After four years in the making, Uchiko has finally opened in the former Ginny Williams Gallery29, at 299 Fillmore St., in Cherry Creek.
As Uchi’s sister concept, Uchiko (“child of Uchi”) expands Austin-based Hai Hospitality’s Denver footprint with a fire-forward take on its Japanese tasting menus. Chef de cuisine Andres Araujo, formerly at the helm of Uchi Denver’s kitchen, stepped up to lead Uchiko’s opening in Cherry Creek. Taking his place at Uchi is former sous chef Geoff Daniel.
Uchiko is built around a custom hearth that anchors the sushi bar, infusing smoke into everything from branzino to nigiri. (Sara Rosenthal/Special to The Denver Post)“The sushi bar is still at the core of what we do; it’s where most of our sales come from. What differentiates our restaurants is the hot and cold food in the sushi bar,” said Jack Yoss, chief culinary officer of Hai Hospitality.
Where Uchi, at 2500 Lawrence St., leans more traditional in technique, Uchiko is built around a custom hearth that anchors the sushi bar, infusing smoke into everything from branzino to nigiri. Unlike the smokeless Japanese binchotan charcoal used at Uchi, the smell of post oak peppers the room at Uchiko; it’s the same wood used in Central Texas-style barbecue.
“It’s clean, it burns well, and it holds up in cold weather, and it gives off this beautiful, subtle smoke,” Yoss stated.
The hearth has multiple temperature zones for direct coal grilling at the base, slow-smoking shelves above, and ambient heat levels for resting and flavor infusion. Fish collars, oysters and nigiri all interact with the fire in different ways. Some pieces are brushed with smoked sauce; others are just lightly kissed with wood before hitting the plate.
“Fire touches every aspect [at Uchiko], from drinks to sushi to fish to the cool tastings,” Yoss shared. “That’s not something we can replicate at Uchi.”
The fire-forward approach extends beyond seafood into dishes like charred edamame, steak frites served with beef fat-washed fries, and the burger – none of which appear on Uchi’s menu, where the cooking leans more traditional in Japanese technique.
A standout feature is the dry-aging fish program. In a glass-front fridge lined on the bottom with pink Himalayan salt blocks, whole fish age anywhere from one to three weeks, concentrating flavor and tightening texture, much like beef. During opening week, Ora King salmon, kanpachi and shima aji were all aging behind the bar.
Uchiko, from Austin-based Hai Hospitality, is Uchi's smokier sister. (Sara Rosenthal)“We’ll have anywhere from four to six rotating fish throughout [the dry ager], and we’ll usually have at least three to four on the menu,” Yoss explained. “You use the same techniques that you would for dry aging meat, pulling out the moisture and concentrating the flavor…and you’ll notice when you taste it that dry aging almost makes it taste fresher.”
The restaurant’s lunch and happy hour specials set Uchiko apart as well. Notably good deals include the $29 lunch special that offers a three-course tasting menu with guests’ choice of a starter, main and sorbet; and a $120 nine-course omakase for two during happy hour. There’s even a dedicated vegetarian menu, including a fully vegetarian omakase experience.
Similar to Uchi, Uchiko offers a range of Japanese whiskies alongside sake in multiple formats, Japanese beers and cocktails. Where its beverage program shines, though, is the wine list, which features over 300 bottles across major varietals and global regions.
As for the space itself, the team chose to preserve the building and expand it by 1,500 square feet while keeping its facade intact. The result is one of the few standalone restaurants in Cherry Creek, with three distinct rooms that include a lively front bar, a sunlit dining room addition, and the sushi bar and hearth at the core.
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With both Uchi and Uchiko now operating in Denver, other Hai Hospitality concepts like Uchiba (an izakaya-inspired cocktail bar concept) and Oheya (a 12-seat omakase experience) could be next — and could potentially take shape upstairs in Uchi’s greenhouse space, though nothing is confirmed.
“We have a great relationship with the landlord, and he’s working on changing the use state. If he can change the state, then there’s definitely an opportunity to do something fun up there,” hinted Tony Montero, CEO of Hai Hospitality.
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