Pizza the Action

Mirabito held Bruno's for a decade, serving up authentic regional cuisine for neighbors and a dedicated crowd of regulars until he finally shut the place last year. In December, both the space and the name were bought by Nick Mujaj — new to the Denver restaurant scene, but a ten-year veteran of New York Italian restaurants. Mujaj's brother-in-law, Getmir Zymeri, is a partner at the Lure, where Bistro Vendôme veteran Eric Roeder consults on the menu (he does the same at Table Mesa Grill, in the former Kyoto Asian Fusion space at 7301 South Santa Fe Drive). And now Roeder is also working at Bruno's.

"I had an in," Mujaj explained. And not only did Roeder design the new, very Italian menu at Bruno's — full of osso bucco, carbonara and bucatini puttanesca — but "he's cooking," Mujaj said, "training the guys. He brought his own crew on, guys he's been working with for years."

Like the man says, it's a small world after all.