Denver Living · 2026 Guide
The Absolute Best Restaurants
in Denver — 2026
Nine restaurants that are actually worth what you pay to go out to eat in 2026 — from a local who has eaten at all of them.
Denver's restaurant landscape has changed a lot. A year or two ago, roughly 25% of restaurants in the city closed. Thankfully a lot of new ones opened in their place — but the point is, what was on every best-of list two or three years ago doesn't necessarily hold up today. This is the 2026 update.
This is a subjective list, obviously. There's no objectively correct ranking of restaurants. What this list does represent is the places I feel most comfortable recommending at the price point you're going to pay to go out to eat right now.
The categories skew Italian and steakhouse-heavy, and Denver does those things well. But there's casual, counter-service, sushi, and tacos in here too. Something for most occasions.
What makes this list
Jump to a restaurant
LoHi · Casual · Lunch
Tacos Los Primos
Tacos Los Primos is tucked into — or alongside — Malinche Audio Bar on Little Raven in LoHi. It's not a sit-down dinner destination, but that's not what it's trying to be. Go for lunch, grab tacos, move on with your day. A very Denver kind of discovery.
Cherry Creek · Italian · Chain Done Right
North Italia
Yes, it's a chain. That objection is noted and overruled. North Italia at Cherry Creek (190 Clayton Lane) doesn't have any of the things people hate about chains — the soullessness, the average food, the indifferent service.
The food is elevated Italian, the service is genuinely good, prices are reasonable, and the happy hour is worth planning around. There are really no holes in the game. If you write it off because it has other locations, you're missing out on one of the more consistently excellent dining experiences in Cherry Creek.
Denver · Casual · Counter Service
Odie B's
Odie B's earns its spot for exactly one reason: it's the best answer in Denver when you want a genuinely delicious bite without the sit-down-dinner production. Loud music, counter service, a coffee shop vibe, and the best burger I've had in denver./p>
The burger is a must. The breakfast burrito is also legitimately excellent and unique — everything they do has its own signature. Whatever they put on the menu is worth trying.
City Park · Steakhouse · Denver Institution
Bastien's
Home of the sugar steak. If you've driven down Colfax, you've seen the sign. Bastien's (3503 E. Colfax Ave.) is an old-school Denver steakhouse that has been around long enough to rest on its laurels — and doesn't. The food is still excellent, the staff have tenure measured in decades, the prices come in a bit lower than fine dining. Good people, good vibes.
This is the steakhouse for people who want a real Denver steak experience over a trendy one. Some of these long-running places coast on their reputation. Bastien's isn't one of them. They've been making the same things for decades because those things are still good.
Downtown · Modern Steakhouse · Award-Winning
Guard & Grace
Guard & Grace (1801 California St.) is Denver's modern steakhouse benchmark. Chef Troy Guard built something at the lobby level of the Brookfield Building downtown that has held up as one of the city's best dining experiences year after year. Voted best steakhouse in Denver repeatedly, and on the Michelin Guide.
It's a 9,000 sq. ft. space with private dining areas, a raw bar, a wood-burning oven, and an open kitchen. When Sam ran the full Denver Steak Tour, Guard & Grace was the winner. That should tell you everything. It's fine dining done with energy — not stuffy, not stiff, and the steak is the best in the city.
Denver · Italian · Neighborhood Gem
The Cherry Tomato
This one is harder to describe than most, because the appeal is entirely about feel. The kitchen smells strongly of garlic. It's warm. It's unmistakably a neighborhood Italian restaurant in the best sense — the kind of place that rewards regulars and makes first-timers feel like they've been going for years. Big pours of wine and liquor. No pretense.
Don't go expecting a Michelin star. Do go expecting a great dining experience at reasonable prices. The carbonara and piccata are both excellent — classic Italian dishes executed without any shortcuts. This is the kind of restaurant Denver needs more of.
Platt Park · Sushi · Denver Institution
Sushi Den
Sushi Den (1487 S. Pearl St.) is one of Denver's most well-known restaurants for a reason. It's been at the corner of South Pearl and Florida for decades, and it still earns its reputation. But there's a right way and a wrong way to order.
The main menu is fine. But the real goodness is the small, rotating "catch of the day" menu. That's where you get adventurous. Whatever you order, make absolutely sure to get the burrito toro — the seared toro. It is one of the best individual bites of food in the entire city of Denver.
Cherry Creek · Northern Italian · Since 1992
Barolo Grill
Barolo Grill (3030 E. 6th Ave.) sits up on 6th, away from the main Cherry Creek North strip — which means you have to know about it to find it. Real ones know. It's always busy, and there's a reason for that. Since 1992, Barolo has been serving upscale Northern Italian cuisine with the kind of consistency that's genuinely rare over three-plus decades in the Denver restaurant industry.
It's the most upscale Italian restaurant on this list — possibly tied with Olivia — but it's not pretentious. The service is dialed in without being stiff. Getting a reservation is more manageable than Olivia. If you want an occasion dinner with Northern Italian food at a very high level, Barolo Grill is where you go. You will not be disappointed.
Wash Park · Italian · Best in Denver · 2026 #1
Restaurant Olivia
Restaurant Olivia (290 S. Downing St., Wash Park) is up there with Sushi Den as the best overall restaurant in Denver in 2026. It earns that distinction because of two things working together at a very high level: the food and the hospitality.
The pasta is the best in Denver; handmade, focused, and executed without shortcuts. But what takes Olivia above everything else on this list is the service. Heather, Austin, and Ty — the team behind the restaurant — have built something that genuinely cares about the experience you're having. You will likely meet one of them if you go.
It's not cheap. Fine dining in Denver isn't cheap in 2026. But Olivia is worth whatever you pay to go. Book early. It fills up fast, and the word is very much out.
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