Glo Noodle House made quite the impression on the Denver food scene since opening in early 2022, elbowing its way into a comfortable spot among favored Mile High restaurants. But it’s not just locals finding good food and drink with consistency there. Last year the Michelin Guide included it on its Denver Bib Gourmand list, proving the proof must be in the coconut rice pudding.
The Beginning of Glo Noodle House
The name Glo comes from the nickname co-owner Chris Teigland had for his late mother, Gloria. She was a pastry chef who largely influenced his culinary career. The culinary arts have always been a passion for Teigland. He worked his way up to cooking at institutions including Hogsalt and the Michelin-Starred Alinea in Chicago, as well as the award-winning Blackbelly in Boulder.
Blackbelly is where Teigland met his Glo co-owner and now wife, Ariana Teigland. While Teigland runs the kitchen, Ariana handles front-of-house operations as well as the restaurant’s beverage program.
“We discovered we can’t share a kitchen,” laughed Ariana. “I found the attention to detail working the line really translates to taking care of people. It’s been a positive experience so far.”
It was with that shift from kitchen to bar that Ariana found a new way to express herself. Hence, Glo’s amazing and thoughtful drinks program.
Serious About Sipping
Everything on the beverage menu is 100-percent intentional and designed to complement the food. A separate menu of equal size lists dozens of options, with emphasis on cocktails and sake.
“Sake is more popular these days and my goal was to make it more accessible and to educate diners more about it without it being intimidating,” said Ariana, who wanted to focus on sake cocktails from the get go. “It pairs so well with food and I think people don’t realize that it’s much like wine in that way.”
Glo offers two different flights. First, the Tasting Timeless ($27) with sake classics, a good introduction to sake for those new to the spirit. The Fun and Funky flight ($33) offers more one-off bottles and sake not seen as often in bars.
“Our staff is trained, so when they go to the table they give a quick rundown and offer possible notes, tastes, or things to expect,” said Ariana. “It’s also served in a wine glass, which brings out so much of the flavor.”
The education doesn’t stop there. Ariana wants to add even more sake expertise as she grows her own knowledge. She even plans to take the sake course from the Wine and Spirits Education Test when it comes to Denver.
Highballs are another feature and found on the happy hour menu for $7. This cocktail is a big part of Japanese culture. It’s simple too, with just soda water, the spirit, and citrus stirred in a tall glass with ice. Glo offers a few standards, as well as a daily rotating flavor that relies heavily on what’s available seasonally.
When a Chef Goes Behind the Bar
Perhaps the most unique element and advantage to Glo’s cocktail program is Ariana herself, who draws on her experience as a chef to create wildly original drinks that incorporate ingredients some guests didn’t even know existed.
“The cocktails are very much influenced by my culinary background and that plays heavily into the process for me,” she said, adding she thinks her method looks backwards based on how most people create drinks. “If I want to make a cocktail, I’ll decide I want to use certain ingredients, like carrot and dill, and see what spirits go well with them. A lot of the drinks are inspired by dishes I used to make, using flavors that I already know work well together.”
For example, the Lady Eboshi ($14), Ariana’s play on strawberry daifuku (basically stuffed mochi), which she wanted to recreate in drink form. The refreshing summer tipple combines strawberry, sweet red bean, rum, and Nigori sake, with little bits of mochi on top. Other notables, like Still Walking ($14), required a little more finesse in the process.
“That one is a labor of love,” Ariana chuckled. “I’ve been playing around with my own tonic for a while and wanted to experiment with using Japanese botanicals.”
One of the botanicals in this case is quinine, a naturally occurring substance found in cinchona bark. It’s most commonly used as an antimalarial medication, a supplement for leg cramping, and the key ingredient in old school tonic water (not the sweet stuff mass produced or coming out of a basic bar gun). For 48 hours Ariana steeps the bark and a bunch of other botanicals including yuzu, lemongrass, peppercorn, and grapefruit peel. This, she said, makes for a bright and vivacious flavor bomb.
For those not quite ready to venture into steeped bark territory, staples like Fireworks ($15) have been on the menu essentially since opening. Think of it like a margarita with yuzu kosho (a Japanese seasoning made from fermented chili peppers, yuzu peel, and salt) that sips perfectly when mixed with smoky mezcal.
Food and Drinks Unite at Glo
Michelin accolades aside, the food at Glow speaks for itself with seasonally rotating menus showcasing fresh fish, thoughtful flavor pairings, and a penchant for noodle dishes. Diners find bites sectioned out by preparation including raw, tempura, and skewered. There’s also a large section of the menu dedicated to noodle dishes of varying kinds, including ramen and broth-less offerings. Each ranges between $18 and $23, save for the Grave Digger. This $50 bowl laden with double everything proves big enough for a hungry giant or two ramen-obsessed teens.
While it’s hard to go wrong choosing anything from the standard menu, the happy hour specials shine. Daily deals include small plate samplers as well as bundles exclusive to the 4 to 6 p.m. window. Three dumplings for $7, bao buns with your choice of filling ($6), yakitori ($5), and temaki ($6) are all up for grabs. Pair one or many with discounted cocktails ($14), mocktails ($9) beer, wine, highballs ( $7), and sake bombs ($9).
Overall, Glo sticks to two big menu overhauls per year in the fall and spring, with much smaller tweaks in the winter and summer. Ariana also expressed excitement about an upcoming tomato martini special and experimenting with a corn milk cocktail.
“I don’t struggle with the new ideas because of my culinary background,” she said. “There’s so much, especially with the constant fresh produce, and I have so many ideas.” Plus, she added, “With spirits there’s always something new to try.”
Visit Glo Noodle House Monday through Thursday from 4 to 9 p.m. Friday and Saturday from 4 to 10 p.m. The restaurant is closed on Sundays. 4450 W 38th Ave., Denver, glonoodlehouse.com
