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Beau Jo's
Beau Jo's has been making what it calls "Colorado-style" mountain pies since 1973, when the original location opened in the mountain town of Idaho Springs. Half a century later, the chain has grown to seven locations across Colorado — including Arvada, Fort Collins, Lone Tree, Steamboat Springs, and Denver — while keeping the same thick-crust format that made the original location a mountain-town institution in the first place. The defining feature is the crust itself: a hand-rolled, thick ring of daily-made dough that builds a genuine wall around the edge of the pie, letting Beau Jo's load on toppings — the pizzas are sized and sold by the pound rather than by diameter — well past what a standard crust could contain. That crust does double duty as dessert, too; the restaurant's honey-dipping tradition, pouring local honey over the leftover crust once the toppings are gone, has become as closely associated with Beau Jo's as the pizza itself. That combination — thick, topping-loaded "mountain pies" named for the Rockies, sold in pound increments, finished with honey — is different enough from a standard American pizzeria that it's become a specifically Colorado dining tradition rather than a regional variation on a national style. More than fifty years after the Idaho Springs original opened, the chain has expanded into shipping pies nationally through Goldbelly, extending a mountain-town pizzeria's reach well past what its founders likely imagined in 1973. For a Denver pizza list, Beau Jo's is the essential "this is Colorado's own pizza style" entry — a thick-crusted, honey-finished mountain pie sold by the pound, a genuinely regional format that's been running continuously since 1973 and has since spread from its original mountain-town location into Denver and beyond.
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Marco's Coal Fired Pizza
Marco's Coal Fired Pizza opened in Denver's Ballpark neighborhood in 2008, founded by Mark and Kristy Latorraca Dym around a specific and fairly narrow goal: build true Neapolitan pizza in Denver the way it's actually made in Naples, rather than an Americanized approximation of the style. That commitment paid off with real certification — Marco's became Colorado's first Vera Pizza Napoletana-certified pizzeria, an official designation that requires meeting strict standards on ingredients, dough, and cooking method set by the Associazione Verace Pizza Napoletana in Naples. The kitchen leans on imported Italian ingredients and certified pizzaiolos trained specifically in Neapolitan technique, producing a pizza the restaurant describes as having a crisp, chewy crust with a softer center — the specific textural signature the VPN standard is built around. That certification has also earned Marco's a spot on the Italian Top 50 Pizza list, notable recognition for a pizzeria operating well outside Italy. Beyond the core Neapolitan menu, Marco's has built in enough range to function as a full restaurant rather than a pizza-only counter — limoncello chicken wings, salads, and a solid list of gluten-free and vegan options sit alongside the certified pies, along with house-made desserts that round out a full dinner rather than just a quick slice. For a Denver pizza list, Marco's Coal Fired Pizza is the essential "certified, by-the-book Neapolitan" entry — Colorado's first VPN-certified pizzeria, built on imported ingredients and traditional technique in Denver's Ballpark neighborhood since 2008.
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