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FeedSpecialty Chef of the Year
Marc Piscotty
Our Winner: Justin Brunson
Chef-Owner, Masterpiece Delicatessen,
masterpiecedeli.com
Roots:
Cedar Rapids, IA
Classrooms:
Kirkwood Community College; Le Cordon Bleu, Scottsdale
Kitchens:
Michael’s at the Citadel in Scottsdale; Zengo, Luca d’Italia, Fruition, and Masterpiece Delicatessen in Denver
Why He’s Our Winner:
Brunson is a man who knows exactly who he is. Fortunately for us, he seems to also know exactly who Denver is. His Masterpiece Delicatessen has been a resounding success since the moment it opened. From professional chefs to the average Joe, the city flocks to this LoHi hotspot for “fine dining between bread.” Brunson named the deli after the Bob Dylan tune “When I Paint My Masterpiece,” a song the chef feels was ultimately perfected by the Grateful Dead — esoteric, but fitting. As the Dead drew upon Dylan, the
deli draws upon Denver’s
finest restaurants. Brunson brings in the very same ingredients used at Mizuna and Fruition Restaurant but gives them to us in the humble sandwich. We love that in a year of economic strife Brunson served up his highly technical training in the form of a $12 meal.
His hero:
Chef Martin Picard of Montreal’s Au Pied de Cochon, “His restaurant’s all about pork, duck, and foie gras. He’s a gluttonous sick man, and I love everything he does.”
Most revealing home decor:
The picture he made of Julia Child that was above his bed until he met his fiancée.
His favorite sandwich on the menu:
The wild ahi, “Who doesn’t love sushi-grade tuna?”
How
he describes his cooking style:
Delish!
Mary Nguyen
Executive Chef-Owner,
Parallel Seventeen,
parallelseventeen.com
Roots:
Denver, CO
Classrooms:
University of Colorado
Kitchens:
Beehive, Hapa Sushi, Parallel Seventeen in Denver
Why We Love Her:
Nguyen was born in Denver a logical 10 months after the fall of Saigon, which reunited her father, a member of the South Vietnamese Navy, and mother and caused them to flee to the United States. We love Nguyen for the restaurant that is much like her background, both authentic and adapted at once. Parallel Seventeen respects the traditions of Vietnamese cuisine in an updated, sexy setting.
Fun fact about a Vietnamese dinner:
It’s 15 to 30 small dishes.
When she’d eat this way as a kid:
Every Sunday.
The moment this former commodities trader decided to become a chef:
After losing three million dollars of people’s retirement money in a single trade.
What we’d find in her fridge:
Sausages from Seattle, where she honeymooned.
How she describes her cooking style:
Refreshing, balanced, flavorful, colorful.
Wayne Conwell
Chef-Owner, Sushi Sasa,
sushisasadenver.com
Roots:
Albuquerque, NM; Pompano Beach, FL; Detroit, MI; Baldwin, NY; Denver, CO
Kitchens:
Morimoto in Philadelphia; Sushi Den, Japon, and Sushi Sasa in Denver
Why We Love Him:
Ask nearly any Denver chef where he or she goes for sushi, and you’ll hear Sushi Sasa. The reason? Wayne Conwell. Drawing on both his nomadic American childhood and his strict Japanese training, Conwell earns our devotion by creating sushi that uses intriguingly modern ingredient combinations while somehow managing to adhere to the heart of Japanese cuisine. In Conwell’s Zen-like space, it’s a paradox that finds delicious harmony.
First piece of sushi:
Age four.
Philosophy on traditional sushi customs, such as not mixing wasabi into your soy sauce:
“America has a sushi culture of its own. It’s more important to serve exceptional sushi than to dictate how one consumes it.”
What he thinks of Denver sushi-goers:
Some of the most savvy around.
How he describes his sushi style:
Kokoro bebop. Modern Japanese, but not “con-fusion.”
Toshi Kizaki
Master Sushi Chef, Sushi Den
and Izakaya Den,
sushiden.net and izakayaden.net
Roots:
Tamana, Japan
Kitchens:
Matsumi-zushi in Tokyo; Shogun, Enshino, and Mikado in Los Angeles; Sushi-Koi, Zen Restaurant, Sushi Den, and Izakaya Den in Denver
Why We Love Him:
Born and trained in Japan, Kizaki keeps Denver connected to his homeland. Kizaki’s youngest brother hand-picks fish at Fukuoka’s Nagahama fish market every morning and overnights the Japanese treasures directly to Pearl Street. Here, the Master Sushi Chef does little but pair it with exceptional rice. Despite 34 years of doing the very same thing each day, we love Kizaki for continuing to find the kind of restraint that lets his incredible fish remain the center of attention.
Biggest professional risk:
Choosing the South Pearl Street location 24 years ago.
The “pinnacle of his career”:
Cooking for the Emperor of Japan in 1994.
Impressive invention:
Rice cooker for making sushi rice at this altitude.
Still to come:
A 10-seat restaurant where he can personally prepare extraordinarily traditional Japanese fare.
How he describes his sushi style:
Edomae-style sushi with flavor innovation.
See Our Winners
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