OFM dining
Ototo Den
Photos provided by Ototo Den
Elevated Japanese Eatery
by Ash Trego
S
nugly situated on South Pearl Street in Denver, Ototo Den In the kitchen at Ototo, there is another chef named Yuki. Yuki is from Tokyo and moved to Colorado when she was Japanese restaurant is truly a special little spot. just 19 years old. While she was working as a private chef and caterer, she took a time off, got married, and started This eatery’s name literally translates to “little brother,” and a family. Once her son got a little older, she decided it was it is in fact named for the owners, Toshie and Yasu Kizaki’s time to get back in the kitchen. She returned to work, and little brother Koichi. Koichi makes daily, early morning visits that is how she landed in the kitchen at Ototo working to, and maintains deep relations with, the fish mongers at alongside chef Koga-San. the Nagayama Fish Market on Kyushu Island. This is where all three of the brothers’ restaurants procure the wonderfully fresh fish and seafood they are known for. Unlike Sushi Den, the “big brother” whose doors opened in 1984 and offers world-class, sushi delicacies, and Izakaya, the “middle sister” Japanese-fusion, gastro pub, Ototo specializes in Robata-style cooking. Robata cuisine focuses on ramen, bento boxes, small plates, skewers, and such. In an effort to better understand the wheels that make Ototo, Sushi Den, and Izakaya the smoothly run successes that they are today, I wanted to dig in and get the full picture. The saying goes that “behind every great man, there is a great woman,” and this restaurant conglomerate is no exception. Toshi’s wife, Michiko Kizaki is the pastry director for the restaurants. She says, “It was a great challenge to adapt my Japanese recipes to the elevation and climate of Denver.” She spent months practicing and ultimately perfecting her recipes, including her famous banana cream pie.
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