Celebrated chef leaves Michelin-starred Denver restaurant

When chef Michael Diaz de Leon took over Bruto in 2020, he was handed “four walls, a hearth oven and a couple of induction burners,” he said.

Three years later, Diaz de Leon has transformed Bruto into a Michelin-starred restaurant with a Michelin sustainability award and a 2023 James Beard nomination.

“No one really understands how much work goes into establishing a Michelin-starred restaurant,” Diaz de Leon said. “I didn’t take over a Michelin-starred restaurant. I started it from scratch. It required three years of 70-hour work weeks.”

But on Dec. 17, Diaz de Leon cooked his last meal in the Bruto kitchen. He’s leaving Denver restaurateur and chef Kelly Whitaker’s Id Est Hospitality Group to fulfill his lifelong dream of opening his own rest...