Colorado Explorer

Dining

By Linda DuVal

There's a delightful culinary surprise waiting for you at The Rapids Restaurant in Grand Lake. We're talking upscale, with exquisitely prepared entrées ranging from elk to salmon to duckling. (We love the lamb.) Each entrée comes with a complimentary shrimp appetizer and the service is as good as the food. 970-627-3707.

Not many restaurants are brave enough to offer a different menu every day, but that's exactly what you'll find at The Margarita at Pine Creek on the north end of Colorado Springs. For 30 years, the restaurant has been a local favorite. Each night's prix-fixe menu offers a meat, fish or seafood, poultry or wild game entrée, plus a vegetarian selection—mostly organic and always super-fresh. 719-598-8667.

Linda DuVal is former travel editor of The Gazette in Colorado Springs and a freelance writer.