Six best bacon-centric dishes in Denver

Eat me!

Ah, bacon. Savory, delicious bacon. Not only is it one of our favorite foodstuffs in the free world, but you can do just about anything with it, not the least of which is designing a makeshift bra. But above all else, it's the one thing that steadfastly makes us too stubborn to make the inconceivable leap to vegetarianism. Straight from the pig's snout, five bacon dishes in Denver (and one a few miles up the road) that make us squeal like a hog in heat.

Bacon flight at the Berkshire
7352 East 29th Avenue

Rarely, if ever, does one scrap of bacon fulfill our pigheaded obsession, which is why we love the flight of four at the Berkshire. The porkorific plate of garlic, cinnamon-chipotle, curried and balsamic bacon strips, served with bacon-bolstering accompaniments, can be yours for $12. We even professed our fondness for the Berk's fatty pig parts last year, when it made Westword's 100 favorite dishes list.

Fresh bacon at Rioja
1431 Larimer Street

Jennifer Jasinski's menu changes with the seasons, but her fresh bacon starter -- cardamon-spiced Kurobuta pork belly straddling a Madras curry-scented fresh garbanzo bean puree -- has managed to retain its rightful place on the menu, presumably because if Jasinski removed it, the whole of Larimer Square would be overrun with protesters snorting in revolt. The recipe, should you want to spend the two days it takes to make it at home, is included in The Perfect Bite, Jasinski's beautiful new cookbook.

Liz Kellermeyer

Chocolate-covered bacon at Lewis Sweet Shop
208 East Park Avenue, Empire

While Lewis Sweet Shop is actually about 42 miles west of Denver in Empire, it's worth the gas mileage for dozens of reasons -- the candy deviled-eggs, for one -- but the showy bacon strips, crisp, crinkled and dipped in dark chocolate -- and a steal at $1.27 each -- are specimens of hyper-rich frivolity that make us whimper in lust.