For occasions you don’t want to risk ruining a tricky Italian dish, it may be wiser to visit one of the best Italian restaurants in your state. On our list of some of the best Italian restaurants across the nation, one restaurant in Denver is thrilling guests with friendly service and homemade pasta served in flights, an order that lets guests taste several different kinds of pasta in one sitting.
On the nightly happy hour menu available from 3 to 6 p.m., Tavernetta offers a pasta flight that delivers half-orders of rigatoni cacio e pepe, rigatoni alla gricia, bucatini carbonara, and bucatini all’amatriciana to tables. This kind of option not only helps reduce decision fatigue but allows guests to compare and contrast the different pasta recipes. The pasta is served in courses, allowing guests to detect flavors and different preparation styles, like the cheesy, peppery cacio e pepe and the rich rigatoni all gricia made with guanciale (a cured pork similar to pancetta). One guest noticed that the bucatini carbonara offered a distinct flavor of egg yolk that is often missing in many restaurant recipes.
Located on 16th Street in downtown Denver, Tavernetta has been marked Bib Gourmand by the Michelin Guide, and visitors admit that the restaurant lives up to the hype. “Their burrata makes dreams come true,” gushed a fan on TikTok. The restaurant accommodates walk-ins for its bar, patio, and lounge, so you don’t even need a reservation to stroll in and get digging into plates of pasta.
Planning a night to remember
Tavernetta is the brainchild of Chef Lachlan Mackinnon-Patterson, Master Sommelier Bobby Stuckey, and Peter Hoglund and is one of several Frasca Hospitality projects. The group has been recognized by Food and Wine and James Beard Foundation and is known for its service across its establishments, including Boulder’s Frasca Food and Wine, Pizzeria Alberico, and Denver’s Sunday Vinyl. A second Tavernetta location serves guests in Vail.
For those who want more of what the pasta flights tease, dinner menus are loaded with Italian fare enhanced with a touch of the Rocky Mountains. Meals can begin with Italian cheeses and antipasti salads of Tuscan kale and gigante beans before leading to hearty mains like slow roasted pork and Colorado bison. Polenta with sheep’s milk ricotta and fennel with pangrattato can round out spreads. Those wanting to wash down mouthfuls of pasta can sip old fashioned cocktails crafted with Tavernetta’s house bourbon blend or sample a Venetian Spritz made with Aperol and prosecco.
For dessert, Tavernetta’s tiramisu has been compared to heaven, and classics like hazelnut semifreddo, affogato, and Sicilian pistachio torta offer other sweet options. A two-course lunch for $40 is served Monday through Friday, offering customers choices like the highly-reviewed burrata prepared with Sicilian pesto and focaccia breadcrumbs. A generous list of amaro, grappa and brandy can cap any visit.
Dining and Cooking