Crispy Cones in Centennial: Are They Worth the Drive?

I don't usually make special trips out to Centennial for dessert, but when something catches enough attention on Shark Tank to land a real brick-and-mortar location in the Denver metro, I figure it's worth checking out. Crispy Cones has been making the rounds on social media for a while now, and after seeing the concept pop up enough times, I finally drove out to 20269 E Smoky Hill Rd to see what the actual experience is like — not the pitch, not the highlight reel, just the food.

What Crispy Cones Actually Is

The concept is pretty simple, which is probably part of why it worked on Shark Tank. They take dough, grill it into a cone shape until it gets that crispy exterior, and then you fill it with whatever you want — sweet stuff, ice cream, that kind of thing. It's the kind of dessert format that photographs well and eats differently than your standard waffle cone situation. The grilling process gives it a texture that's closer to a churro than anything else I'd compare it to, with that slight char and crunch on the outside.

It's out in a strip mall in Centennial, which is not exactly a destination dining situation. If you're already in that part of town — out near E Smoky Hill Rd — it makes a lot of sense to stop in. If you're driving from Capitol Hill or RiNo specifically for this, that's a longer sell, and I'll get to that.

The Honest Take on the Food

The cone itself is legitimately good. That's not something I say just to say it — the grilled dough has real flavor and the texture holds up better than I expected once you load it with filling. A lot of novelty dessert concepts taste like the idea more than the actual food, and Crispy Cones at least clears the bar of being something I'd actually want to eat rather than just photograph.

The Shark Tank association creates a certain amount of pressure on a place. When something gets that kind of national exposure, people walk in with high expectations baked in, and the reality is that this is still a dessert shop in a suburban strip mall. The experience isn't going to feel like some transformative moment. What it is, though, is a solid dessert with a format that's genuinely different from the standard Denver ice cream options. That counts for something.

Worth the Drive or Worth a Detour?

Here's where I'll be straight with you: if you live in Centennial or you're already out on that side of town, this is an easy yes. Go try it, it's a fun stop and the food backs up the concept. If you're downtown or in one of the closer-in neighborhoods, I wouldn't plan a whole trip around it. But if you're heading out to the suburbs for something else — a Costco run, visiting family, whatever — tack it on. That's the right context for this one.

The Shark Tank angle is a real thing, not just marketing fluff. The investors saw something in the concept that makes sense once you actually eat one of these. The grilled cone format is different enough to stand out, and the execution is solid. It's not changing the Denver dessert scene overnight, but it doesn't need to. It's doing its own thing out in Centennial and doing it pretty well.

Final Thought

Crispy Cones is a good example of a Shark Tank concept that actually translated into something worth eating in real life. The location at 20269 E Smoky Hill Rd in Centennial is easy to find, the food is better than novelty-item average, and if you've been curious about it since seeing the pitch, your curiosity is reasonably rewarded. I came in a mild skeptic and left thinking it was a pretty solid stop — which, for a grilled dough cone in the suburbs, is a reasonable outcome.