Denver has not always been considered a destination for foodies. Until the 2000s, most of the sophisticated offerings revolved around steaks, but there were also a few good Italian restaurants and solid Mexican dishes. A shining star: the Mile High City’s first microbrewery, the Wynkoop Brewing Company. The former mayor of Denver and governor of Colorado and current US Senator John Hickenlooper opened the brewery in 1988 in the LoDo (Lower Downtown) district.
Alma Fonda Fina
Today, however, people travel to Denver to enjoy art, sports, and a colorful cityscape—and to eat. Those familiar with the cuisine will likely find it in at least one Denver restaurant, if not dozens (or more). Visitors also come to town for the beer (thanks, John). In addition to supporting more than 150 breweries, the city also hosts the Great American Beer Festival, the world’s largest beer festival, which takes place this year on October 10.
Newtopia Now guests will find numerous options within walking distance of the Colorado Convention Center. Rideshare options open up many more options.
Where to eat in Denver during Newtopia? Here’s a list of five restaurants and five breweries that are hot right now. Most of the restaurants are fairly new. The brewery list features some OG restaurants, but also some relatively new ones.
Carne Restaurant – Facebook
Trendy restaurants
Meat: Acclaimed Denver chef Dana Rodriguez recently opened Carne, an international steakhouse in Denver’s always-bustling RiNo (River North) neighborhood. A regular recipient of James Beard Foundation awards, Rodriguez knows how to make delicious food and how to throw a party. You’ll find everything from roasted Colorado lamb to Argentinian tri-tip, French duck confit, Mexican pork ribs and Peruvian chicken. They even serve caviar.
Alma Fonda Fina: This eatery in the LoHi (Lower Highlands) neighborhood has been generating a lot of buzz since it opened. It’s helmed by an acclaimed chef who grew up in a restaurant family in Guadalajara, Mexico. Recent star dishes include traditional pork carnitas with mole verde, salsa seca and escabeche de jalapeño; applewood-smoked tuna with smashed avocado, chicatana mayonnaise (chicatana is a type of culinary ant) and salsa macha; and black Angus ribeye with ajillo (garlic) oil, roasted onions and mushrooms, and fresh lime.
Makfam Restaurant – Facebook
Makfam: Head to the bustling South Broadway neighborhood and check out this outstanding Asian eatery with deep roots in China, thanks to the husband and wife team who opened it. Dumplings, chicken wings, and scallion pancakes for starters. Corned beef fried rice, sizzling spicy noodles, and steak and egg jian bing for mains.
Lucina: Denver neighborhoods can be very diverse. Some of them, like Park Hill, have lots of trees, older homes, and a higher proportion of young families walking around with strollers. The neighborhood’s new eatery, Lucina, offers a mix of Latin American, Latin Caribbean, and coastal Spanish cuisine that will please everyone from neighborhood regulars to pilgrims from across town. Paella for the table? We’re excited.
Noble rebellion: Not in the mood for beer? Cocktails are too sweet for you? Then maybe wine is for you. Visit this natural wine bar in the heart of RiNo and enjoy a concise selection of excellent wines as well as light wine snacks like sausage and cheese, hot artichoke dip, chicken liver pate and canned sardines.
Cool breweries
Few cities are as popular for craft beer as Denver. The Mile High City’s concentration of world-class breweries representing a wide variety of beers and brewery atmospheres makes it one of the top spots in the country for beer fans.
Whether you’re looking for big venues with huge menus, neighborhood spots that focus on a handful of beers, or places that commit to and serve one style of beer like German lager, the city has everything you need.
If you like beer, you should visit at least one brewery on your trip to Denver. We’ve selected five of them – among many others – that are worth a visit.
Dos Luces Brewery
Dos Luces Brewery: Most beers rely on barley as a grain. Not so at Dos Luces, where corn reigns supreme. This brewery in Denver’s eclectic South Broadway neighborhood focuses on traditional Latin American drinks. Chicha, a corn beer from Peru, and pulque, a traditional Mexican soft drink made from corn and agave, make up a large portion of the refreshing and delicious menu. All beers are naturally gluten-free.
Zuni Street Brewing: This fun, bustling brewery is located in a bustling part of the fascinating LoHi neighborhood. Bars, restaurants, boutiques, and more crowd LoHi—and Zuni Street Brewing has long been a major draw. The large patio always puts people in a good mood, especially in the summer. The beer list runs the gamut: IPAs and sours, barrel-aged imperial stouts, and ales with ingredients like ginger, hibiscus, and lemongrass. They also serve pleasant hard seltzers.
Bierstadt Warehouse
Bierstadt Warehouse: Lager fans, unite! At Bierstadt Lagerhaus, a nationally acclaimed lager brewery in RiNo. The brewers at Bierstadt adhere to the German Purity Law, a set of guidelines that govern how Germans brew their pilsners and lagers, their dark and double bocks, and the rest of the beers. The beer comes in handy for washing down Bavarian pretzels, currywurst, schnitzel, and more.
Crooked Stave Brewing Co.: Sour beer lovers are known to travel to Denver for one reason: To drink beer at Crooked Stave, which opened in 2010. While the brewery makes a number of styles, including IPAs and pilsners, it’s the sours that have made it famous. The Sour Rosé, which the Stave has been brewing for years, takes sour ale fermented in oak barrels and mixes it with raspberries and blueberries. The Petite Sour Peach hits just the right mix of beer and peaches. Seasonal beers like Raspberry Spon deliver great flavor, and the shop also offers beers from its “Cellar Series,” which means the beers have gone through a long barrel aging and more. It’s a little out of the way — north of downtown near Interstate 70 — but it’s a quick drive away.
The Great Divide Brewing Company: It’s big and bustling, with two breweries near downtown. And it’s been pouring beer for 30 years. Great Divide is worth a visit. You’ll find everything from Mango Sticky Rice Lager to Farmhouse Ales, IPAs, fruit sours, pastry beers and more — and that includes house-made sparkling waters. The brewery in the Ballpark District is the OG. Their Barrel Bar in RiNo is just as wonderful.
