Downtown Denver Food Tour

The best thing about this tour is its mix of serious food and easy city sightseeing. In about three hours, you move from a coal-fired pizzeria near Coors Field to an Argentine empanada shop, a Denver institution for green chili, a Southwest-style taco stop, and a Portuguese pastry inside Union Station.

I like the way the route connects food with place. You are not simply carried between restaurants: you pass Coors Field, McGregor Square, the Dairy Block, LoDo, the Oxford Hotel, and Union Station. I also like the practical restaurant advice at the end. Guides such as Austin, Barry, Michael, Dan, and Jess are praised for explaining Denver well and suggesting places to eat after the tour.

The main consideration is the pace. You eat five tastings, but you also walk between stops in all weather, so wear comfortable shoes and plan for sun, rain, or cold. The $85 price is fair if you value a small-group guide and a full introduction to downtown, but alcoholic drinks cost another $30.

Key points at a glance

• Five distinct tastings: Neapolitan pizza, an Argentine beef empanada, Colorado pork green chili, a fry bread taco, and a Portuguese custard tart.
• A compact downtown route: The walk links Coors Field, LoDo, Dairy Block, the Oxford Hotel, and Union Station.
• Small-group format: The maximum group size is 16, which gives the guide room to answer questions and offer personal restaurant tips.
• Strong guide element: Austin, Barry, Michael, Dan, Zach, Alan, Jess, and Jessica are among the guides praised for humor, local facts, and useful dining advice.
• Dietary planning matters: Vegetarian, vegan, and gluten-free tastings are available with advance notice.
• Optional drinks: A three-beverage pairing can be added on site for $30, and the minimum drinking age is 21.

Why this Denver food tour works

This is a good first-afternoon activity in Denver because it gives you both a meal and a sense of direction. You start near Coors Field and finish inside Union Station, two easy landmarks for finding your way around downtown.

The route covers Denver’s Lower Downtown district, usually called LoDo, along with the Ballpark area. These neighborhoods combine old brick warehouses, sports culture, restaurants, bars, shops, and public gathering spaces. Food gives the walk a clear purpose, while the guide fills in the city’s Wild West and railroad stories.

The group size matters. With no more than 16 people, you are not part of a giant procession moving from one restaurant to another. Guides have room to explain a dish, point out a building, and answer questions. The most praised guides include Austin, Barry, Michael, Dan, Zach, Jess, and Jessica, though the exact guide depends on your date.

The tour is conducted in English and uses a mobile ticket. You make your own way to Marco’s Coal Fired at 2129 Larimer Street. Arrive five to 10 minutes early so the group can begin on time.

Marco’s Coal Fired and the Ballpark District

The first tasting is Neapolitan pizza with buffalo mozzarella at Marco’s Coal Fired. This is a strong opening because the restaurant offers something specific to Denver rather than a generic slice. It is the city’s only AVPN-certified Neapolitan pizzeria, a designation tied to traditional standards for dough, sauce, and toppings.

The coal-fired oven reaches more than 1,000 degrees. That high heat gives the crust a blistered edge and smoky flavor while keeping the center chewy. The tasting uses fresh mozzarella and San Marzano tomatoes, so you get a simple sample that lets the crust and ingredients do the work.

The stop lasts about 25 minutes. It is close to Coors Field, so the first part of the walk immediately places you in the Ballpark District. You will see old brick fronts, warehouses adapted for new uses, street art, restaurants, and patios. On a baseball day, the area has extra energy. Even without a game, Coors Field gives the neighborhood a clear sense of place.

A useful expectation: this is a tasting, not a full restaurant meal at each stop. Still, the five samples add up. The food is substantial enough that you should not arrive after a large lunch.

Lazo Empanadas and a change of culinary direction

The next food stop shifts from Italy to Argentina. Lazo Empanadas serves handmade pastry pockets filled with seasoned meat, vegetables, and cheese. The included tasting is a ground beef empanada with housemade chimichurri.

This is a smart second course because it changes the texture and flavor completely. You move from crisp, smoky pizza to a golden pastry with a savory filling and a sharp herb sauce. It also gives the guide a chance to explain how Argentine food fits into Denver’s wider dining scene.

You spend about 20 minutes here. The format remains casual and approachable, with a family-owned feel rather than a formal dining room. If you like portable food with a clear cultural story, this is one of the more memorable stops.

The route continues through LoDo and the Ballpark District. The guide may point out how former rail and warehouse areas changed into dining and nightlife districts. That background helps explain why Denver’s downtown food scene feels spread through old commercial buildings instead of being limited to one restaurant street.

Green chili at The Cherry Cricket

The third tasting is Colorado pork green chili at The Cherry Cricket’s downtown location. The Cherry Cricket dates to 1945 and is known for build-your-own burgers, but the green chili is the important order for this tour.

Green chili is a Colorado staple. It can be mild or hot, thick or soupy, and is served in many settings across the state. Here, it acts as a direct taste of local comfort food. The pork brings richness, while the chili and spices give the dish its heat and character.

This stop lasts about 20 minutes. It is a useful pause in the middle of the walk because the food is warm and filling. You may also hear about the restaurant’s long place in Denver’s dining life, which adds context beyond the bowl itself.

If you do not enjoy spicy food, ask your guide what to expect before tasting. The supplied information does not give a heat level, so it is best to check rather than assume. The tour can provide vegetarian, vegan, and gluten-free tastings with advance notice, but you should arrange this before arrival.

McGregor Square, Coors Field, and LoDo

The sightseeing sections help break up the food. You pass Coors Field, home of the Colorado Rockies, and stop around McGregor Square, a newer public gathering space opened in 2021.

McGregor Square has an outdoor screen, restaurants, bars, shops, and a hotel. Its location across from the stadium shows how Denver has added newer public spaces around older districts. It is a good place to pause, look around, and see how sports and dining share the same downtown blocks.

Coors Field itself opened in 1995 and helped change the surrounding warehouse district. The red-brick stadium is one of the route’s most recognizable sights, with mountain views on clear days. You do not attend a baseball game, and the stop is brief, about five minutes, but it gives the tour a strong local marker.

LoDo is the historic core of the walk. Its preserved brick buildings and former warehouses provide the setting for much of the route. The guide’s stories about railroads, frontier Denver, and redevelopment are a major part of what you pay for. Without that narration, you could still visit these blocks, but you would miss the links between the buildings, the city’s growth, and the current food scene.

Dairy Block and the fry bread taco at Kachina Cantina

The Dairy Block is a redeveloped district on the site of the former Windsor Dairy. Its Alley connects restaurants, coffee shops, cocktail bars, boutiques, art, and a food hall. It is less about one landmark than about seeing how Denver uses older commercial sites for new public life.

The tour then reaches Kachina Cantina for a blood orange tequila-braised pork carnitas taco served on Native American fry bread. This is the most unusual tasting on the route.

Fry bread is light, puffy, and slightly crisp. It replaces a standard tortilla and holds the pork, beans, vegetables, and sauce. The dish draws on Southwestern food traditions while using a modern restaurant presentation. The guide can provide context about fry bread’s history and its place in Native American communities.

You spend about 25 minutes at Kachina, making it one of the longer food stops. The portion adds another substantial savory bite, so by this point you should feel well fed. The combination of pork, citrus, and fry bread also gives the tour a different profile from the Italian, Argentine, and Colorado dishes earlier in the afternoon.

Wynkoop Brewing, the Oxford Hotel, and Union Station

Near the end of the route, you pass Wynkoop Brewing Company, founded in 1988 by a group that included future Colorado governor John Hickenlooper. It is considered Denver’s first craft brewery and helped shape the city’s beer identity.

The tour includes a 10-minute stop at Wynkoop, but the listed food inclusions do not include a beer. You can purchase the optional three-drink pairing for $30 on site. If you choose it, the minimum drinking age is 21. The unusual Rocky Mountain Oyster Stout is part of Wynkoop’s playful reputation, but the information provided does not promise that beer as one of your samples.

The Oxford Hotel is another short stop. Opened in 1891, it is Denver’s oldest operating hotel and sits close to Union Station. Its polished wood, chandeliers, and Victorian details offer a quick look at the city’s early hotel culture.

You may also hear about The Cruise Room, the Oxford’s art-deco cocktail lounge. It opened just after Prohibition ended and is known for classic cocktails. The tour does not list a cocktail tasting there, so think of this as a history and architecture stop rather than a drink stop.

The route ends at Denver Union Station, first opened in 1881 and renovated in 2014. The Great Hall, Beaux-Arts design, and Travel by Train sign make it one of downtown’s best-known public spaces. It is also useful for orientation, with restaurants, bars, coffee shops, and transit connections under one roof.

The final pastel de nata at Ultreia

The final included tasting is a Portuguese egg custard tart at Ultreia inside Union Station. This pastry, called pastel de nata, has flaky layers and a creamy filling with a caramelized top.

It is a fitting finish because it is smaller and sweeter than the earlier tastings. After pizza, empanada, chili, and pork, you get a few crisp, creamy bites rather than another heavy course. The guide can explain the pastry’s Portuguese roots and its connection to monastery baking in Lisbon.

The tour concludes after dessert inside Union Station. Your guide can point you toward your next destination or back to the starting point. That makes the endpoint convenient if you are staying downtown, catching a train, or continuing to explore LoDo.

What $85 gets you

At $85 per person, the tour sits above the cost of simply ordering inexpensive food around downtown. The value comes from the combination of five tastings, a three-hour route, restaurant access, city stories, and personal dining suggestions.

I think the price works best for a first visit. You are paying to sample several places without planning the route yourself, and you get a guide who can help you decide where to eat later. Several guides, including Michael and Dan, are praised for offering restaurant recommendations tailored to personal tastes.

The $85 price does not include the optional three alcoholic drinks. Add $30 if you want that pairing, and remember the 21-year minimum. If you prefer to control your own drinks, skip the add-on and enjoy the food-only tour.

The cancellation policy is flexible up to 24 hours before the start time, when you can receive a full refund. Inside 24 hours, changes and refunds are not accepted. The tour runs in rain or shine and may be canceled for poor weather or if the minimum number of participants is not reached. In either case, you are offered another date or a full refund.

Who should book this tour

I would choose this tour for a first afternoon in Denver, especially if you want a guided introduction without committing to a full day of sightseeing. It suits couples, solo visitors, families, and anyone who enjoys trying several cuisines in one sitting.

It is also a good choice if you like local stories as much as food. The strongest part of the experience is not just the tasting list. It is the way the route explains Coors Field, LoDo, Dairy Block, the Oxford Hotel, and Union Station as parts of one changing downtown.

You should think twice if you want a quiet sit-down meal or a highly specialized culinary class. This is a walking tour with short stops, public streets, and several food styles. It also requires good weather planning, and you need to give advance notice for vegetarian, vegan, or gluten-free alternatives.

Should you book the Downtown Denver Food Tour?

Book it if you want five well-chosen tastes, a manageable downtown walk, and a guide who can help you eat better for the rest of your stay. The pizza, green chili, and fry bread taco give you distinctly different flavors, while the empanada and custard tart widen the range.

The best reason to go early in your visit is the restaurant advice. Guides such as Austin, Barry, Michael, Dan, and Jess are known for combining humor with useful local detail, and that can save you from guessing where to eat later.

Skip it if you dislike group walks, need a full meal at one restaurant, or cannot arrange dietary needs in advance. For most food-focused visitors, though, $85 buys a practical, filling introduction to downtown Denver with enough history to make the meal meaningful.

FAQ

How long does the Downtown Denver Food Tour last?

The tour lasts approximately three hours.

Where does the tour begin?

It begins at Marco’s Coal Fired at 2129 Larimer Street in Denver.

Where does the tour end?

It ends with dessert inside Union Station at 1701 Wynkoop Street.

How many food tastings are included?

Five tastings are included: Neapolitan pizza with buffalo mozzarella, a ground beef empanada with housemade chimichurri, Colorado pork green chili, a pork carnitas taco on Native American fry bread, and a Portuguese egg custard tart.

Are alcoholic drinks included?

No. A three-beverage pairing is available to purchase on site for $30.

Is there a minimum age for the drink pairing?

Yes. The minimum drinking age is 21.

Can dietary requirements be accommodated?

Vegetarian, vegan, and gluten-free tastings are available with advance notice.

What happens if the weather is bad?

The tour runs rain or shine, but if it is canceled because of poor weather, you are offered a different date or a full refund.

How far in advance can I cancel for a full refund?

You must cancel at least 24 hours before the experience start time for a full refund. Cancellations within 24 hours are not refunded.