in advance.

As amazing as those sounded, Alex and I just went for their regular walk-in lunch, no waiting or reservation required. Though while we were there, they were actively setting up for their Afternoon Tea, and I got to see some of that unfold and peek at some snacks they were served. Plus each tea time table gets fresh flowers on their table:

Besides their extensive tea menu, they also have some different beverages and cocktails to choose from:

I love that all of their cocktails (and mocktails) have tea in them, so fitting!

I started off with their house chai, as my friend highly recommended it:

I actually ordered this iced but it came hot, and I wasn’t about to complain. It really wasn’t a big deal and it was delicious hot, so it’s totally whatever. Alex definitely didn’t steer me wrong, this chai was very nicely spiced and not too sweet like a lot of chai lattes end up being.

I also ended up ordering the Espresso Bliss cocktail, because you already know I adore espresso martinis:

Tea infused vodka, Marble Moonlight espresso liqueur, Colorado Cream Liqueur, and espresso. I liked that this espresso martini had both espresso liqueur and cream liqueur, as a lot of espresso martinis don’t have any kind of cream component. Which is fine, too, just sometimes I like them creamier and sweeter rather than cold brew style.

And a quick look at the food before ordering our tea:

We actually did not get any food because we were trying to make sure we were hungry for our reservations at Shells & Sauce later that day, so we just stuck with tea (and a lil bit of vodka for me, evidently).

Finally, time for our actual tea:

We decided to share two pots, one of their white peach tea and one mango tea. They brought out our sets and a timer, and when the timer was done our tea would be done steeping. Alex took their tea plain, while I added copious amounts of cream and sugar. I’m a menace, I know.

I also wanted to show y’all this table behind ours, though it wasn’t cleaned off yet, look how nice this seating area is:

I would love to sit here with a big group of friends and experience their Afternoon Tea service.

After our tea session concluded, we checked out the shop and ended up taking some tea home. I really liked this tea house and definitely want to come back for food sometime!

Once we drove back to Denver, we chilled at the apartment before heading to our dinner reservation at Shells & Sauce, which they say on their website is a neighborhood Italian bistro. They weren’t kidding. This place is located in such a random little neighborhood next to a dry cleaners and a Chinese restaurant, and is just a little place absolutely packed with excited diners. Line out the door, yet nothing flashy on the inside. Just a small neighborhood joint, as advertised.

While we had originally come for their Restaurant Week menu, we decided to not pursue that menu and just order whatever we wanted instead.

I started off with one of their signature cocktails, the Pearfect Martini:

Grey Goose La Poire (pear vodka), pear puree, lemon, and Prosecco. Does that not sound like a nice, refreshing, crisp martini? It was pretty good, definitely a little spirit-forward but it honestly might’ve just been a heavy pour. I mean, the glass is definitely very full.

We split two appetizers: the garlic cheese curds, and the crab cakes.

The texture of these cheese curds was really good, they were nice and squeaky curds, too. I will say there wasn’t a ton of garlic flavor, they seemed more just like plain cheese curds, but who doesn’t love a good curd?

While I’m always happy to have a crab cake, these ones weren’t particularly memorable. They weren’t bad at all but were just very standard.

Then, it was time for our entrees. I got the Stuffed Shells Duo:

The two shells on the left were six-cheese stuffed shells with marinara, and on the right we have the sweet potato, butternut squash, and goat cheese stuffed shells with pesto cream.

While the flavor of the stuffed shells fillings were really good, especially the sweet potato one, the pesto cream sauce was a broken emulsion, and made the dish feel rather heavy and oily. So while the filling was tasty, I think the presentation and mouthfeel of the dish suffered from the oily sauce. Which is sad because I love pesto cream!

My friend just got chicken fettuccini alfredo:

We opted not to get dessert. The food was okay, the vibe was okay, and the service was just okay. Honestly, I’d rather go here when there’s no dinner rush, sit on the patio, and just have some wine and bruschetta.

Once again we returned to the apartment, and this time we partook in the lovely amenities of the apartment, that being the rooftop pool and hot tub. It was definitely too chilly for the pool, especially because of the wind, but the hot tub was so nice.

After that brief relaxing period, we knew it was time to hit the bars (we only hit two, haha).

First up on our list was a rooftop bar super close to Alex’s apartment called Sorry Gorgeous. You’ll know you’re on the right path when you see this doormat in front of the elevator:

I really loved the interior design of Sorry Gorgeous. Green velvet couches, huge moon lamps, plants, a low-lit bar area and a great view of the nighttime skyline.

I didn’t take too many photos, but here’s some to get a general vibe for the place:

I love how the shelves are built into the wall like it’s some sort of cave full of liquor.

As you can see, it wasn’t very crowded, most everyone resided on that half of the bar while my friend I were practically all alone on our side.

We ended up moving to this corner booth to take some photos together!

I actually ended up taking a selfie I liked pretty well:

This was about number five hundred and sixty-four and I shortly gave up on photos after this because I figured one that I liked decently was good enough.

I ordered their All Saints cocktail:

Made with Botanist gin, pear, elderflower, rhubarb, lemon, and winter spices, this cocktail was refreshing and slightly sweet, and felt sophisticated. As you can see, I clearly like pear.

I really liked the service here. Since they weren’t busy we actually ended up talking to one of the staff members for a while and he was super nice and cool. I definitely thought this place would have more of a mean-girl bartender energy but that ended up not being the case at all!

Next time I go, I would love to try their pistachio guacamole and crispy mini tacos.

Onto our next bar of the evening, the Yacht Club.

A warm welcome, no doubt.

While a little small, it more so just has that cozy dive bar feel where yeah, sure you might bump elbows with someone once or twice, but it’s all peachy keen, we’re all comrades, y’know? The bar portion of the Yacht Club is built right into the corner:

What I initially thought was just a dive bar turned out to be something so much cooler and more unique. The Yacht Club is a wildly interesting cocktail bar that also has hotdogs. Lots of hotdogs.

Look at this adorable little teeny tiny hot dog menu! From the classic dog to a dog with caviar, to one served alongside a Jack and Coke, you’re sure to find your preferred type. Personally, I really wanted a sampler platter of all of them.

Aside from the hot dog menu, they had this drink menu:

I went ahead and ordered the Chew-Chu:

I had never heard of shochu before, but it turns out it’s a lot like sake and soju in the sense it’s a Japanese spirit made from the same sort of base ingredients like rice, barley, and sweet potato.

Though this drink was a little dry from the Sauvignon Blanc, it had really good, light flavors and was refreshing to sip on.

Oh, and here’s their menu of “dope shit we have rn”:

That amused me greatly.

Y’all. Look what Alex got:

CANNED GATORADE. Have you ever seen such a thing before?! This was so mind blowing, Yacht Club is officially the coolest place ever.

This is Alex’s drink but I genuinely can’t remember what the heck it is:

Once we had our initial drinks, we were still so stuffed from dinner that I couldn’t have a hot dog, but I knew they clearly had caviar, so I asked if a caviar bump was available for purchase. I love a caviar bump, it feels so luxe and is so spontaneous and fun. Thankfully the bartenders, who were so much fun and absolutely hilarious, said yes, and even did one with us:

Yummy. You’ll never guess how much they cost, either. A cool and breezy five smackaroos. Have you ever had a cheaper caviar bump?!

After taking a house shot, which I definitely don’t remember what they poured us (and also did with us), I got this drink:

I can’t remember the name of this one, but it was very good, with like, a ton of crazy flavors packed in. I know that’s not descriptive, I was decently drunk okay cut me some slack!

Okay, okay, one more, and this is in fact the final of the 36 photos. You’re all troopers. Here’s the final drink of the evening:

This one I do remember the name of. This is the Southside Swizzle. I actually really enjoy Southside cocktails, and this one was no exception. The mint with the strawberry and lime was an elite combo. I love the visual presentation here, too.

Just kidding, I have one more photo! Check out this flamingo wallpaper in their bathroom:

Finally, we walked back to Alex’s apartment, had some snacks, and went to bed. It was a long but extremely fun and memorable day. I absolutely loved the museum, the tea house, Sorry Gorgeous, and the Yacht Club. Highly recommend all of them!

Have you been to Boulder before? Do you like rooftop bars as much as I do? Have you seen canned Gatorade before? Let me know in the comments, and have a great day!

-AMS

https://whatever.scalzi.com/2026/04/14/dilly-dallying-in-denver-day-3/

https://whatever.scalzi.com/?p=60156