Though only available for takeout and delivery, everything this Taiwanese kitchen serves up is made with heart and soul. Try the snacks and sweets like vegetarian buns, sticky rice rolls, and pastries filled with red bean and egg yolk, or more substantial dishes such as pork chop over rice and cold sesame noodles with chicken. Note that it keeps somewhat limited hours, so plan accordingly.

This cozy little strip-mall find also focuses on the staple dishes of Taiwan, each more soothing than the last. Bento boxes featuring, say, braised or crispy pork over rice come with fried tofu, eggs scrambled with tomato, and veggies in garlic sauce, while the beef noodle soup and gua bao with fried chicken are spot-on.

The strip-mall digs may be humble, but the array of roasted meats on display at this Cantonese-style barbecue joint is splendid: While roast duck and roast pork are its main claims to fame, the spare ribs, soy sauce chicken, and house special fried rice all deserve a takeout spin. (Note that seating in the tiny space is extremely limited; takeout is the way to go, literally.)

Even if the name weren’t a giveaway, the glossy-skinned whole birds and pig parts on display at this old Federal Boulevard faithful would tell first-timers all they need to know about the kitchen’s expertise in Cantonese roast meats. But stopping there would be a mistake: The long menu’s dotted with delights of all kinds, among them crunchy salt-and-pepper duck chins, water spinach with pickled tofu and jalapeño, and congee with pork and preserved egg. 

Coming here for dim sum is like walking into a kaleidoscope of humanity — carts spin, servers blur past, the din echoes, and hands and mouths make quick work of flavors and textures galore. Every visit is different, of course, but none is complete without at least one order each of the leek, taro, and glutinous-rice dumplings as well as the char siu bao, pan-fried rice crêpe in XO sauce, and baked coconut buns. At dinnertime, try any seafood dish and the hot pot of eggplant with beef rib in black-pepper sauce. 

Like several of the places on this list, this gem in the suburban rough offers two different menus. One’s got orange chicken, lo mein, and beef with broccoli; the other boasts tea-smoked eel, jellyfish salad with the springy texture of noodles, braised pork meatballs so big they come one per order, ultra-tender Nanjing salt duck, and sweet-and-sour belt fish. Choose wisely and then practice patience — the kind folks who run the place move as fast as they can.  

Named for Denver’s onetime Chinatown, Tommy Lee’s RiNo mainstay is the complete package: edgy vibe, kinetic cuisine, progressive beverage program, and all. The kitchen plays up bold flavor contrasts — cooling against tongue-lashing, mellow against pungent, bright against luscious — without ever losing its balance, while the bar dares to pair them with everything from bubbly and rosé to craft cider and funky punches. Staples include chilled tofu in sesame bang bang sauce and bone-marrow fried rice; seasonal sensations come in the form of char siu beets with cashew relish and shrimp toast with mustard gastrique and tiger vinaigrette.

Don’t bother with the standard Chinese-American menu — dry hot pot is the only way to go at this DU dark horse. Pick a protein (maybe lamb one day, chicken hearts the next) along with any number of optional items including fish balls, rice cakes, tofu skin, kelp, and enoki mushrooms to grace the tabletop wok; the sizzle of the Sichuan peppercorns will linger long after the meal is over. 

Tiny but mighty, this East Colfax purveyor of contemporary Chinese cuisine didn’t win Eater’s Restaurant of the Year Award in 2018 for nothing: The menu packs a heck of a punch for its size, whether chef-partner Chris Lin is slathering spare ribs in barbecue sauce, chopped peanuts, and fried garlic; reimagining lo mein with confit duck leg; or deftly tossing fingerlings and Chinese cauliflower in black bean vinaigrette. The bar crew pairs it all with light, sprightly cocktails featuring lychee, lemongrass, milk tea, and the like as well as aptly chosen sakes, craft beers, and wines (think bubbles and aromatic whites like riesling). 

Don’t be fooled by the fast food franchise–like name and exterior — this family-run find excels at homestyle Sichuan fare. In addition to staples like dan dan noodles, ma po tofu, and Chongqing chicken, best bets include the fluffy pan-fried omelet filled with saucy pork; the tangy sour taste potatoes; and the pungent, numbing spicy boiled fish.

There’s a little bit of everything from everywhere on the menu of this longtime charmer in Centennial, so order accordingly: smoked fish, stir-fried eel, roast duck, twice-cooked pork belly, cumin lamb, boiled frog... why not give it all a try? First-timers might start with the deep-fried five-spice tofu and the Ants Climbing a Tree, a comforting concoction of ground pork and glass noodles.

Shanghai is a coastal municipality, so seafood is a must at this suburban destination — especially fish, smoked as an appetizer or fried with pine nuts. Dumplings are another winning bet, be they soup-filled xiao long bao or silky shrimp-and-pork wontons in chili oil. Finally, consider the tea-smoked duck as the centerpiece for a feast.

Aficionados of Sichuan cuisine have been flocking to this relative newcomer for the likes of sliced beef and ox tongue in chili sauce, crispy fish filet with pickled cabbage and chili, Chongqing-style spicy chicken, dry pot cauliflower, and much more; cool it all down with the ultra-soothing steamed eggplant with salted egg yolk.

While Taiwanese-style boba tea shops have bubbled up all across town in the past couple of years, this one’s special for its food. In addition to a wide range of satisfying snacks, including juicy pork dumplings and buns as well as seafood balls and marinated meats, it also excels at hand-pulled and shaved noodles. Try them both dry and in soup with beef shank or pork rib — the broth alone is a 10-hour labor of love.

The name may be generic, but the food at this strip-mall fixture is anything but: Look to the menu sections labeled “Chinese-Style Appetizers” and “Northeastern Chinese Cuisine” for such wonderfully intriguing stuff as noodle-like dry tofu silk with cilantro and tangy, garlicky guo bao rou (legit sweet-and-sour pork), supplemented by sizzling takes on Sichuan specialties like dry-fried green beans and boiled fish in chili oil.