Yuan Wonton

In Denver, New Restaurants Honor a Long-Erased Chinatown | Condé Nast Traveler

"Starting as a pop-up and a 2019 food truck before moving into a bright, high-ceilinged brick-and-mortar in 2023 (sharing a space with Sweets and Sourdough), Penelope Wong’s Yuan Wonton makes everything from scratch and by hand: ultra-thin egg-wrapped pork-and-shrimp wontons doused in aromatic chili oil and a “secret sauce,” an impossibly soft gua bao with crispy fried chicken topped with Thai basil and chive aioli, and steamed char siu pork bao that’s tender and just sweet. The business opens for lunch only four days a week, hosts monthly Peruvian and Chifa pop-ups under lead chef Carolina Zubiate, and Wong has used her platform for community fundraising and advocacy; she was a James Beard semi-finalist in 2023 and a finalist for “Best Chef: Mountain” in 2024 and 2025." - Esther Tseng