Wine Spectator Award-Winning Restaurants in Denver

Denver has 20 restaurants on this list of Wine Spectator Restaurant Award holders, including rioja, Tavernetta and The Wolf's Tailor. Several are in LoDo or Cherry Creek, and many also receive recognition from Michelin. We choose venues by weighing recognition from independent critics, guides and awards.

Entries are arranged in alphabetical order. Each shows the venue's town or city, a short description and awards from independent sources, including the award from Wine Spectator.

How this list is chosen: Every restaurant here holds a Wine Spectator Restaurant Award. When more qualify than the list can hold, En Primeur Club chooses among them by weighing recognition from independent critics, guides and awards. Entries appear in alphabetical order.

801 Chophouse
Denver, United States
Wine Spectator Best of Award of Excellence
The format follows the classic American chophouse template — prime cuts, deep wine programs, and floor service calibrated for business and occasion dining — at a price point that competes with the city's most formal rooms.
A5 Steakhouse
Denver, United States
Wine Spectator Award of Excellence
A5 Steakhouse on Denver's 15th Street occupies the serious end of the city's steakhouse tier, earning a Michelin Plate in 2024 for its sourcing-led approach to classic cuts. Partner/Chef Max MacKissock draws on regional producers including Blackhawk Farms in Kentucky, delivering technically precise beef in a room that balances retro warmth with a serious bar program.
Barcelona Wine Bar Denver
Denver, United States
Wine Spectator Best of Award of Excellence
On the edge of RiNo, Barcelona Wine Bar occupies a stretch of Larimer Street where Denver's wine culture has found a foothold between the neighbourhood's warehouse conversions and newer restaurant openings. Recognized by Star Wine List with a White Star designation in 2022, it operates as both a serious wine bar and a full-service restaurant, making it a useful anchor point for anyone exploring Denver's drinking and dining scene.
Also recognized by Star Wine List
Barolo Grill
Denver, United States
Wine Spectator Grand Award
One of Denver's most enduring fine dining addresses, Barolo Grill has held a loyal following since opening on East Sixth Avenue through a focused Northern Italian menu and a wine list that runs to more than 2,100 selections, weighted heavily toward Piedmont and Tuscany. A Michelin Plate recognition in 2024 and a service team schooled through annual European staff trips place it in a distinct tier within Colorado's Italian dining scene.
Also recognized by James Beard Award
Beckon
Denver, United States
1 Michelin star · Wine Spectator Best of Award of Excellence
Beckon Denver transforms fine dining into intimate counter theater, where Chef Duncan Holmes' Michelin-recognized cuisine celebrates vegetables with unprecedented creativity. This 18-seat RiNo destination offers both vegetarian and omnivore tasting menus in a Scandi-cool space that redefines Colorado's culinary landscape.
Also recognized by Opinionated About Dining
Edge Restaurant & Bar
Denver, United States
Wine Spectator Award of Excellence
Edge Restaurant & Bar occupies the ground floor of Four Seasons Hotel Denver, operating as a steakhouse with a regional sourcing emphasis — Colorado bison, local lamb, and pecan-grilled proteins anchor the menu. Reservations are recommended, particularly on weekends.
Also recognized by Forbes
FIRE
Denver, United States
Wine Spectator Award of Excellence
Broadway After Dark: What FIRE Says About Denver's Appetite for Ambition There is a particular kind of Denver restaurant that announces itself through its address before you ever read a menu. The stretch of Broadway at 12th Avenue sits at the...
Guard and Grace
Denver, United States
Wine Spectator Best of Award of Excellence
Guard and Grace occupies the base of the 56-floor Brookfield Building on California Street, bringing a modern steakhouse format to the heart of downtown Denver. A 2024 Michelin Plate recipient with a wine list of 3,500 bottles, it pairs an open oak-fire kitchen with a full seafood bar across a space that moves between lunch service and late dinner. Wine Director Davin Teta oversees a California, French, and Italian-weighted list priced at the $100-and-above tier.
Also recognized by OpenTable
Luca
Denver, United States
Wine Spectator Award of Excellence
Luca sits on Grant Street in Denver's Capitol Hill corridor, a neighborhood where Italian-rooted cooking has carved a distinct niche among the city's more experimental dining rooms. The address places it within walking distance of several of Denver's more serious independent restaurants, making it a natural anchor for an evening that begins or ends nearby.
Mizuna
Denver, United States
Wine Spectator Award of Excellence
A Capitol Hill fixture recognized with a White Star by Star Wine List, Mizuna has held its place in Denver's serious dining conversation long enough to matter. The restaurant at 225 E 7th Ave operates in a tier where the wine program anchors the meal as much as the kitchen does — making it a reference point for the city's fine dining evolution rather than a newcomer to watch.
Also recognized by Star Wine List
Olivia
Denver, United States
Wine Spectator Best of Award of Excellence
Bronze-die gemelli, braised duck tortellini and a coconut lobster bisque gnocchi show a menu that ranges from Roman tradition to something more inventive, all in a relaxed Wash Park setting.
Osteria Marco
Denver, United States
Wine Spectator Award of Excellence
On Larimer Street in Denver's LoDo district, Osteria Marco operates as a neighborhood Italian anchor at a price point that invites regulars rather than occasions. The lunch and dinner services read as genuinely different experiences, with daytime leaning casual and evening shifting toward a slower, wine-driven pace. For Italian in Denver's mid-tier, it occupies a well-defined position between fast-casual and the city's fine dining tier.
range
Denver, United States
Wine Spectator Award of Excellence
Range occupies a considered position on Denver's downtown dining circuit, drawing a clientele that returns not for novelty but for consistency. Situated at 918 17th St in the heart of the city's commercial core, it sits within walking distance of several of Denver's most discussed contemporary tables, making it a natural anchor for serious diners building an evening around the neighbourhood.
rioja
Denver, United States
Wine Spectator Award of Excellence
On Larimer Street in Denver's LoDo district, Rioja has held its ground as the city's most considered Mediterranean-Spanish table for over two decades. Chef Jennifer Jasinski and Wine Director Richard Ross pair a Spanish-leaning wine list of 1,200 bottles with lunch and dinner service that shifts meaningfully in pace and price. Ranked by Opinionated About Dining in both 2023 and 2024, it remains the room most serious about sherry by the glass in Colorado.
Also recognized by James Beard Award, Opinionated About Dining, Star Wine List
Salt Water Social
Denver, United States
Wine Spectator Award of Excellence
Salt Water Social occupies a corner of Denver's Cherry Creek neighborhood that punches above its residential surroundings. Positioned alongside Denver's more formally structured tasting-menu rooms, it represents a different register: social in format, seafood-forward in focus, and built around the kind of floor-to-kitchen collaboration that defines the city's more ambitious mid-tier dining. An address worth tracking as Denver's fine-casual scene continues to evolve.
STK – Denver
Denver, United States
Wine Spectator Award of Excellence
STK – Denver pairs modern steakhouse cooking with craft cocktails and an extensive wine list at 1550 Market St, with Wine Spectator’s 2026 Award of Excellence.
Tavernetta
Denver, United States
Wine Spectator Best of Award of Excellence
Tavernetta on Denver's 16th Street Mall holds a Michelin Bib Gourmand and an Opinionated About Dining ranking for its regional Italian cooking and handmade pasta program. Chef Cody Cheetham works across multiple Italian traditions, from amatriciana to seasonal crostini, while Wine Director Carlin Karr oversees a 700-selection list with particular depth in Piedmont and Tuscany. Lunch runs Monday through Friday with a two-course format.
Also recognized by Opinionated About Dining, Star Wine List
The Wolf's Tailor
Denver, United States
2 Michelin stars · Wine Spectator Award of Excellence
A Michelin-starred counter in Denver's Highland neighbourhood, The Wolf's Tailor runs a tightly structured multicourse format from Chef Cody Jipson that draws on global technique while staying anchored to Colorado product. With 185 wine selections, a focused beverage program, and recognition from Opinionated About Dining and La Liste, it occupies the serious end of Denver's contemporary dining tier.
Also recognized by James Beard Award, La Liste, Opinionated About Dining, Star Wine List
Urban Farmer
Denver, United States
Wine Spectator Award of Excellence
A hotel restaurant on Denver's Wazee Street that earns its place on the Opinionated About Dining Casual North America list for consecutive years, Urban Farmer serves American and Pacific Northwestern cuisine across a full day of service, from early breakfast through dinner. A wine program with 1,225 bottles on inventory and Oregon and California strengths, overseen by Wine Director Hannah Raddant, gives the room a seriousness that most hotel dining rooms do not attempt.
Also recognized by Opinionated About Dining
Venice Ristorant & Wine Bar
Denver, United States
Wine Spectator Best of Award of Excellence
Located at 1700 Wynkoop St in Denver's LoDo neighborhood, Venice Ristorant & Wine Bar holds a White Star recognition from Star Wine List, placing it among a selective tier of wine-forward venues in the city. The dual identity of restaurant and wine bar gives it range across both food and bottle-driven visits. It sits in one of Denver's most walkable dining corridors.
Also recognized by Star Wine List

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