Editors’ Choice: Luca D’Italia, 711 Grant St., 303-832-6600, lucadenver.com

Very few Denver chefs receive a nod from the lofty James Beard Foundation, but chef-owner Frank Bonanno has been named a semifinalist for the annual awards (the Oscars of the food world) five times. Experience what all the hoopla is about in Luca’s technically perfect Italian cuisine and its waitstaff’s unmatched service.

No meal here would be complete without the house-made burrata cheese and an order of the Maine lobster ravioli bathed in mascarpone Alfredo.

Pick up the July issue of 5280 for the entire list of this year’s winners.