Union an American Bistro is a hip LoDo place!
Thursday, May 25, 2006
When 6 partners took over the downtown Castle Rock restaurant that had housed Pino's Place, one of the more famous eateries in Castle Rock, they did it with kindness, understanding and a desire to preserve the love of the Culinary Arts that had been shown for many years by Josepino ("Pino") and Josepina ("Pina") Arini. Mrs. Arini brought her lifetime of authentic Italian cooking to the restaurant and now the new partners wanted to make the restaurant a hip, LoDo affair while preserving the love that had been shown by the Arini's for so many years.
When the 6 new partners reopened the restaurant as Union- An American Bistro, Pino's children came and tearfully approved of the new place. As one who has lived (and eaten) in Castle Rock for the past quarter century, I can't help making some mental comparisons between the old Pino's with Mrs. Arini making up Italian (especially Bolognese) sauces in the kitchen that she had learned so many years ago in Italy and the new, modern Union. Oddly, the same thread of authenticity runs through both.
When we visited Union, Dennis Dickey, Union's Manager, met us at the door with a warm, welcoming smile. He has grown up in the restaurant business and it shows. The name Union comes from a union of the six partners. Dickey defines a bistro as "upbeat, close and comfortable. Some would term a bistro as raucus." It was quite civilized when we were there.
Chef/Partner Tom Lee made us a double boned pork chop that had been soaked in brine for a full day before hitting the grill and being topped with a mustard/cider sauce with lavender flowers added to give it a marvelous aroma. He then made us a Tuna Tartar salad with sushi-grade Ahi Tuna and Jalapeno Citrus dressing and micro-herbs from California.
Another of Union's partners is dessert chef Kim Heideman who made us an amazing chocolate chip cookie dessert where cookie dough was poured into a crust and baked until the top had formed a cookie while the inner dough was still somewhat soft and pliable. It was unbelievable.
All the waiters at Union wear black and you feel that you have gone to Lower Downtown Denver. What a pleasure it is to see you are in Castle Rock when you come out. Union is a delight.
To see a streaming video of Chefs Lee and Heideman working their culinary magic, go to www.signaturedishesofcolorado.com and visit the Union Bistro page.