The Ponti at the Denver Art Museum

This is not your normal sightseeing touristy restaurant. This place is a made from scratch seasonal kitchen with a unique menu. I stopped in to grab a light lunch after I explored the museum, and it turned out to be the best lunch I've experienced during my Denver trip. I ordered the grain bowl and added chicken - the bowl was filled with farro, quinoa, feta, watermelon, watercress, and a delicious vinaigrette. The grilled chicken was thin and seasoned to perfection - very easy to add to the bowl. The service was fast and the staff was so accommodating with my questions about the menu. I had the pleasure of sitting on the patio on a beautiful mild weathered day and the atmosphere felt nice and comfortable. Definitely give this place a try if you're in the area!

The Tuscan kale soup (I don't know what was Tuscan about it) was about a 1/2 cup of watery tasteless broth served in a huge white bowl. A few chunks of vegetables and a few croutons floated in said broth. I guess these croutons were the "grilled bread" that it was supposed to be served with. Our waitress made no mention of my soup that it was untouched. All this for $17!My friend had the Pad Thai cold noodles. It was a small lump of noodles in the bottom of another large white bowl. She said the flavor was okay but we both went away hungry.

Everything tasted delicious. The minor defect is the cavatelli was a little too salty. Otherwise everything tasted great, even the Ameila (gin, crème de violet lemon, cava) and Southern Charm Palmer (basil Hayden's bourbon, peach liquor, Arnold palmer)Randi S was courteous, polite and came by every few minutes to see if I needed anything.

What a treat! Great menu, atmosphere, service, and food!I stopped in at this restaurant because I was looking for a place I could eat and find a electric outlet to charge my phone. Sat at the bar. Check off the box for electric outlet under the counter. Kami (see photo) was my server. Been several recommendations on my request. I chose the burger, which was memorable. Truly! Blended mushrooms and meat. Soft, tasty bun. Amazingly tasty pickles. Excellent, somewhat mild, but tasty, tomato jam.I had a Moscow Mule with my meal which was very good. And the latte was delicious as well.I included a photo of the lunch menu because there are so many good choices on there I could've pretty much ordered every single thing on the menu and been happy with my choice. I thought the prices were reasonable, given the quality of the food, excellent service, and very cozy feel of this place. Everyone I came in contact with, was quite pleasant and engaged me in conversation, which I appreciate it as I am traveling along for the first two days of my vacation. Located your several museums and easy to get to from the area around the Capitol.

The menu showed promise. An eccletic mix of choices. Companion ordered the cheesy grilled cheese and it was cheesy. And salty. The greens, arugula, were salty as well. The whole meal was over salted. Forced to eat it out of the hunger. The pumpkin soup was delicious. The corned tempeh Ruben was crispy and different. The slice of bread on top was basically split in half and in two pieces. The tempeh was very different, almost uneddible. Companion agreed and described it as 'nasty.' Maybe it is an acquired taste. The service was great and beverage refills flowed. Fresh brewed iced tea was yum and strong. I do not think I will go again except maybe to try the desserts. Unfortunately, the experience was a miss, but the outdoor patio was nice. Maybe try it if you need food while at the Denver Art Museum. You might be glad you did. Possibly.

This is the larger of the the two restaurants inside the north entrance of the Denver Art Musemn. You do not need to purchase a musemn access ticket. Cafe Gio is opposite it which is a casual eatery. The Ponti is open is each day at 11am and closes at 4pm, but stays open till 8pm on Tuesday and 9pm on Friday. I came Saturday and they offered their brunch menu. I looked at their dinner menu and it had a few additional items. They have a south facing patio underneath a metal louvered roof. The Hamilton building on the south side of 13th reaches over the street and provides extra shade. I started with an Aperol Spritz with its usual orange color and refreshing flavor. I got their Beet Salad served on a bed of multi-colored beets and several pieces of fresh salmon and pistachio crumble with frisee on top. Very good. I then a got a bowl of Cavatelli with lamb ragu and a glass of Architect Cabernet Sauvignon from the Alexander Valley. A robust sweet tasting red wine. It was perfect with the lamb ragu. They added grated parmesan making a great pasta dish. I finished this meal with an order of Profiteroles made with Nutella and puff pastry. Not a heavy dessert. I made my reservation thru OpenTable. I was greeted when I arrived. My server was Kami M. She was pleasant and answered my questions. Overall, a nice meal.

POV: you get dressed up, meet your friends for brunch at The Ponti at Denver Art Museum & then attend the Saints, Sinners, Lovers, and Fools exhibit. We love a cultural morning!The Ponti is located on level 1 of the Sie Welcome Center of the Denver Art Museum. We arrived at The Ponti and were seated in the main dining room. The Ponti had a beautiful, immersive dining environment that utilized concrete-textured walls & floors, gold light fixtures & coral velvet chairs & banquettes ( a modern, Art-Deco-like space).The staff at the Ponti was lovely - GM Michael and our server, Ben ensured we had everything we needed during our meal. Mixologist, Craig was awesome & even made some of our cocktails tableside. For cocktails we had Espresso Martinis and Grapefruit Mimosas.The Espresso Martini was made with Breckenridge vodka, espresso, Kahlua & raw simple. The Espresso Martini was the perfect blend of sweet, creamy coffee thanks to Craig's method of methodically adding in Kahlua over a spoon.The Grapefruit Mimosas were made with Fermi Bohigas Brut and grapefruit juice. The Grapefruit Mimosa was refreshing and perfect for brunch. The sweet, sparkling champagne combined with the bitter grapefruit made for a bubbly tartness on the palate. The Ponti's menu had an emphasis on vegetables, grains and heirloom legumes complemented by handmade pastas, fish, & meat. We had the Salad of Brussels Sprouts with Chicken and the Cheesy Grilled Cheese.The Salad of Brussels Sprouts with Chicken was made with fresh and crispy brussels sprouts leaves, dried plum, pickled daikon, sesame crisp, umeboshi vinaigrette & roast chicken. The brussels sprouts were a combination of sweet and spicy. The umeboshi vinaigrette and dried plum served over the sautéed brussels brought the salty, sour & fresh flavors of this salad alive. The herbed roast chicken added a nice, meaty texture variation against the crisp, yet tender brussels.The Cheesy Grilled Cheese was made with fontina val d'aosta, goat cheese, pecorino, tomato jam, rebel bakery sourdough, arugula salad & pickled onion. This was a wicked grilled cheese - the rebel bakery sourdough was toasted & enveloped the creamy, and nutty amalgamation of cheeses. The crunch of the buttery sourdough against the melty & zingy cheeses made for satisfying bites & long cheese pulls.Once we had finished our meal, we headed over to the Denver Art Museum to attend the Saints, Sinners, Lovers, and Fools exhibit.

Excellent lunch, food, atmosphere, high quality service. We split the beef/mushroom burger and beet salad - they were both superb. A real wow factor that fit in nicely with the art museum experience.

I was excited to hear that Jennifer Jasinski, one of my favorites and one of Denver's top chefs, would be consulting for the Art Museum's new restaurant. The menu certainly shows her current interests with its focus on vegetables, ancient grains, and simple, but elegant presentations.I thought the menu was very interesting and well-designed for an art museum lunch crowd. There are a number of starters and small bites, including salad, soup, mezze, vegetables, and seafood. Four sandwiches and a grain bowl make up the middle of the menu. More substantial are a pasta, roast chicken, a vegetarian dish, and a seafood plate, followed by three creative desserts.The menu does have a field day with somewhat obscure and unusual terms for certain ingredients and styles of preparation. Fortunately we all have smartphones these days and can look these things up. The staff is extremely knowledgeable and can explain all of the dishes in detail.I ordered the Cavatelli (a tiny pasta shell that looks like a miniature hot dog bun) which was covered with a lamb sugo (an Italian term for red sauce), pecorino (a hard sheep's milk cheese), tomato confit (tomatoes cooked in oil), and crispy rosemary. OK, OK, a glossary on the back side of the menu might have been helpful. The server explained the dish quite elegantly, however.The presentation of the dish was gorgeous. The mini pasta shells contrasted with the rich color of the lamb, accented by cheese shavings, strips of red tomato, and the bits of green rosemary leaves. Then I tasted it. Most of the lamb was way overcooked and tough. A few pieces were properly cooked and showed how delicious it could have been. The pasta was tough and gummy. The server promised that the sugo would be more like a broth. There was a bit of broth at the bottom of the bowl. I wished there was a lot more as, overall, the dish was very dry. What a disappointment!My friend had the Seared King Salmon. The fish was somewhat awkwardly perched on a bed of Thai black rice and came with Savoy cabbage and a coconut green curry. She said the curry flavor was wonderful. I tried a bite of the salmon. I felt it was improperly cooked and mushy, although the flavor was good.The main part of the space features a long bar and is very elegant. We were seated in the rather drab room to the right of the entrance. This definitely lacks the pizzazz of the rest of the restaurant.Service was very knowledgeable and excellent. Too bad the food was such a disappointment. Please, Chef Jen, could you spend some time in the kitchen to ensure the staff is properly trained on the fine details of execution?

Wonderful ambience, service and food. We enjoyed lunch at the bar; our food arrived quickly and the kitchen very kindly split our meal into two servings since we were sharing. (Best grilled cheese sandwich I've had in ages! ) The lovely woman at the bar was very friendly and easy to talk to, making it a very enjoyable meal. I love this restaurant!