Top of the Town 2012

By now, the Kizaki brothers, Toshi and Yasu, owners of Sushi Den and Izakaya Den, are pretty much legends in the Denver sushi scene (see “Den Masters” in the May issue). Approaching its 28th anniversary, Sushi Den does fish right. Period. But what really wowed us recently wasn’t so much the dining experience as our foray into the flip side of the Den: the sushi making. We’d signed up for Yasu’s “Sliced” culinary class ($70) to learn how to make sushi like the masters—and we’d like to think we left with a passable grasp of what is most definitely an art form. Around a long white table set with stations for students, we learned the proper technique—it involves bamboo sheets and whole lemons—to spread rice on the seaweed paper and shape our tuna, eel, shrimp, avocado, cucumber, sesame seeds, masago, and wasabi into gorgeous rolls, hand rolls, and sushi. Assistants kept the fresh fish coming while Yasu demonstrated, and by the end we’d each arranged a plate of sushi we almost didn’t want to eat because it was so pretty. Almost. Classes sell out weeks in advance, so sign up early to learn from the best. 1487 S. Pearl St., 303-777-0826, sushiden.net