Best Fun Restaurants in Downtown / LoDo

Christmas Dinner with my son at Venice Ristorante in Denver. Great view across from a decorated Union Station. Reservations at 6pm, sat at 6:15. Bread service was an ample amount for two with leftovers. Worth the price as far as volume but not overwhelmingly amazing. Appetizer: fried zucchini and calamari. Zucchini was amazing! Calamari needed salt but well cooked. Spicy marina dipping sauce, very mild, zero heat. Enough for 3 people. Entrees: Gnocchi with Burrata was incredible and a large portion. We took half home. Excellent texture and taste. Highly recommend. Piccata: well cooked, could cut with a fork, mash potatoes silky, veggies average. Three huge pieces, easy dish to split, if desired. Pics of of not great due to lighting. Huge shout out to the manager and hostess. There was an elderly gentleman that missed the stairs and fell face first on the floor, resulting in a bloody facial lacaration and injuries. They did great with a packed restaurant on Christmas, handling the situation. Holiday dining note: our server was great, I ashed him about his night and he seemed reserved. I said I hoped he was making some good holiday money with nice customers. And he his face dropped. He was so sweet and said not really, no one’s tipping or really nice. We did our best to change that and basically left half our check amount as a tip. But a small reminder that a bit of kindness even a compliment or smile goes a long way, especially on the service industry, on a holiday.

We were 2 and sat at a table in a little alcove. Perfect. My son has to eat GF food and they have a fabulous paper menu showing exactly what it GF. He was so pleased! Service was excellent. We have great cocktails and I had a good red wine. We had the Empress Noodles (lots of veggies and we added chicken, a whole meal) Prawn skewers, super good and tasty dipping sauce. I had the pork bao buns..because Bao. All was good. Came quickly. Music is ED and is slightly loud if you are trying to talk. love the location, close to DCPA and Ball arena.

Great experience. The food is incredible and we love the ambiance and staff

Three of us went for our (very small!) firm holiday party - and it was amazing. I’d say the wine pairing was a bit pricey but the wines were definitely all good and thoughtfully paired with the dishes. You won’t walk away from here saying “I can make this at home”. One of the best tasting menus I’ve had.

Fantastic dining experience and drinks were amazing! Had a beautiful and tasty cocktail and then did the sake pairing.