Denver, Colorado: MMM… Coffee! A Paleo Bistro
September 2017
910 Santa Fe Drive Denver CO 80204
We really hit the jackpot in Denver, CO! We loved all the food we ate in this cool city, but we especially loved a cute bistro coffee shop called MMM… Coffee! A Paleo Bistro. So much so that we ate there 3 days in a row!
I found this awesome paleo restaurant on Google and, before we even looked at the menu, I knew I wanted to go because it was Paleo! That means it’s free of gluten, grains, corn, wheat, soy, and cane sugar among other things. Paleo is also known as “The Caveman Diet” - in short, Paleo diets generally fall in line with rules governing a prehistoric, or Paleolithic, lifestyle. In other words, if a caveman couldn’t access it or it’s not naturally occurring, it’s off the plate, so to speak, for Paleo dieters. It’s high in good fats, filled with good pasture-raised protein and low in carbs. There are lots of veggies on the paleo diet, as well as a moderate amount of fresh fruits and nuts. There are also no grains, legumes, vegetable oils, added sugars, sodas, or dairy (except butter/ghee).
Eating all the sweets at MMM… Coffee!, you would never know that they weren’t sweetened with old fashioned cane sugar. There are a few Paleo - friendly sweeteners such as: honey, maple syrup, monk fruit and stevia. The sweets here were sweetened with honey or maple. They even had some rich and tasty Mexican Chocolate Syrup that was perfect for making a mocha, all paleo and no cane sugar. WHOO HOO!
MMM… Coffee! is beyond incredible, and the owners Jami & Derek are so warm and friendly! They made us feel so welcome and at home each day we visited. They answered our million questions about Denver and what there is to see and do. We talked about our fur babies and traded pictures, too! They gave us tips about heading to the Red Rocks Amphitheater and named some great restaurants in the area for us. The gals behind the counter were also so sweet and lovely to chat with, as well.
They decided to open MMM… Coffee! 5 years ago this October. In fact, this is the first grain-free restaurant in the country! Jami wanted to open a bistro where she could walk in the door and literally eat everything on the menu, but that was not only healthy but tasty, too! Jami went gluten-free in 2011 but still didn’t feel so great. When she decided to commit to Paleo 100%, she had more energy, felt so much better than before and felt like she got her life back. In 2014, Jami was diagnosed with Lyme disease. In an article all about Jami and Derek in Paleo Magazine, Jami says, “The diagnosis of Lyme was the answer to all the questions surrounding the healthy problems throughout my life.” This is a great example of “Let food be thy medicine and medicine be thy food.” Because it wasn’t until after she had eliminated certain foods from her diet and started eating the right way for her (Paleo) did she feel like herself again.
We literally tried almost everything in the 3 days we were there… (scroll through album below to see all the yummy food)
latte
mocha
pumpkin spice latte
cookies
brownies
muffins (2 kinds)
soups (3 kinds)
granola
chicken legs
bacon wrapped date
smoothies & probably more.
To be honest, their granola is downright ridiculous! We bought a tub of it there, and it was honestly meant for us to eat at Frozen The Musical… but we downed it well before we got to the theater! We bought 2 to take home and they didn’t last more than 3 days. Thankfully, they ship their granola because it’s my favorite Paleo granola I've ever had… ever, ever! It is made with clean, simple ingredients and has a chewiness to it that can only be explained as… well… addicting, scrumptious, nutritious, divine and basically I need some right now because I am craving it!
It feels amazing to be able to walk into a restaurant & know I can eat ANYTHING & EVERYTHING with how we eat and our allergies & food intolerances! It’s a feeling that I don’t get to experience often. There aren’t many places that I can do that, which is why we tried so many things on the menu. It all looked so good, so we had to eat it up!
One of my favorite part of this amazing place is that there is a bookshelf that is filled with over 50 Paleo cookbooks and reference books that are available for anyone to look at and read. All of the books have been donated by their authors to MMM... Coffee! and are ready and waiting for you to sit and read them while drinking a delicious coffee or hot tea.
If you walked into MMM… Coffee! today and met Jami, you would never know that she battles this terrible disease every single day. She is just the nicest, warmest and beautiful spirited person you will meet! It is so incredibly apparent that she loves what she does. You can tell she loves making all of the fabulous food that they serve: YES! She makes EVERYTHING! She even makes her own chocolate - so you can definitely call her “Willy Wonka” because I tasted the chocolate and it was amazing! What you might not know is that not only does she make everything herself, but she does it in a small 100 sq foot space that also holds a fridge, freezer, dish washer, washing station, ice machine, pantry, appliances, ovens, etc. There is a small - very, very small - work space that Jami preps, cooks and bakes everything. It’s smaller than any New York City kitchen! Despite the small kitchen, the food’s flavor is BIGGER THAN LIFE, as is Jami’s heart! Everything is made with so much love, it’s like you can taste it.
Over the 3 days that we were in Denver, we were at MMM… Coffee! 3 times and sat and chatted with Jami and Derek as they worked and served customers. More than a few times I heard people asking if anything was gluten-free. To see those customers get all excited with their ears perked up when they hear that there is no gluten in the entire restaurant and that everything is also grain-free was priceless. To see someone with food allergies be able to feel confident in knowing that they can walk into MMM… Coffee! and eat or drink anything on the menu is pure gold!
We are so thankful to have found MMM… Coffee! and to have met Jami & Derek. It’s our favorite spot in Denver now! I can’t even wait to go back and stock up on all of the paleo granola.
Jami and Derek, you are such a blessing! Keep changing people’s lives, allowing people to eat safely and bringing smiles to everyone’s faces. You both brought smiles to ours! See you soon.
