Cities of the World: Denver’s Proto’s Pizza

Toulouse savors a pizza and margarita at Proto's

As Nina fiddled with the tiny photocopied map of downtown Denver in one hand and steered  the freeway with her other hand, I tried not to cringe. I knew we were lost again. She doesn’t really interpret maps; she just looks at them and pretends. Then she glances at the signs and mumbles in five different languages. As if that helps. Maybe it does in some weird existentialist way, because we found our way.

We’d been driving the better part of the day from Boulder (it’s only an hour’s drive from Denver… LOL!) and looking for the Jiberish clothing store to buy some steezy stuff for Nina’s son. By some miracle, we found Platte Street and the store. Dan was very helpful and even suggested a cool place to eat down the street—was it my growling stomach that tipped him off?

Dan admitted proudly that he patronized Proto’s Pizzeria Napoletan at least a few times a week for lunch. He recommended the Goombah, a pizza with mozzarella, tomato sauce, imported prosciutto and capers.  

We bypassed the outside patio because of the rain and entered the cozy restaurant, done in a quazzy traditional Italian-funky pseudo young ski culture style…whatever that means… :-3 We got comfortable at a table facing the window and, keeping

Proto's Pizzeria in Denver

 Dan’s recommendation in mind, we perused the menu of gourmet Neapolitan pizzas that made our mouths  water.

Pizzas varied from “The Traditional” a simple pizza with mozzarella and Proto’s homemade tomato sauce, to  “The Low Rider”, a blend of house made honey tomato chipotle sauce, topped with mozzarella, Polidori bacon, fresh pineapple and cilantro.

Nina and I couldn’t agree so we decided to amalgamate two pizzas into one. Jessica, our waitress, took a shine to

Toulouse with Jennifer at Proto's

me and readily agreed to our suggestion. We ended up with a Proto’s Pizza with added capers and prosciutto. Denver is known for its Margaritas (among other things…:-3)  so we ordered one from Jessica to go with the pizza. Great choice! The pizza was delicious. The toppings were a playful balance of savory freshness on a crust that was mildly flavorful without being overwhelming. It went down fast. Faster even than the margarita!  

Proto’s opened in 1999 when Pam Proto decided that to get true Neapolitan Pizza in Colorado, she’d have to do  it herself. The first restaurant opened in Longmont, Colorado, then went on to open locations in Lafayette, Denver, Boulder and Boise, Idaho. Proto’s has received numerous critical awards from local publications and national recognition in Bon Appetit Magazine. Thanks, Dan, for the recommendation!

Check this funky place out. It’s a great place to meet friends and eat

Al Fresco dining at Proto's

 and drink and chill out.  Tell them Toulouse sent you! :-3

Photos by Nina Munteanu

This site is powered by donations. For your reading pleasure I do not clutter it with advertizing; nor do I charge any of these fine establishments, events or places for my reviews. If you are a patron who enjoys my articles or at the receiving end of one of my reviews you can show your appreciation with a donation (see right top sidebar).