Prestige does not equal pomp at what’s arguably Colorado’s most esteemed restaurant: The hospitality is as genuine as the multi-course menus and much-celebrated wine list are astonishing. Prepare to be pampered over course after course of innovative Friulian-inspired cuisine — and do consider splurging on a splash of vintage amaro at meal’s end.

Though initially known primarily as a wood-fired pizzeria, chef Kelly Whitaker’s flagship Boulder venture has evolved over the years, reflecting his passion for (among other things) the heirloom and heritage grains he sells at Dry Storage next door — showcased here in items like uni chitarra with black garlic and Sonoran wheat berry risotto. Other signatures include the seasonal whole fish and campfire semifreddo, not to mention an extremely smart beverage program that encourages diners to try something new.

Though it’s only been open since 2015, Grammy’s looks for all the world like an old-school joint with its tomato-red walls; blackboard menu; and a pastry case filled with cannoli, sfogliatelle, rainbow cookies and so on. It tastes like one too: From garlic knots and Sicilian-style pizza to lasagna, chicken parm, and subs piled with cold cuts, the menu’s a true-blue red-sauce extravaganza.

Call him the East Coast King: Just as he brought Denverites a taste of New York via Rosenberg’s Bagels & Delicatessen and Famous Original J’s Pizza, so Joshua Pollack offers them a slice of New Jersey in the form of this Italian-American sub shop and market. Hot sandwiches come loaded with the likes of sausage, peppers, and onions or porchetta, provolone, broccoli rabe, and herb aioli; cold ones include the roman fiesta with salami, pepperoni, ham, mozzarella, roasted red peppers and dressed mixed greens as well as the horseradish roast beef with muenster. And that’s not all: The display cases are chock-full of antipasti and salads, cheeses and olives, and offbeat Italian wines.

Though it’s as warm as any classic mom-and-pop trattoria, dashing husband-and-wife duo Cindhura Reddy and Elliot Strathmann take a seriously idiosyncratic approach to Italian cuisine, weaving in both Colorado and Indian influences to striking effect: Take, for instance, the signature elk tartare with toasted masala aioli and ajwain seed crisps. Then take everything else, because it all shines, from the frutti di mare del giorno to seasonal pastas such as duck confit–stuffed agnolotti in chestnut cream with kale and cranberry relish, ideally paired with wines from one of Denver’s most thought-provoking cellars — and followed by homemade amaro.

At nearly five years old, chef Elise Wiggins’ Central Park destination boasts its share of sensational signature dishes, including the bagna cauda, the pasticcio, the rabbit gnocchi, and the wood-fired rib eye. But check its Instagram feed before making the trip, since it’s a treasure trove of daily specials to consider: pan-seared black cod over basil bucatini with sundried tomatoes and asparagus one day, fettuccine in braised venison ragù with smoked ricotta the next.

Super-sexy from the sinuous chandelier to the sleek bar to the oversized booths, Milanese-born chef Andrea Frizzi’s RiNo date-night haunt turns out equally seductive eats. Enhance the mood with the beef-tallow candle and bread service whenever available, then seal the deal over gorgeous pastas like Swiss chard–and–ricotta cannelloni with sous vide celery root and smoked mozzarella or pan-seared duck breast set atop risotto flavored with red wine, black garlic, and basil-whipped goat cheese.

While a crackerjack front-of-house team maintains this Frasca sibling’s reputation for above-and-beyond service, rising star chef Cody Cheetham is making sure the food lives up to the wine-splashed experience. Against an ultra-chic backdrop at the edge of Union Station’s railway platform, he celebrates the seasons through dishes that might involve boar and truffles or sweetbreads and celery root in the colder months, Dungeness crab and fennel or scallops with nettles and green garlic in warmer weather (though the lobster tagliatelle and roast chicken for two are forever); he also turns out a handsome array of cicchetti, to use the Venetian term for small plates, to pair with aperitivi at happy hour.

Fifteen years ago, Frank Bonanno opened this now cozy, now lively subterranean space on Larimer Square to give many Denverites their first taste of fresh burrata and ricotta, salumi and carpaccio, and still other Italian specialties like panzanella and carbonara. Those items remain staples today, supplemented by real-deal mozzarella en carrozza, pizza with braised short rib and pepperoncini, lamb meatballs over polenta, and more. Pair them with a wine flight that transports you to the Boot by featuring, say, lesser-known Italian whites or Super Tuscans.

Coperta has the quaint, lived-in vibe of a trattoria on the piazza of some Italian hill town, and the food lives up to the feel. Start with the spuzzulia, essentially an ever-changing antipasto platter, before digging into seasonal pastas like mushroom-leek ravioli with rabbit conserva. Most are helpfully offered by the half-portion to allow room for entrees such as rosemary sausage–stuffed quail over polenta or the fish stew called acqua pazza, not to mention cannoli. And be sure to ask for recommendations from the wine list, a trove of treasures from Campania, Calabria, Puglia, and other southern regions.

The original Lo Stella has been a fixture in the Ligurian town of Portofino since 1850; eighth-generation restaurateur Alessandro Polo opened this satellite in the Golden Triangle in 2013 to introduce Denverites to the region’s coastal cuisine. Here’s hoping that he someday puts his focaccia del Recco or pansoti in salsa di noci (walnut sauce) back on the menu, but in the meantime, anything featuring seafood is the way to go, from fritto misto with sea bass and calamari to the tagliatelle with shrimp, zucchini, and saffron that Mick Jagger sampled during a visit on tour.

The glow of this fine-dining destination in Cherry Creek has only been burnished over its decades in business: While the remarkable Italian wine cellar has long enjoyed national recognition, each new menu from chef Darrel Truett seems to outdo the last in thoughtfulness and intricacy. Think English pea flan with fried baby artichokes, Castelmagno fonduta, and black-garlic aioli; saffron risotto with crispy pancetta, truffles, and banana chips; or warm carrot-pistachio cake with sage gelato.

For its famous chicken parm pizza alone, this swanky Italian steakhouse in Cherry Creek — a sibling of New York’s Quality Meats — warrants a shoutout here. But there’s so much more to dig into, including the fabulous sausage-and-pepper toast, luscious porterhouse agnolotti, and festive birthday-cake cannoli; weekend brunch, meanwhile, features such treats as breakfast risotto topped with a fried egg and polenta pancakes as well as bottomless Bellinis.