Beginning his culinary career at nine years old in restaurants in his hometown of Monterrey, Mexico, Chef Jesus Silva has since spent decades perfecting his unique freestyle approach to Japanese-Latin fusion cuisine. In 2003, Jesus landed in Denver, Colorado and was presented with the opportunity to work under Hawaiian native and internationally renowned Chef Bryan Nagao at Mao restaurant in Denver’s Cherry Creek neighborhood. Together, they explored the diverse flavors and rich culture of the Pacific Rim and earned 5280’s recognition as Denver’s “Top New Restaurant”.
Jesus later spent nine years crafting his unique approach to Japanese cuisine at Sushi Sasa, intriguing the Denver food community with omakase menus that fused traditional Japanese technique with the flavors of Mexico. In 2015, Jesus partnered with James Beard nominated Chef Jeff Osaka to open Osaka Ramen, Sushi-Rama and Silva’s Fish Market inside the Denver Central Market. True to his unique style, Jesus presented guests with classic umami-rich ramens, innovative sushi and curated seafood served alongside bold Latin flavors like smoked jalapeno and ponzu, and tropical habanero-mango salsas–flavors as diverse as his culinary background.
Jesus joined the Misaki restaurant group in 2017, opening three locations including shops inside the Stanley Marketplace and Broadway Marketplace. Through this role, Jesus found alignment with Mark Shaker, the visionary behind these two marketplaces. As Broadway Market progressed, Shaker tapped Jesus to develop new food concepts including tacos, pizza and chicken sandwiches—paving the way for their future partnership at The Golden Mill and MilePost Zero at McGregor Square.
In 2021, Jesus opened three food concepts at The Golden Mill including Sushi Sora, Tacos al Chile and Republik of Chiken. The unique space–a converted historic mill along the banks of Clear Creek–combined with award winning food offerings from Executive Chef Silva has made The Golden Mill into a centerpiece dining destination for the greater Denver metro area. The Denver Westword named The Golden Mill the “Best New Food Hall” in 2022 and specifically mentions Sushi Sora as having “the best sushi in the state”.
At MilePost Zero, Chef Silva continues to add new food concepts to his list of hits–including empanadas and Hawaiian poke–further adding to his reputation of success within the Denver Food Hall market segment. Chef Silva is known for his hard work and leadership, attracting culinary talent to apply to work alongside him even as other food operations struggle to hire in a tight job market. He is straightforward and approachable, his flavors are as diverse as his background and his kitchen management as sharp as his knives.
