Gumbo Restaurant - Southern Eats in Denver, Colorado

For over a week, I was craving a fish sandwich. I know strange, huh? I'm not talking about a fish sandwich that you would get at any fast food joint. I'm talking about deep fried catfish that is so fresh that it melts in your mouth. The catfish is served on sourdough bread smothered with tarter sauce. Lettuce, tomatoes and pickles are added to make this fish sandwich superb.

This was a craving that was created after living in Texas. Those of you, who live on the East coast or the West coast, are very lucky people. I was not a lover of seafood until I lived in Texas, where seafood could be served fresh instead of packed in ice and transported across many states. Finding fresh seafood in Colorado, this is possible, but very pricey.

During my time in Texas, my husband and I frequented this bar and grill called Texas Borders. We would go there for lunch and order the same thing every visit, the Catfish Po-Boy. Writing about this sandwich, it is making my mouth water for it. You were served a whole catfish, so I would end up cutting half the fish in half and taking that home for leftovers. The rest of the fish I would stack on the sourdough bread with the fixings and have a feast. With some Southern style ice tea, this was the perfect lunch for $9.99.

Since I was craving a fish sandwich, the search began for some restaurant in Denver that actually had this on their menu. My husband was able to find this bar and grill in Washington Park called Lincoln's Roadhouse. We went there and it was packed. It looked like a great place to get a fish sandwich with a rustic bar atmosphere. They serve a Catfish Po-Boy with curly fries for $7.95. This is a great price, but my husband and I were hungry. The wait for a table looked like it was going to be long and it was 8:00 p.m. We decided to try Gumbo's Restaurant and we would go back to Lincoln's Roadhouse another day.

Off we went to downtown Denver to Gumbo's Restaurant on 16^th Street; we were able to get a table right away. I have never been to Gumbo's so I was excited to try a new place. Plus, I wanted to see if they were comparable to southern cuisine since we were in the West. It was Saturday night and pretty busy despite the economy, but the fact that it was 5280 week could have been the reason for all the restaurants bustling with customers.

Every year around this time Denver restaurants dedicate a week to 5280. You get a multi-course meal for two for the low price of $52.80. At Gumbo's you had three choices for an appetizer a gumbo soup, a salad or red beans and rice with sausage. There were several choices for the main course. I don't remember all of them, but there was an almond crusted chicken, pork tenderloin, a pasta dish, catfish Po-boy sandwich and several other dishes that I would have loved to have tried. You get dessert too. The choices were cheesecake, bread pudding and an almond ball.

We started with a salad and gumbo. I tried my husband's gumbo and it was good. It had a smoky, tomato flavor. My salad was tangy with a kick. I think the dressing had lots of garlic in it and it was tasty. For the main dish, I ordered the catfish Po-boy, of course. My husband had the pork tenderloin. The catfish sandwich was good and the fish was really fresh. However, it wasn't a catfish Po-boy from Texas. The portion was much smaller and cost $13.99 for dinner. Gumbo's ice tea was just as good as the Southern version, except, if you're looking for sweet tea, you'll have to add the sweetness yourself.

Overall, we had a great meal at Gumbo's. The food was scrumptious and the service was fantastic. Our waitress made sure our drinks were always full; she was prompt and very friendly. In Denver, the wait staff most of the time are not very courteous and the service is mediocre. Gumbo's has white linen covered tables with a professionally dressed staff, but don't worry you can dress casually. It's Colorado most of the people wear jeans to dine in. Gumbo's is a restaurant that my husband and I will visit again when we want some Southern cuisine.