Make a reservation for the Culinary Creative’s latest restaurant and get ready to indulge in some of the best beef in the city, as well as equally matched cocktails. After Morin restaurant shut down in 2020, chef Max Mackissock decided to turn his modern French place into something new. The team revamped the décor to lend it a vintage coastal vibe and gave the menu a steakhouse makeover. But even with the changes, A5 maintains upscale presentations that make the restaurant feel nothing like the steakhouses Denver is known for. On the appetizer menu, try the rich beef tartare katsu sando and crabby toast, the latter is a dish that looks and tastes more upscale than it sounds. Move onto the classic wedge salad, followed by the 10-ounce Tajima black wagyu bavette steak or a top-notch French dip. Add a side of roasted cauliflower drizzled in brown butter and an order of Japanese milk bread rolls. It’s not an old-school steakhouse — it’s so much better.
read moreWhat separates this steakhouse from the pack is a sense of playfulness that speaks to the moment. Against a backdrop that defies genre stereotypes in lively shades of green, the kitchen likewise upends expectations through the diversity of its influences, deftly supplementing those exquisite cuts of beef with, say, chicken-confit poutine, crab fried rice in black-garlic shoyu, and brown-buttered carrots in mole blanco and chile vinaigrette; the bar, meanwhile, gets into the groove with a focus on rums rather than whiskeys. A rocking happy hour seals the deal.
read moreThis LoHi Italian haunt from chef-owner Max MacKissock (ex The Squeaky Bean) boasts creative pizzas fired in a showpiece, hand-tiled imported oven, plus handcrafted pastas, small plates and entrees. Lined with a tufted burgundy banquette, the long and narrow space features an open kitchen and a marble-topped bar turning out clever cocktails, housemade sodas and an all-Italian wine list, all of which can also be sipped on the roomy patio.
read moreAt all four of Tap & Burger’s locations, the team sticks with a tried-and-true formula—juicy burgers, a massive stable of rotating beers on tap, and sports on plenty of well-positioned TVs. In recent months, the specials have been getting increasingly creative, with burgers rarely sticking to the straight and narrow. There’s also bubbling plates of fully customizable mac and beer cheese, and a surprisingly show-stealing set of salads.
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