Andrea Frizzi's traditional trattoria has become a Colorado classic

After so many courses, you might wish you had skipped straight to dessert. But the fine New York strip, moist from sous-vide preparation and pan-seared to finish, reassures you that your instinct was right, and that's before a bite of the buttery foie gras. Cornish hen promises a crisp crust, as does snapper, which at lunch might land atop greens with hearts of palm and sweet segments of mango oranges that would put every other citrus variety out of business if only they were more readily available. The practice of pairing fruits with protein is common in Northern Italy, and more chefs would do well to take note.

Frizzi has said he thinks of Il Posto as a "food spa," adding that "when [guests] are here, we try to give them an experience outside the spectrum." From someone else's lips, the statement might seem cocky, but not from this man from Milan, who has been in the food business since he was thirteen and runs as high on emotion as he does on energy. (You sense a little more time behind the burners might be good for burning off the excess, but that's what his Saturday cooking school is for.) In terms of food, wine and overall ambience, Il Posto delivers — but there is a glitch, and that's service. Servers frequently fail to mention the $62 tasting menu, and on several occasions our questions were met with an ungracious back, our server having turned while we were in mid-sentence. That attitude might be fine in a big city — I've lived in enough of them to recognize it — but not here, not at the food spa that Frizzi has so carefully built.

Mark Manger

See also: Behind the Scenes at Il Posto

Mark Manger

See also: Behind the Scenes at Il Posto

Location Info

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Il Posto

2011 E. 17th Ave.
Denver, CO 80206

Category: Restaurant > Italian

Region: Central Denver

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Details

Il Posto
Mozzarella di Bufala $14
Insalata $11
Pappardelle $17
Tagliatelle $16
Gnocchi $18
Risotto $21
Polletto $15
Pagello $18
Bistecca $33
Bombolini $9

2011 East 17th Avenue

303-394-0100

www.ilpostodenver.com

Hours: 11 a.m.-2:30 p.m. and 5-10 p.m. Monday through Thursday, 11 a.m.-2:30 p.m. and 5-11 p.m. Friday, 5-11 p.m. Saturday, 5-9:30 p.m. Sunday

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More About

• Andrea Frizzi
• Lucas Chandler
• Milan
• Food and Cooking
• Eating Out

As time has passed, Il Posto has fallen off the radar. Frizzi himself has never been chosen for the Denver Five, the group of culinary notables invited to cook at the James Beard House. He doesn't offer bowling or ping-pong; he doesn't have a star mixologist (though he does have a fine sommelier), or even those crispy sprouts. And yet Il Posto feels far from stale. Rather, it feels like a fine Italian suit or a woman's handbag. Having seen so many knockoffs over the years, you forget how beautiful leather can be, how lovely the cut of a pant.