Favorite Food + Finds at Denver Flea (Fetch Market)

Last weekend I hit up the Denver Flea (now known as Fetch Market) in City Park. Spent a couple of hours walking up and down all the rows, checking out all of the booths while my husband did not — he comfortably sat in the shade underneath a tree. It awesome to be able to check out so many local stores and vendors all in one spot, and discovered some great food, clothes, and companies I think that are worth checking out.

Here are some of my favorites:

Food

The Real Deal
This food truck serves up Latin food and smoothies. For lunch Stanton ordered the Green Chile Pupusas ($7), two Squash Baked Empanadas (2 x $7), and a made-to-order papaya and banana Smoothie w/ milk  ($5.50). I went with what I consider to be the best deal on the menu, the Chilles Rellenos which come with a side of rice and beans ($8).

Out of the items we sampled, I felt the Rellenos, with its gooey cheese filling, and fried batter exterior was the tastiest and most satisfying — and you really can’t beat that price for a solid lunch.

Happy Cones Co
Happy Cones Co. is a dessert truck offering “real fruit ice cream.” I actually think in the description of their product they should emphasize that in addition to the real fruit, there is also real ice cream involved.

I almost did not try Happy Cones due to a previous experience with a “real fruit” ice cream joint in NYC. Their “ice cream” was more like a soft-serve sorbet than anything else. However, the seemingly happy hordes of people walking by with picture-perfect swirled soft serve atop their cones changed my mind and I decided to give it a whirl.

I am SO GLAD I did. Happy Cones Co fruit ice cream completely different than Chloe’s. It’s got a pleasing, slightly creamy texture because they do a mix of small-batch hard ice cream, add in the real fruit, and blend it all together on the spot. This is key to keeping the ice cream at a pleasing consistency that still allows you to give it a good solid lick off the cone. I went with the Mixed Berry on a sugar cone ($4.75) because I was feeling kinda full after lunch. However, I soon wished that I had upgraded to the larger waffle cone because I really wanted more after I was done.

If you were following my Snapchat (@newdenizen) that weekend, you’ll know that I was pretty enamored by the fact that the cones were served out of the back of the truck. I appreciate the efficiency (and the charm) of it all. Nothing worse than people clogging up the ordering window!

I also really loved the story of the company, which was posted on a chalkboard in front of the truck. Clearly Hap Cameron has an adventurous spirit. I’m so glad he decided to channel some of that energy into creating something so incredibly delicious and sharing it with the world.

I’m sad that Happy Cones Co doesn’t have a permanent location because ever since tasting that luscious cone, I’ve been craving more. Dear Happy Cones, please set up right in front of my apartment building forever and ever. Thank you!

Supperbell
One of the most exciting vendors I discovered at the Denver Flea was this a local food delivery service whose culinary director is Denver chef and restauranteur Frank Bonanno. Frank Bonanno is the guy behind some of the best, buzziest restaurants in town: Bones, Mizuna, Osteria Marco, to name a few, which makes Supperbell Denver’s version of Maple.

Meals come pre-made, just order before 3pm for same-day delivery to your home or office, and heat the meal up. NO COOKING INVOLVED. The quality of the food looks a lot better than some of the other “chef-driven” meal services in the area, so I can’t wait to try this out. Fingers crossed that it’s a keeper!

Clothing

Spied a great assortment of fun tee and tank by local designers. Here are a few that caught my eye:

Moore Collection
This “Take Me to the Trees” design is so cute, but I would really love it if it came in a lighter color tee version — Colorado sun is strong! Please save my skin from the burn!

John Vogl
Artist John Vogl makes stunning illustrations, including this Astronaut tank top. His artwork is beautiful. He also makes fantastic drawings that he prints on posters — many of which would look fabulous in the home.

Mile High Clothing
Winning for best double entendre is this “Rocky Mountain High” tank made out of bamboo fabric. Love the simplicity of the all caps font — reminds me of shirt you’d get from your high school sports program, in a good way.

Gifts and Accessories

Craft Boner
With a name like “Craft Boner”, you’ve gotta be pretty cheeky. As it turns out, their products are not only that, but incredibly funny, clever sayings will give you a good chuckle, and will surely make you want to buy a few of their cards, posters, embroidery kits to give to your bestie for her birthday or special occasion, or just because you can’t resist NOT buying her a “No Fucks Given” mug.

You’ll have to wait some time before the next major Flea-focused retail therapy opportunity hits. Denver Flea doesn’t return until the end of this year, the weekend of December 2-4 at a secret location to be announced.