Bar in Denver

819 Colorado Blvd. Central Denver

720-524-8099

Bar, Bars and Clubs, Best Of, Sponsor, Slideshow, Readers' Choice

When Leigh Jones — of Horseshoe Lounge fame — bought the Recovery Room a decade ago, she overhauled it completely. The resulting Bar Car looks a little nondescript, but the rustic interior, with its old-timey railroad theme, is a pleasant surprise. Also pleasantly surprising, given Colorado Boulevard’s penchant for chains, is that the Bar Car is defiantly neighborhood-focused, offering a list of draft beers that’s heavy on locals. Patrons are local, too, whether they’re stopping by for the daily happy hour or the not-so-secret secret food menu, checking sports scores or just soaking up the warm surroundings late at night.

20 articles

Cactus Jack's Saloon

4651 Highway 73, Evergreen West Denver Suburbs

303-674-1564

Bar, Bars and Clubs, Music Venues, Best Of, Sponsor

This saloon is a popular spot for music, imbibing and patio-sitting - and while you're soaking up the sun or knocking one back, you're bound to get hungry. Fortunately, Cactus Jack's has a solid menu of bar food, with a Mexican plate or two for good measure. Taking center stage are the dozen-plus Widespread Burgers, each named after a different Widespread Panic song and featuring toppings that range from fried eggs to Hatch green chiles to regular ol' bacon and cheese slices. You can order the Widespread Burgers with half-pound patties of all-natural, seasoned Anderson beef, marinated all-natural chicken breast or even Boca burgers. And that's not the end of the feel-good food: The establishment uses wind power and green products wherever possible, and it's been recycling bottles, cans and paper since back when "green" only referred to a color.

4 events 2 articles

Casselman's Bar & Venue

2620 Walnut St. Downtown Denver

720-242-8923

Bar Food, Bars and Clubs, Music Venues, Recommended, Sponsor, Slideshow

The last word of the name Casselman's Bar & Venue really tells you what you need to know: This is a venue, above all, and a huge one, located on a warehouse-y stretch of Walnut Street in the Ballpark neighborhood. While the venue brings in an assortment of acts throughout the week, the space can feel a bit cavernous on an off night. Still, the long bar up front is always welcoming, flanked on one side by couches and pillows under drawings of Mos Def, Jay-Z and other artists. If there's no live music to move you, you can swing on a giant tire swing or play beer pong. And if you need some sustenance to sop up all that beer, Casselman's has a small but serviceable menu, full of burgers and sandwiches, appetizers and a few Mexican specials.

116 articles

The Dam Grille

8000 E. Quincy Ave. Southeast Denver

303-779-0805

American, Bar, Bars and Clubs, Sponsor

Situated in a strip mall not far from Cherry Creek Reservoir, the Dam Grille is pretty damn serious about sports, boasting more than a dozen HD TVs and a 100-inch projector screen within its confines. There's a horseshoe-shaped bar in the good-sized room, along with plenty of seating for those watching a game. That bar has 24 beers on tap, and the food menu includes appetizers such as quesadillas and bacon-stuffed jalapeños as well as soups, salads, burgers, sandwiches and Mexican dishes. The Dam also brings in live music occasionally.

1 article

The Forge Publick House

255 Old Firehouse Alley, Fort Collins Northern Colorado

970-682-2578

Bar, Sponsor

Garfinkel's

536 E. Lionshead Circle, Vail Mountains

970-476-3789

Bar, Bars and Clubs, Music Venues, Sponsor, Menu

Garfinkel’s (or Garf’s, as it’s known around Vail) has been a prime bar and grill for locals and tourists since 1992. Located in Lionshead, at the bottom of the mountain, it’s a lively après-ski place as well as a great spot to watch skiers come down the hill. The massive deck, with its many picnic tables, is the perfect place to catch some rays or enjoy a meal: Garf's is one of the few places in the area that serves late, with a menu that includes homemade soups and chili, salads, burgers, sandwiches, ribs and steak.

The Ginn Mill

2041 Larimer St. Downtown Denver

303-295-0706

Bar, Bars and Clubs, Best Of, Sponsor, Slideshow

When the owners of the Ginn Mill opened the place in 2007, they set out to resurrect one of the town's famous "ginn mills" of the late 1800s. The bar sits on one of Denver's oldest and most historic blocks, and its decor reflect a different time in America's history. Nostalgia lines the walls of the popular Ballpark neighborhood spot, further evoked by the half a Model T truck sitting above the bar (the other half is on the roof above the patio). While the Ginn Mill is fairly low-key during the week, business is usually booming on the weekends.

17 articles

Green Valley Ranch Beer Garden

4995 Argonne St. East Denver

303-375-7880

Tap Rooms, Bar, Sponsor, Menu

Jamestown Mercantile

108 Main St., Jamestown Boulder

303-442-5847

Bar, Breakfast/Brunch, Local/Sustainable, Community Venues, Historic Landmarks, Sponsor, Menu

Jerry's Bar and Grill

130 N. Main St., Brighton North Denver Suburbs

303-659-3788

Bar Food, Mexican, Bars and Clubs, Sponsor

Located in downtown Brighton, Jerry’s Bar & Grill is a friendly neighborhood joint that welcomes everyone. A no-frills bar, Jerry’s attracts a fair amount of locals, who come in for the happy hours or a late-night bite, as the kitchen serves food until closing time. The menu includes standard bar fare as well as Mexican dishes such as posole and menudo. Jerry’s, which is done up in vintage decor that includes license plates from all fifty states, also brings in live bands and DJs from time to time.

Kentucky Inn

890 S. Pearl St. South Denver

303-778-9600

Bar, Bars and Clubs, Best Of, Sponsor, DrinkHere

The Kentucky Inn, one of the oldest bars in the West Wash Park neighborhood, closed in July 2017 for a remodel and the installation of a new kitchen. Inside, decades of cigarette-smoke stains were scrubbed away, new floors and wood paneling were installed, and a billiards room was added at the back. The original Kentucky Inn never had much of a kitchen, but the expansion brought a menu of bar favorites and a few Southern specialties to match the Kentucky theme, including the award-winning KY Cuban.

12 articles

Lucky Joe's

25 Old Town Square, Fort Collins Northern Colorado

970-493-2213

Bar Food, Bars and Clubs, Music Venues, Sponsor

Lucky Joe’s, in Ft. Collins, could be seen as an Irish pub wearing a western shirt. Part pub, part saloon, Lucky Joe’s straddles the line quite well. It’s one of the more jumping spots in Old Town Square, and can get crowded and rowdy, especially when school is in session. Singer-songwriters and rock acts play there four nights a week, and there’s an acoustic open-mic night on Sundays. The joint offers a wide-ranging selection of beers and a menu that includes Irish and American fare.

Lucky Strike Lanes Belmar

415 S. Teller St., Lakewood West Denver Suburbs

303-935-5793

Bar, Sports and Recreation, Sponsor

2 articles

North Shore Restaurant & Bar

7444 W. Chatfield Ave., Ste. D, Littleton Southwest Denver Suburbs

303-972-8611

Bar Food, Bars and Clubs, Sponsor

Located in a Littleton strip mall near the north end of Chatfield Reservoir, North Shore Restaurant & Bar is a friendly neighborhood joint that serves fairly cheap drinks, hosts weekly karaoke nights and has live music on the weekends, when the place gets especially lively. It's a good place to watch a game, throw darts and play pool or trivia. There are video games and a decent-sized patio, as well. The menu includes standard bar fare with a selection of appetizers.

Piper Inn

2251 S. Parker Rd. Southeast Denver

720-669-8207

Bar, Wings, Best Of, Sponsor

The Piper Inn looks like a biker bar — and it is. But it’s also an everyone-else bar. You can find your mom, your co-worker and dudes who ride Harleys all enjoying cold brews and house specialties like Chinese-style wings, burgers and carne asada fries. The bar, which opened in 1968, was named for the Piper airplanes that used to land on a dirt airstrip when this part of town was still the country; people even rode horses to the bar. Today it still offers up free birthday drinks, televised sports, an affordable happy hour and delicious bar food, much of it straight from the pages of a classic Chinese takeout menu. It also serves some of the best wings in town; they're available in classic Buffalo, a garlic dry rub, a seasonal option and Chinese style — fried in a wok and doused in a blend of oyster sauce and a secret Chinese spice mix.

7 articles

Pour House on Market

1410 Market St. Downtown Denver

303-623-7687

Bar, Bars and Clubs, Best Of, Sponsor

Modeled after Boston's Pour House, this LoDo watering hole is one of the few Red Sox-friendly spots in the area. It's a no-frills joint that has a decent selection of brews, serves pub grub and sports a killer rooftop patio, which is heated in the winter.

3 articles

The Skyline Pub

2045 Sheridan Blvd., Lakewood West Denver Suburbs

720-536-4836

Bar Food, Sponsor

5 articles

The Sportsbook Bar & Grill

9660 E. Arapahoe Rd. Englewood

303-799-1300

Bar, American, Burgers, Bars and Clubs, Sponsor

The moniker of this Greenwood Village bar pretty much sums up the place. The Sportsbook prides itself on showing just about every sporting event on its multiple flat-screen TVs (and projection screen), whether it's football, hockey, basketball, baseball, rugby or UFC fights, and it's one of the few spots in the Denver Tech Center area where you can watch soccer games on a regular basis. The menu offers standard bar fare, including appetizers, salads, wraps, burgers and sandwiches. There's live music on Saturdays and an open-mike night on Wednesdays.

1 article

Spot Bar & Grill Golden

111 N. Rubey Dr., Golden West Denver Suburbs

303-271-9310

Bar, Burgers, Bars and Clubs, Sponsor, Menu

Stoney's Bar and Grill

1111 Lincoln St., Denver Capitol Hill/Uptown/City Park

303-830-6839

Bar, Bars and Clubs, Best Of, Sponsor, Slideshow, Readers' Choice, DrinkHere

While there’s also a Stoney’s outpost in Uptown, the original is one of our favorite places on game days — or any day. The sprawling bar can accommodate big crowds, and there’s plenty of room to belly up to one of the two bars as well, where you can order Colorado beers on tap. In the front of the house is a ski-lift chair from Keystone, which is fitting, since Stoney’s is an ode to all things Centennial State. There’s also a stage for live music, Skee-Ball and a weird miniature bowling alley.

78 articles

Tavern Littleton

2589 W. Main St., Littleton Southwest Denver Suburbs

303-730-7772

Bars and Clubs, Bar, Sponsor, Menu

16 articles

Tavern Tech Center

5336 DTC Blvd., Greenwood Village Southeast Denver Suburbs

303-221-4660

Bar, Bars and Clubs, Sponsor, Menu

Like the other Taverns, the Tavern Tech Center draws a sizable nightly crowd from the surrounding neighborhoods. Those twenty- and thirty-something professionals pack into the dark bar and expansive back patio for drink specials, televised sporting events and socializing. While many come just for the beers and the party, this Tavern also does a substantial dinner business, serving up a menu of American classics. It also has a popular brunch, when those who spent the previous night getting plowed can return to the scene of their undoing for eggs, bacon and a Bloody Mary.

6 articles

Tavern Uptown

538 E. 17th Ave. Central Denver

303-830-9210

Bar, Bars and Clubs, Best Of, Sponsor, Menu, Slideshow

Like the other Taverns, the Tavern Uptown draws a sizable nightly crowd from the surrounding neighborhoods. Those twenty- and thirty-something professionals pack into the dark bar and expansive back patio for drink specials, televised sporting events and socializing. While many come just for the beers and the party -- which is more mellow Uptown than at the Downtown counterpart -- this Tavern also does a substantial dinner business, serving up a menu of American classics. It also has a popular brunch, when those who spent the previous night getting plowed can return to the scene of their undoing for eggs and bacon and a Bloody Mary.

15 articles

The Rosedale

1135 E. Evans Ave. South Denver

720-961-0320

Bar, Sponsor

What was once Boone's Tavern, known for giant TV screens and rabid sports fans betting on everything from football to mixed martial arts, has morphed into the Rosedale, home of warm wood tones and oysters on the half shell. The Platt Park bar's transformation in early 2016 brought it more in line with its neighbor and sister restaurant, Atticus. A few welcome vestiges from Boone's still remain, though — the surprisingly good barbecue and drunken spelling bees are our favorites — and while the number of television screens has gone down, it's still a great spot for watching the big game.

15 articles

The 1UP Arcade Bar - Greenwood Village

6864 S. Clinton Ct., Greenwood Village Southeast Denver Suburbs

303-736-2230

Bars and Clubs, Bar

Opened in March 2011, the 1UP Arcade Bar is an arcade, bar and restaurant with locations in Lodo and on Colfax Avenue. Vintage arcade games, Skee-Ball, pinball machines and cutting-edge multi-player video games are the main draw. The Greenwood Village outpost of 1UP opened in December 2018.

3 articles

$5 Buck Drinkery

730 E. 6th Ave. Central Denver

303-722-5463

Bar

54thirty Rooftop

1475 California St. Downtown Denver

303-893-1888

Bar, Menu, Slideshow

2 articles

801 Chophouse

3000 E. First Ave. East Denver

Steakhouse, Bar, Seafood

2 articles

@ Cheers

11964 Washington St., Northglenn North Denver

303-955-5660

Bar, Bars and Clubs

After a long run as the Golden Cue and a brief stint as Chasers, the owner of JR's Silver Bullet in Thornton and England native Rob Kirk opened @ Cheers in March, 2011. While the place still hangs on to some of its charm when it was the Golden Cue (yes, there are still plenty of pool tables), this spacious bar in a Northglenn strip mall was remodeled and cleaned up when @ Cheers moved in. The live entertainment was also stepped up -- local rock and hard rock bands play on the weekends and the bar hosts karaoke on Thursdays.

Abbey Tavern

5151 E. Colfax Ave. East Denver

303-321-5151

Bar, Bars and Clubs, Recommended, Slideshow

Call it the luck of the Irish: With the Abbey Tavern, Glen Eastwood has managed to create a pub that's better than the sum of its parts. The former general manager of a couple of Irish bars around town, Eastwood turned an old florist's shop on East Colfax into a true hangout for Park Hill, a neighborhood hungry for more restaurant options. "An Irish pub, to me, is a form of inviting hospitality and warmth, very welcoming," says Eastwood. And the Abbey is welcoming indeed, with eager servers, an excellent weekday happy hour and an atmosphere that attracts families, young groups, older couples and singles alike. They all order from a menu that features a predictable roster of Irish standards and American bar fare, with some dishes -- like the Abbey rolls that fry up corned beef, sauerkraut and Swiss in an egg-roll wrapper; that are a combo of both. While most of the food is unlikely to win any awards, the place itself has very winning ways.

13 articles

Ace Gillett's Lounge

239 S. College Ave., Fort Collins Northern Colorado

970-449-4797

Bar, American

The Alley

2420 W. Main St. #110 Littleton

720-316-8002

Bar, Food Trucks, Mexican

4 articles

Appaloosa Grill

535 16th St., #110 Downtown Denver

720-932-1700

American, Bar, Bars and Clubs

When you stumble off the 16th Street Mall and into the Appaloosa, a cheerful, independently owned spot, odds are good that you'll hit a happy hour, because the Appaloosa's happy-hour schedule is expansive -- almost as expansive as the drinks are inexpensive. And you can down those drinks while listening to live music every night of the week, a rarity in this part of town. The music, which starts at 10 p.m., includes a variety of genres, including rock, funk, soul, reggae and bluegrass.

13 events 27 articles

Bar in Denver

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