Buddies on East Colfax opened 2023 as an employee-owned LGBTQ neighborhood pub with wood-panelled interiors, a pool table, weekend brunch service and an outdoor Colfax patio.
Tip: The Saturday and Sunday brunch is the easier entry. Pool and darts run through the week, with weekend dance music after 22:00.
Address: 504 East Colfax Avenue, Denver, CO 80203
Hudson Hill on East 13th runs Capitol Hill's all-day room across coffee shifts and a late-night cocktail bar, with vinyl crackling across the room and Wax Trax Records across the street.
Tip: Late-night happy hour starts at 22:00 daily. The Friday and Saturday close at 00:30 carries the vinyl sets longest.
ESP HiFi on Santa Fe Drive opened 2021 as Denver's first vinyl listening bar, with Klipschorn speakers, a Garrard 401 turntable, low-watt class A amps and a natural-wine list.
Tip: Mornings run coffee from 10:30, evenings switch to natural wine and cocktails. Wednesday through Friday are the quietest seats for the rig.
Pon Pon on Walnut Street pairs a tiny RiNo cocktail bar with a vinyl listening room and rotating gallery space, with records lining the walls and dive-bar pricing on creative cocktails.
Tip: Records play through the front room nightly; the gallery in back rotates monthly. Cash-friendly, walk-in only.
Hudson Hill on East 13th runs Capitol Hill's all-day room across coffee shifts and a late-night cocktail bar, with vinyl crackling across the room and Wax Trax Records across the street.
Tip: Late-night happy hour starts at 22:00 daily. The Friday and Saturday close at 00:30 carries the vinyl sets longest.
Nocturne in RiNo runs nightly live jazz with an artist-in-residence program, a seasonal kitchen and a curated wine and cocktail list inside a mid-century supper-club room.
Tip: Closed Monday and Tuesday. Reserve via the website for the dinner-and-set; the bar room walks in for the late set.
Dazzle at the Denver Performing Arts Complex runs 70 jazz, blues and large-ensemble shows a month across two rooms, the city's anchor jazz club since the late 1990s.
Tip: Shows nightly with the early set the easier reservation. Enter on Arapahoe at the corner of 14th; the room has full table service.
The Cooper Lounge runs the mezzanine above Denver Union Station with 28-foot cast-iron windows, an Art Deco cocktail program from culinary director Kevin McCormick and small plates until 21:30.
Tip: Sunday through Wednesday closes at 22:00; Thursday through Saturday runs to midnight. Reserve via Tock for the window seats.