Best Sushi In Denver, Ranked

When you think about quintessential Mid- and Mountain West foods, fish isn't really the first thing that comes to mind. A landlocked locale like Denver may not inspire visions of flavorful sushi, but the Mile High City is a veritable culinary capital in its own right, and excellent examples of any cuisine can be had here. Whether it's a high-altitude outpost from one of the best sushi restaurants in the country or a local company making its own name, the sushi scene in Denver has a lot to offer. 

According to research from the Colorado Restaurant Association, Denver County has over 2,200 eating and dining establishments. You can bet a large portion of the restaurants in the area are serving sushi. But with all the choices, how do you ensure you get a good meal for your money and time? For us, it comes down to a few things: atmosphere, service, story, and menu selection are important — but the most impactful thing is the freshness of the fish. With that in mind, we weighed all these factors to create our ranking of the best of the best sushi in Denver. 

Sushi-Rama has five locations across the greater Denver metro area, and any of them will be a stellar stop for a convenient and easy meal. Dining at Sushi-Rama could not be simpler. The nostalgia-inspired brand functions as a conveyor concept. You sit down, pick plates off a moving belt, and eat until you are full. The experience is fun and novel, which helps Rama secure a ranking up there with some of Denver's best sushi ... but there are some caveats.

First, the newness eventually wears off when you consider that the variety of rolls running down the belt can be impacted by those who are upstream. Also, you pay by the plate, with each color denoting a certain price point. This can be a barrier to enjoyment for those who like to budget, as the plates add up quickly. 

Some pieces, especially on the higher-end nigiri plates, lack the precise execution common to a few of Denver's more technically-focused spots. Still, the overall quality of sushi at Rama is great.

A fusion of Japanese and Hawaiian cuisine might seem like an easy mark for the savvy chef or restauranteur; the latter has been influenced by the former. Hapa Sushi Grill, which takes its name from the Hawaiian term for blended Asian and American culture, strives to achieve respect by merging two distinct cuisines with sushi, and it definitely succeeds. 

Hapa is a unique restaurant that puts a bit more flair on things than other similarly priced shops. A two-for $12 deal on fish rolls goes big if you can hit Happy Hour, and the restaurant has a sizeable vegetarian sushi menu that is also extra-affordable during that timeframe. Maki is the focus of the dinner menu, with several columns geared toward various experience levels with sushi dining. The flavors are good, and the combinations are tastefully inventive. We tend to favor the simpler style of sashimi and nigiri, so Hapa is where we'd head for a specific maki craving rather than for appreciating the simplicity of well-sliced fish.

When researching this article, we came across a lot of folks who are fans of Sushi Sasa, and some who even go as far as to put it at the top of their Denver sushi selections. In talking to these people, it's clear that the sleek, minimalist style of Sasa has an effect that invokes passionate appreciation for the restaurant's seafood program. The raw bar offers diverse flavors like the Hamachi Jalapeño, which is yellowtail paired with a chili pepper pureé and olive oil. Overall, this is some very good sushi.  

The restaurant is angled and priced as high-end, fine sushi, which is pulled off to a fair degree. But as we get deeper into this list, you'll see Denver's glitzier sushi spots don't tend to slack off, and at times, the service at Sasa can be a letdown. Servers are humans, and they have bad days. We've worked in enough restaurants to say, "Been there," and brush it off. But issues around seating, ticket times, or uninformative/unhelpful staff should be minimal if you aim to be in the upper echelon.

In the area bordering several happening neighborhoods of Denver (Capitol Hill, Baker, the Central Business District), you might expect all the sushi joints to be buzzy, hip, and contemporary. It's not like the bright neon lights of Rocky Yama don't signal those things. It's just not what the establishment is giving. Instead, this unembellished shop has a muted dining room, a spacious patio, and piles and piles of simple, tasty fish.

If you're like us, Rocky Yama is similar to the types of places where you first learned about sushi. That is to say, it's a casual neighborhood restaurant (read: not stuffy or luxurious) with both popular (thus, approachable) roll options and fish choices that allow the initiated to dive into deep waters. Either way, freshness is paramount. Eating sushi here feels like a communal experience, with the perfectly sticky rice or pungent toppings eliciting those happy food shimmies that discreetly dance from diner to diner during dinner service at a good restaurant. 

Bamboo Sushi is another medium-sized chain that prioritizes sustainability. Not only does the LoHi eatery have a relationship with Monterey Bay Aquarium, but it also pairs with seven other groups, including the Marine Stewardship Council, 1% for the Planet, and the Wild Salmon Center. Considering the sockeye salmon nigiri was one of the best pieces of sushi we've tried this year, it's safe to say the environmental investments are paying off in a primo product that outswims the competition.

The fish served at Bamboo has a distinguishable freshness to it. You might even convince yourself you can still taste the sand on a couple of these bites. The portions are also well-sized and the rice has a slight mineral acidity to it and is competently sticky without being damp. Although the service is at times aloof, the intensity of sweet and salty umeboshi with tangy ponzu and white fish is enough to put anyone in a mellow, happy mood. 

Way down in the southern edge of the Denver metro area, there is a small sushi eatery that manages a careful balance between exploring the possibilities of the cuisine, respecting its traditions, and not making all of that so heady that ordinary eaters feel like they don't belong. Makizushico is a charming shop decked out in wood that has as much warmth as someone could want from a place to eat. Seating is moderately spaced and ergonomic, and a beautiful sushi counter awaits your choices. The name of the game is personalized omakase, which at the time of writing was priced at a mind-bending $50. This marriage of cost and quality is rare.

The Nikumaki roll is a standout; it combines tender Wagyu, creamy avocado, and truffle oil in one decadent mouthful. the sashimi and sushi menu doesn't have as great a range as others, especially in terms of individual tuna cuts. With sushi as buttery as that served by Makizushico, we would do some wild things to get our hands on some tuna toro selected and carved by the staff. Denver sushi hunters know that you can do a lot with a little; Makizushico is a good example to follow.  

Temaki Den snuck up on us when making this ranking. It's not always the most high-profile in conversations about Denver's best places to eat sushi, and we anticipated slotting it a bit lower because its focus is on one item: hand rolls. Plus, as you'll see, this restaurant's prominent older sibling wins out in the family race. 

All the while, we kept returning to ask ourselves what made this sushi stand out, and finally, the answer became clear. Temaki Den seems to pride itself on its dedication to basics like the shari vinegar rice that makes the rolls stick together. This may be the first time we give a sushi spot top marks on rice alone, but until you try what's going on at Temaki Den, it's hard to overstate what it means to a temaki roll. 

Hand rolls can get messy unless you get a proper binding. When you do, this finger food delivers flavor as big as tacos or pizza but an experience that is way cleaner (literally and nutritionally). At Temaki, the shari imparts an effervescent note of acidity just strong enough to develop mineral undertones within the layered aspects of fish and nori. 

Though not a chain by any means, Uchi Denver is part of the growing line of sushi restaurants operated by James Beard-winning Chef Tyson Cole. The concept serves eloquent albeit non-traditional Japanese cuisine. Uchi has consistently been awarded praise that vastly outsizes its humble beginnings as a restaurant operating out of a small house in Austin, Texas. The Denver location of Uchi — the first one located outside of the South — is a veritable playground of flavors, techniques, and textures. Head sushi chef Jesus Alonzo maintains consistent, top-tier grades across the program.

Uchi is widely regarded as having some of the best sushi in the U.S., so it's unlikely you'll make it here on a regular occasion (it's not always easy to get in). Keep that in mind, but also, go get your calendar and dial the phone. This is no everyday sushi restaurant; if you can, you should book a meal there. The wide-ranging menu has unique inclusions like Norwegian mackerel, flounder, 72-hour short rib, and foie gras sushi. It's also fundamentally strong. The salmon belly is so sinfully soft that you might start wondering if the dappled sunlight from the pitched glass roofing is enough to melt it away. Albacore is nice to have as well, but trust us when we say that at Uchi, you're going to be swimming in decadent options.