Former Denver restaurateur Mel Master stared at the revolving door that kept spinning and spilling out throngs of barstool sitters and diners into Elway's Cherry Creek on Tuesday night.

"I keep dreaming of opening a restaurant in Denver," said Master, who sold his remaining restaurants and left that scene last year. "But I never, ever, ever, ever, ever would again."

When they were finally done with Denver - after 12 years with Mel's at 235 Fillmore, followed by a short stint with another Mel's on Sixth Avenue and two other eateries south of town (not to mention Top Hat, Bruno's and Starfish) - Mel and wife, Janie, headed to Rye, N.H., where they could be closer to their daughter, who may need a heart transplant.

These days, the Masters are concentrating on their daughter's health, along with the health of Tortoise Creek, a winery they own that produces varietals from vines in the south of France and California's central Coast.

Janie Master is working on a book - a collection of essays on their life together that she's been writing forever and compiling for the past four years.

"It's about our days when we were first in the restaurant business (in New York City) and the wine business," Mel Master said.

ANKLE MANGLE: Tyler Wiard, executive chef at Elway's Cherry Creek, fell on stairs outside a friend's home Thursday and broke his ankle. Surgery was scheduled for Friday afternoon.

"They have to put in pins, screws and all that (expletive)," Wiard told me two hours before the skedded surgery. "I'll be in the hospital minimum one night, maybe two. The doctor said he's never seen such a good job destroying an ankle."

The timing is particularly tricky because it fell on the eve of Denver Restaurant Week, today through Feb. 27. Elway's took on double duty for the $52.80-for-two meal deal by extending the offer through March 6. Even without Restaurant Week, the Cherry Creek steakhouse is typically one of the busiest kitchens in the city.

"I couldn't have planned this better," said Wiard, who expects to be on crutches several weeks. If you want to send him a note: tyler@elways.com.

5280 TWIST: The Milwaukee St. Tavern, 201 Milwaukee St., is featuring a 5280 special for restaurant industry workers during Denver Restaurant Week through Feb. 27. For $5.28, restaurant employees can choose from a hamburger with a side dish, or a pitcher of Blue Moon or Coors Light or a pint of Blue Moon and Coors Light with a shot of Jager.

EAVESDROPPING on a man to a woman in Winter Park: "Nobody has to steal my identity; I'll just give it to them. Maybe they will have better luck with it than I have."