Two Italian Restaurants Worth the Drive Out of Town

The metro area’s culinary scene has been getting a lot of attention lately, from Frasca’s recent recognition as one of the greatest restaurants of the 21st century to Alteño and Kizaki being lauded as two of the best new restaurants in the country.

But some chefs are opting to cook a little further from the buzzy neighborhoods in Denver and Boulder. One of the best things about living in the Mile High is easy access to both the mountains and smaller towns along the Front Range where you never quite know what you’ll find. In two of those towns, what’s awaiting is a memorable dining experience that’s more than worth a few extra miles.

Part of the fun of visiting these spots is the adventure — like a mini staycation without the need for a hotel — and the chance to explore an area that you may not be familiar with. Here are two spots to check out:

Fortezza Ristorante in Niwot

Located between Boulder and Longmont, the tiny town of Niwot is not a place you’re likely to stumble upon by accident, but Adam Moore hopes more diners will head there to get a taste of Fortezza, the Italian eatery that he opened in August. “It’s an adorable town,” he says. “It’s mom-and-pop, it’s small-town, and it’s quaint.”

And it’s quite a change from Denver, where Moore worked in the restaurant scene for seventeen years, including a decade-long run as the general manager of Barolo.

His new restaurant is located in a shopping center, but plenty of surrounding trees and plants (including a garden that Moore is excited to see bloom in the spring) help it retain a rustic edge. The space was home to another ambitious eatery, Farow, a farm-to-table concept that shuttered in January after a three-year run.

But Moore believes diners in Niwot, Longmont, Boulder and Denver are still hungry for a fine dining spot in this small town.

The dining room, decked out with white tablecloths, is reminiscent of Barolo — eschewing trendiness for tradition. Like Barolo owner Ryan Fletter, Moore makes rounds, greeting guests warmly and happily dishing out wine recommendations from the restaurant’s impressive section.

The restaurant is Italian, but unlike Frasca, which is hyper-focused on the Friuli region, Fortezza is more broadly a “northern Italian style of restaurant — pretty much anything north of Rome — with a steakhouse crossover,” Moore explains, a concept that makes sense for a spot that needs to appeal to locals as much as visitors from outside of Niwot. “There’s that comfortability factor.”

And Fortezza is very comfortable. The staff is clearly trained with a classic hospitality mindset, and the dining experience feels a bit like a throwback…in a very nice way. The menu leans comforting, too, but there are some clear signs that this isn’t a typical Italian joint.

That comes from the team in the kitchen, led by executive chef Egan Ma and sous chef Dylan Rigolini, both of whom most recently worked at Hey Kiddo, one of the spots from the award-winning Id Est Hospitality Group. Id Est is one of the most creative restaurant outfits in not just the state, but the country, and Rigolini’s resume also includes a stint as chef de cuisine for the now-closed Misfit Snack Bar, which was known for its consistently surprising menu.

“We find our happy place not being in an urban jungle,” Moore notes.

“That was a big draw for us, too,” Ma says. “We’re right down the street from Esoterra,” an industry favorite that grows produce for the region’s restaurants. “All the specialty purveyors that we want to use — Cheese Importers — they’re all right here. It’s been refreshing to see how new and fresh everything can be.”

Ma and Rigolini are now using those fresh ingredients to step up otherwise familiar dishes, like the bucatini al limon that comes topped with fish roe bottarga and sunchokes from Esoterra. Even the ragu for the tagliatelle is made with an unexpected combination of duck and pork, with a punch from fermented chiles.

While the steak was perfectly cooked and the sides, including tender fingerling potatoes cooked in beef tallow, were without flaw, the dishes we’re still thinking about came earlier in the meal.

One is sure to become a Fortezza staple in the same way that the frico caldo is now a signature at Frasca. The panissa e Parmigiano Reggiano is basically a chickpea fritter coated in a blanket of Parmigiano Reggiano espuma (or foam), and it’s a cheese lover’s dream, with a pure Parm punch that lingers in the most lovely way.

The other proves that Ma and Rigolini have the chops to make Fortezza a real standout in the scene, if they’re not afraid to keep pushing the boundaries of what the restaurant’s regulars may be familiar with. A simple salad of chicory (again, from Esoterra) became a total knockout with the addition of tart dried cherries, saba (a sweet sauce), hazelnuts and a punchy miso-bagna cauda.

Just the word “miso” was a total turnoff for the table next to ours when the server started explaining the dish (those diners ended up sticking with pasta and steaks), but this is a salad that’s more than just a pile of vegetables: It’s an intriguing taste of how Fortezza may continue to evolve.

Bella Colibri in Golden

While it’s not far from Denver, an outing to Golden always yields some pleasant surprises. This is a town that still feels like the Old West in some ways, thanks to its numerous historic buildings, one of which is home to Bella Colibri, an Italian spot that, like Fortezza, is brimming with old-school hospitality.

Dean Valdez, who also owns Miners Saloon, opened the restaurant in 2019, in the same building where he operates Old Capitol Grill & Smokehouse. Bella Colibri’s space once housed the territorial library, and it oozes with charm from the moment you walk inside. Exposed brick, brass light fixtures and white tablecloths combine for a dining room that feels both homey and special occasion-worthy.

The front-of-house team is now led by Jenne Harris, maître d’ and director of service and culture; she was named Front-of-House Employee of the Year at the 2024 Hospys for her work at Stone Cellar Bistro in Arvada. The kitchen is headed up co-owner and executive chef John Wilson, who was a 2025 Hospys Chef of the Year finalist.

Both of these hospitality pros bring a maturity to Bella Colibri that makes it easy to settle in and enjoy the ride. The price point here is on the higher end, but you get what you pay for. The bread service, for example, is a hefty $17, but it includes eight large slices of housemade sourdough, a generous amount of high quality olive oil and balsamic vinegar for dipping, and three accoutrements: a rotating compound butter, herb pesto and a rotating fruit compote.

A standout among the starters is the spiedini, skewers of marinated lamb with arugula, Italian salsa verde and just the right amount of heat from Calabrian chiles.

We also enjoyed a seasonal salad with roasted butternut squash, Brussels sprouts, goat cheese and maple-mustard dressing. The arancini, studded with English peas, were a nice bite, but we’d skip those next time to save room for more pasta.

The options here largely stick to the traditional — with good results, from the garlicky spaghetti with clams to the squash-stuffed caramelle with candied walnuts.

The favorite of the night, though, was the gnocchi paired with succulent bison short rib and, once again, squash, alongside a Perfect Garden Martini with house-pickled green beans.

While Fortezza is poised to push boundaries (if it wants to), Bella Colibri is like a big hug. But both should be on your radar the next time you’re craving a little culinary escape from Denver.

Fortezza is located at 7916 Niwot Road in Niwot and open from 4 to 9 p.m. daily. For more information, visit fortezzaristorante.com.

Bella Colibri is located at 812 12th Street in Golden and open from 5 to 9 p.m. Wednesday through Saturday and 5 to 8 p.m. Sunday. For more information, visit bellacolibri.com.