Monday, June 6, 7:00 pm
Members $90, guests $115

Mojitos and sake, sushi and ceviche, and antijitos and dim sum. A decade ago, you’d be hard-pressed to find these items on the same city block, no less on the same menu. While recent years have seen an explosion of Latin-Asian fusion, few have pulled off the marriage as seamlessly as Richard Sandoval, executive chef and owner of Denver’s Zengo.

Born in Mexico City and educated at the Culinary Institute of America, Sandoval has made a name for himself with his pioneering, refined Mexican cuisine. In 2003 alone, New York magazine named Sandoval Chef of the Year and Esquire included his New York City–based Pampano on their list of Best New Restaurants. His other venues, including Maya, Tamayo, and Isla Mexican Kitchen and Tequila Bar, have made Sandoval and his Modern Mexican cooking household names. So why switch it up at the new Asian-inspired Zengo? “Just as Japanese chefs who emigrated to South America applied their skills to the local ingredients,” Sandoval explained, “I have always longed to bring my Latin roots to Asia in a similar manner. The menu at Zengo has done just that.”

Sandoval possesses “a clear sense of how competing flavors and textures can be orchestrated to create exciting results,” wrote William Grimes of the New York Times. At Zengo (Japanese for “give and take”), Sandoval proves his talent for bridging culinary cultures by giving his warm, signature Latin cuisine a cool, Asian twist. According to Kyle Wagner of the Denver Post, “Sandoval’s primary passion has been upscale cuisine from his native Mexico, and it is those flavors he wraps around the similarly bold, sharp bites of Asian cooking, particularly Japanese, at Zengo.” Along with chef de cuisine Alan Yu, Sandoval has created an entirely new dining experience for guests.

Take it from Westword magazine: “You’ll leave wanting more. More food, more sake, more Zengo.”