Centennial State Diary (Eateries/Bar Edition) – Linger

The Reclaimed Historic Mortuary Turned Upscale Dining Locale

Linger
2030 West 30 Avenue
Denver, CO 80211
(303) 993-3120
http://lingerdenver.com/

About Linger

“Life serves the food, and Death always shows up to the banquet, like an uninvited guest with nothing in hand to contribute, just to devour everything then leave.”

-Anthony Liccione

Formerly the historic Olinger Mortuary, which laid claims to have both: hosted the corpse of Buffalo Bill Cody for six months in 1917 while Colorado and Wyoming were fighting over his remains, and, reportedly, prepared the remains of the reputed head of the Colorado Mafia, Checker Smaldone and his wife.

The space has been transformed into an upscale eatery with a bit of a macabre twist. The restaurant is not like the Rainforest Café with a mortuary theme, but rather embraces a bit of the mortuary/death theme in more indirect ways, with cues from the 1971 film Harold and Maude. Some of the more indirect references which pay homage to the former Olinger Mortuary include: a wine list printed on an old medical chart, water is served from bottles resembling embalming fluid bottles and a collection of funeral fans are just beyond the host stand, which is itself a reclaimed church pew.

Far from being a deranged, Disneyfied mortuary themed restaurant, the design and ambiance of the space is a masterwork of creativity and subtlety.

A Brief History of the Significance of the Undertaker

American & Australasian Photographic Company
William Lewis, undertaker
1872
Wet plate glass negative, on 4/Box 2/No. 18168

The Undertaker, as a profession, really did not come to age until body preservation techniques were created with the accidental discovery of formaldehyde by Alexander Mikhailovich Butlerov in 1859. Prior to the use formaldehyde, primitive body preservation techniques included soaking the corpse in arsenic or alcohol at a ratio of about three pounds per body, in fact, western folklore is sprinkled with stories of family members preserving their deceased members in casks of whisky until a proper burial could be performed.

Most towns did not have a formal Undertaker, so early undertakers were primarily furniture crafters or doctors filling in as a second trade. Permanent structures dedicated to the mortuary sciences were non-existent. The Olinger Mortuary built in 1908 (currently Linger Restaurant) is considered to be the first permanent building built as a mortuary in the Rocky Mountain region.

It took the aftermath of the American Civil War for the funeral industry to emerge and gain economic power as the art of embalming became more accepted by Americans in the North wishing to preserve the remains of their lost loved ones for transport from the war zone. As a direct result, innovative new methods in embalming were created, such as arterial injection of formaldehyde, to improve upon the period of time the corpse would be preserved for the long journey home.

The critical turning point which legitimized embalming as a permissible practice in America came with the death of Abraham Lincoln and the subsequent cross country journey of his corpse, courtesy of the art of embalming.

My Visit to Linger

Linger is situated in the Lower Highlands (The Lo-Hi District) in Denver, CO. When visiting to Linger valet parking is a must, otherwise you may be circling like a vulture over a carcass for a while in a vain attempt to find parking. Make your visit to the establishment easier and more enjoyable with the complementary valet parking provided, I promise it’s worth it.

Restaurant Ambiance/Atmosphere

Throughout the restaurant, touches have been added to pay homage to the history of Olinger Mortuary and the movie Harold and Maude. A few f the touches:

The ballyhooed funeral fans at the church pew greeter's podium.

The wine/beer/cocktail list present in the old medical chart

Water in the bottles replicated as a homage to embalming fluid bottles

In the event you need to use the restrooms, you will need to walk down into the original crematorium portion of the mortuary facility.

Pool balls and racking triangles where the flames from the crematorium would rise.

A full length photo of Harold is on the mens room door (inside the crematorium).

Casket advertisements over the men's urinals (inside the crematorium).

A full length photo of Maude is on the womens restroom door (inside the crematorium).

Casket advertisement in the women's restroom (inside the crematorium).

As you can see, the ambiance of the space lives up to what's advertised.

Food

Honestly, this is where linger creates some in-congruence with the theme. The menu of food is based upon a world tour concept, separating and touching on the north, south east and west concepts. The food is all excellent quality and cooked perfectly, but the concept of the menu does not fit the Harold and Maude/former mortuary ambiance and theme of the space. I wound up arriving at the tail end of brunch.

I tried a Chinese Five Spice Old Fashioned which had lemon zest in the ice cube. I told the waiter I have never tried anything with Chinese Five Spice that isn't "Five Spice in your face" and aggressive. I have to say, this was an incredibly balanced and unique drink. I would definitely order it a second time.

My wife had a take on a lemonade with a ginger simple syrup and rosemary (Lemon-Ella). For a summer day with highs of 95 degrees Fahrenheit this was a very refreshing drink.

The Devils on Horseback were absolutely delicious and the star of the meal. When my wife who does not like bacon, eats bacon wrapped goat cheese filled dates, they are on to something.

I decided to jump into the brunch menu because, after all, there is never a bad time for breakfast. I had an Adobo Pork Benedict. It was an excellent variation on the traditional Eggs Benedict, where the English Muffin was substituted with plantain sopes, adobo pork replaced Canadian Bacon and the hollandaise was a chipoltle hollandaise sauce. It was remarkably rich, with excellent flavor, but the spice was muted.

My wife had the Hangover Ramen it was loaded with braised pork belly and duck confit, so it definitely qulaified as a hangover food. The broth in this Ramen bowl is breathtakingly deep and rich- something quite unlike a traditional Ramen broth, but in a very good way.

In the end, I would have to say that Linger is another gem absolutely worth a side trip or the out of the way trip if you find yourself in Denver, CO.

So that’s what’s on my doorstep in the Centennial State. What’s on yours?

Citations

Emerald Expositions. Root Down and Linger Restaurants, Denver. Hospitalitydesign. June 3, 2014. Web. July 25, 2016.

Dollman, Darla Sue. The Undertaker: Death and Dying in the Old West. Blogspot. September 19, 2013. Web. July 25, 2016.

Deathreference.com. Funeral Industry. n.d. Web. July 25, 2016