Entertainment in Colorado
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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.
reviewed
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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.
reviewed
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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.
reviewed
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Jives Coffee Lounge
Easily the hippest hand on the Old Colorado City stretch, this large brick-wall coffee lounge has ample sofas, wi-fi and a bandstand featuring regular live music and a Wednesday open-mic night. They do all the coffee drinks and a selection of all-fruit, no-sugar smoothies.
reviewed
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Steamworks Brewing
DJs and live music pump up the volume at this industrial microbrewery, with high sloping rafters and metal pipes. College kids fill the large bar area, but there's also a separate dining room with a Cajun-influenced menu.
reviewed
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Coors Field
Denver is a city known for manic sports fans, and boasts five pro teams. The Colorado Rockies play baseball at the highly rated Coors Field.
reviewed
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Trinity Brewing Co
Inspired by Belgium's beer cafes, the ecofriendly Trinity Brewing Co is an extremely cool addition to the Colorado Springs pub scene. Owned by two self-admitted beer geeks, it serves 'artisanal beers' (made from rare ingredients and potent amounts of alcohol) and has a menu focused on creating a 'Slow Food dining experience based on…environmental sustainability.'
The vegan BBQ sandwiches, spicy Thai curry soup, vegetarian 'chicken wings' and other healthy, organic choices are definitely a departure from usual pub fare (mains $5-8). But don't fret, carnivores: there is some meat on offer. If you're still hungry after dinner, wash your tofu down with a beer float. A 10%…
reviewed
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Ogden Theatre
One of Denver's best live-music venues, the Ogden Theatre has a checkered past. Built in 1917, it was derelict for many years and might have been dozed in the early 1990s, but it's now listed on the National Register of Historic Places. Bands such as Edward Sharpe & the Magnetic Zeros and Lady Gaga have played here.
Harry Houdini performed here in 1919 and it appeared in the movie The Rocky Horror Picture Show. Jack Nicholson drove his Winnebago past the Ogden pulling into Denver in About Schmidt. If the house is packed, make for the upstairs level, where the catwalk extends on the wings and you'll have a beautiful bird's eye view and plenty of room to move.
reviewed
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Kava Cafe
A hole-in-the-wall and historic log-cabin cafe, the kind of place in which ragged ass miners may have procured dry goods back in the day. These days they make sandwiches and coffee but are notable for their three specialties: fresh-squeezed lemonade, made to order miniature donuts and kava. The first two are self-explanatory.
Kava, on the other hand, is a Polynesian root imported from Vanuatu and used ceremonially for centuries among the Polynesian people. Funky, earthy and served to be sipped at room temperature it offers a euphoric body buzz. Nothing too intense, but absolutely noticeable. Each cup is two servings. Pair it with a riverside hot tub. Niceness!
reviewed
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Beatrice & Woodsley
The menu of small plates is whimsical (like the corn-fed scallop – a scallop served with toasted cornbread and spicy slaw) and brunch here is the fanciest on S Broadway, but it’s the cocktails that kill us. The Europa ’51 exemplifies their artistry, combining gin, cynar, apple juice, citrus pepper tincture (whatever that is) and orange.
Beatrice and Woodsley is also the most artfully designed dining room in Denver. Chainsaws are buried into the wall to support shelves, there's an aspen growing through the back of the dining room and the feel is that of a mountain cabin being elegantly reclaimed by nature.
reviewed
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Bōl
Set in the striking, new Solaris condo complex, there has never ever been a sleeker more upscale bowling alley. Ever! This is damn near space age and at research time was by far the dopest hang in Vail.
With high energy, progressive rock pumping, balls decorated like billiard balls (finger size printed large and central), big-screen TVs strobing at the end of the lanes, and a sleek bar in the neon lobby, Vail's young and pretty hang here. And it serves food too. Think pork buns with ponzu sauce, honey-glazed ribs, balsamic-tossed arugula and pan-roasted baby artichokes.
reviewed
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Motherloaded Tavern
The choice dive in Breckenridge isn't all that divey. Sure it's a bare bones tavern, but it also attracts the local hipsters and anyone else who dreams of a tastier, well-crafted brand of comfort food best paired with something buzz-inducing: black bean burgers, grilled PB&Js, homemade mac-and-cheese, meatloaf paninis and a menu of martinis, shooters and hot, steaming boozey sips.
Surprisingly, there are no microbrews on tap so it'll have to be a Pabst, Hank. There's live music every Friday and Saturday night, and Trivia Night draws draws a crowd on Tuesday.
reviewed
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Woody Creek Tavern
- Aspen, USA
- Entertainment › Pub
Enjoying a 100% agave tequila and fresh-lime margarita at the late, great gonzo journalist Hunter S Thompson's favorite watering hole is well worth the 8-mile trek from Aspen. Here since 1980, the walls at this rustic funky tavern, a local haunt for decades now, are plastered with newspaper clippings and paraphernalia (mostly dedicated to Thompson).
The menu features organic salads, low-fat but still juicy burgers, popular Mexican food including some quality guacamole, and plenty of alcohol. Eleven gallons of margaritas a day can't be wrong.
reviewed
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Sputnik
The Sputnik does it all – it’s simultaneously a plucky brunch spot, a neighborhood dive bar and an excellent place for espresso. Still, it’s never more fun than when there’s a show next door at the Hi-Dive and the indie rockers spill over for strong pours and a seat in the old school photo booth.
If spending a long night of drinks, snacks, and rock and roll still isn't enough for you, the long-running ‘Hangover Brunch’ does it right, with spicy Bloody Marys and lots of ragged morning-after style.
reviewed
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Thin Man Tavern
The Thin Man is a damn sight more stylish than most neighborhood taverns; it's decked out in all kinds of old Catholic paintings, and vintage lampshades cast the place in a warm, sentimental glow. Since a local magazine named it among the best low-key singles' spots in the city, the crowd is looking a bit more stylish too.
In addition to a good beer selection and stiff drinks, it also hosts free art films in the basement-level Ubisububi Room and, in the summer, show classics flicks outside in the parking lot.
reviewed
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Belly Up
Long the top nightspot in Aspen, Belly Up has built and maintained its street cred by bringing in the best live acts to the Aspen people. That means everything from local bluegrass bands to hip-hop globalist K'NAAN, to Chrissy Hynde's brilliant new band, to LCD Soundsystem DJ sets and intimate, up-close throwdowns with all-timers such as Jane's Addiction (although, those ain't cheap).
No matter who you see, the room will be intimate and alive with great sound. Easily the best venue this side of Denver.
reviewed
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J-Bar
- Aspen, USA
- Entertainment › Bar
Once Aspen's premier saloon, back when the word 'saloon' had its own unique meaning, this bar was built into the Hotel Jerome in 1889 and remains full of historic charm and packed with everyone from local shopkeepers to Hollywood stars. Order the signature cocktail, the Aspen Crud, if you're in the mood for something sweet. It's a delicious blend of bourbon and ice cream.
The more tart J-Rita is equally delicious. The menu features gourmet American pub fare that's nearly as tasty as the drinks.
reviewed
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Aspen Brewing Co
Tibetan prayer flags fly from the rafters, two flat-screen TVs strobe ballgames, the shelves are stuffed with board games, and reggae sings from the hi-fi at this groovy streamside microbrewery.
Six flavors are brewed directly behind the bar. Literally. You can get a pint for just $2.75, and a flight for $7 if you want to sample them all, from the flavorful blonde to the peachy Independence Pass Ale (its IPA signature), the mellower Conundrum Red Ale and the chocolatey Pyramid Peak Porter.
reviewed
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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.
reviewed
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Grizzly Rose
This is one kick-ass honky-tonk – 40,000 sq ft of hot live music – attracting real cowboys from as far as Cheyenne. The Country Music Association called it the best country bar in America. If you've never experienced line dancing, then put on the boots, grab the Stetson and let loose.
Just north of the city limits off I-25 (you'll have to drive or cab it), the Grizzly is famous for bringing in huge industry stars – Willie Nelson, Lee Ann Rimes – and only charging $10 per ticket.
reviewed
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Smugglers Brewery & Grille
Beer-lovers will feel right at home at casual Smugglers, a great place to hang out, sample local brew and eat fried stuff.
reviewed
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Theatre Aspen
A nonprofit theater and drama school that hosts classes, workshops and periodic productions (mostly in the summer and early autumn) from its gorgeous, tented complex in the heart of Rio Grande Park. Matinees include bonus views of the nearby mountains, evening productions play beneath a starry sky. Check website for details of upcoming shows and see one if you can.
Expect to see productions such as Tony-award-winning romantic comedies and deliciously subversive musicals.
reviewed
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Katie Mullen's Irish Pub & Restaurant
Denver's largest Irish Bar – an enormous 11,000 sq ft – maintains a surprisingly snuggled down feel through dark wood, polished brass, book shelves and fireside seating (the faux embers glow even when the heat outside rages). If the environs are a bit mannish, it seems to suit the guys who loosen their ties and talk business over a Guinness.
There's also an extensive menu on hand. Don't mess around with the traditional Irish comfort food; go straight for the halibut.
reviewed
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New Sheridan Bar
Well worth a visit in low season for some real local flavor and opinions. At other times, it becomes a rush hour of beautiful ones. But there's old bullet holes in the wall and the plucky survival of the bar itself, even as the adjoining hotel sold off chandeliers and fine furnishings to pay the heating bills during waning mining fortunes.
reviewed
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Wynkoop Brewing Co
Wynkoop's Rail Yard Ale is the city's most celebrated red ale, and beer fans file into to this spacious brewpub to knock them back while tossing darts, shooting pool or taking in the breeze on the wide porch. The taps change with the season and the menu offers passable pub standards. Call ahead for Saturday brewery tours.
The basement of the brewery hosts a long-running sketch comedy shows on the weekends, and the jokes are appropriate for all ages.
reviewed