Round two with Brad Arguello, exec chef of the Uber Sausage

Lori Midson

Brad Arguello
The Uber Sausage
2730 East Colfax Avenue
303-862-7894
www.theubersausage.com

What you'd like to see more of in Denver/Boulder from a culinary standpoint: I come from a bartending background, so I'd love to see more food and hand-crafted cocktail pairings. I lived in San Diego for the past six years, and a few of my buddies who started a company there called Snake Oil Cocktail Co. are doing some really cool shit when it comes to pairing craft cocktails with the full menu. Their drinks, created with everything from homemade pickled carrots to a tobacco-infused spirit, which is misted over one of their signature cocktails, are meals in and of themselves. These guys are becoming chefs in their own right in the libation world.

What you'd like to see less of in Denver/Boulder from a culinary standpoint: Gastropubs. Although I thoroughly enjoy this type of food, too many places are starting to call themselves gastropubs, and they're all becoming the same food-taste-and-duck-fat-frying restaurant.

What's the best food- or kitchen-related gift you've been given? Lemon/lime squeezer. I love that thing. We make lime ice cubes for margaritas.

One book that every chef should read: Culinary Artistry. It helps you pair different ingredients together so you can create your own twist on meals rather than following recipes.

Weirdest customer request: A sausage sandwich -- hold the sausage.

Weirdest thing you've ever eaten: A goldfish. It was hard to de-bone and filet, but I found a small enough knife. Ha, I'm kidding. We were at a bar where they have goldfish races, and my buddy put our goldfish in my beer. Swallowing a goldfish was always on my bucket list after seeing Steve-O from Jackass swallow and throw up a goldfish...so I tilted my beer back and chugged it, goldfish and all -- and, yes, I felt it moving around in my stomach.

Best culinary tip for a home cook: Cook what you used to like as a kid, or what your parents used to cook for you, and make the recipes your own by adding other ingredients that you might think would go well with whatever you're making. Most important, cook what tastes good to you -- and not what you think tastes good to others.

What's your favorite knife? My Swiss army knife. What can't you do with a Swiss army knife?