Spruce Farm & Fish

This was, hands down, one of the best meals I’ve ever had in Boulder. Being a resident, I’m used to paying too much for a meal that leaves me mildly disappointed. I didn’t really know what to expect from this. First, the person who said that the restaurant is not affiliated with the hotel Boulderado was misinformed, or lying, because it is. We found the service to be amazing. Our server was attentive, knowledgable about wine, and we had two chefs visit our table. The halibut… And the legume medley that accompanied it, were amazing. A party in my mouth! My partner in crime got the ribeye, that was the special. They should consider putting that on the menu. He doesn’t eat sweet potatoes, so subbed out with the polenta. That meal was freaking amazing. I dare say the best steak I’ve had in Boulder. Oh! The oysters… How could I forget those. Delish! We will be back!

I really enjoyed the food here. And it was good for my kid — crayons, kids’ menu, etc. Service was painfully slow when we visited. A little stressful when dining with a toddler. But we enjoyed the cocktails and food, when it eventually came out.

Adorable covered patio area. We went for brunch. I ordered the steak hash with a side of avocado. It had a great flavor, but the steak was slightly over done (I ordered medium rare). Great service.

Our experience here was a huge disappointment, and we will not be back. We had a reservation and were seated in the gorgeous covered porch area. We were excited about the raw bar and ordered oysters as a starter right off the bat. Next we ordered the blintzes to share, as we were drooling over another table’s order. The blintzes were plump with cheese and warm and delicious.
However, when our entrees arrived, our server presented me with a dish I did not order. She argued with me for several minutes and then checked the ticket. She grudgingly admitted her mistake. My correct entrée finally arrived 30 minutes later, when the rest of my party had already finished their meal. The server was not apologetic and did not offer bread or even water while I waited. She also did not offer to comp my entrée or anything else.

This restaurant is inside The Boulderado Hotel, just to the right when you come in the front doors, past the bar, but it is a separate business. The hotel has nothing really to do with it, beyond leasing the space. So, if you have an issue with the restaurant, the hotel won’t help you out much, if at all.
My extended family came here, some months ago, for dinner. I forgot to write a review, so I’m doing it now.
My stepfather was in town for only one night and wanted to take us all out for a nice meal. We were a party of 7, with two coming down from Ft. Collins to join us. I chose this place because of all the dietary restrictions in the family that were easily accommodated by the menu and the kitchen.
I arrived a bit early, to make sure our table was set up for us, which it was. After that, I ordered a drink at the bar and waited for the rest of the family to arrive.
Being that it was winter, and a week night, it wasn’t too busy, and we had excellent service from start to finish. Our waiter was very attentive and provided the answers to all our questions. Water glasses were kept filled. When the first bottle of wine ran out, before we all had one glass filled, another was brought immediately.
All our food was very good. Everyone ordered something different, because we like to share. Our dishes were brought out in the correct order as well. No salads with or after main courses brought, except for mine, but I had ordered a salad as my main dish. There were absolutely no complaints about anything that I’m aware of.
Prices on the menu were reasonable for Boulder, and the serving sizes were commensurate, in my opinion. However, since I wasn’t paying for anything, I never actually saw the bill. I attempted to give my stepfather some money to help out, but he refused to accept it.
I haven’t been back since, but that’s not due to anything other than having so many good restaurants in Boulder to choose from.
I hope that whatever problems they were/​are having with their staff, that others have complained about here, can be chalked up to the newness of the place, and that they have been worked out by now. Honestly though, we didn’t experience any.

I came here for breakfast and was very impressed! Amazing French toast and a very comfortable setting!

For a hotel restaurant, pretty good.
The food was excellent, service seemed a little on the novice side.

My husband and I can’t get enough of Spruce. We’ve come a few times for happy hours and other date night dinners. Our last trip was for their New Years Eve dinner. It was a 5 course meal that started with a champagne toast; definitely did not disappoint they were really busy but we still received polite and attentive service. I was bummed the clam chowder wasn’t a choice that night. Definitely a must try though for their usual menu; probably one of the best I have ever had! Another must try is the fried oysters! We aren’t adventurous enough to try them raw but they do look great in the case! I’ve always had phenomenal seafood here NYE was no exception I ordered the Seabass and my husband got the local lamb. The dessert was excellent I got the baked Alaskan a special dessert for the night that’s not on their standard menu.

Unimaginably rude hostess/​manager and proud Masshole (a person from Massachusetts) verbally abused our party.
My parents stay at the Boulderado when they visit with us. While joining them for breakfast at Spruce my father was verbally attacked and humiliated by the hostess/​manager. All of this was because he wanted to be seated one place in the restaurant and the Masshole wanted us seated another place. The place was dead. No one there. It was irrelevant where we sat.
When we brought our concern to the Boulderado management we were informed that the Boulderado had nothing to do with Spruce. Spruce leases it’s space from the hotel. Boulderado Hotel does not own the Spruce farm to table restaurant. «There’s nothing we can do» we were told.
1010 is just around the corner and consistantly AWESOME in every way.
I suggest you take your business to 1010 or any other really terrific downtown restaurants.
Avoid Spruce at the Boulderado!

Great customer service. The waitress knew the menu and had great recommendations. It was a little pricey but it was the last night of our honeymoon so we didn’t care. The food was probably some of the best we have eaten while in boulder. They just released a new menu yesterday and it is worth checking out. I had the bison burger (seriously the best burger i have had in my life) with aioli fries and a side of brussel sprouts (to die for). My husband had the pork tomahawk with a side of aioli fries. All delicious.

Decided to try this place for the first time couple of days ago. While the service was definitely nice and thoughtful, the food unfortunately was lacking. We ordered some oysters, beet salad special and burrata appetizer. While oysters were fresh, the appetizers lacked seasoning and flavor and we ended up asking for second basket of bread instead to fill ourselves up a bit, as we were starving. For mains we tried whole fish, lobster pasta, and salmon. All three again were disappointing and lacking in seasoning. The lobster dish had whole cloves of garlic just hidden around the pasta, which was very overpowering if you happened to miss one and put it in your mouth. The salmon’s teriyaki like flavor overpowered everything else on the plate, and whole fish while tasty came with disappointing potatoes and coleslaw sides that we left untouched. I don’t think we will be going back.

I was staying right in the Hotel Boulderado, so this place was very convenient. Decorated warmly and comfortably, I ate breakfast twice here. The blueberry griddlecakes were just right, with butter, maple syrup, marmalade, and fresh blueberries. The oatmeal I ate the next day (with dried fruit) was fine but wasn’t so special — it was unfortunately a bit dry and chewy. The coffee was good, and the wine selections looked interesting and well thought-​out. I’d like to come back sometime to check out food for lunch or dinner.

I don’t know about this place. Nice ambiance, I thought the staff was nice, but I wasn’t impressed by the food options and the menu in general. I tried the fries with all the delicious sauces, which were definitely A-​OK as well as the clam chowder. I love a good bowl of clam chowda and this delivered.
The wheels fell off with the Marine pasta. Maybe it was the wrong thing to pick, but I pictured it being much more saucy and creamy and the lobster was pretty dry and the noodles seemed under-​dressed… if that’s a thing for noodles. I like pretty rich sauces and this failed to deliver.
I want to like this place, for I love the Boulderado, but nothing really resonated with me on the menu. I’d probably give it another try if a group of people were going… I mean who am I to boss other people’s food decisions?

I can’t say enough good things about Spruce Farm and Fish! It truly is a hidden gem. The atmosphere is beautiful, tucked inside of the Hotel Boulderado. The food was all fantastic– the menu had a unique twist on classic seafood dishes and everything was super fresh and perfectly prepared. However, the best part of our experience was our server Austin who is truly the best of the best! He was so knowledgeable of the menu, wines, etc. and made the whole dining experience fun and memorable. Be sure to ask for him by name!

After walking up and down the Pearl street mall, I almost felt guilty about selecting the restaurant in our hotel for dinner — I wondered if we were just being lazy. But dinner was great, and I don’t have a single regret. Charming atmosphere, attentive but not oppressive service, and the food was delicious. I tried two of the specials — to start, a grilled palisade peach salad with arugula, pistachios and sugar snap peas and for dinner, grilled barramundi over orzo and cherry tomatoes, served with a corn purée and garnished with celery leaves and Italian parsley. The balance of flavors was complex, but light and elegant. Both were outstanding. I also sampled the roast chicken over fingerling potatoes, from the regular menu, and I wouldn’t hesitate to order that one, either.
I appreciated having options for happy hour wines and appetizers, including oysters, but didn’t try them this time. Kids were happy with the cheese pizza, which had a thin flatbread-​style crust and a surprisingly sophisticated sauce. Great deal at $ 5.
If you do happen to be staying in the Hotel Boulderado, you can’t go wrong just heading downstairs for dinner.

When you see a restaurant under construction it whets your anticipation. You find yourself detouring a block North out of your daily commute just to take note of the progression. You build expectations in your head, and by extension a perfect plate.
Upon your initial visit there are all sorts of expectations swirling around in your head. At Spruce, you quickly realize none of these will be met.
The service was very confused, orders mixed up, drinks forgotten. All of these are somewhat excusable for a new restaurant as they work out the kinks.
Poorly cooked food is not. Unwashed gritty greens and charred-​through as-​ordered Med-​Rare steak was very disappointing.
Perhaps the perfect plate does not exist, nor should it. We all need a benchmark. There should, however, exist basic food service standards that restaurants should meet, especially at the Spruce price point.

Extra charge when I asked where the smashed potatoes (listed on the special menu with the rib eye) were. They hand smashed some purple fingerling potatoes and then charged us $ 4 for them!

I scheduled a work event and coordinated it with Jessica whom was fantastic to work with. I was able to do a custom menu so that the food would come out at the same time.
Venue: Inside the Boulderado Hotel on the corner which makes it easy to access. Everything was really clean and there was plenty of room for our group. They had a nice separate area for our group which was accommodating since we were a group of 30. We closed down the restaurant and it was nice to not get pushed out, they welcomed our company!
Service: We had a custom menu and the food served was delicious. We had a three course menu and everything came out in a timely manner. Drinks were plentiful and a good selection.
Overall: I highly recommend spruce for the food and the awesome service. I would like to go again without the large group so I can try more of their food!

Delicious food with fresh and locally-​focused ingredients. We tried the PEI mussels, which were perfectly steamed and tasty with a zing of red pepper flakes and capers in a savory broth. I am not a huge fan of Brussels spouts but their Caramelized Brussels Sprouts (with sweet soy chili sauce) was fantastic! For our entrees we ordered the ribeye and duck breast. The ribeye came with Gorgonzola au gratin potatoes — so tasty! A great place for a nice meal in a newly renovated historic building in Boulder. Helpful tip: they have a Happy Hour menu every day from 5 – 7. Great deals available.

Spruce Farm & Fish is now where Q’s Restaurant used to be. The space is remodeled and there is a new chef and a new menu.
My family has a tradition of going to brunch on Thanksgiving at the Boulderado, so this year we got a chance to try Spruce Farm & Fish.
The service was excellent and even though Thanksgiving can be a crowded day even at morning brunch time, we were allowed to linger comfortably at our cozy corner booth for as long as we wanted to. My breakfast was good. I like to put together side items for breakfast and I liked it that I could order greens with my poached egg and english muffin. All of it was tasty, as was their hollandaise sauce.
My brother found it odd that arugula was paired with their chicken & waffle entrée but I told him he could simply ask for a substitution or something. He can be inflexible though sometimes. Oh, the joys of family holiday brunch…
My daughter usually orders a fruit plate of some kind and she enjoyed what she ordered. My son enjoyed what he ordered.
The coffee was excellent. It would be great if they would consider adding stevia to their sugar alternative sweeteners but that’s a minor issue really.
We have not yet experienced dinner here, or even seen the menu, but I hear it’s good.