The Ponti at Denver Art Museum

Had the Lamb Cavateli and Pumpkin Spice Creme Brûlée. Both were delicious! I was so glad they had a half portion of the Cavatelli as that was a big enough portion for me. Perfect little splurge after walking through the museum.

Broad, creative menu; the best grilled cheese I’ve had in Denver (served with guanciale slices on top of the sandwich); delicious tarragon ice cream to top off a great lunch in a lovely space.

Mezze plate is so delicious and beautiful, been for brunch a couple times and once for dinner at the bar and it’s always wonderful. Grilled cheese is also off the hook. The interior is so cool, too, with actual artwork integrated into the space. Love it here!!

I had an OpenTable reward to redeem. I went through all of the necessary steps to redeem my hard earned reward. When I presented my reward printout to my server for the evening, Emily M., she returned and said the restaurant had rejected my reward and they would not be honoring it. I told her that I had done everything required of me to enjoy this reward. I had made a reservation at Ponti and was really looking forward to experiencing this establishment after touring the Denver Art Museum for several hours. I immediately called the OpenTable support line. The representative told me the reward was active and there was should be no problem with the redemption. I walked up to the cashier area and explained what I had just found out from OpenTable. Emily tried to enter my reward again and said it was again denied. Then she looked at me and said, "I tried to tell you I wasn't lying to you!" No empathy, no compassion. I had to pay the entire bill with my VISA card. Needless to say, what I was hoping would be a nice, relaxing experience was clouded by this unfortunate incident.

We stopped by this restaurant last night since it's very close to our house. We're surprised that to be a Friday night, it was almost empty, only 2 ladies in the bar. The waiter didn't greet us. Her first question was, "Do you have a reservation?" I said, "No, do we need a reservation?" I was ready to walk out, but my husband insisted on staying. The food was delicious, I also asked for a glass of Malbec, and my husband asked an IPA beer. The atmosphere was great, so quiet for a summer Friday night.

This is a modern-looking restaurant with a fairly limited, but vegetarian/vegan-friendly menu (there are dishes that are not listed as vegetarian or vegan, but can be made that way). The restaurant was clean, and our server, Zelda, was extremely friendly and professional. There were 7 of us, and we all enjoyed our meals (grilled cheese, burger, apple and fennel soup, fettuccine, and brussel sprouts salad) tremendously! The burger was especially excellent!

Popped in here for lunch on a Monday. It started to fill quickly at noon. Ate at the counter. Great service, attentive staff, delicious food. Ordered a Hefeweizen (forgot the name of the brewery) and a Lamb Merguez burger. Would definitely recommend even if you do go see the galleries at the museum.

We had apps, Mains and deserts. Lots of creative ideas and spicing. Pretty reasonable prices for downtown denver and given the high quality of the food. Service was attentive. I like the atmosphere . Only three desert choices, but the two deserts we tried were great. Could use a few more wine by the glass options. Overall a great value.

The Ponti feels like a hidden gem inside the Denver Art Museum, except you don't even have to buy a ticket to enjoy it! Beautiful space, artful food, and an easy spot to impress out-of-towners.

I'm surprised about the bad reviews, we have a wonderful lunch on Sunday. It was a beautiful sunny day so we looked up a place where we could eat outside with our dog. Outdoor patio has a nice view and good sun coverage. We had the grain salad snd chicken Caesar, and both were very good. If you're looking for a heavy lunch, this won't be it. I had the mocktail papaya lemonade- wow, so tasty! The waitress was very nice, checking on us often. I'd absolutely come back again!

Had a disappointing visit to this cafe at the Denver Art Museum. On 12/4/25 I arrived at 12:30 PM hoping to get lunch before seeing the exhibit in the museum. Ordered a 'Buddha Bowl' which is a vegetarian salad item. There were four or five young women (late teens/early 20's) working. A lady took my order and I seated myself. As I sat down a different lady working there came around from the kitchen area to answer a cellphone call and walked outside to their patio. Turned out she was the only employee who knew how to make the bowl. She talked outside for almost 10 minutes before returning. None of the other employees apparently knew how to make the salad on their very simple menu. After finishing her phone call (!) the 'knowledgeable' employee came back and set about making my salad although it took another almost 10 minutes to get it. When received, there were brussell sprouts which had apparently been microwaved for a few seconds and were mixed into the bowl with the rest of the veggies. Those brussell sprouts were inedibly raw and tough, all but one piece of them ended up being sent to the compost bin. The entire episode made me feel like management has trained their staff rather inadequately. Why was only one of the working group able to make the salad? Why is the only person who can do it spending time outside talking on the phone when it clearly was not her break? Who told them that people want raw brussell sprouts? Positives: the place is clean and well-lit, prices are reasonable for light fare in a museum setting. The employees, while not able to make my salad, were not standing around doing nothing; they kept busy making coffee drinks, wiping tables and counters, etc. The chocolate chip cookie was good.

Blender Burger! So good!! Told the waiter to call the chef! Was amazing. Service was above average, friendly and knowledgeable staff. Modern atmosphere, with outdoor seating available.

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!

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.

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.

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.

We have been to The Ponti at least a 1/2 dozen times for both lunch and dinner, have brought guests 3 or 4 of the times, and all have agreed the service, food, wine, and ambience have been excellent every time. We are regular diners at some of the best in SF, Denver, NYC, Mexico, Europe - The Ponti is world class and we're lucky to have it as part of the wonderful, world class Denver Art Museum!

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.

Amazing! I just love the Blended Burger and Shrimp & Grits at The Ponti -- truly next-level flavors. The perfect combo of creativity and comfort. Highly recommend if you haven't tried them yet!

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.

Excellent little gem of a restaurant in the art museum. Perfect for a relaxing glass of wine and delicious meal. Not a good place for families with small children. It has a more adult vibe. The service was on point for us, The waiter was knowledgeable and informative of the menu. Be sure to show your museum membership card before ordering for a 10% discount.

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?

I like restaurants that are hidden inside unsuspecting places. Bazille inside Nordstrom; Manna inside the AdventHealth Hospital; and The Ponti, a new restaurant inside The Denver Art Museum. We booked through OpenTable, a seamless process. The highlight of our meal was the food itself; my grain bowl salad was fresh and flavorful, while my girlfriend's tempeh sandwich was equally commendable for its taste and quality. We found the atmosphere to be bustling, which added to a lively dining experience, although some might find it a bit crowded. The service was decent, efficient without being particularly memorable. The only downside was the pricing - it felt a bit steep for the value offered. However, the overall dining experience was enjoyable, leaving us with a positive impression. Despite the few drawbacks, we appreciated the culinary craftsmanship and would return.

We went to the Ponti to celebrate my father's birthday. The food was honestly "meh" at best. The portions were ridiculously small, which I understand at upscale restaurants is part of the experience. We all had leftover food on our plates with no desire for boxes. There was nothing special to mark my father's birthday. The lemonade that we ordered was mostly ice. For a restaurant that claimed to have gluten free options- there were only two ( my bad for not doing more research). To top it off I still got sick. The waiter made it a point by telling me twice the full total of the meal and then wrote the full total of the meal- including tax on the receipt ( we are members of the museum so we get a discount) . Tips are to be based on the amount before tax, I found that especially tacky. Overall I would not return. I wish I had taken my father elsewhere to celebrate. I guess it is also worth noting that for a Saturday afternoon at a peak Dino g time- the place was empty. I was disappointed at best.

Was at the museum for an Inside the Orchestra performance with my daughter and her Girl Scout Troop, and after the show some of us were starving for lunch. There's a casual to go restaurant at the museum that we looked at to start, but the wait was quite long. So myself and another mom decided to be fancy and bring three little girls to the Ponti. It's a little fancier than I would usually take my 6 year old to, but it was a wonderful experience. They sat us out on the patio and the waiter was amazing in dealing with the girls. The food and drinks were great. The girls loved the French toast and blood orange lemonade, and my grain bowl with salmon was amazing (it was actually so good my daughter switched with me at the end to finish my bowl). They have wine by the glass as well, which was very welcome after wrangling girls all morning. If the girls weren't antsy to see more art, I would have stayed there all morning drinking wine and enjoying the view.

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!

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.

Great stop when visiting the Denver Art Museum! The Ponti is a upscale offering in the building that joins the Hamilton and Martin wings of the museum. The menu offers salads, a few entrees and a couple of desserts. We had the grilled cheese sandwich and the pork green chili, both excellent. Service was friendly and knowledgeable, seating comfortable, and atmosphere relaxed. Definitely possible to have a quiet conversation! Reservations a must.

The Ponti is an excellent extension of the Denver Art Museum. The food is exquisite. Brian and I were there for lunch. Reservations only!! The restaurant is beautifully arranged and we had a full view of the newer part of the museum across the street. I ordered hot tea and the service presentation was nice. I had the rueben and Brian had the burger and sweet potato fries. Both were very good. The reuben is made with soy. The Ponti is open for lunch most days and for dinner on Tuesday nights. The Ponti has an outdoor patio for warm weather. They offer vegan and vegetarian options. They have non-alcoholic drinks to go along with the wine and bar menu. Sadly, there was no Bloody Mary on the menu. Our server was not particularly friendly but she was competent. Parking is in the garage across from the museum and runs about ten dollars.

Worst restaurant I have ever been. The waiter is rude and unhelpful. They would not say the wrong thing to you. But they are like robot not human.

Chef Jen has done it again! The Ponti has become my go to place for a pre-event meeting place, business lunch or a great place to take friends before heading into the Denver Art Museum. That mezze platter is a thing of beauty! My go to meal: sparkling rose, mezze platter to share and salmon.

Every dish we had was delicious. Service was great, fantastic presentation. Can't believe it only has an average of 3.6 stars on Yelp as of today. Don't believe it. This is a 5 star restaurant.

Had a Tuesday dinner here and it was delicious. Full bar. Friendly, easy service. They have a limited menu and wine list (nice to see Daou wine representing). The food is delicious, they're using excellent ingredients and the chef is creative. We found the pricing slightly high but ok. We had a quiet inside table...the patio also looks tempting for next time.

I've had drinks here, it complements the museum very well, ambient noise great for getting together after or before your visit to the museum and they also have a great patio

This restaurant never disappoints! I have tasted flavors here that I have never experienced! It's unreal and the chef must be a genius. The atmosphere is lovely. I enjoy sneaking away from work and having this treat.

I have been here many times now. It's fine, just fine. But as many other reviewers have noted, it's just not Palletes. Ponti had big shoes to fill and, unfortunately, falls short. The food is fine, the atmosphere is fine, but it's not outstanding. The menu is very limited and the size of the space itself is remarkably small. I've never had anything bad, I've never had anything remarkable. And it can be very hard to get into, you pretty much have to have a reservation. Meh.

The initial response walking in was that this is a nice enjoyable upscale place. The bartender, server and bar manager was nice and inviting. So wanting to order and the menu is pretty sparse and pricey so I decided on the apple soup with parsnip. OMG what a delight. For the main entree I decided on the roasted chicken. I was told how they cooked it and it sounded great especially with butter injected. And yes it was good and crispy. Good until I got down to the meat around the bones which were dark red like bloody. I proceeded to tell the manager and he said it was done that it was the vein that was red. I told him Whenever I cook chicken there is no red in my chicken. Not like I wanted a free meal but I was just informing him that it I believe it wasn't fully cooked. But I felt like he thought I wanted compensation. I couldn't finish it but since I paid for it I took the other half home to cook it some more. If they get steak I may return.

I threw a bridal shower for my niece here last weekend. It was fabulous. We had a party of 12. Katelyn the catering director was wonderful to work with. She arranged for us to be in a private room and arranged for personalized menus which were so classy. We started with the Mezzo plate which was perfect for sharing and the cheeseburger and cavetelli were the most popular with the girls. We ended with the toasted almond ice cream which was so refreshing. I highly recommend! Benjamin our server was super attentive!!

It isn't that the food was bad or the service either. But wow do we miss Palettes. The indoor space is not all that special. Maybe the patio in warm weather will add to the ambience. I hope so. As I said, the food we ordered tasted fine, albeit expensive. But the choices are so "healthy" that you long for a little of the Palettes soup and bread and sandwiches. The new art museum building is such a winner, we had high hopes that the restaurant would be a must visit pleasure everytime we visit the museum. It isn't.

Amazing combination of ingredients that chef created in her meals! Love every bite of each meal we had there with my husband! Recommend this place! On the picture, we split the main dish with my husband as we tried so many appetizers.

DON'T EVEN BOTHER. Blase interior that looks cookie cutter like everything else. RIDICULOUSLY overpriced menu for what you get. I paid $24 today for a salad the size of a large bread plate with greens, 2 cubes of cheese & 3 dried figs, and some disgusting "brown bread." The chicken was a very sad thigh & leg with the skin on - i.e. - mostly bones. Friend ordered a very simple grilled cheese that was no big deal for $16. The former restaurant Palettes was special place to go with an excellent menu & the owner/operator knew all the locals. The food and ambience were 5X better. I have always enjoyed Rioja & Bistro Vendome but Jaskinsky has missed the mark here bigtime. Do yourself a favor - cross the Plaza and go get excellent salads, wraps & bowls at MAD Greens for less than half the price. I will not return to Ponti nor recommend it. I predict it will go out of business fairly soon due to a completely lackluster concept that is way overpriced.

Vegans beware! This place has the illusion of options for us but they really don't. There are some salads, but they are deceptively small with too few ingredients and way too expensive. I got the grain bowl (which was not really in a bowl at all but okay) which had a painfully fragrant dressing on it and probably 3 ingredients. The description of the salad on the menu made it seem wayyyyy more substantial than it was. It was a 5 dollar salad for 14 dollars. So don't order that. Also, maybe I'm some uncultured swine, but the Nicoise salad has both egg and fish even though these ingredients are not listed. Like, maybe I should have known that, maybe I am dumb and don't know French food, but I'm glad I looked up what it was before I ordered it. It was also listed as vegetarian when it has fish in it which is also silly. I hope they make the menu more veggie friendly-- it's Denver you can't throw a stone without hitting a vegan. But it sure is cute in there and the waiter was great so we got that going for it! If you're a meat eater you may like this place, but I was pretty frustrated.

We had the burger and the grilled cheese. Burger was absolutely amazing!!! It had mushrooms or something mixed in with the meat!! Soooo good! The grilled cheese was good too....didn't want to leave anyone out.

We were able to visit the Museum and were surprised when we saw this restaurant inside of the Museum. It just opened so They had a limited menu however the food and the drinks were great. Its reminiscent of a Wine Bar but its a restaurant !!! Will definitely be back !!

We hosted a brunch for 14 people at the Ponti. Food was excellent. Even though we ordered off the menu, service was outstanding. We were seated in a small dining area filled with art. After searching for a place for brunch for 14 people, we were so fortunate to find this place.

The food was excellent. The cocktails were God Awful. The worst I have ever had in my life. The service was OK.

Bad services. Didn't get to order and walked out because there was no waiter for almost 15 minutes after being sat. They were not busy at the time and were rude and ignored us when we tried to get their attention to order food. Tables next to us that came in later got their food before we could even order.

Really wanted to like this place but, um, no. It's really too bad because we are museum members. That's okay, because I will eat before I go rather than subject myself to this snooty hostess again. Yes I am all too aware it is best to make reservations. But we found ourselves downtown, and we were hungry, so we thought we would give it a try. Bad idea. The couple before us were a walk-in, and were seated without question. The woman sat them and then scowled at us from across the bar before looking us up and down, telling us she only had room for us at the bar. Way to sell it. Then she said could seat us on the patio and tried to sit us at an unshaded table in the 90 degree heat. Meanwhile there were plenty of open tables inside with many other tables about to leave. Then she rudely said. "I am sorry but without a reservation, this is all I have to offer you." Now I have worked in restaurants for years, and there is a way to talk to guests, and finesse the not so desirable tables. We just left right then and there. With a snooty attitude like this, I expected to view Yelp and see 5 star reviews. However, the reviews aren't very flattering, so it looks like we dodged a bullet. The Denver Art Museum deserves way better.

Nice atmosphere. The food was excellent. I had the burger (tasty and perfectly prepared.). My friend had the cavatelli. It was delicious. The almond cake was perfect. Service was good.

This restaurant was a disappointment. We lives the wine, server was great but the food was not as expected. The tempeh Reuben would not be ordered again.

Sort of expected the quality of Palettes, so deeply disappointed. Staff was nice. Menu is limited and hard to weed through with so many unusual ingredients. There are two issues we found with this visit -- the food was actually not good and the space is cold and tight. The drab grey and cold stone, most of the restaurant is bar. The area looks like an industrial hallway - if seated near the aisle you are likely to get bumped as people pass. If you are at the bar you are right up against your neighbor - bumping arms. The clean green sandwich was yummy but greasy. Parsnip soup is nice, tasty also but immediately cools down to tepid in the large bowl they pour it into when serving. Possibly because it is about one cup of soup. The fig salad was overpoweringly salty with cheese chunks. Some of the salad greens tasted just like salt but nothing more. Expensive for such an unpleasant experience. The grilled cheese was good but nothing exceptional. It's a pricey place but felt that the quality of the food and the ambiance are just not up to par. Likely won't give it a go again. Snack bar across the hall might be a better choice.

I loved Palettes, the previous DAM restaurant, and was looking forward to visiting the Ponti. It was disappointing. The space is not inviting. To the right as you enter there is a room with no windows at all. To the left is a narrow path leading to an area with windows, but the tables are close together and there really isn't a view. In the summer, the patio will be pleasant. The wines are expensive: $14 to $16 a glass. The Museum is trying hard to become more inclusive, but the menu here will prove off putting to most visitors. I love international cuisine, but had to Google many of the ingredients in the listed dishes. My companion and I settled on the salmon, which was well prepared, but not exciting. The sides, Thai black rice and a cabbage dish, though good, were extreme;y small, a spoonful or two at most. We will not return. There are much better restaurants in Denver.

I have eaten here twice and would not recommend it. The menu is unique but missing the boat for what patrons of a museum want for lunch. With predominance of women visiting during lunch hour, the menu has lots of pasta and other unhealthy choices but no healthy lunch entree salads. The pasta was barely ok. My friend had salmon--for $24 she got a piece of salmon, black rice and nothing else but a few sprigs of something Two friends ordered the Reuben--with Tempeh instead of corn beef (really why bother) and a green sandwich that was peanut butter, apple butter and something else--so greasy, messy and very hard to eat. The setting and decor are nice but I would rethink the menu if I were the owner.

Service slow and food mediocre. Do not seem to be able to cook food to proper temperature. Mitch preferred Palates the old restaurant at the DAM.

Had a great experience here two weeks ago. One of the members in our party had a walker, and they seated us in a place where that could be out of the way. Our server was helpful, knew the menu, and was attentive; she provided a great level of service and was super pleasant and had good recommendations for the museum as well. And my food was awesome. The white bean, green and vegetable with sourdough bread was out of this world. It was cooked perfectly, had a great savory umami flavor, and the sourdough bread complemented it perfectly (note: it does have bacon in it, it's not a vegetarian dish). The other member of our party got the hamburger and thought it was very good (and the sweet potato fries were great), although thought my dish was a little better. The mango sticky rice was good as well. Will definitely be back.

We tried this out the first week it was open and had a great meal. Very inventive! Interesting blend of flavors and textures