Molly Martin
Audio By Carbonatix
Local diners have long known about the high-quality dining experiences you can expect at the spots owned by brothers Yasu and Toshi Kizaki, Denver’s sushi pioneers. While their OG spot, Sushi Den, has been serving for over four decades, it’s Toshi’s new solo venture, Kizaki, that’s made a big splash on the national scene. The omakase concept opened in April to immediate acclaim.
The following month, chef and restaurateur Johnny Curiel expanded his growing restaurant group with the addition of Alteño in Cherry Creek.
Just a few months later, in September, both spots were recognized in the Michelin Guide (Kizaki earned a star and Alteño is among the recommended picks), and now, both have nabbed another honor, landing on Esquire‘s 2025 list of the Best New Restaurants in America. They are the only two Colorado spots included in the list, which spans 33 restaurants nationwide.
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Of Kizaki, Esquire writes, “Colorado hasn’t had a sea nearby for about eighty million years, but it has had good sushi for about four decades — ever since Toshi Kizaki and his brother moved to the Rocky Mountain State and began (with Sushi Den in 1984) building a network of beloved Japanese restaurants. Now, at sixty-nine, chef Kizaki has decided that he wants to ride out his ‘retirement’ years by standing behind a counter in a hidden chamber on Pearl Street and overseeing one of the most generous and labor-intensive omakase menus I’ve ever encountered. The soups alone can make you close your eyes in silent prayer, and when I visited, there were three of them—a fish broth, a Colorado corn soup, a miso soup with clams — each one a master class in liquid artistry. The courses keep coming in such a luxurious bombardment (sesame tofu that looks like a cube of Italian marble, the finest fried scallops I’ve ever tasted, a hand roll with fatty tuna and caviar) that it feels like chef Kizaki’s way of reminding you that it’s never wise to count out the old guys.”
Shawn Campbell
The publication’s description of Alteño reads: “Johnny Curiel’s first restaurant, Alma Fonda Fina, was named after his mother, Alma. His newest pays tribute to his father, Juan, a highlander from Jalisco. The restaurant is classic campestre, all country, focusing on whole-animal butchery and cooking over fire. It feels like coming hungry to a tavern after a day of wandering through the mountains. The pollo a las brasas is a golden chicken topped with vibrant salsa verde and a full pound of herbed French fries. A lamb shank is marinated for two days in adobo, then seared, then braised, then thrown on the hearth again. It is the lamb of God. The jalapeño cornbread is an argument that all bread should be corned and peppered and all butter made with huitlacoche. Curiel’s father has not yet been able to visit, thanks to American immigration mishegoss, but the restaurant does him proud.”
This isn’t the first time Esquire has lauded new restaurants in the state. Last year, Curiel’s Alma Fonda Fina was the sole pick from Colorado. In 2023, Sap Sua and its reimagined take on traditional Vietnamese cuisine represented the state.
The fact that two Denver restaurants are representing Colorado this time around is a solid sign of the city’s growing culinary reputation on the national scene. Will Curiel’s upcoming project at the Clayton, the Spanish-inspired Mar Bella Boqueria, be landing on lists like this in 2026? That seems like a safe bet.
