Mizuna — Restaurant in Denver

I would like to start by saying that i never review online places but being French but i had to make an exception for this place as it is both truthful yet trying to tell a lie.

Let us start first with the ambiance. It is really good. The restaurant looks amazing and actually manage to make me forget that I was in Colorado. The walls, tables, and chairs all have a very good mix. The bar, staff outfits, and even bathroom have a very French touch to it. The servers are also amazingly nice and you will never run out of water.

Unfortunately, this is the end of the compliments for "Mizuna", now about the food. It may all look like it is French but it is not or at the very least, a failed copy. Each dish tried to be new and add things that are not really great together. The food itself is not amazing either, I have more flavor from a canned "Confit de Canard" then i do from the house's "Magret de Canard".

And i wish i could say that it is just 1 dish, but it seems to be all of them. The starter I ordered, the yellow fin tuna, had no real taste to it. Even just adding some lemon juice would have given it a nice kick that would increase the flavor dramatically and the potatoes with it were undercooked (very tough). My main dish was the salmon with an almond sauce. The salmon was fine, not anything amazing but not bad either, but the almond sauce had a strong taste of chocolate for some reason, mixed together, it was not a great combo. I had the "Brioche Pain Perdu" (or brioche french toast, which btw is the only real french desert on the desert menu, is the traditional crêpe suzette boring now?) and was not really blown away. The Pain Perdu was ok tasting, and the bananas ontop did make it taste pretty good. Sadly, they add an ice cream to it which is nice, but unfortunately it is a foie gras ice cream which is a waste of foie gras. Overall, the food started as French but was strongly changed to a point where I, a Frenchmen, do not enjoy it and find it quite an insult. The other people with me were also disappointed.

So what would you use to wash down this food? Well, the sommelier would not be able to properly describe the taste of the wines that he has to offer you. A wine must be described by its flavor and thus cannot be cut down to 1 word to describe it. So when i heard him saying that a wine tasted "rustic" and that is it, i was shocked. Yes it does describe the wine but what exactly does it mean to you? Nothing much if you do not know much but why not reflect the way the taste is a symphony of flavors and what they mean. Many wines are "rustic" but they are not the same, if they were, why would you have more than 1 type? Oh, and i must mention that the bartender served some "Champagne" (i was not told what it was exactly so can only assume) in 3 out 6 glasses from the Tap (the one you see at other places for beers and soft drinks) and then filled the last 3 with a bottle. What is happening there?

Overall, if a night in France is what you are looking for, this is not too bad. The atmosphere is perfect for that, but the food is lacking in taste. And because i went there to enjoy the food, i was deeply disappointed. This essay should be proof enough as to how...

To preface, I’m sad to write this review, but Mizuna was a big, expensive disappointment. If they had charged us half of what we got charged, this would be a 4.5 star place. For a $700 dinner tab though, this place barely - warrants 2.5 stars.

Good things we liked -everyone was really nice and attentive; even the chefs greeted us when we came in and when we left -the ambiance is great, it’s super romantic -the menu seemed interesting and creative -the server did ask the kitchen when I brought up my allergic reactions -my partner liked the beef tartare and the scallop -the duck was good and cooked perfectly but, not the best I’ve had in Denver

Here’s my list of grievances: -tablecloth was dirty when we sat down -I have allergies and had reactions from multiple dishes- I asked during the meal “does this have my allergy food in it?” And each time was told no -I left untouched dishes on the table or slid them over to my partner for this “tasting menu” option; only once did the server ask if something was wrong when she saw me do that, only she didn’t ask out of concern, she asked because she never wrote anything down and “thought I wanted beef tartare” when in fact it was my partner who requested that specific plate -yeah the no writing anything down for a $700 meal service is pretty bananas to me; esp when the guest indicates allergies in the PAID RESERVATION -the wine was a complete miss - not one of their wines on the “sommelier tasting menu” was worth it (although my partner disagrees and thinks the Cote de Rhone at the end was good…I think he was just drunk by then) -the $35 “famous” lobster mac and cheese was an abomination. I can’t even begin to tell you how embarrassing it is that I had to mix it up because at least 3 tbsp of oil was sitting on top of dish (did it separate from sitting around or do they just serve it like that? Couldn’t tell) -I’m watching other tables get bread while we have been there longer and we had nothing on the table except a dirty tablecloth. At least throw me a roll at the beginning of service for $700 jeez -the server was very nice but again, didn’t write anything down, and didn’t tell us when we sat down that tasting menus has to be served to everyone at the table or no one at the table could have a tasting menus, which elongated the process to order. -pasta dish was way overcooked, please don’t serve anymore Italians this (they did tell me the pasta was made in house) -dessert was underwhelming but it did have a candle on it -for a 22% “creating happy people fee” to be incorporated into the bill, but then to find that the turnover is so high, just doesn’t compute -an acquaintance says this place is just hit or miss, but for $700 meal for 2 people it should hit after hit after hit every time

….and now I know why they didn’t get a Michelin...

You can't deny the fact that once you've experienced a few Michelin starred restaurants in your life you can spot that quality clearly.

Mizuna brought that back for me last night. The food-it was impeccable. We wanted to try as much of their dishes as humanly possible and still be able to walk out of there in style. The chef's tasting menu is the way to go. It's a bit of almost everything that's on their menu. Although doing this you completely leave it up to the chef to surprise you. It is also a tad smaller of a version of the regular dish.

This girl is up for a jolt once in a while. It keeps me interested! The hardworking staff prepared a series of dishes so well suited to my palette that I swear they know me! Everything they brought out I was very pleased with.

Although a couple of special mentions: The Arctic Char. It's Spaghetti squash, chorizo, baby carrot, butternut emulsion, Pistou ( Pistou is a Provençal cold sauce made from cloves of garlic, fresh basil, and olive oil. It is somewhat similar to the Ligurian sauce pesto, although it lacks pine nuts. ) This is one of the dishes I was hoping they would serve us and like I said-do they know me? The perfectly charred skin, the amazing pistou, presentation and on the spot portion was a dream to have. This alone would've made my night. But the night was young and there's more ...

My other must try? Under their appetizer section: the Spanish Octopus. This appetizer looks so beautifully plated. But I did my best to destroy that beauty and show the chef how much I loved his creation. Every little morsel was appreciated to death. This perfectly cooked dish was complemented by the ff: Roasted Corn Esquetes, Buffalo Brisket, Prickly Pear, Lime Aoli.

That New York Strip. The dessert. The cocktails. I had one of the most amazing dining experience last night.

A great experience starts with the very first person that you see or encounter. This was the valet. He had the best smile and perfectly happy puppy demeanor. The host. Super professional and gave us the best table in the house. His very own favorite spot he commented.

Our waiter Rocko(?) The best! Friendly, accommodating and ever present. All done in the most professional way. Not too much. Just perfect!

Ambience is most certainly romantic. Lights turned low( not dark). White table cloth. Kitchen and host to your left as you walk in. The bar as well.

I prefer this Flag Ship restaurant of the Bonanno group. Mizuna is 16 years old. Sweet 16 and I'm betting will just continue to age beautifully...