Brutø

The Costa Rica inspired tasting menu was lovely. I will think about the depth of the ceviche dish they served for a long time to come. I loved the sustainability and the extent to which they use all parts of their ingredients for the menu and beverages. The service is excellent and they have created an environment that really just lets you focus on the food, your company and the experience. i would go back in a heartbeat! PS- the drink pairing is worth it!

The food is absolutely INCREDIBLE. We did the Costa Rican themed menu and every thing was awesome. The cocktails pairing is a must. It definitely compliments each dish in a way I have never experienced before. The only reason I didn't give 5 stars for service is because the seating next to us had a server who was surprisedly disruptive. He realized the couple he was serving were also in the service industry and spent a great deal of time talking pretty loudly about his certification, what moving to Denver from sf has been like, challenges finding a wine study group, and his desire to exchange info. For context, the general ambience of this place is very quiet and hushed. The chefs are almost putting on a performance of prepping each dish and serving it. In that environment his conversation was pretty loud. On the flip side, the person who made the cocktails is an absolute genius. The dishes were great but the way each drink complimented them is what will have us going back.

Bruto ended up being one of my favorite meals in Denver and felt like one of those tasting menus where every course kept landing. They were running a Costa Rican inspired menu when I went, and by the end I realized there really wasn't a weak dish all night. The service stood out too. My server was great and added a lot to the experience. He gave me a bunch of recommendations around Denver and made the meal feel relaxed rather than overly formal. The opening bites immediately set the tone. There was a pepper cracker, a serrano bite, and a blood sausage cake, and all of them were strong. After those first few courses I already had a feeling this meal was going to be good. Right after that came my favorite course of the night. It was avocado, caviar, and soursop ice cream paired with a non alcoholic drink, and somehow all of it worked together ridiculously well. The pairing actually made the dish even better. That was the moment where I stopped and thought, okay, this place is doing something special. The menu leaned heavily into seafood and fish, which ended up being the strongest part of the night. The ceviche tasted incredibly fresh and every fish dish was a hit. The meat course with yuca was probably the least memorable dish, but even that was still good. More of a situation where everything else was operating at such a high level. Dessert ended things really well too. I loved their Costa Rican style horchata drink and the petit fours were great. Costa Rican horchata is a little different from the version most people think of and I ended up loving it. By the end of the meal I realized there really weren't any misses. I'd absolutely go back.

From the moment I walked in, I felt like I was part of some private club where you have to know somebody to get in. The ambiance was dark and moody, but the service was warm and inviting. I was surprised to see that the chefs were the servers. They explained each course with passion, and a true understanding of the sourced ingredients. I’ve had plenty of tasting menus, but nothing on this culinary level. From the first course of wagyu tartare, I was hooked. Side note, I hate Kale, like really hate it, but somehow Chef Byron Gomez made me magically love it. The food is amazing, it’s actually unexplainable. It’s something you have to experience yourself. The only down side is that I’ll never get to have any of these courses again, as the menu changes often, and I won’t be back in Denver soon enough. Hopefully, I will be back for another seasonally curated experience. Thank you to the team, you guys really made me feel like I was part of this culinary journey.

Second time at Bruto and somehow made the first great experience pale in comparison - a delicious diverse tasting menu with some of the best bites I’ve had - in particular the bread (on a different level, best I’ve had anywhere), white asparagus/sablefish, and duck with kale were stand outs of a stellar meal. Great cocktails as well. At times felt it was punching about its 1 star weight. Highly recommend.