tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-73793131858908217612012-02-11T09:56:09.760-07:00Uncomfortable yet comfortable. Seedy yet quaint. Dirty yet respectable. All things dive in Denver.Davis Family Bandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05661767592565655780noreply@blogger.comBlogger401100tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7379313185890821761.post-8993477657905450432011-11-26T22:50:00.001-07:002011-11-27T03:09:01.463-07:00

Some dives are so altogether confused and dismal that they simply throw the kitchen sink at you in the hopes of getting something right.  Such is the case with one little west Colfax beauty, The Lakewood Grill, and its dizzying array of amenities that include a couple of shabby (no doubt) apartments.  To follow is my buddy and dive-kick Matt's investigation. The combination of the vintage

Davis Family Bandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05661767592565655780noreply@blogger.com1Lakewood, CO, USA39.7047095 -105.081373439.606981 -105.2393019 39.802438 -104.9234449tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7379313185890821761.post-46617247113217268012011-11-26T15:40:00.001-07:002011-11-26T16:01:27.037-07:00

In my world, free stuff is fantastic.  Unfortunately last month a big pile of really nice free stuff went the way of lost socks and Nigerian millions, as the free tickets I had to the tasty food and drink event put on by 5280 magazine went unclaimed.  For my next contest, I am setting the bar higher, and aiming to actually give something away to the winner. Thank you to Dr. Faustus and liz

Davis Family Bandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05661767592565655780noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7379313185890821761.post-85922259985896760372011-10-07T18:23:00.000-06:002011-10-07T18:23:43.155-06:00

So I've been offered two tickets to 5280 Dines, an event intended to celebrate the recent publication of 5280's annual 25 Best Restaurants issue.  It looks to be quite fancy - free fancy food, a few drinks (or several), and maybe even be a chance to cuddle with some of Denver's favorite wannabe cheflebrities.  Maybe it's because of my heavy rep in the world of dives that I don't want to

Davis Family Bandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05661767592565655780noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7379313185890821761.post-86482231759218991802011-07-31T21:37:00.000-06:002011-07-31T21:37:50.666-06:00

Ahhh, Mozart.  Is there a more well known classical composer in the world than Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart?  With the possible exception of that guy Beethoven or Charlie Brown's buddy Schroeder, probably not.  Just saying the name Mozart induces seductive thoughts back to my days spent wandering the streets of Vienna and Salzburg, places where you can almost hear classical music floating through

Davis Family Bandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05661767592565655780noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7379313185890821761.post-20888154035154333592011-04-30T08:00:00.001-06:002011-04-30T08:00:06.273-06:00

Recently I had the unfortunate opportunity to drive across Nebraska with my family.  No disrespect to Nebraska, of course.  Between the country and western on the radio we heard an advertisement for a local bar that proudly listed a $3.50 beer bong as one of its Wednesday night specials.  My wife turned to me and said 'Wow, that place sounds like quite the dive'.  Initially I agreed.  What kind

Davis Family Bandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05661767592565655780noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7379313185890821761.post-193221496785415482011-04-24T15:49:00.000-06:002011-04-24T15:49:00.907-06:00

What does it mean to be the best dive bar?  Does that mean it didn't suck as bad as it could have?  Or maybe that it is so seedy that the bums are looking uncomfortable?  Its like saying 'yeah, that was the best hernia I ever got'.  Even though I was a bit confused, I did take a moment to read the recent online article from Westword, proclaiming the Denver's best dive bar in 2011 to be The

Davis Family Bandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05661767592565655780noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7379313185890821761.post-8819929499061047812011-02-19T08:00:00.006-07:002011-02-19T08:00:00.966-07:00

Club 404 Restaurant and Lounge has been shuffling Denver south siders through its doors on South Broadway for ages.  It was SOBO before there was a SOBO.  The sign outside is one of those classic roadside antiquities that you might find in a museum somewhere or in a sign graveyard in the desert outside Las Vegas.  It acts as a perfect dive bar marker:  decrepit enough to make casuals move on

Davis Family Bandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05661767592565655780noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7379313185890821761.post-6594650144878140152011-02-11T19:45:00.000-07:002011-02-11T19:45:51.184-07:00

My relationship with dives is kind of like the relationship I have with my kids.  Having that first breakfast burrito at Charlie's Silver Fox is not entirely unlike the joy of watching my boy ride his bike for the first time.  Sometimes they both can be a source of happy surprises (like getting a free beer at Mr. A's).  Sometimes they give you indigestion (a $1.10 scoop from Little Panda, with

Davis Family Bandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05661767592565655780noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7379313185890821761.post-6101312585643451262011-01-08T18:10:00.003-07:002011-01-08T18:40:11.214-07:00

One of the best dive bars in Denver is happy enough without you.  It can be found surrounded by parking lots on a desolate spit of no mans land, in an area bungled by Broadway shooting straight southward across the jacked up diagonal grid of downtown Denver's streets.  It's not exactly right around the corner from anything, or super convenient to anyone.  The sign hanging over the door simply

Davis Family Bandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05661767592565655780noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7379313185890821761.post-75588482923329087692010-08-22T10:06:00.002-06:002010-08-22T10:06:00.385-06:00

And now, a very special Denver Dives editorial report. No one likes being snubbed.  And no one likes one of their beloved getting snubbed.  So you can imagine my salt when The City of Dives got a finger in the eye recently.  Playboy just came out with its Guide to America's Greatest Bars, which included a list of their 15 all-time favorite dive bars.  Denver, with its well chronicled, well

Davis Family Bandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05661767592565655780noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7379313185890821761.post-31490436202167546062010-08-16T20:05:00.000-06:002010-08-16T20:05:29.500-06:00

I loved the Choose Your Own Adventure books when I was a kid.  What better way to keep a bored kid from Iowa engaged than to give him a book that allowed navigating choices like A) Dive into the toilet, or B) Escape out the door to avoid catching something from the flies buzzing around the stool.  Yes, I did once read a Choose Your Own Adventure book that gave the option of jumping into a

Davis Family Bandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05661767592565655780noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7379313185890821761.post-20210715859712847682010-07-16T23:14:00.000-06:002010-07-16T23:14:09.230-06:00

I've been away for a bit.  Of course there has been time spent on some of the more mundane and painful aspects of life, a couple heroic garage sales to be exact.  Garage sales, especially ones like ours that featured vast boxes of random junk selling for pennies, a guy on a bike hauling away every last item in the Free box (including a grill) and all sorts of miscellany strewn across the front

Davis Family Bandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05661767592565655780noreply@blogger.com8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7379313185890821761.post-22414243004276552952010-04-30T13:16:00.000-06:002010-04-30T13:16:19.836-06:00

Before I-70 came steaming through Denver in the 60's, Colfax was the main east-west thoroughfare through town, and as such many ancient road side motels can be found along the route.  I find these relics of Colfax's past life to be extremely interesting, with their unique neon signs that - when working - light up the blackness of Colfax, and with names like the Sand and Sage and Circle-K, the

Davis Family Bandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05661767592565655780noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7379313185890821761.post-56115728329372456772010-04-23T20:49:00.000-06:002010-04-23T20:49:28.609-06:00

Several years back, I was on a European vacation that included 12 hours in Paris.  We attempted to go to the Louvre, but the line to get in was too long so we waffled and moved on to score a croissant filled with horse meat.  Like most people, we were going to the Louvre for one reason, other than to be able to say that we'd been to the Louvre:  to see Leonardo da Vinci's Mona Lisa.  Sure,

Davis Family Bandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05661767592565655780noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7379313185890821761.post-20228209771074697422010-04-15T20:46:00.002-06:002010-04-19T07:56:05.206-06:00

  There is something not right about food by the scoop.  Food by the pound like you’d get at some salad bar joints doesn’t bother me, but food by the scoop is odd.  I feed my dog a couple scoops of food each day and she doesn’t seem to mind it, so maybe I shouldn’t either.  On the other hand, I once caught her getting after one of my son’s pooped up diapers, so using her as an example might be

Davis Family Bandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05661767592565655780noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7379313185890821761.post-4289196161525521032010-03-20T22:06:00.000-06:002010-03-20T22:06:19.566-06:00

Damn it feels good to be #17.  For fun one day I linked up some of my posts with the website urbanspoon, which basically offers restaurant information in the form of formal reviews from reputable sources like the Denver Post or Westword, and then from blogs by less reputable sources like myself.  Decent enough stuff on there, but you have to sift through the bullshit.  Come to find out

Davis Family Bandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05661767592565655780noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7379313185890821761.post-55403782452507744632010-02-24T11:02:00.003-07:002010-03-19T14:10:55.913-06:00

'I've driven past this little cafe before that we can hit,' I told Matt, cranking a U-turn to head east on Colfax.  We were in Aurora, returning from a night out and looking for a quick bite.  After a couple blocks, to the point where we were in danger of getting out in the sticks, the sign for Wolf's Motor Inn glowed on the left, happily adjacent to a seedy motel.  The parking lot was packed.

Davis Family Bandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05661767592565655780noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7379313185890821761.post-25519751637009765262010-02-08T15:55:00.000-07:002010-02-08T15:55:35.211-07:00

I was chatting with a friend Mike over beer and chicken wings one afternoon, and discovered that he, like me, is a closet blogger.  His choice of topic?  Denver food.  Who knew?  Maybe everyone is doing it.  So I checked out his blog, The Denver Dish.  My overall verdict is that it is good stuff.  The pictures on The Dish are better than mine, no doubt (my application with National Geographic is

Davis Family Bandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05661767592565655780noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7379313185890821761.post-26442448555974853332010-01-09T15:23:00.000-07:002010-01-09T15:23:38.668-07:00

I once knew a place where dreams would come true.  Where the impossible would often be possible.  Where you would walk in the door sure to be a loser, but emerge a winner.  Where a guy with a 6-pack budget could give himself a taste of the 18-pack life.  As of today, however, that place is no more.  I speak, sadly, of the The Beer Warehouse.  Behind That Door: The Promise Land The news I heard

Davis Family Bandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05661767592565655780noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7379313185890821761.post-68658830801730589432009-12-19T21:00:00.015-07:002010-02-25T09:00:40.138-07:00

It struck me the other day that there was a major omission in my investigation of Denver dives - the greasy burger joint.  What list of dives can call itself complete without the inclusion of a fast food hamburger stop?  The hamburger is a widely interpreted dish, from the 99 cent variety, to the 15 dollar posh version with fancy meat all sorts of shiny gear on top, even to those that are

Davis Family Bandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05661767592565655780noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7379313185890821761.post-33436389100156482472009-10-04T11:06:00.004-06:002009-10-04T11:12:34.761-06:00

I just had an interesting thought about the bacon-tini. The good folks at The Berk certainly did a good job filtering out the bacon from their infused vodka. Maybe as a special some night, they should offer the Extra Dirty Bacon-tini, one that still has little chunks of bacon floating around in it. A cocktail you can chew! Then maybe garnish it with a nice slice, fried up crispy. Delicious.

Davis Family Bandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05661767592565655780noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7379313185890821761.post-75987927971018933402009-10-03T09:03:00.001-06:002010-02-25T09:03:54.362-07:00

'Pigs sleep and root in shit. That's a filthy animal.' - Jules The last couple of years I have noticed an abundance of praise and love being expressed for pigs. Celebrity chefs like Anthony Bourdain gush about its deliciousness. Great book titles like The 2007 Report on Pork Rind Pellets and Pork Cracklings Made in Slaughtering Plants: World Market Segmentation by City (available

Davis Family Bandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05661767592565655780noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7379313185890821761.post-49306333637676935342009-06-11T18:51:00.022-06:002009-08-28T22:00:27.905-06:00

I've always liked the idea of time travel. Go back in time and right wrongs (like that time I lost the 5th grade city-wide spelling bee on the word 'detract'; I spelled 'detracked', what am I, a mind reader? That garbage is still under protest ) go find out who shot Kennedy, or maybe even jump ahead a couple years to see if Mr. A's is still the friendliest lounge in Denver, or if the Cubs ever

Davis Family Bandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05661767592565655780noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7379313185890821761.post-87302799163355144022009-05-02T14:01:00.001-06:002010-02-25T09:12:23.207-07:00

I had butterflies of anticipation. Was The Breakfast Queen feeling the same? Was The Queen ready to fight back? The sign on the door told me no: it sweetly asked its patrons to have patience while waiting for a table, as The Breakfast Queen is a small family joint and everyone deserves their turn, and why don't you hold hands and sing Kumbaya while you wait. Ok, I made that last part up,

Davis Family Bandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05661767592565655780noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7379313185890821761.post-1582098724687247652009-04-24T15:15:00.002-06:002010-02-25T09:10:48.275-07:00

The world is crazy for competition. Think about it - everywhere you turn there is some kind of competition thrown at you for entertainment purposes. From the mundane (bingo), to the absurd (a video game called Deca Sports 2 for the Wii will let you compete in synchronized swimming), to those so ridiculous I cannot help but pay attention to (The World Beard and Moustache Championship; I'm

Davis Family Bandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05661767592565655780noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7379313185890821761.post-30924838051334273562009-04-06T13:34:00.003-06:002009-04-06T13:50:34.040-06:00

Men and women ages 24-35 approve of the fancy map of the Denver dive bar world that I just added to the bottom of the blog.

Davis Family Bandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05661767592565655780noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7379313185890821761.post-40756088904157924312009-04-01T12:29:00.012-06:002010-02-25T09:21:50.715-07:00

I stopped in to Barry's on Broadway the other night to check things out. While it is far too well kept up and organized to be a dive bar per se, it does have some redeeming qualities. The first thing I laid eyes on upon entering was a naked female mannequin behind the bar. Interesting. It almost succeeded in sending me back out to Broadway. Scanning the crowd trying to ascertain the type of

Davis Family Bandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05661767592565655780noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7379313185890821761.post-26567812708658404162009-03-24T13:00:00.002-06:002010-02-25T09:20:26.568-07:00

'I promise it's not a gay bar,' Matt told me as we made our way to The Lancer Lounge. Not that it mattered, despite the fact that we were two dudes out on the prowl together. Ok, not exactly prowling... our objective could be better described as slow-moving loitering. Luckily that type of attitude turned out to be par for the course at The Lancer, which is right up our alley. The Lancer is

Davis Family Bandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05661767592565655780noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7379313185890821761.post-57856856088181945222009-03-08T09:30:00.001-06:002009-03-08T11:01:29.190-06:00

The Montview Bar & Grill: So much promise, so very little delivery. Located on a dark and cranky section of east Montview, its location has the makings of a great one. Unfortunately judging dive bars by their exteriors is as fickle a business as judging beers by their fancy labels. The night I pulled in, the place had the atmosphere of a senior center. A bunch of kids were playing slow games

Davis Family Bandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05661767592565655780noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7379313185890821761.post-70366614402632567102009-03-07T15:04:00.007-07:002009-03-16T17:04:01.958-06:00

I had a good feeling about The Sports Station Bar & Grill before going in the door, just based on the homemade sign out front, that was leaning curiously. And it did not disappoint. The Sports Station Bar & Grill earned high marks as a dive bar. It had Busch on tap, a lousy beer if there ever was one, unless you are drinking in St. Louis (I've done that, and even in St. Louis I'd call it

Davis Family Bandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05661767592565655780noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7379313185890821761.post-51852413851683547222009-02-15T18:10:00.000-07:002009-02-15T18:10:20.935-07:00

Zooming down 6th in my car, all I saw was a sign with the glowing words 'Don's Mixed Drinks'. What could be more intriguing than a place with 'Mixed Drinks' in the name (other than perhaps one with 'Beer' in the name)? And I still remember my first time through the doors, 3-years or so ago. Since then it has had a somewhat revered aura in my head, between the crappy wood paneling, the closet

Davis Family Bandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05661767592565655780noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7379313185890821761.post-69165063573567292762009-02-08T20:25:00.002-07:002009-02-21T09:00:27.165-07:00

Add another name to the list of hard rockers that died young: Bruno's Saloon. (Here's a link to the post about my earlier visit) I can only speculate as to the reason Bruno's would have shut down. Perhaps the fact that one could drive by on any given night and easily come to the conclusion that it was abandoned? Or, the fact that you could sit in the parking lot on any given night and

Davis Family Bandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05661767592565655780noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7379313185890821761.post-7824665936158339302008-12-21T10:30:00.001-07:002010-02-25T09:13:22.029-07:00

PS. Postscript. Defined as an afterward or an afterthought, something you forgot the first time around. That's a good descriptor of a dive bar, that forgotten spot that deserves to be come back to. I first heard about The PS Lounge from my neighbor Bryan who works at National Jewish. He described it as a dirty little place where people he worked with like to go after work for cheap beverages

Davis Family Bandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05661767592565655780noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7379313185890821761.post-7216030084785011002008-09-21T17:41:00.001-06:002010-02-25T09:06:30.800-07:00

When I was about 10 years old, my parents took our family on the standard issue family vacation to Disney World. We hit all the tourist biggies: The magical kingdom, Epcot, Cocoa Beach, and hours and hours in line waiting to ride space mountain. The thing that I remember most (other than my little brother having to wear a plastic bag filled with ice duct taped to his hand for half the trip

Davis Family Bandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05661767592565655780noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7379313185890821761.post-91173097289756076702008-07-14T22:00:00.001-06:002010-02-25T09:02:32.847-07:00

Famous Dave's Barbecue is not a dive. Not even close. It serves decent enough barbecue food (though pricey) in a clean and well decked out facility that is usually packed to the gills with middle class folk looking for a night out with the fam. It is the barbecue restaurant equivalent of a Chili's and its semi-mexican/grill spread that it peddles. Not bad, but not very interesting either. It

Davis Family Bandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05661767592565655780noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7379313185890821761.post-77095537073416462232008-06-15T21:47:00.001-06:002008-12-11T20:11:36.948-07:00

A couple Friday nights ago my friend Jeff and I checked out Bruno's Saloon. Bruno's gave off a questionable vibe from the get-go, as it looked as if it was obviously closed for the evening. The sign out front was unlit, and there was only one car in the lot. We drove around the block to further inspect, and noticed the beer signs in the window burning brightly, so we decided to go in.Bruno's

Davis Family Bandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05661767592565655780noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7379313185890821761.post-55778281898748057342008-05-24T11:28:00.002-06:002010-02-25T09:14:36.722-07:00

Charlie's Silver Fox Restaurant & Lounge & Mexican-Italian Food (etc, etc.) has dive written all over it. Located on a dark corner next to the Interstate and a vacant lot, one would assume that the inside would be similar: dingy, cold, and filled with up-to-no-good characters that you would assume you'd find hanging out next to the interstate and a vacant lot. The exterior of the building

Davis Family Bandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05661767592565655780noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7379313185890821761.post-69094660292740978102008-05-03T16:50:00.001-06:002008-05-10T15:54:20.259-06:00

Matt is my usual wing man for excursions to questionable establishments. He possesses an even temper, can drink extraordinary amounts of beer, is a strong hand at foosball and shuffleboard, and is not afraid to wear shorts in the middle of January. He's also about twice my size and has no hair, both characteristics that might come in handy in a pinch. So Matt was an obvious choice to join me

Davis Family Bandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05661767592565655780noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7379313185890821761.post-53390161626858030682008-04-25T20:31:00.001-06:002008-05-13T22:51:36.445-06:00

Last weekend I was in Las Cruces, New Mexico where my little brother currently resides. He took me to a restaurant called simply El Taco. It was a dumpy little joint, occupying something that looked like a run down IHOP, and populated with funny looking picnic tables. For a dollar, you could score a taco of several different varieties, one being Cabesa. I have avoided the head taco on

Davis Family Bandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05661767592565655780noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7379313185890821761.post-26586529245088691002008-04-16T00:07:00.003-06:002010-02-25T09:23:04.112-07:00

I've never actually been to Acapulco. When I picture it in my head, I think of an early 80s cruise ship port that The Love Boat stopped at in seemingly every episode. A place where B-list celebrities like Dick Van Patten and Charo roamed lines of shady t-shirt hawkers and other miscellaneous travel junk shops while sporting floral prints. I just watched because I secretly had the hots for

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