The One-Year Anniversary Denver al Pastor List: Top Eight and Counting

Just about one year ago I started writing some words on my computer, clicking a few buttons and magically making them appear to whatever internet-having person may happen to come across them. If you don't know already I was inspired to start my blog based on my experiences in Mexico City, home to the best tacos al pastor in the world. I also have come to realize, that tacos al pastor are quite possibly one of the best foods of all-time. In between my other adventures in gluttony over the past year, my goal was to put together a list of Denver's top ten taco al pastor taquerias.

On a side note, I have also started my own private taco al pastor art collection, thanks to food illustrator Riki Takoaka

Why top ten? Not sure, but it doesn't matter because I didn't get there. That's good in a way because I'd hate to seem like one more conformist consumer, slave to the top-ten list. In fact, I hope to get to eleven someday soon.

It wasn't that easy, however, for me to find even these eight taquerias. To make this elite (yet also unknown and for most irrelevant) list there were some rules, and most pastor-serving restaurants did not qualify. To review, tacos al pastor are stacks of marinated pork shaped into a spit. To have any chance at being authentic said taco must come from a spit. That eliminates the majority of taquerias in the Denver area. After that the tacos are to be charred with an open flame and sliced deftly onto the tortilla (or in the US onto another grill as requested by the hypochondriac food police). The taco is then topped with pineapple. Ideally the pineapple is stuck on the top of the spit and has been roasted some as well. In Denver I made some exceptions to this rule--as long as the meat came from a spit--but be aware, a taco al pastor without pineapple is like batman without his boy robin (in a totally non-sexual way).

Many of you will of course not care in the slightest how picky my rules are, or in the finer points of a taco al pastor debate, so I will spare you. (If you care to know even more about al pastor, click here.) That being said, I think you will find that my top picks serve an amazing, authentic taco al pastor which should leave anyone happy, wherever it is you happen to lie on the taco al pastor love-specturm. Just click on the link of the taqueria to be taken to my full review which also includes exact location. And now without further adieu (or if you prefer, bullshit) I present unto you my magnum opus.

1. Taco Veloz
Taco Veloz on North Federal near 51st simply serves the best and most consistent taco al pastor in Denver. It is as perfect as a pastor taco can be with the US-mandated second-grill-cooking process. Thin, deft slices, perfect char, fresh pineapple and homemade corn tortillas. A bonus is the salsa bar where I've even had freshly hand-ground molcajete salsas. Fresh aguas abound. You absolutely cannot go wrong here.

2. Acapulco Tacos y Pupusas
In this tiny taco shop on the corner of E. Colfax and Yosemite, I once overheard the taqueros talking, and from what I gathered the owners are from El Salvador. This would make sense given the pupusas part of the name, but what is surprising, then, is how damn good this pastor is. It was a little disconcerting to my wife (who is Chilanga--from Mexico City--through and through), that some of the better al pastor in Denver is made by Salvadoreños, but such is life in our great melting-pot-of-a-country. Of course, we wouldn't really care if hypocrite and Mexican-hating Tom Tancredo was back there slicing up onions (actually I would pay money to see him do this), this place is worth the trip.

3. Carboncitos

Before I started this blog and made myself break out of my routine, I was a 38th-and-Pecos-Carboncitos regular-- though "addict" may be a better word to describe it. This is a fantastic taco shop and they make an excellent pastor. In addition to the taco, they also serve my favorite huarache in Denver, a big sandal-sized fried piece of dough stacked high with pastor meat. It's hard to admit that I would rank it below two others, as the pastor is very, very good and authentic, but I just did. Regardless, you can't go wrong here. 

4. Tacos el Gordo
This was a great find and is a relatively new taqueria tucked into a forgotten corner of Denver's Globeville neighborhood on 45th near Washington. Still far away from any gentrification, Globeville is a wonderful, historic area of our fine city just north of downtown and is home to one high-quality taco al pastor. They didn't have pineapple when I went, but even without it, this was a perfectly charred, sliced and flavored pastor fresh from the spit.

5. TacoMex
TacoMex on E. Colfax is always worth the trip simply based on the atmosphere. They do it up right with a large canopy tent outside that always attracts a big crowd. The music stays bumping and tacos are served late into the night on the weekends. The pastor is better than the average Denver pastor, but the flavor and lack of char knock it down to five.

6. Tacos Junior
Tacos Junior wins for the biggest, sexiest and well-manicured spit of pastor, and they also slice and char their meat well. But taste? It is a little too sweet and tomato-y, lacking the complexity of a nicer pastor marinade. That being said it is still pretty damn good, and it is the only place I know that one can get a taco arabe straight from the spit, which is what they like to serve in places like Puebla-- thin, "pita-like" tortillas rolled up like a flute with pastor, cilantro and onions. With several metro-area locations, Tacos Junior is there for you when you need a pastor fix.

7. Tacos y Salsas
This was my latest review and while I love the Federal location as an all-round taqueria (that serves beer), their pastor is thickly cut, too greasy and not well-charred. It is still pretty good, though, and I get one out of habit every time I go, which is pretty often. On E. Colfax they have the spit out on the street, but mostly they slice and grill inside, so if you find yourself at this location, go down the street to my number two and five picks.

8. Tacos Tijuana
Serving the Denver Northwest area with authentic-looking spit tacos, they have the canopy tent like TacoMex and seem like they are ready for a pastor party, but they sure can't make a marinade. Also they not only don't put pineapple on their tacos, they act as if they have never even heard of the idea. That being said, it is a good, greasy taco of thick, juicy chunks of pork that have been marinating in something-- so it's not like you'll have a bad time.

Bonus: Tacos al Pastor at Home
Thanks to Steven Raichlan for publishing a pastor recipe in his new Planet Barbecue book then sending it to me. He somehow got this highly-secretive and closely guarded recipe for tacos al pastor from a taquiera in Cancun, Mexico, and as I said in my review, it's probably better we don't know the dirty details of how that deal went down. When executed well, and even at home sans spit, this recipe would actually slide into the number five spot for taste.

There you have it, Denver: Your top eight taco al pastor taquerias and a way to make them at home as well. I'm sure there are more and I welcome any and all suggestions and/ or leads. I will do my best to track down some more and add them to the list where I best see fit. Also, thanks to everyone that has read, commented on, emailed to, bitched about, pitched to and yes at times even complimented this blog. It has been a lot of fun and I hope this second year is even better.

Tacos al Vapor at El Valle in Aurora

I was headed out to Aurora's fabulous North Peoria St (where many of my favorite restaurants are located) to check out a place a reader had recommended to me months ago. It will have to wait because as I turned the corner at Colfax, my wife had sudden cravings for freshly steamed beef tacos-- and not being one to deny my wife her instantaneous gratification-- we made the impulsive decision (those are our best kind) to return to an old favorite of ours, Taqueria el Valle.

This Taqueria el Valle should not be confused with the taco shop of the same name (el tocayo) on Zuni near 30th. This is a one-hundred percent original, Aurora-born, Zacatecan-inspired gem that you don't want to miss. The specialty here is proudly displayed on the front window in bold blue neon letters. Translated it basically means steamed tacos.

It has been at least a year since I have been here, and the first thing that I noticed was that there was more of everything. There was, for example, more stuff on the already busy walls-- primarily in the form of bikini-clad beer model posters. Going down the back hallway towards the bathroom, I noticed the pantry shelves were packed even fuller than ever before, so that claustrophobes would do better to simply just hold it in (or run over to Pho 77). I even heard the distinct peep of a song bird come from the depths of the cluttered kitchen, likely there so as to avoid any canaray-in-a-coal-mine related suffocations from the inordinate amount of pots and pans stacked high in the sink.

Other things are the same, like the bathroom: clean enough, but cluttered as always with rack on top of rack of empty 1/2 liter Coke bottles "Hecho en Mexico". Also the moderately voluptuous waitresses were there as usual leaning on the counter, though tonight they were recognizable from the rest of the Saturday night crowd by their matching outfits, and they even made eye contact when we walked in-- and brought us menus immediately, something entirely unheard of before. The menus like the service, have received an upgrade as well: laminated, poorly translated (but translated) and about eight pages longer than they used to be-- which probably explains the overflowing shelves.

Also there was someone in the corner selling CDs and DVDs as there has always been, though this time I think it was the owner, and he was offering free posters of a Mexican-looking Coors model with every CD purchase. Never have I had so much peddled to me in a taqueria in the US as I have had here. And though tempted as I often have been-- by fresh cheeses, tortillas, toys, and other unnecessary but well-priced goods--I decided to pass and get what I came here to get.

What I was here for were of course tacos al vapor. We ordered immediately, not wanting to let the server get back to her counter where she could gaze up at the TV and pretend to avoid our waving hands. We were shocked enough to have our menus in hand when we first sat down and then double-shocked that she came back a mere one or two minutes later with our drinks-- we weren't taking any chances after that.

Our tacos came out in what seemed like seconds later, but it was probably more like five or ten minutes. I have literally waited 30 minutes in this place when there were three servers and two other customers, so anything under ten minutes is approaching light speed at El Valle.

The tacos al vapor I am glad to say were exactly the same. Get ready for another of my infamous sweeping statements of a general nature: This is the best taco al vapor in Denver. It has to be. I have only tried them in three or four other places, but these tacos are perfect in every way.

For this Zacatecan specialty, the beef is steamed until it is fall-apart tender. It is also incredibly moist. For you meat-and-potato types, it is like the best pot roast you have ever had-- but better, because it's in a tortilla. The tortilla is steamed as well so that it is soft, moist and warm. The whole thing is refreshingly grease-less so that it is almost like a diet-taco, and even though they come in orders of five, I can easily eat ten if I am pretty hungry (I can always eat ten). The onions and cilantro add a cool crunch and tang to the tender beef and moist tortilla, and both the red and green squeeze-bottle salsas are excellent (though the red is preferable for its spiciness). Here is another photo, this time with salsa.

Every so often I try something else from El Valle and usually it pales in comparison to the taco al vapor. This time was no different. I tried a pair of sopes de carnitas that were entirely edible, but the fired masa shell was a little too chewy, and the carnitas were so deep-fried (or dip fried according to the menu-- which was misleading because they were obviously immersed in oil for a long, long time) that they only tasted like day-old frying oil.

I love this taqueria for many reasons: the clutter and chaos, the wall hangings, the shopping and of course the tacos al vapor. They also serve beer which is a bonus and it looks like they are open later than seven or eight which was the time they used to lock the doors. Again, don't confuse this place with its tocayo in North Denver on Zuni. I'm pretty sure they are not at all affiliated, and I though I've heard their North Denver counterpart serves a good late-night taco, you want to come here for the steamed beef of the taco al vapor when you get a chance.



Also it appears that a new soul food place has opened its doors in the same little strip mall. Now, in this isolated strip mall on Peoria and 31st there is a solid pho place, tacos al vapor and potentially some good soul food. Gotta love Aurora.

And The Winner of the EatDenver DINR Deck Is...

Once again thanks to everyone who commented or sent me an email in response to my latest contest involving a DINR EatDenver deck of coupons. The lucky winner sent her entry in via email, so I thought I would share it here:

I was six and it was my best friend's birthday. We had been inseparable since we met at age 2 (and are still great friends all these years later). Her godfather was an Italian man named Luciano who was the Maitre D' at Cafe Promenade, now Lime (not even comparable). Our parents were involved with the symphony and so we had already spent many late nights sleeping on booths in the back while they ate lavish meals at 11pm. But beginning that year and repeating for many occasions to follow (Easter, birthdays, Christmastime), Luciano invited us to come dine at the cafe. We descended the stairs alone (parents waving from the parking lot) dressed in our little dresses, frilly socks and mary janes. Luciano greeted us, took our coats and saw us to our table. We then learned how to eat escargot (and how to be a snob about it when encountering it in a frightful restaurant in upstate New York- apparently we weren't taught where NOT to order it), what to do with the variety of silverware and to fall in love with a perfect chocolate mousse. I remember the looks we got from the other grownup diners and I remember how special and wonderful I felt- not only to receive the VIP treatment, but to sense what a treat it was to get all dolled up and truly appreciate the privilege it was to enjoy such good food. That experience enlightened me to the finer things in life (but I suppose also tortured me for pining for them) and left a lasting impression that I will never forget. 

What a great experience. And it puts a big fat grin on my face to think of these two adorable six-year-olds, wide-eyed and on top of the world, sitting down in front of crisp white linen among all the staring grown-ups.

Congratulations to Marina. I also have an Italian godfather in a totally non-sketchy way. His name is Vito. I hope you enjoy Harvest Week and all that these EatDenver restaurants (when did they drop the DINR thing?) have to offer. 

Harvest Week Starts Soon, Win a Pack of DINR Cards and Enjoy!

When I bought my pack of DINR (Denver Independent Network of Restaurants) cards last year I had grand plans to eat at most of these EatDenver restaurants by about this time of the year. If you have followed my exploits in 2010 you will know that I have managed to make it to only a few of these fine establishments so far. Well it turns out that my general laziness and poor planning have once again paid off. I am glad that I now have a healthy stock of coupon-cards left, because coming up soon—August 21-27 to be exact--is the third annual EatDenver Harvest Week. During this week many of these EatDenver restaurants will feature courses made with locally sourced ingredients in order to celebrate the bounty of what Colorado growers and ranchers have to offer.

I am also pleased to be able to offer to a contest (see end of post), where the winner will walk away with a pack of 52 DINR cards to call his or her own, and can enjoy Harvest Week-- and the rest of the year-- with $10 off every $25 you spend at select DINR restaurants. That's a $520 value! 

But before I get to the contest rules, let me entice you further by sharing with you and sample of what's in store. This past Sunday Harvest Week threw a kick-off party at Balistreri Vineyards in (way) North Denver for a sneak-peak at some of the courses being featured. Balistreri Vineyards is an oasis of good things-- wine, trees, grass, shade, patio seating-- tucked in the middle of the industrial wastelands where Denver, Commerce City and Thornton meet. Sitting on the patio, under the shade of a tall evergreen, the irony and fun of eating the freshest food Colorado can offer in an area of town known mostly for factories and warehouses, was not lost on me.

But on to the food, which ranged from good to go-back-for-four-or-five-servings good. In order of how I might like to eat it, I start with a (Smith Farms Rocky Ford) cold cantaloupe soup with goat feta (Ugly Goat Dairy), Greek yogurt and lemon balm from Verde Farms. This refreshing sip was brought to me by Chef Reilly of Encore.

Next I would probably go for the cold Olathe Sweet Corn soup with Haystack Mountain goat cheese. Equally as refreshing as the previous soup, and also well-executed by Goose Sorenson and the staff at Solera.

Chef Asher of Root Down put out this delicious bite of Bruschetta with Colorado peaches, goat cheese, Leopold's peach whiskey and balsamic reduction.

Matt Selby was representing Vesta and Steuben's. He and his team made a wonderful, home-spun variant of the melon-and-prosciutto classic using Bresaola from Il Mondo Vechio and of course a sweet slice of Colorado cantaloupe.

Jonesy's EatBar was there as well, and Chef Doyle was plating a olive oil poached slice of Alamosa Striped Bass over arugula and a sweet corn, fennel and onion relish. Over the top was a Colorado peach-and-whiskey jam. This was one of my favorites.

1515 was doing a sous vide Colorado lamb on a skewer with a Colorado corn fritter. For your dipping pleasure were molecular-gastronomy inspired powders of hazelnut and mint as well as a bit of BBQ sauce.

Another of my favorites was the duo of homemade sausages by Chef Bolton and the crew at Second Home: buffalo brats and mustard sauerkraut, lamb merguez and harissa. I haven't eaten enough bratwurst this summer. Chef Bolton made me realize how stupid that is. I went back so much that I must have had a guilty look on my face, because they told me not to worry, they had plenty.

Both Chef Horton from Black Pearl and Chef Sinden from The Lobby served cheese plates accompanied by Colorado fruit. The Black Pearl cheeses were topped with harissa and a Colorado peach jam; The Lobby's was a fried goat cheese cake with a berry tart and balsamic reduction. Mmmm.... fried goat cheese cake.

Last but not least were the carrot cake beignets from Table 6. In fact, quite the opposite. Not only did I have this as one of my first dishes, but enjoyed many more throughout the evening-- sort of like a heavy, creamy, rich and filling palate cleanser. Though I'm not sure what local ingredients were used besides the blood, sweat and tears of Chef Parker's kitchen staff-- he wasn't there to ask--I didn't care much because they were so damn good.

Now aren't you ready to make your reservations for Harvest Week? Each of these restaurants plus many more will feature multiple courses using locally sourced and often recently harvested Colorado goods.

What would make it even better would be if you could win this pack of DINR deck cards that I have in front of me. I want you to tell me about the most memorable experience you've had in a Colorado restaurant and why. How was it unique? Was it the food? The drink? Did you try something new? Did you meet the chef? Or did you trip and fall into a server ruining everyone's night?

Whatever you got, comment here or send me an email at denveronaspit at gmail dot com. Remember this is $520 worth of food were talking about. Make it good. Winner will be picked on Thursday so you can start digging in this weekend.

Do it now! Harvest week is just days away!

These are the places I haven't written about before. Find them on Urbanspoon and eat there next week. For the full list, go visit EatDenver.

Second Home

The Lobby

Encore

Solera

Root Down

1515

Black Pearl

Denver al Pastor Take 8: Tacos y Salsas, South Federal and East Colfax

The ongoing quest for Denver's finest taco al pastor continues, and brings me back to an old haunt that at the very least may be one of Denver's all-round taquerias. I was diverted on my last journey to Tacos y Salsa's on South Federal when my spontaneous nature was enticed by an alluring sign just a few blocks away. (That adventure involved tortas de tamal and is documented here.)

I've always felt a little guilty for stopping short of Tacos y Salsas on that fateful day. Tacos y Salsas, needless to say, has been there for me many times before when I needed it, yet at the slightest hope of something newer and better, I did a U-turn in the middle of Federal in plain sight of its yellow-and-red neon sign. In order to make up for my neglect of this old steady-rock-of-a-taqueria, I decided I better include the East Colfax location as well. Both locations are full of good signs of a great taco shop, and then there is this, the best sign of them all:

E. Colfax's spit is outside, S. Federal's in.

Spits of roasting marinated pork loins are of course my (blog's) reason for being. Like many of Denver's pastor spit havens, Tacos y Salsa's does not serve thinly shaved slices of perfectly charred pork directly from the spit, but rather shaves them and re-cooks them on a flat-top grill. (Did you ever wonder though why it's OK for restaurants to serve medium-rare pork chops but taquerias have to cook their thin-sliced pork twice? Can't we just sign a waiver or something?) At Tacos y Salsas they don't even mess around with slicing it off for every order; for the most part it seems as if they have a bunch of pre-shaved meat in the back and just grill it to order. Needless to say this re-cooking and pre-slicing should not be seen as a deterrent when in the US, it is only another sad, fact-of-life, illogical paradox of life in our great, but at times confused, country (think the AZ immigration bill only not really a big deal). 

What is a little disappointing about the pastor here is that the meat is not as thinly sliced as it ought to be. Nevertheless the thick chunks of pork are moist and a little bit charred. They also have a good marinade giving the meat an authentic taste. You can also get pineapple if you ask for it-- albeit canned pineapple--actually copious amounts of canned pineapple. You get the feeling that they don't like to put it on there in the first place (which is of course wrong). 

You want pineapple, punk? I got your pineapple.

In the end what makes Tacos y Salsas a great taqueria is not their pastor--though I usually do get one whenever I go--no, it is all the other tacos. And the salsa bar. And the beer (Federal location only). Here are two other tacos alongside the pastor: moist carnitas and their wonderful asada. 

Also great are the buche (stomach miscellany), the cheek and the lengua (tongue). They also make all the other standard taco shop fare rather well: sopes, tostadas, tortas, etc. Below is an enormous chicken tostada (alongside another pastor of course).

The salsa bar is always full of six great homemade salsas from a creamy red, to a chunky, smoky green, to a fiery hot red. Also there are all the other taco fixin's you could ever need. 

In the end, the South Federal location is better not only because of this fantastically tacky mural of handsome, galloping stallions painted over a backdrop of snow-covered mountains (left), but because they serve beer. They also served micheladas which I described in their basic form in an earlier post: lime juice, beer and salt. The michelada they serve at Tacos y Salsas is a giant mug of what I know as the Michelada Cubana. The best way to describe it is like a Bloody Mary mix with beer. It is hugely satisfying washing down spicy, meaty tacos on a hot summer day-- and at Tacos y Salsas, I will emphasize the hugely part. Look at this thing (below). And I don't have a small hand. It might have been a foot tall. Any of you out there suspicious of the manliness of drinking beer with ice and citrus juices should make this your first michelada. And if you still feel insecure, stand in front of the wild-horse mural when you drink it. 

Tacos y Salsas has at least one other location for you dining convenience, though one is just a little further south on Federal, so it is only partially convenient, I suppose, specifically if you lived nearby it and were too lazy to walk a few blocks up to Kentucky St. Either way, you can't go wrong if you're in Aurora on East Colfax or in Denver on South Federal-- except for the beer part. Though that being said, there is usually enough drama on that stretch of Colfax that no one would even notice if you got a can of beer down the street (in a brown bag of course), ordered your tacos to go and sat on the steps for some of the most interesting people-watching you can experience in Denver.

Denver's Mostly Mobile Deluxe Food Truck

Prior to tonight, I have only seen the brand-spanking new Deluxe food truck outside of Deluxe burgers on East Colfax or on South Broadway in front of the Deluxe headquarters. Although I understand that it must be difficult to get the correct permits for street food vending (actually I have no understanding of this), it does seem immensely ironic (or comically counterproductive) to park your own food truck in front of your own restaurant.

This night, however, the Deluxe Truck was un-paradoxically parked on the pedestrian walkway on the Southeast corner of the Denver Art Museum for an outside version of Denver's 10th Pecha Kucha night. If you don't know what Pecha Kucha is, I will briefly try and explain. It's a night where a bunch or geeky-types like myself gather to watch designer-types, entertainer-types-- and just about anyone-- put on a slide show presentation of 20 slides that each move forward automatically after 20 seconds. Doesn't sound fun? Well, you might have liked this one anyway, because you could have eaten at the Deluxe food truck without feeling weird that you were eating at the truck of the restaurant that you were outside of--and could have just gone inside and enjoyed a meal sitting at a table instead.

In the ongoing debate about the food pricing from the now numerous food trucks that have hit Denver in the 2010 Summer Food Truck Boom, there is little question as to where Deluxe stands. Likely you won't walk up to this shiny and attractive deluxe orange-rocket-of-a-food-truck thinking about getting a bargain meal. But I think the prices are relatively fair. Where else could I have ordered a $5 ceviche before watching slides projected on the side of the Denver Art Museum?

The answer of course is nowhere but the Deluxe Truck. And the ceviche was pretty damn good. It was made with tilapia, served in a crispy shell and topped with cilantro and pickled red onions. It was fresh and in my humble yet opinionated opinion (IMHyoO), very much worth five bucks.

I also ordered the lamb sandwich that I was told would take seven or eight minutes to prepare. It seems like another growing trend in the Denver food-truck world is waiting. Now waiting is OK at restaurants, what with the modern comforts of chairs, tables, napkins, ice water, beer, TV-- well, you get the idea. Seven or eight minutes of thumb-twiddling standing outside is borderline "not-fun", and anything more is pushing it, because as I mentioned in a prior post, street food doesn't have to mean cheap, but I think it is fair that it means fast.

The waiting game at Deluxe is... acceptable

What came out was essentially a kafta kabob. Excuse the picture, but throw a kafta kabob  into a crowded public pool and in less than 30 seconds you will have it to yourself. That should never be a deterrent, however, because we are talking about a most delectable log of ground lamb and spices. This particular log-- though well-seasoned and with a nice flavor, was a little dry. The pita looked good and was homemade, but it too, suffered from dryness. The cilantro was lost in the midst of the intensely garlic-laden tzatziki sauce. However, the latter was very good, and made up for the lack of moist-ness in the bread and meat. All in all it was a decent kafta kabob, or "Grilled Lamb Flatbread Sandwich" if you prefer (which you do prefer if you are the Deluxe menu-writer). And for six bucks, I would say not a bad deal.

I probably should have gotten the truffle-oil fries, but these were very good home-cut fries seasoned with garlic and fresh thyme. They cost me $2.50. People should stop complaining about prices.

I also got a freshly squeezed lemonade that had been steeping in freshly ground mint leaves. It was delicious and refreshing. I had a great meal under the stars and night lights of downtown Denver, that I could not have otherwise had if it weren't for the four-wheeled orange wonder that is the Deluxe rocket food truck.

I personally am over the fact that the food in some of these trucks is a little expensive, and while I think there are certainly some trucks that are worth it, there are most certainly bound to be those that aren't. Each of us will make up his or her mind by making the choice to patronize these food-mobiles or not, and when the dust settles on Denver's summer-of-the-food-truck boom, we will see who is left standing.

 Follow Deluxe around town here: http://twitter.com/deluxe_st_food