Entertainment in Boulder
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A
Bitter Bar
In places like NYC, LA and San Francisco, prohibition-era cocktails have gone from back alley whispers of the impossibly hip to mainstream in a few short years. Boulder now has their version, and who cares if it's set in modern pan-Asian environs. These cocktails, and the rums, whiskeys, tequilas and gins used to alchemize, are the best sips in town.
It also offers monthly classes at $35 per person, which buys you the knowhow to mix two drinks that would make a Mad Man weep. You'll leave with three recipes and a gift from the barkeeps. Check the website for dates.
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B
Sundown Saloon
Only come here if you can stomach outhouse chic bathrooms, throwback tunes, an impossible-to-distinguish odor upon descent into the basement, pick-up shouting (it's straight impossible to hear in late night), vicious competition on the shuffle board or pool tables (free 'til 10pm) and waking up hungover from the cheap Pabst Blue Ribbon ($6 pitchers).
Every town needs an 'end up bar,' and you will end up here.
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Pearl Street Pub
Sorrows are drowned with multiple pints at the scarred wooden bar upstairs, where the vibe is shabby chic meets Old West. Downstairs, 20-something locals pound shots by the pool tables, soaking up the beer-drenched atmosphere at this town's favorite trendy dive. Come for Friday-night happy hour, when there is often live music at the packed upstairs bar.
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C
Goose
The wheel of fortune behind the bar ticks to a halt on '$3 Jager Bombs' and the howl of beefy frats is punctuated by high fives. Your choice: throw down $3 or regroup at the beer pong table. Then again, maybe you're not in any shape to be making decisions. Though utterly lacking in atmosphere, this binge drinkers' proving ground can be a riot.
Ladies might want to note the 'Friends with Benefits' Tuesday night, when a group of four or more girls get their first shot on the house.
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Augustina's Winery
Augustina's is a one-woman show. She drives an old 1979 U-Haul to Palisades and Grand Junction every autumn to fetch her grapes then goes about the happy, messy business of crushing, fermenting and aging the wine all on her own. If you're looking for a bottle with a story for the campfire, grab one here.
Launched in 1997, this was also the first winery in Boulder and among the first of a handful now sprinkled about the state.
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E
Draft House
Another of boulder's popular microbreweries. This one brews six handcrafted beers, including an IPA and a Big Bella Brown, which owes it's deep tones from honey and Blackstrap molasses. Food here is pedestrian pub grub, but the open interior, with glassed-in brew tanks, exposed rafters and three gleaming HD flat-screens, offers a touch of class.
There's live music most nights: salsa night is Tuesday; Reggae rocks Wednesdays.
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Mountain Sun Pub & Brewery
Boulder's favorite brewery serves a rainbow of brews from chocolaty to fruity, and packs in an eclectic crowd of yuppies, hippies and everyone in between. Walls are lined with tapestries, there are board games to amuse you and the pub grub (especially the burgers and the chili) is delicious. There's often live music of the bluegrass, reggae and jam-band variety on Sunday Monday nights.
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Trident Cafe
Brick walls, worn wood floors and red vinyl booths steeped in the aromatic uplift of damn good espresso. The attached bookstore sells used and collectible titles. Add in the shady back-garden patio and fine tea selection and you'll understand why this is the longtime favorite of Boulder's literary set. A thousand secrets and plot lines have been shared and hatched here.
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Boulder Theater
This old movie-theater-turned-historic-venue brings in slightly under-the-radar acts like jazz great Charlie Hunter, the madmen rockers of Gogol Bordello and West African divas, Les Nubians. But they also screen classic films like The Big Lebowski and short-film festivals which can and should be enjoyed with a glass of beer.
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Cup
This groovy loftlike space opens onto Pearl St, pouring forth a tempting whiff of damn good coffee and handpicked organic loose-leaf teas. They also do fresh quiche, wonderful cakes in cups, burly sandwiches and swift wi-fi. No wonder it's always packed with the comely, the studious and the industrious. Monday is open mic night.
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Catacombs Bar
A cavernous pool and beer joint in the Boulderado Hotel basement, this dark, dank joint really does feel like the catacombs. Expect a young and rowdy crowd with ultracheap drink specials. The dimly lit rooms are perfect for getting tangled up with a becoming stranger or two. Tuesday is Trivia Night and Wednesdays bring karaoke.
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CU Basketball
Seldom pushovers, rarely great, CU's basketball games are always fun to watch because the competition is usually stiff. And like most great schools they do have a transcendent baller from the not too distant past. Chanucey 'Mr Big Shot' Billups starred here before he became an NBA champ and finals MVP.
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Laughing Goat
Sure, the ambiance might diminished a bit by the glow of two dozen laptops, but the coffee is good enough (served in pint glasses too!) and locally roasted. The scene revolves around eyeballing college co-eds and tapping away at the term papers – at least until the singer songwriters start up.
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Ku Cha House of Tea
Tea crazy newbies just about lose it at the enormous selection of imported loose-leaf tea downstairs, while more discreet locals snuggle into the room upstairs for steaming cups in quiet booths. If you want to go big, there's a rare yellow tea from Sri Lanka that goes for $20 per ounce.
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Absinthe House
New, big and ambitious, the old Foundry has been converted into what Boulder's brashest club. The dance floor has been expanded. House music blares from a top shelf sound system, and any of the 16 varieties of absinthe from Europe and America can be poured from table side fountains.
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Lazy Dog Sports Bar & Grill
'Gourmet food. Gourmet sports.' That's the motto here, but our money is on the beer and upstairs patio. When the big screens get a game that people care about the place goes off, but at other times it's all about platters of nachos and the leafy overlook of the Pearl Street Mall.
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Espresso Roma
The shaded patio, strung with paper lanterns, is our favorite place to hang with studying students. The bulletin board here is a great place to check for offbeat local events. The menu? Well-done coffee shop standards, with a veggie bent. The yummy smoothies are a highlight.
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CU Football
Boulder sports fans may have allegiances to Denver's pro teams, but they have several teams of their own too, and they are all called the CU Buffaloes. Still, while college volleyball, gymnastics and baseball have their place, it's their football team that rules campus.
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R
West End Tavern
Top shelf bourbon? Local IPAs? Check. Knotty wood bar? Check. Loungy booths, fantastic roof deck, tasty pub grub? All of the above. Add in the loyal following, flat-screen TVs and fun-loving staff and you can easily see why this spot remains our favorite pub in Boulder.
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'Round Midnight
Another divey basement bar just west of Pearl St Mall, this spot's popularity rolls in waves and of late has still been prone to late-night good times thanks to the music it spins (mostly underground dub, dance-hall and hip-hop). There's free pool during happy hour.
reviewed
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Fox Theatre
You'll be elbowing your way through students to get near the stage of this excellent mid-sized venue, so head upstairs for a perch near the sound board for better views and acoustics. Bands on stage here are national touring acts, popular jam bands and indie rock.
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U
Walnut Brewery
A hangar-sized sports bar and brewery that crafts and serves seven varieties of microbrew, ranging from golden pilsners to midnight stouts. It also serves liquor, has all the ball games on flat screens, and serves decent pub grub.
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Blending Cellar
A spare but inviting wine lounge just west of the Pearl Street Mall with all manner of whites, reds from all over the world. Swiss-run, it serves tasty tapas to balance the palate, and offers live jazz every night except Tuesday.
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Saxy's Cafe
Grilled paninis and good coffee make this an easy choice for something quick and simple off the Pearl St Mall. There's limited outdoor seating, which is nice in the summer, and wi-fi for customers.
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Buchanan's Coffee Pub
Buchanan's enjoys a position just at the edge of campus, and with outlets cheap snacks, wireless and outlets everywhere, its utility as a study space is likely better than the university library.
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