THOMPSON DENVER IS HOME TO A FRENCH BRASSERIE FROM A CULINARY LEGEND.
Ludo Lefebvre is a rock star among foodies. CHEF PHOTO COURTESY OF CHEZ MAGGY
CELEBRITY CHEF LUDO LEFEBVRE recently opened up his first restaurant outside of L.A. called Chez Maggy (chezmaggydenver.com), tucked inside the new Thompson Denver in LoDo. “Chez Maggy is my little nod to Paris in downtown Denver. I want people who have never been to France to take a bite of a dish, close their eyes and know what it feels like to be in Paris.”
Chez Maggy’s dining room transports diners to Paris. RESTAURANT PHOTO BY JULIE SOEFER
In 2007, the classically trained French chef launched the idea of pop-up dining with LudoBites, a concept that quickly gained cult status (six weeks of reservations famously sold out in 47 seconds). His fine-dining restaurant Trois Mec earned the chef his first Michelin star in 2019. But Lefebvre also has connections to Colorado. “My wife is from Denver, so I’ve been coming to Denver for 20 years,” Lefebvre says. “I love the energy of the city.”
Set in a cozy brasserie-style space with marble-topped tables, Chez Maggy is an homage to the chef’s mother-in-law, who was struck down by a drunk driver in Golden in 2019. Look for her portrait on the wall and her tagliatelle Bolognese on the menu.
Start the day with genius fare like croque monsieur. FOOD PHOTO BY MARK FIORITO
What to order on a snowy night? “Everyone should have the French onion soup,” Lefebvre says. “The rich veal-based onion soup is covered with thick gooey layers of Gruyere cheese.” The menu is informed by locally sourced ingredients, like Colorado lamb chops with grilled brassicas and dandelion puree. “People always ask me what I bring to Denver,” Lefebvre says. “And I say, ‘I bring a lot of butter.’”
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