With wine glasses in one hand and small bites balanced in the other, hundreds of people gathered under shaded tents for the Denver Food & Wine Festival Grand Tasting on Saturday.
And as the Michelin Guide prepares to present its first-ever awards in Colorado on Tuesday, it was clear that the 50 restaurants in attendance had truly stepped up their game, something that is true also of Colorado’s food scene as a whole. I glided through each tent in awe, like I was stepping into the gates of food heaven. I’d like to say I made it to every table, but my stomach could only handle so much.
Proceeds from the annual multi-day festival go toward the nonprofit Colorado Restaurant Foundation, which hosted the festival and which supports local restaurant workers.
Here are six of my favorite bites (plus a couple of honorable mentions):
Brutø
Brutø is one of The Denver Post’s possible Michelin-star contenders this year, so it’s no surprise that the Mexican-inspired, fine-dining spot came to play. Chef Michael Diaz de Leon prepared an elevated Mexican dish: a chochoyota, or a small ball of corn dough, topped with salsa macha and a dollop of caviar, which paired perfectly with a welcome glass of bubbly.
1801 Blake St., Denver; brutodenver.com
Chez Maggy
Famed Chef Ludo Lefebvre showed up to greet Denver foodies at Chez Maggy’s booth. The popular restaurant gave attendees a bite of France with a crispy square of tapioca with parmesan and Piment d’Espelette, a rare red chile pepper from France.
1616 Market St., Denver; chezmaggydenver.com
Reckless Noodle House
After debuting its first Denver restaurant in December last year, Reckless Noodle House was ready to impress. The Seattle-based restaurant served up a bowl of tender mala braised beef cheek noodles, which I quickly slurped up before going back for round two.
800 Sherman St., Denver; recklessnoodlesdenver.com
Restaurant Olivia
Restaurant Olivia, another one of The Post’s possible Michelin-star contenders, has never served something I don’t like. Chef Ty Leon wanted to stand out from the crowd of savory options and instead baked a lemon olive oil cake with strawberry rhubarb jam and mint Chantilly. The moist sweet treat was an ideal bite to wash down with a chilled glass of rosé on a hot summer day.
290 S. Downing St., Denver; oliviadenver.com
Noisette
Chicken pot pie is one of my favorite comfort meals, and Noisette put its own French twist on the classic American dish, topping a perfectly crisp puff pastry with a truffle meatball and a dash of gravy, and calling it “Vol-au-vent de Volaille et Truffle.” I haven’t stopped dreaming about it since.
3254 Navajo St., Denver; noisettedenver.com
Lucina Eatery & Bar
Lucina owner and Chef Erasmo Casiano and his team had their work cut out for them, putting on a show by cooking three giant pans of seafood paella, about the width of a giant’s arm span. The Latin American-inspired restaurant stuck to its roots, and it paid off, as shown by the lines of hungry attendees.
2245 Kearney St. #101, Denver; lucinaeatery.co
Honorable mentions:
Water Grill
Water Grill’s presentation was one of my favorites. The seafood restaurant served a giant scallop in a scallop shell, and the dishes were laid out on a bed of ice and seaweed with some smoking dry ice for dramatic effect. The refreshing bite was almost too pretty to eat, but paired perfectly with a dry white wine.
1691 Market St., Denver; watergrill.com/denver
Poulette Bakeshop
Poulette’s table was stacked to the brim with sweet treats, a few of which I pocketed for the ride home. From classic chouquettes to raspberry chocolate macarons, coconut passion cakes, elevated s’mores and chocolate breadcrumb cookies, it was too hard to pick just one bite.
19585 Hess Rd. #107, Parker; poulettebakeshop.com