Some of these relative newcomers do specialize in red-sauce fare, including chicken parm and lasagna, but others have upped the creativity, leaning into seasonal ingredients and incorporating flavors from other cultures. While all of our picks put their own spin on Italian cooking, they have one thing in common: They each serve up a heavy dose of hospitality along with truly memorable meals.
In 2023, Luca d'Italia was the Best of Denver reader's choice winner for Best Italian restaurant, while our editor's pick was Bar Dough — which continues to impress.
Here are our picks for Denver's ten best Italian restaurants, in alphabetical order, as well as a bonus restaurant that offers a hell of a Monday pasta deal.
Bar Dough
2227 West 32nd Avenue
720-668-8506
The Culinary Creative Group is a powerhouse on the Denver dining scene — it's behind such heavy-hitters as A5 Steakhouse, Señor Bear, Kumoya and more. At Bar Dough, its Italian spot in LoHi, chef Russell Stippich and his team excel at consistently delicious and creative fare, from pizza and pasta to small plates that highlight seasonal ingredients. While we love it for dinner, it also offers an excellent happy hour with specials on spritzes and bites like arancini, and you can start your day with carbonara and pizza topped with hollandaise during its weekend brunch.
The rich carbonara from Carmine's is made with cream and butter.
Molly Martin
92 South Pennsylvania Street
303-777-6443
1951 Wazee Street
720-459-8952
The original Carmine's on Penn has held down its corner of Pennsylvania and Bayaud since 1994. When the restaurant opened, it was intended as a place where large groups could converge and enjoy themselves without thinking too much about what they were eating — ordering big platters of Italian food served family style, which is still the approach today under owner Brad Ritter, who purchased the restaurant in 2006. (Now, though, you can also opt for servings meant for two.) In the summer of 2021, its lighter, brighter sister restaurant, Carmine's at McGregor Square, debuted near Coors Field, where it delivers the same crowd-pleasing fare to tables covered with brown paper and adorned with a cup of crayons so that kids and adults alike can color through the courses.
Coperta brings the heat with its Pollo Alla Diavola.
Coperta
400 East 20th Avenue
720-749-4666
In 2016, Paul and Aileen Reilly, the brother-and-sister team behind beloved Uptown eatery Beast + Bottle, opened the Roma-inspired Coperta in North Capitol Hill. Since then, Beast + Bottle has said goodbye, but Coperta has remained a neighborhood mainstay through it all. The dining room feels both classy and comfortable, with warm service that makes every guest feel like a regular while they're digging into housemade focaccia, classic pastas like cavatelli ragu and rigatoni carbonara, and such Coperta staples as the Pollo Alla Diavola, a half-chicken with a side of heat thanks to the addition of Calabrian chiles. In late 2023, Coperta also added a weekend brunch, and be sure to look out for its special Little Italy nights when it pays homage to red sauce classics like chicken piccata and fried mozzarella.
Start with the calamari at Cucina Bella.
Molly Martin
9660 East Alameda Avenue
720-550-8957
This eatery debuted in November 2022 in a strip mall on East Alameda Avenue, just west of South Havana Street. That location could make it easy to overlook Cucina Bella, but don't: The owners of the restaurant have some serious culinary skills. Brothers Luis and Heriberto Gutierrez are originally from Durango, Mexico, but have been cooking in Denver for over two decades. At their first venture as owners, the fine-dining-style take on the food belies the plain exterior, and the kitchen's commitment to quality comes through with every bite. Start with a generous pile of crispy calamari with Calabrian chile aioli before digging into pizza, pasta and larger entrees like veal saltimbocca. Cucina Bella also offers weekend brunch with nods to the owners' Mexican heritage, as well as a happy hour with specials on bites and booze.
Dio Mio
3264 Larimer Street
303-562-1965
This sister restaurant to one of the best pizzerias in town, Redeemer, has been a hit since debuting in RiNo in 2016. After briefly closing for a refresh, it made a comeback in February and debuted new menu items. There's now an expanded selection of small plates including can't-miss cabbage and artichoke dishes, and the house-made sourdough is still a must. Its popular cacio e pepe with ruffle-edged malfaldine noodles and pink peppercorns has stuck around alongside other pasta options such as radiatori with pistachio pesto, fresh mozzarella and furikake. There are also three shareable large-format entrees — it's worth gathering a group of three or four to share the lasagna made with braised beef cheek ragu.
Gallo Supper Club and Bakery
3470 South Broadway, Englewood
303-353-9917
This Englewood eatery may not be decades old, but despite debuting fewer than six years ago, it has all the markings of a classic. The family behind Gallo is from Sicily and they split the space between a bakery counter and a sit-down dining area complete with a full bar. Like many red-sauce joints in town, Gallo serves a savory cannoli stuffed with sausage and strips of jalapeños, but while they're called "mini," the hefty bites are a superior take on this regional favorite, with plenty of mozzarella oozing out of the thin dough. As diners dig into such traditional dishes as chicken parm and lasagna Bolognese, the staff marches tray after tray of Italian cookies, lobster tail pastries and sweet cannoli over to the bakery counter, where you can load up on treats to devour at home. Be sure to try a shot of the limoncello, too, made here in the Sicilian style, with the addition of cream for a smoothie-like consistency.
Parisi
4401 Tennyson Street
303-561-0234
Parisi has gone through many iterations in its 25 years, but one constant has been owner Christine Parisi’s passion for sharing Italian fare. The business originally opened in 1998 as a market and deli before moving to Tennyson Street and leaning into serving prepared foods, including fresh pasta and panini. Over the years, Parisi has continued to meet the neighborhood where it is, offering a fast-casual escape where the food is always comforting and made with care. And while its fine-dining downstairs sibling, Firenze a Tavola, closed during the pandemic, the space is poised to make a comeback soon as Parisi Sotto.
Chef Ty Leon spent years perfecting his pasta-making skills.
Olivia
290 South Downing Street
303-999-0395
Pasta perfection: That's what you'll find at this Wash Park restaurant opened by the culinary dream team of Ty Leon, Heather Morrison and Austin Carson in January 2020. Leon heads up the kitchen, folding pasta into intricate shapes, while Carson mixes cocktails and Morrison expertly guides the cadence of the front of the house. The result is a fine-dining meal that's completely worth the splurge, but Olivia also offers to-go options, including take-and-bake lasagna — a pandemic innovation that's become a neighborhood favorite. In late 2023, Restaurant Olivia unveiled an expansion that includes more seating, a larger bar and a private dining room, all of which allows it to host more events, such as pasta-making classes.
Italian-Punjabi mash-up Malai Kofta Gnocchi was recently on the menu at Spuntino.
Spuntino
2639 West 32nd Avenue
303-433-0949
Dining at Spuntino is like poetry. In fact, Elliot Strathmann, who owns the restaurant with his wife, Cindhura Reddy, composes playful poems about Spuntino's new dishes that he shares on Instagram. Since 2014, this couple has been running the intimate eatery, where hand-rolled pastas and braised meats are the stars, and Colorado-raised goat and creamy arancini (sometimes with Hatch chiles) have become signature items, as have dishes with elements of Reddy's Indian heritage. At the bar, Strathmann has amassed a collection of Italian amari, the bitter after-dinner spirits (including several versions he makes himself) that give diners one more reason to linger.
Bobby Stuckey runs plates out of Tavernetta's open kitchen.
Tavernetta/Instagram
1889 16th Street
720-605-1889
Frasca in Boulder, which earned its first Michelin star in 2023, has long been considered one of the best places to eat — Italian or otherwise — in not just the state, but the country. But its sister restaurant by Denver's Union Station is a culinary force in its own right. At this more boisterous and lively foil to Frasca's dignified demeanor, you'll find composed plates, perfectly paced tasting menus and, of course, a stellar wine program. (After all, the restaurant group is co-owned by ultra-well-dressed master sommelier Bobby Stuckey, the ultimate host.) A seat near the open dining room gives a glimpse into the expertly choreographed dance that keeps this kitchen going nightly, but one of our favorite ways to experience Tavernetta is at the bar during happy hour, when you can casually nosh on small bites while sipping bubbles in a cozy lounge area.
Bowties in a creamy Gorgonzola sauce are one of the pastas you can get for the Monday night special.
Molly Martin
Odyssey Italian Restaurant
603 East Sixth Avenue
303-318-0102
In 2022, Ignazio Mulei, who ran this restaurant housed in an old Victorian for a decade with his son, general manager Michele, passed the reins to new owners. But Odyssey has continued to serve its loyal fans, who flock here for the atmosphere as much as the classic fare. Red-checkered tablecloths, fresh flowers in wine bottles and pasta served with a heaping bowl of Parmesan so that guests can load up on as much as they want are all part of the charm. But the biggest draw is on Monday evenings, when all of the pastas are just $11.95 and come with a Caesar salad and freshly baked rolls with olive oil and balsamic for dipping. With prices that low, you might as well order a bottle of wine, too.
