Dining Out in Denver Explore the full spectrum of pizza, from New York to Naples, and from classic to modern Denver may not have its own signature pie, but it’s a thriving pizza town nonetheless, representing the full spectrum of regional American — not to mention traditional Italian — styles. From Detroit and New York to Naples and Sicily, there’s something here for everyone. In fact, there are so many stellar spots for slices in metro Denver alone that there’s no room for their Boulder metro counterparts below; to offer a quick rundown of the most notable up north, then, consider Pizzeria Alberico , Basta , New Yorkese , Westbound & Down , and Rosalee’s Pizzeria . As for these 20 spots, they’ve either long defined the local scene or have quickly proven themselves indispensable to it: Here’s a true slice of the Mile High City. Additional reporting by Gigi Sukin and Paul Albani-Burgio . More maps in Eater Denver Dining Out in Denver Explore the full spectrum of pizza, from New York to Naples, and from classic to modern Denver may not have its own signature pie, but it’s a thriving pizza town nonetheless, representing the full spectrum of regional American — not to mention traditional Italian — styles. From Detroit and New York to Naples and Sicily, there’s something here for everyone. In fact, there are so many stellar spots for slices in metro Denver alone that there’s no room for their Boulder metro counterparts below; to offer a quick rundown of the most notable up north, then, consider Pizzeria Alberico , Basta , New Yorkese , Westbound & Down , and Rosalee’s Pizzeria . As for these 20 spots, they’ve either long defined the local scene or have quickly proven themselves indispensable to it: Here’s a true slice of the Mile High City. Additional reporting by Gigi Sukin and Paul Albani-Burgio . This craft beer and pizza parlor helped put Tennyson Street on the map when it opened to instant raves in 2010, and it’s held its edge with a menu that goes well beyond the norm. It starts with a hefty list of custom ingredients for topping New York- or Detroit-style sourdough crusts: Think smoked tofu, ham hock, blue cheese, and chipotle honey. It continues with the Artisan Pie of the Month, which could feature mortadella, provolone, green olives, and giardiniera à la a muffuletta or shepherd’s pie-inspired shaved ribeye, mashed potatoes, Gruyère, peppers, and mushrooms. And then there’s the slice of the day, which might be a play on crab rangoon or street tacos. Throw in a rotating taplist, and the options are nearly endless. 3920 Tennyson St, Denver, CO 80212, USA From Wednesday through Sunday, this winning Wheat Ridge bakery whips up crusty, bubbly pies of all shapes, sizes, and sorts for breakfast, lunch, and Friday-only happy hour (3 p.m. – 5 p.m.). In the morning, they might be dripping with egg yolk beneath layers of tahini sauce, garbanzo puree, roasted tomato, and herb salad; midday they’re priced by the square slice; and come Friday afternoon, the hard-working oven yields hearty, hefty 16-inch beauties topped with all the good stuff – including cup-and-char pepperoni, Calabrian sausage, and Parmigiano-Reggiano – for takeout. 6985 West 38th Avenue, STE 101, Wheat Ridge, Colorado 80033, United States Despite the name and the Big Apple-inspired decor, this urbane RiNo haunt doesn’t do New York-style pies. What it does do, however, is fabulous — from the chewy, well-structured sourdough crust made with single-mill grain and the housemade mozzarella to smart topping combos like burrata, green-garlic pesto, and squash or hazelnut ricotta, fire-roasted mushrooms, and black-garlic honey. 3258 Larimer St, Denver, CO 80205, USA Make that Indoor Pizza: This formerly mobile mom-and-pop operation now has permanent digs at Cerebral Brewing’s West Highland taproom, where it’s turning out char-speckled sourdough pies with soul and style to spare. An abundance of local produce like kale, oyster mushrooms, and fresh herbs makes its vegetarian options pop, while weekly specials inspired by Italian beef hoagies or jalapeño poppers give the neighbors a reason to return on the regular – and so, by the way, does the owners’ demonstrable and ongoing commitment to community causes. 3257 Lowell Boulevard, Denver, Colorado 80211, United States The Pizza Bandit The couple who runs this stall at Avanti F&B in LoHi clearly loves to play with their food. In addition to staples such as the Crispy Calabrese Meatball with Monterey jack, herb sauce, and fried onions on a buttered parmesan crust and the Bang Bang Buffalo Chicken with blue cheese sauce, pickled carrots, celery, and celery seeds, they run specials galore. Check out their Instagram feed to see when they’re dishing up, say, Korean-inspired pies with ginger chicken, kimchi cream, barbecue sauce, scallions, jalapeños, pineapple, hibiscus-pickled onions, and sesame seeds (whew) or Apple Pie Dessert Pizzas with salted caramel and vanilla ice cream. Order delivery from Grubhub 3200 Pecos Street, UNIT 102, Denver, Colorado 80211, United States Only good things can come from a tiled oven as drop-dead gorgeous as the one at this LoHi haunt. And so they do. The pizzas here aren’t too fussy, just crafted with care to pair with drinks that exude Italian style, from spritzes and Negronis to glasses of little-seen varietals like Zibibbo and Ruché — but for something a little different, there’s the Mountain Man with montasio, gorgonzola, guanciale, pistachios, red onion, and hot honey as well as the Spicy Scallop, a nifty twist on a clam pie with chili oil, chives, and lemon. Come brunchtime, try the breakfast pizza with eggs, sausage, potatoes, and hollandaise on for size. Book a table on OpenTable Order delivery from Grubhub 2227 W 32nd Ave, Denver, CO 80211, USA Operating two other branches in Congress Park and Golden, this West Highlands specialist in Detroit-style pizza has won international competitions (not to mention local hearts) with some of its creations, baked in square steel pans that yield caramelized, cheesy edges. Among the prize pies is the Parma Italia, which features both parmesan and prosciutto from its eponymous region as well as soppressata, burrata, arugula, and garlic olive oil, and the Brooklyn Bridge, graced by cupping pepperoni, Italian sausage, ricotta, fresh garlic, and oregano. 3930 W 32nd Ave, Denver, CO 80212, USA With the cozy-cool vibe of a corner bistro, this LoHi favorite keeps the oysters, tinned-fish boards, and small plates like chicken-liver mousse with rosemary focaccia coming — but no meal here is in the least bit complete without pizza. In addition to crowd-pleasers like the namesake Cart-Driver with mozzarella, sausage, kale, and chili flakes and the clam pie with littlenecks, pancetta, roasted garlic, and cream (also served at the original RiNo location), it whips up market specials on the regular, which could be topped with arrabbiata sauce, fairytale eggplant, smoked scamorza, and breadcrumbs or braised beef, caramelized onions, roasted carrots, and parsley. Snappy cocktails and geeky wines add to its ample charm. 2239 W 30th Ave, Denver, CO 80211 As the dynamic duo behind beloved pasta joint Dio Mio , Alex Figura and Spencer White know a thing or three about dough, and they’re proving it at this pizzeria down the block from their flagship in RiNo (complete with an alley window for service by the slice). Natural leavening and a 72-hour fermentation process yields just the right amount of crunch, give, and tang, while toppings like aged Gouda, soy-pickled mushrooms, and pink peppercorns add extra flash; imaginative weekly specials might involve lemon-pepper-breaded calamari, porchetta and pickled green tomatoes, or blue cheese and pears. (And there’s more where that came from at Urban Cowboy in Uptown, where sibling Little Johnny B’s operates, as well as the brand-new Johnny Bechamel’s in Wash Park.) Order delivery from Grubhub 2705 Larimer St, Denver, CO 80205, USA Marco's Coal Fired | Ballpark Mark Dym opened the first pizzeria in Colorado to be certified by the Associazione Verace Pizza Napoletana , the international regulatory body for proper Neapolitan methods, in the Ballpark neighborhood back in 2007. So while it also offers New York-style pies — including one topped with its famous limoncello-marinated chicken — first-timers should start with any of the tributes to pizza’s birthplace, graced with ingredients like mozzarella di bufala, crema di tartufo, and pistachio pesto. (For those in the DTC area, there’s a second location in Englewood, while University Hills sibling Dough Counter specializes in Sicilian-style slices so massive they’re practically casseroles.)

2129 Larimer St, Denver, CO 80205, USA Pizzeria Leopold The seats at the bar of this hopping Lakewood hangout are the best in the house, offering an unobstructed view of pie after pie being assembled from start to finish — and what a finish it is, courtesy of beautifully blistered crusts that glisten with a brush of olive oil beneath the likes of pepperoni, speck, pineapple, jalapeños, and hot honey or roasted eggplant, arugula, and balsamic reduction. Seasonal specials such as the Me So Corny with hay-smoked mozzarella, sweet corn, Italian sausage, caramelized onion, and garlic sauce keep regulars on their toes. 1990 Wadsworth Blvd, Lakewood, CO 80214, USA Lon Symensma’s Italian concept in Sloan’s Lake offers six pizzas, but there’s absolutely one to beat: the Amalfi pie. Topped with pecorino, creamy ricotta, Calabrian chili paste, and best of all, slices of confit lemon, it’s a sunny, tangy ticket to its namesake coast. 1671 Raleigh Street, Denver, Colorado 80204 Though fraternal owners Kris and Jason Wallenta, who also run Dos Santos around the corner, opened this cozy Uptowner in honor of the New Haven-style parlors they grew up around in Connecticut, their menu is anything but beholden to tradition, East Coast or otherwise. Pies here come topped with everything from mashed potatoes, bacon, and candied walnuts to butternut squash, pumpkin seeds, and romesco sauce to Brie, Swiss, garlic crème fraîche, and smoked salt — and, with their distinctly irregular-shaped crusts, they look as well as taste as intriguing as they sound. Order delivery from Grubhub 1702 Humboldt St, Denver, CO 80218, USA Little Arthur’s at Out of the Barrel Taproom Bursting onto the Denver dining scene with a hugely successful pop-up hoagie shop, AJ Shreffler is now running the kitchen at Cap Hill beer bar Out of the Barrel , where he’s slinging not only sandwiches but pies as gargantuan as they are gorgeous. As the famous quote goes, simplicity is the ultimate sophistication; in this case, every last ingredient exudes integrity — crunchy-tender crust, topflight cheeses, fresh herbs, Sicilian olive oil, and all. 205 E 7th Ave, Denver, CO, 80203, US With just a couple of tables in a tiny storefront in the Santa Fe Arts District, Jake Rothey’s pizzeria isn’t quite built for dining in, but it is ready-made for a takeout feast. Golden-brown crusts that, as he’ll explain, land squarely between New York and Neapolitan style provide a supple but solid base for creations with punny rap-inspired names like the Dillmatic with mozzarella, ranch dressing, and pickles and the MF Shroom, topped with burrata, pancetta, mushrooms, arugula, and garlic. Just the thing for a chill night in. 644 Santa Fe Dr, Denver, CO, 80204, US The 38 Best Restaurants in Denver A Complete Guide to Dining in LoHi The Best Chinese Restaurants in Denver Grateful Bread Company alum Zach Parini opened this little Lakewood outlet to instant acclaim in 2017, and the buzz hasn’t died down since, thanks to his knack for crafting bubble-crusted pies with first-rate toppings that range from the fairly standard (including excellent pepperoni and salami) to the highly unexpected: Take butternut squash, apples, and bacon or peaches, prosciutto, and pistachios. 5380 W Mississippi Ave, Lakewood, CO 80226, USA While it also boasts one of the coziest rooftop decks in town, this homage to the fern bars of the 1970s has really made its mark on South Broadway’s Antique Row thanks to the kitchen’s earnest craft. The organic dough undergoes a natural two-day fermentation to yield a crust that’s paper-thin yet somehow sturdy on bottom, chewy at the edges, and tangy all over, while the topping combos are as flavorful as they are thoughtful (not to mention veggie-centric). Must-tries include the Hunter with bison chorizo, cheddar, green-chile ranch dressing, pickled jalapeños, and cilantro as well as the That 70’s Pie with three cheeses (including feta), arugula pesto, baby kale, roasted golden beets, and red onion. 1229 S Broadway, Denver, CO 80210, USA Osteria Alberico At this suave suburban sanctuary from the famed Frasca Hospitality Group, the selection of pies is smaller than that of its Boulder sibling Pizzeria Alberico but every bit as artful. From the Fiche with fior di latte, figs, gorgonzola, arugula, and 12-year balsamic to the Il Mare with San Marzano tomatoes, white anchovies, Castelvetrano olives, oregano, and lemon, time-tested recipes and impeccably sourced ingredients will whisk any diner who’s ever been to Naples straight back in their minds. (Pro tip: When possible, add shaved truffles on top.) 3455 South University Boulevard, Englewood, Colorado 80113 Here’s a pie that’s more than the sum of its slices. This brewery employs people with developmental disabilities to make not only its beer but its pizza on spent-grain crusts; the results — including the Colorado Green Chile & Pork with corn, jalapeños, and red onion — are as delightful as the mission is meaningful. 3445 S Broadway, Englewood, CO 80113, USA Romano's Italian Restaurant When a hankering for old-school red sauce strikes, this Littleton institution cheerfully delivers — just as it has since 1967. Stained-glass lamps, roomy maroon booths, and a crowd full of families celebrating this or that occasion set the mood for tomato-splashed, brick oven-fired pies with thin, crunchy crusts that support the likes of shaved roast beef with roasted peppers and onions, meatballs and pepperoni with jalapeños, and even tri-colored cheese tortellini. 5666 S Windermere St, Littleton, CO 80120, USA More in Dining Out in Denver Whether you’re looking for classic Chinese-American dishes, regional specialties, or modern fusion, Denver has it all All the chili, steak, tacos, ice cream, and more dishes that define Mile High dining Everywhere to eat in Denver right now, from chic modern Taiwanese food to the return of a hot dog legend It may be a fine dining hub, but don’t overlook the burgers, tacos, and hand pies Breckenridge’s dining scene has leveled up with après-ski classics, ambitious tasting menus, killer pho, and more. This is the title for the native ad