All photos by Lori Midson.

Earlier this week, on Monday, I spent the afternoon in Kansas -- specifically St. Francis, Kansas, a small, sleepy town just a few miles east of the Kansas/Colorado border, population a mere 1,200.

Cattle far, far outweigh humans in St. Francis -- there are thousands and thousands of them -- and on Monday, I, along with several chefs from Linger, Root Down and Fuel Cafe, experienced what most people never have, and likely never will: We witnessed the slaughter of a steer, a beautiful, majestic Black Angus beast that suffered a single shot -- a bolt -- between the eyes before he slumped to the ground with a dull thud. The knocker was quick and precise.

See also:
- Can Triple M Bar's flock create a Colorado lamb comeback?
- Two small-town families made Colorado's Best Beef a sought-after brand
- Photos: Panzano's Elise Wiggins breaks down a wild Russian boar

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Lori Midson

Frank Bonanno and his wife, Jaqueline.

Service has been a big topic on Cafe Society this week, what with Jonathan Greschler getting the boot from Old Major for his apparent inability to connect with his former staff, despite the fact that guests adore him. "Jonathan is amazing with customers, but I just don't think he applied that same level of hospitality to the staff," owner Juan Padro old me after Greschler hit the pavement. Former Westword restaurant critic Laura Shunk was back this week, too, with a piece on Denver dining, wherein she wrote, in part, that Denver diners "haven't agreed to behave themselves the way the jacket- or stiletto-clad East Coasters do, and so you never know when the wheels are going to come off, sending you careening toward the lake that feels an awful lot like a dive bar at last call."

And earlier today, while everyone else was discussing (and is still discussing) Jenn Wohletz's post about dickheads and cocktails (IMO, an old-fashioned is one of the best cocktails on the planet), restaurateur and chef Frank Bonanno was penning his own listacle on his blog detailing the most salient service points in his own empire of restaurants.

Bonanno noted that these were "important to pass around," so here you go: Bonanno's 47 most important points of service.

See also:
- Chef and Tell with Frank Bonanno of Luca, Mizuna, Osteria Marco and Bones
- Check, please! Keeping tabs on Denver's restaurant-inspection policy
- 100 Favorite Dishes: Lobster macaroni and cheese from Mizuna

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Lori Midson

Bryan Dayton and Steve Redzikowski celebrate their comeback from a devestating fire.

On March 9, 2011, Steve Redzikowski, co-owner and chef of Oak at Fourteenth, stood on the street in disbelief. The restaurant that he and his partner, Bryan Dayton, had opened four months prior in Boulder, was smoldering, the thick surges of smoke emblazoning the downtown Boulder skyline. It would take nearly nine months -- and over 1 million dollars -- to resurrect it from the ashes.

See also:
- Oak at Fourteenth plans to rebuild after fire destroys the restaurant
- Best rise from the ashes
- Bryan Dayton and Steve Redzikowski of Oak at Fourteenth are opening Acorn in Denver

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The 73-foot tall 2012 U.S. Capitol Christmas Tree is hauled from the White River National Forest

About a month ago, the government seized five tons of Colorado-grown plant life, and on December 4, members of Congress plan to light it up. No, not that kind of plant life. It's the lighting of the U.S. Capitol Christmas Tree, and although they won't have the munchies, those in attendance will certainly be well fed as Colorado's own Crystal River Meats will be thre to serve up 100 pounds of its premium grass-fed beef.

See also:
- Ben Nighthorse Campbell plays Santa with U.S. Capitol Christmas tree
- 2012 Capitol Christmas Tree Campaign kicks off tonight
- Whole Foods partnering with local ranchers to serve organic meat in stores, schools

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When Carolyn Aloisi Magro was diagnosed with Alzheimer's in 2005, her daughter, Barbara Magro, noticed that one of the first things she was forgetting was how to cook. Her mother had always been in charge of family meals, and now her recipes were in danger of being lost. So Magro decided to capture her mother's recipes while she could still remember them, working with other family members to record them. And now she's turned the collection into a book, Recipes to Remember: My Epicurean Journey to Preserve my Mother's Italian Cooking from Memory Loss.

See also:
- Muy Bueno cookbook shares recipes and memories from three generations
- The Sweet Basil Cookbook debuts just in time for the 2012 holidays
- Remember When - A Colorado nursing home explores new territory for treating Alzheimer's patients: the past

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Kalen Deremo

Last week, I posted a letter from Christian Spinello, a guy who lives in Lyons and cures his own salumi at home. His missive, which is lengthy, inquisitive and pointed, was directed at Mark DeNittis, an owner of Il Mondo Vecchio, the artisan salumeria and manufacturing plant that he started three years ago and is now closing due to circumstances that involve the USDA. Spinello, in particular, was curious to know why DeNittis was shuttering his plant, and DeNittis, who read Spinello's letter, has written his response, which you can read in its entirely on the following page. Will it satisfy Spinello -- and a few others who have posed similar queries -- or do questions still remain?

See also:
- An open letter to Mark DeNittis: Why is Il Mondo Vecchio closing?
- Exclusive: Il Mondo Vecchio will close at the end of the month, ceasing its salumi and sausage production

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This is the protein-source wave of the future.

Is the idea of eating insects for protein -- rather than as part of a reality-TV show contest --really that weird anymore?

John Beers of Chapul Cricket Bars doesn't think so, and he's on a mission to change hearts and minds -- by chirping about the health and environmental benefits of eating cricket corpses.

See also:
- A Bug-Eat-Bug World
- Bug Bedlam! Denver's bedbug infestation one of the worst in the U.S.

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Eating healthy can seem easy when all you have to do is go to the store and buy the products labeled "organic." But Pete Marczyk wants you to know where those products come from. On his new Rocky Mountain PBS show, Great Ingredients, Marczyk is traveling all over the state to find the best locally grown foods, like peaches from the Western Slope and free-range chickens from northern Colorado.

See also:
- Pete Marczyk, chef-owner of Marczyk Fine Foods, sounds off on why food regulation makes him want to throw his baguette
- Round two with Pete Marczyk, chef-owner of Marczyk Fine Foods
- Cooking with Pete and Barb Marczyk: chocolate zucchini bread

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Davis Tilly Photography

"Organic" and "sustainable" are words that get thrown a lot these days. But being truly organic requires more than just buying the lettuce branded as such. And so the Grower's Organic Awards were created to give recognition to Denver restaurants, growers and grocers that are truly making an effort to use sustainable practices.

After fifteen years in Denver, Grower's Organic is the biggest supplier of organic, local produce in the state. "Our mission is to provide a vital link between small farms and consumers," says Brian Freeman, co-founder of the company. "All around, people are doing great things, but a lot of them don't get recognition. They're sort of unsung heroes."

See also:
- Eating and living organic: Q&A with Brian Freeman, co-founder of Grower's Organics
- Cure Organic Farm veggies are manna from foodie heaven
- Red Wagon Organic Farms: Can't beet its produce!

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www.sxc.hu

Colorado ranked lowest on the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's 2012 obesity rate study, but don't grab for the funnel cakes in celebration just yet: Over the past fifteen years, the obesity rate has doubled or almost doubled in 38 states, and even Colorado's has increased substantially.

As the numbers rise, so do concerns over the health of this state's residents.

See also:
-Colorado ranks lowest in obesity rate study: We're still the skinniest state
-Obesity rates: Colorado's is the lowest in the nation, making us the skinniest state of all
-Non-fat: Colorado least obese state, Boulder trimmest city

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