16. Rock Bottom Restaurant & Brewery
City: Denver, CO
Category: Nightlife
Telephone: (303) 534-7616
Description: Yet another brewpub and pool hall, the huge, sunny Rock Bottom Brewery is popular with the young lawyers and bankers who work on 17th Street. Try the Red Rocks Red Ale and drink it on the patio for some of the best people-watching on the 16th Street Mall. The food’s pretty good, too. And, of course, you can shop at the in-house boutique for T-shirts and the like.
17. Wynkoop Brewing Company
City: Denver, CO
Category: Nightlife
Telephone: (303) 297-2700
Description: After 5 p.m. is a busy time for the Wynkoop Brewing Company, Denver’s first brewpub and also America’s largest. Opened in 1988 by John Hickenlooper, now Colorado’s governor, the Wynkoop offers comedy downstairs, dining on the first floor, and pool upstairs, all in the historic circa 1899 J. S. Brown Mercantile Building. Regulars like the Railyard Ale, but teetotalers swear by the house-brewed root beer. The billiards room has 22 pool tables, dart lanes, and two private pool rooms, as well as a full-service bar. Comedy is offered in the basement at the Impulse Theater.
18. Breckenridge Colorado Craft
City: Denver, CO
Category: Nightlife
Telephone: (303) 297-3644
Address: 2220 Blake St.
Description: The Breckenridge Colorado Craft, which originally opened in 1992 as Breckenridge Blake Street Pub, has beer drinking and billiards late into the evening (and early into the morning), with food available for those who need more. Sixteen taps offer a regular lineup of beer as well as rotating seasonal brews.
19. Euclid Hall Bar & Kitchen
City: Denver, CO
Category: Nightlife
Telephone: (303) 595-4255
Description: Based in an 1883 building that once housed the infamous Soapy Smith’s bar, Euclid Hall offers high quality pub food from around the world in a fun atmosphere. It’s also a popular spot to sample more than 40 craft beers from Colorado and beyond. Stop in for the Study Hall happy hour 3–6 p.m. daily. The proprietors also own Rioja and Bistro Vendôme.
20. Falling Rock Tap House
City: Denver, CO
Category: Nightlife
Telephone: (303) 293-8338
Address: 1919 Blake St.
Description: Beer geeks will be in heaven with the huge selection of quality beers at this pub just down the street from Coors Field. Enjoy your brew inside or on the large outdoor patio on the street level. If crowds aren’t your thing, avoid peak hours. Open until 2 a.m. daily.
21. Freshcraft
City: Denver, CO
Category: Nightlife
Telephone: (303) 758-9608
Address: 1530 Blake St.
Insider Pick:
Description: Along with a full menu of contemporary American cuisine, Freshcraft offers a wide selection of craft beers that pair well with their menu. Their late-night hours make this a popular place for after-hours dining in LoDo.
22. Lucky Pie Pizza & Tap House
City: Denver, CO
Category: Nightlife
Telephone: (303) 825-1021
Description: Choose from a dozen innovative pizza entrees or create your own from a selection of meats, cheeses, and toppings. Offering traditional Neapolitan-style pizza with a twist, Lucky Pie combines old-world with top quality local and Italian ingredients. The menu includes a fine section of cheeses, soups, salads, charcuterie, and other entrees. Beer aficionados will be happy with the 21 rotating taps of craft beer, both local and from around the world. Lucky Pie offers 25 wines by the glass and a full bar, including original, handcrafted cocktails.
23. Bluebird Theater
City: Denver, CO
Category: Nightlife
Telephone: (303) 322-2308
Address: 3317 E. Colfax Ave.
Description: For a diverse range of musical acts in a gritty neighborhood, try the Bluebird. Located on Denver’s often-colorful East Colfax Avenue, the Bluebird opened as a movie house in 1913 and has since had several incarnations (including a stint as a porn house). Local bands as well as up-and-coming acts share the marquee. There’s a balcony for the under-21 set, 550 seats on the main level, and several tables arranged to accommodate the evening’s musical attraction (arrive early to secure a table). A dance floor sometimes serves as a mosh pit, depending on the act. Hours and ticket prices vary depending on who’s playing.
24. Dazzle
City: Denver, CO
Category: Nightlife
Telephone: (303) 839-5100
Address: 930 Lincoln St.
Insider Pick:
Description: Dazzle has become one of Denver’s most respected jazz venues. Its location, along Lincoln Street in the Golden Triangle neighborhood, appeals to locals who are tired of fighting for parking in trendy LoDo. The venue features local, national, and international musicians. The crowd is mature—in their 30s to 60s—and the restaurant and bar menus reflect their tastes. Expect martinis and smooth sounds here. Open for music 7 nights a week.
25. El Chapultepec
City: Denver, CO
Category: Nightlife
Telephone: (303) 295-9126
Address: 1962 Market St.
Insider Pick:
Description: Once on the edge of gentrified Denver, El Chapultepec used to be a slightly dangerous place to drink beer, eat a burrito, and listen to jazz. It now finds itself in the rising shadow of Coors Field, encroached upon by brewpubs, art galleries, and designer tile shops. So far, the essential attraction—sizzling jazz—has remained the same. The “’Pec” is a landmark that often attracts touring musicians, who jam with other jazz greats on its tiny bandstand after leaving the stage at larger venues. El Chapultepec is open every night; there’s no cover charge, and they don’t take reservations.
26. Fillmore Auditorium
City: Denver, CO
Category: Nightlife
Telephone: (303) 837-0360
Address: 1510 Clarkson St.
Description: Originally built in 1905, the Fillmore is a restored concert hall and a prominent Denver music venue. Located on Clarkson Street at Colfax Avenue in the Capitol Hill neighborhood, it presents local and national acts throughout the year. Concerts are generally geared toward the younger crowd.
27. Funky Buddha
City: Denver, CO
Category: Nightlife
Telephone: (303) 832-5075
Address: 776 Lincoln St.
Description: Denver Post critic Ricardo Baca calls Funky Buddha “a happy-hour favorite,” with cheap drinks and an hors d’oeuvres menu that includes stuffed mushrooms, hummus, red pepper dip, and lamb skewers. Denvercitysearch.com describes it as “La La Land without all the famous folk.” With no dancing but DJ music on the weekends, this chic urban bar is a hip place to meet and greet, located just south of downtown in the Golden Triangle neighborhood.
28. Jazz@Jack’s
City: Denver, CO
Category: Nightlife
Telephone: (303) 433-1000
Insider Pick:
Description: Since 1984, Stephen and Dave Watts have been playing their own blend of smooth and fusion jazz in a band called Dotsero. For many of those years, they played at their own club in the Central Platte Valley. In 2006, they moved their Jazz@Jack’s venue to the heart of Denver’s downtown, on the 3rd floor of the Denver Pavilions complex. Dotsero shares the stage with a broad range of guest artists and comedians. The room with a view can also be rented for private occasions.
29. Lannie’s Clocktower Cabaret
City: Denver, CO
Category: Nightlife
Telephone: (303) 293-0075
Address: 1601 Arapahoe St.
Insider Pick:
Description: This is an old-style nightclub but with the hippest acts in town. Singer Lannie Garrett spent several decades performing at other people’s clubs before starting her own in downtown’s historic Daniels & Fisher Tower, and everything about the place is special. The underground room is intimate and romantic. When Lannie is onstage, expect anything from swing to torch songs, Hollywood tunes, disco hits, and the overripe country-and-western routine of her alter ego, Patsy DeCline. On other nights she fills the stage with burlesque, drag, R&B, soul, and traveling artists of all types. The kitchen is open until midnight, serving appetizers and desserts.
30. Ogden Theatre
City: Denver, CO
Category: Nightlife
Telephone: (303) 832-1874
Address: 935 E. Colfax Ave.
Description: Another of Denver’s famed former movie houses, the Ogden attracts a wide range of acts, from Offspring to the more sedate Stephen Stills. The Ogden often has the best ticket in town, aside from major concert venues. Hours and ticket prices vary.