Boulder’s Casa Juani Joins Colorado’s First Statewide Michelin Guide
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Confirmed: on September 14, 2026, the Michelin Guide named Casa Juani, a Spanish seafood restaurant on Pearl Street, a Michelin Recommended pick as part of the guide’s first ever statewide expansion across Colorado. The recognition has no official tie to Sundance, but the restaurant sits inside the festival’s downtown footprint, which makes it a useful addition to any visitor’s dining list for January 2027.
Last verified: September 20, 2026
What the Michelin Guide confirmed
| Fact | Status |
|---|---|
| 2026 marks the first year the Michelin Guide has evaluated restaurants across all of Colorado, not just Denver, Boulder, and four ski towns | Confirmed |
| Casa Juani, 901 Pearl Street, Boulder, named Michelin Recommended | Confirmed |
| 15 new Colorado restaurants recognized in the 2026 update, bringing the statewide total to 63 since the guide arrived in 2023 | Confirmed |
| Boulder’s Frasca Food and Wine separately retains its existing Michelin star from a prior year, unrelated to this year’s new additions | Confirmed |
| Casa Juani was also named to Bon Appetit’s national list of best new restaurants earlier in 2026 | Reported, not yet confirmed |
The Colorado Governor’s Office announced the statewide expansion directly, and Colorado Public Radio and the Boulder business outlet BizWest both confirmed Casa Juani’s Recommended listing the same week. Casa Juani is a Spanish seafood restaurant, described by Michelin’s own inspectors as a marisqueria with Iberian coastal specialties, run by chefs Eduardo Valle Lobo and Kelly Jeun. It opened in February 2026 at 901 Pearl Street, inside the stretch of downtown Boulder that overlaps with several confirmed Sundance 2027 venues. Valle Lobo has said the recognition carries extra weight given his earlier work in Michelin-starred kitchens in Spain, Italy, and New York.
Why it matters for your trip
None of the site’s existing dining coverage mentioned this yet, and it is a genuinely new data point for anyone building a Sundance 2027 itinerary around where to eat between screenings. Pearl Street sits at the center of festival foot traffic, so a newly recognized restaurant a short walk from multiple venues is worth knowing about before reservations book up during the ten day run. For a broader list of where to eat and drink near festival venues, see our guide to where to eat and drink near Sundance 2027 venues. If you are still mapping out your days, our one-day, three-day, and five-day itinerary guide is a good place to slot in a dinner reservation, and our roundup of things to do in Boulder beyond the festival covers more of the food and culture scene visitors ask about.
What we’re watching
We’re watching for whether Casa Juani or other newly recognized Colorado restaurants publish any festival week specials or extended hours once the December lineup announcement locks in demand, and whether the Michelin Guide adds further Boulder County restaurants when it runs its next annual update.
