Ryan Taylor’s journey to the kitchen may have been inevitable — his father is Kevin Taylor, one of Denver’s most prolific chefs — but his childhood wasn’t exactly food-fueled. He didn’t fall in love with fine dining until he started working in his dad’s kitchens, first at the legendary, late Restaurant Kevin Taylor, and then at the now-closed Prima, as well as at the still-very-much-open Kevin Taylor at the Opera House. He’s spent several years honing his own style, one distinct from his father’s, and now, for the first time, he’s getting to showcase his work at a restaurant that he helped build from the ground up. Hickory & Ash opened in July, with Ryan on the burners and his brother Cooper in the front of the house. We recently sat down with Ryan Taylor to talk about how he overcame being a picky eater, the hot sauce he can’t live without, and why the Kevin Taylor Restaurant Group is headed in a more casual direction.
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