Justin Brunson

Masterpiece Delicatessen stuffs a great sandwich

It's a big weekend for local food and wine events

It's gearing up to be a big food and wine weekend, kids. On Saturday, Ace Hardware, Alameda Station, 417 South Broadway, is holding its first-ever "Big Green Egg" grilling competition, a smoking and grilling face-off between students from the Art Institute of Colorado and other participating hope ... More >>

Join the party animals at the Infinite Monkey Theorem

Don't look him in the triangles!On Sunday, you can get drunk on some monkey at "The Secret Tutelage of the Primate Nation."No, this isn't some weird segment from Bizarre Foods: It's a wine-and-food event (two of them, really) at the Infinite Monkey Theorem Urban Winery, the facility that Ben Parsons ... More >>

Two chefs deliver our daily bread at Masterpiece Delicatessen

Don't look him in the triangles!On Sunday, you can get drunk on some monkey at "The Secret Tutelage of the Primate Nation."No, this isn't some weird segment from Bizarre Foods: It's a wine-and-food event (two of them, really) at the Infinite Monkey Theorem Urban Winery, the facility that Ben Parsons ... More >>

The earls of sandwich

Don't look him in the triangles!On Sunday, you can get drunk on some monkey at "The Secret Tutelage of the Primate Nation."No, this isn't some weird segment from Bizarre Foods: It's a wine-and-food event (two of them, really) at the Infinite Monkey Theorem Urban Winery, the facility that Ben Parsons ... More >>

Infinite Monkey Theorem winemaker Ben Parsons and Masterpiece Deli chef Justin Brunson team up to launch Lechon

Infinite Monkey Theorem winemaker Ben Parsons​What began as a friendship between winemaker and chef has morphed into a business partnership between Infinite Monkey Theorem winemaker Ben Parsons and Masterpiece Deli executive chef Justin Brunson. The two met not long after Parsons moved from P ... More >>

Squeaky Bean's patio farm stand takes root today

Lori Midson ​"We want people to understand the quality of produce that we use here at the restaurant," says Max Mackissock, exec chef of the Squeaky Bean, the seasonally-driven, New American restaurant with an alter to the late Farrah Fawcett and a thimble-size kitchen that's rolling out its ... More >>

Win free tickets to Sunday's summer seafood supper with chefs Jeff Osaka, Alex Seidel, Scott Parker and Justin Brunson and wine geek Ben Parsons

Lori MidsonJeff Osaka, chef/owner of twelve​This Sunday, August 22, chefs Jeff Osaka (twelve), Alex Seidel (Fruition and Fruition Farms), Scott and Deanna Parker (Table 6) and Justin Brunson (Masterpiece Deli and Lechon) will host a summer seafood feast at Infinite Monkey Theorem, the urban ... More >>

Round two: Win free tickets to Sunday's summer seafood supper with chefs Jeff Osaka, Alex Seidel, Scott Parker and Justin Brunson and wine geek Ben Parsons

Lori Midson Jeff Osaka and Alex Seidel​This Sunday, August 22, chefs Jeff Osaka (twelve), Alex Seidel (Fruition and Fruition Farms), Scott and Deanna Parker (Table 6) and Justin Brunson (Masterpiece Deli and Lechon) will host a summer seafood feast at Infinite Monkey Theorem, the urban winery ... More >>

Announcing one winner and one last chance to win tickets to Sunday's seafood supper with Jeff Osaka, Alex Seidel, Scott Parker, Justin Brunson and Ben Parsons

Lori Midson​If you've been following this here blog, then you already know that chefs Jeff Osaka (twelve), Alex Seidel (Fruition and Fruition Farms), Scott and Deanna Parker (Table 6) and Justin Brunson (Masterpiece Deli) are hosting a seafood supper this Sunday at the Infinite Monkey Theorem ... More >>

And the winner of two seats to Sunday's seafood supper is...

​Behold the final winning entry in our Sunday summer supper contest. Just in case you missed all this, here's the short version: We asked readers to suggest a name for the coalition of chefs -- Alex Seidel (Fruition and Fruition Farms), Jeff Osaka (twelve), Justin Brunson (Masterpiece Deli an ... More >>

Contest alert! Win two free seats to the Highlands Chef Collaborative Farm Dinner at Aspen Moon Farms

Lori Midson ​The final Highlands Chef Collaborative Dinner of the year is exactly six days away, and take our word for it: You don't want to miss it. Why, you ask? Well, consider this: The five participating chefs -- Max Mackissock (Squeaky Bean); James Rugile (Venue); Brad Rowell (Colt & ... More >>

Masterpiece Delicatessen chef Justin Brunson on opening a new restaurant and his fetish for foie gras and lamb testicles

Lori MidsonJustin Brunson​ Justin Brunson Masterpiece Delicatessen 1575 Central Street 303-561-3354 www.masterpiecedeli.com This is part one of Lori Midson's Q&A with Masterpiece Delicatessen chef/owner Justin Brunson. You can read part two of this interview right back here tomorrow. It's ... More >>

Part two: Chef and Tell with Justin Brunson from Masterpiece Deli

Lori MidsonJustin Brunson​ Justin Brunson Masterpiece Delicatessen 1575 Central Street 303-561-3354 www.masterpiecedeli.com This is part two of Lori Midson's Q&A with Justin Brunson, chef/owner of Masterpiece Delicatessen. To read part one of that interview, click here. Greatest accomplishm ... More >>

This week in Cafe Society food bloggery: To drink or not to drink vodka, Justin Brunson, cupcakes, TAG | RAW BAR and turkey legs

Lori MidsonJustin Brunson, owner and chef of Masterpiece Delicatessen​ Behold the best highlights from this week's Cafe Society blog: 1. Sean Kenyon, the no-holds-barred bar baron at Steuben's, takes on vodka -- specifically whether or not it's run its course -- in this week's Ask the Barten ... More >>

Culinary calendar for the week ahead: Festivals, classes and family-style dinners

​Want to stir things up in 2011? There are plenty of cooking classes, parties, special dinners and festivals to help you keep (or kill) whatever resolutions you've made. Here's a taste of what's on Colorado's culinary calendar:

Masterpiece Delicatessen looks to land a liquor license

​ Masterpiece Delicatessen hardly needs another reason to give crowds a reason to stop by: The breakfast and lunch eatery has been packing hordes of patrons into its tiny space and downtown-facing patio since it opened three years ago. But Steve Allee and Justin Brunson are about to make the n ... More >>

Masterpiece Deli chef and owner Justin Brunson will open Wild Catch in the former Tastes Wine Bar space in Uptown

The Uptown address of Tastes Wine Bar will close May 21 and reopen as Wild Catch in mid-July.​Justin Brunson is one of the busiest chefs in Denver right now. Masterpiece Deli, with which we have a serious love affair, is applying for a liquor license, Brunson is prowling to open a second Mast ... More >>

Denver's five best spots for sandwiches

​It's hard to really screw up a sandwich, since it requires just enough skill to slap a couple of slices of meat and maybe a little cheese between two pieces of bread. But by the same token, it's also hard to elevate the sandwich into something truly extraordinary. There are a few spots in D ... More >>

Justin Brunson amasses a team of high-profile chefs to run the kitchen at Wild Catch (and starts his own bacon company)

​When Justin Brunson, the captain behind the magnificent Masterpiece Deli, opens Wild Catch, a sustainable seafood restaurant in Uptown, he'll steer his kitchen along with a tag team of several other high-profile chefs -- none of whom, by the way, are from TAG, Troy Guard's Asian restaurant i ... More >>

Strings promotes Jason Clark to executive chef after Lance Barto exits for Wild Catch

Lori Midson​Lance Barto started behind the burners at Strings three years ago, working his way up to the executive chef role in 2009 after then-lead chef Aaron Whitcomb left for YiaYia's Euro Bistro in Greenwood Village. Now, Barto's heading over to the line at Wild Catch -- the seafood rest ... More >>

Denver Burger Battle: The meat of the matter in photos

Lori MidsonThe crew from Crave compete in the Denver Burger Battle​Aside from the vegetarian burgers from Root Down, which, ironically, were the first to sell out, last night's porny Denver Burger Battle was a carnivorous animal-style nirvana of bloody meat candy, bacon and foie gras. The sol ... More >>

Win two seats to ChoLon's craft beer dinner with Top Chef Stephanie Izard and Alex Seidel

Girl and the GoatSeason 4 Top Chef Stephanie Izard ​It's been a good year for Lon Symensma, the chef/owner of ChoLon Modern Asian Bistro, the leading-edge Asian restaurant that he opened downtown last October.

Justin Brunson -- and his staff -- sail away from Wild Catch

Lori Midson​"This is not how I wanted it to go down," admits Justin Brunson. But he had a premonition it would. Several weeks ago, Brunson, the sandwich earl behind Masterpiece Deli and the opening executive chef/co-owner of Wild Catch, the sustainable seafood restaurant that he opened in l ... More >>

My meal at Wild Catch was stunning, even if it won't make the review

Lori Midson​Rob and I had been talking about Wild Catch since it opened this summer, our anticipation building with every friend we ran into who raved about the place. "The food's damn near perfect," one promised. "Best restaurant in Denver right now," said another. We were waiting. Or, more ... More >>

Daniel Kuhlman, owner of Wild Catch, responds to Justin Brunson's claims

​"Literally, I'd never heard of any of these charges until I read your story," says Daniel Kuhlman, the owner of Wild Catch, which abruptly shuttered on Saturday, when co-owner/chef Justin Brunson, along with his staff, walked out the door following a meeting the day before between Brunson and ... More >>

Reader: Wild Catch owner's prediction of reopening sounds like a fish story

​It's been a wild ride for Wild Catch, the new fishhouse that saw its chef/partner and most of its staff (above) walk out this weekend, leaving the place high and dry. Justin Brunson, an owner of Masterpiece Deli who joined with Taste owner Daniel Kulhman on the restaurant, told Lori Midson th ... More >>

Wild Catch will reopen with ex-Mizuna executive chef Tony Clement behind the burners

Courtesy of MizunaDenver.comTony Clement, formerly of Mizuna, is the new consulting exec chef of Wild Catch. ​Three weeks ago, on a Saturday, chef Justin Brunson sailed away from Wild Catch, the sustainable seafood restaurant he opened with Daniel Kuhlman in late August, after alleging that K ... More >>

The Truffle's Rob Lawler on Spam musubi, brains, glutards and his favorite cheese

Lori Midson​This is part one of my interview with Rob Lawler, former chef and the sovereign of cheese at the Truffle. Part two of my chat with Lawler will run tomorrow. Rob Lawler The Truffle 2906 East Sixth Avenue 303-322-7363 www.denvertruffle.com When you actually want someone to cut th ... More >>

Wild Catch reopens tonight with a new chef and a new menu

Lori Midson​Just got off the horn with Mandi Clement, who, along with her husband (and ex-Mizuna chef) Tony, are now consulting at Wild Catch, the former sustainable seafood restaurant that Daniel Kuhlman opened in August -- and subsequently shuttered -- several weeks ago when then-chef and c ... More >>

Reader: Wild Catch should be renamed Wild Hunt...or is that Wild Ride?

​Wild Catch reopened last night -- several weeks after partner/chef Justin Brunson walked out, and most of the staff followed him -- with Mandi and Tony Clement rolling out a meaty menu that's a major departure from the sustainable seafood focused on the original lineup. Many regulars caught t ... More >>

Former Wild Catch exec chef Justin Brunson has a few words for Tony Clement bashers: Lay off!

Tony Clement, the new exec chef of Wild Catch, gets a big endoresement from Justin Brunson.​ While it's no secret that Justin Brunson, the former executive chef of Wild Catch, isn't a big fan of Daniel Kuhlman, his ex-partner (and owner) of the restaurant that Brunson walked away from a few we ... More >>

Year in review: Denver's biggest food stories in 2011

Lori MidsonOne of the biggest culinary stories of 2011? The drama at Wild Catch.​Denver foodbeasts who eat up the city's culinary scene had plenty to chew on in 2011: Big-name chefs who abruptly closed their restaurants; other chefs who walked out; a restaurant that burst into flames -- and ro ... More >>