Desmond Bar & Grill

Tasty selection of small plates. We had the Brussel Sprouts, Onion Tarte and Pot of Salmon which were all delicious. Great wine selection by the glass, good service and nice atmosphere. Noise level is a little on the loud side but over all a great experience.

The small plates are not impressive in any way, it might seem cheap at first but in the end your paying over $ 16 for a small plate of Brussel sprouts and some fried potatoes. Not worth the time or money to check out.

I think I just died and went to heaven! There’s a mocha pot de crème made with Allegro coffee — creamy, dreamy, rich and unbelievable!

I’ll say right off, I haven’t gotten to eat here. Review for service only.
We live in the area and tried to come right after Desmond first opened, for happy hour, but there was no happy hour (I understand there is now). Then we tried to come last week, thinking «Where is a great neighborhood place we could go to celebrate some good news?»
I thought it might be busy, so I called to ask if they would have room for us, or if I could make a reservation before we headed over in about half an hour. (It was a weekday night.) The hostess said it should be no problem and we should come on in — no reservation necessary. But when we arrived in about 35 minutes, around 6:30, she told us there was at least a half-​hour wait. (Lots of empty tables behind her.) I exclaimed that we had called and she had said we could come in! and she said harshly that she couldn’t predict when people could come in, and it had filled up. I said that if we’d known, we would have reserved a table, and she said «Well there aren’t any tables available right now anyway. The first one isn’t till 7. You can sit at the bar if you want.» Then she just stared at us while we decided. We didn’t want to sit at the (empty) bar with our kid, and we didn’t want to stand around for half an hour when we could have — given the opportunity — made a reservation for 7:00 and waited in comfort at home.
Two strikes — don’t know if we’ll try again. We wish there was a nice neighborhood in the area, but meanwhile we wound up elsewhere — again.

Enjoyed a wonderful evening out last night. The staff was very attentive, the food exceptional and our server, Marissa, had the most perfect understanding of menu items but more important, was so personable and friendly. We loved her, the food and our evening. This will be a regular weekly night out — make sure you get reservations though!!! *****

food was amazing as I knew it would be. Only negative is noise level. Really tough to have meaningful conversations due noise level. Not sure what could be done about that.

Very interesting menu, perfect sized small plates, good and attentive service, and nice neighborhood restaurant.

I had a great meal with my girlfriend the other night here, everything was really tasty. We ordered a bunch of small plates which gave us an opportunity to try many things and we liked it all. Menu is diverse and has something for everyone, fancy stuff and more recognizable fare. Drinks were yummy and a great wine selection too. Definitely a new neighborhood gem. Also the ambiance was really nice, we had a table next to a fireplace tucked away in the corner and it was perfect for us and our date night.

Consistently delicious. Service is always delightful. This was our 4^th or 5^th visit. We sat near the fireplace and enjoyed the food, wine and ambience.
I had the Broken Falafel Salad and shared the French Onion and Chevre Tart with my family. They ordered the Cheeseburger and «brave potatoes» and the wings. The ‘nduga (sort of a sausage/​pâté) on toast points is always delicious.
Very good neighborhood spot. Vibrant but not a stressful, phony scene.

First time at Desmond’s and we loved it! Just went for a glass of wine and some apps. The atmosphere was great and everyone was friendly. Food was very tasty. We had a tart with French onion and goat cheese, Brussels sprouts and a bruschetta plate. All very good! We will be going back for sure!

Interesting concept. The menu is unique, but seems to lack focus. Food I’ve had is good, but the burger, guac and chips, and chicken wings seemed misplaced. Tonight was my third time in. It was excellent. Lamb sausage was incredible, n’duga was really good (2^nd time having it). B-​sprouts were overdone, but still tasty, perhaps not worth $ 10 though. I’m excited to come back and try more items off the menu.
Drink prices are slightly above average for a small neighborhood spot.
Energy of the place is still a little off, but they are new, so give them a chance or two. Overstaffed, music too low, etc. are the complaints. I agree with another reviewer that some casual high top tables would bring in more people, which would also bring the energy level up. Service was solid.

I want recently-​opened Desmond’s to succeed, so my review is in the spirit of constructive criticism. We were there on a Friday night. It was pretty full but my wife and I were seated immediately. Cutting to the chase, this restaurant is confusing. The menu is just a long list of how-​are-​these-​things-​really-​related food items. My wife and I both lost interest about halfway down and settled on the antipasto for 2. The waitress was able explain the item expertly, and we went for it. She left the menus after taking our order and we continued to stare at them. (We’ve been married a long time and ran out of things to talk about years ago. :-)). Our conclusion was that all the items with the exception of the hamburger were «small plates», not really a meal. Our antipasto was ok, though by no means a meal, even if it was for one. As we were leaving a guy one table over got a steak. Say what?! When the hostess asked how everything was, I answered «I didn’t know you guys had steak», she said that it was the special. Of course we were about out the door at that point, so no steak for daddy. That was a very long-​winded way of saying your menu is confusing and you need to coach your waitstaff better to proactively explain the restaurant and the menu and if there’s a special, sell it. We’ll probably give Desmond’s another shot in a few months. Nothing about it, frankly, made us want to hurry back.

Food and service was awesome! Used to go to his previous restaurant 15 years ago and Desmond’s is just as good!

Food and service were excellent. I will definitely be going back and trying more of their small plates!

Lovely, so glad it moved in!
I live in the neighborhood, and was sad when Tabletop closed and left this lovely space empty, it’s great to see it full again! We tried it on a whim on Friday night, and were pleased to see that the dining room was full and busy.
Prices are great, perfect for a slightly upscale neighborhood establishment. The food is good, all small plates meant to be shared. The antipasto plate was a great mix of flavors, the onion chevre tart is a must. It’s clear that the menu is being tweaked and refined, but what a great start! I can’t wait to see how it grows and evolves.
The wine list was decent, and the cocktails are great. The Denver Sour was one of the best whiskey sours I’ve had.
Our service was very good. Everyone, from the hostess to the bussers were pleasant, smiled and greeted us. The dining room is cozy, well designed and comfortable. Of course, it’s winter now, and we can’t enjoy the great outdoor space yet, but I’m looking forward to walking in for after work cocktails outside next summer!
It’s great to see good restaurants and small businesses in North Park Hill!

Absolutely amazing. Everything is fresh and flavorful. The onion and chevre tart and the fennel mussels were favorite dishes tonight. Last week the falafel salad, potted salmon and chocolate cake were fantastic. Service excellent. Prices very good. No nonsense; these folks know what they are doing. I saw lots of neighbors there tonight. We are so happy to have Desmond in Park Hill!

Only open a couple weeks and it shows. We had a group of 7 and service was glacially slow. Cocktails came out one at a time over the course of 15 minutes. The menu is confusing. Desmond bills itself as Mediterranean with shared plates. But, the best items our group tried were the burger and chicken wings. The only other high point was the onion and chèvre tart. Yummy. The squid was so chewy it was almost inedible. The hummus suffered from too much tahini. The polenta lacked flavor. The baba ghanoush was sweet. Doubt we’ll be back.

We visited Desmond’s last Friday night, all tables full with a 15 minute wait at 7:00. We shared a Mediterranean orange and date salad (very fresh tasting), polenta with mushrooms and mascarpone (total comfort food!) and a cheeseburger (very tasty) with potatoes (unremarkable).
Good service, a little loud, reasonable prices except for a surprise $ 3 surcharge for a martini «up», that was a downer.