Born and raised in Grand Forks, North Dakota, and residing on Colorado’s Front Range since 2008, Dustin’s craft-cocktail journey began in 2012 while bartending at Boulder’s Japango. He has also helmed the bar program at RiNo’s Izakaya Ronin and Joy Hill in Baker, and developed menus for dozens of private events. Dustin is inspired by modern techniques and unconventional ingredients, and brings a culinary perspective to cocktail design. His decade-long love affair with Asian food and beverages continues at the original ChoLon in downtown Denver, where Dustin currently makes his professional home, as well as at the nearby Energy Bar Cafe, where he and husband Thach Tran serve smoothies, snacks, and healthy meals to members of the Colorado Athletic Club and the general public.
