Baseball game? What baseball game? You don’t need to be a Colorado Rockies fan to party on the annual LoDo holiday that is the team’s home opening weekend. In fact, opening day in Denver is usually one of the biggest, drunkest bar crawls on the calendar.
This year, that day is Thursday, April 6, when the Rockies take on the Washington Nationals at 2:10 p.m., and every bar, restaurant and brewery within a mile of Coors Field will be celebrating, many with special deals, menu items, purple drinks or other festivities. (Some of them continue the fun Friday through Sunday, when the Rockies will finish the opening series.)
Listing them all would take longer than a 162-game season, so we picked four that look like fun.
Union Station
It may not be summer weather, but the sun should be shining down Thursday on Union Station, where you’ll find a family-friendly patio party. The festivities kick off at 10 a.m. outside at the Terminal Bar, which will serve brats and game-day drinks like frozen palomas and blackberry daiquiris. DJ Tropical Waffle will spin “happy, groovy beats,” while the Milkbox Ice Creamery will have purple ice cream. And lastly, take your picture with stilt walkers at a baseball-themed photo booth. 1701 Wynkoop St., Denver; terminalbardenver.com.
Great Divide Brewing
A mainstay in Lower Downtown since before there was a LoDo, Great Divide Brewing will open early, at 11 a.m., on opening day for a party and the release of Six Block Walk, a Mexican-style lager named for the “quick jaunt” from the brewery to the ballpark, Great Divide says. The Pink Elephant food truck will be selling $10 gourmet hotdog combos that include a lager and chips. In addition, Great Divide will tap Wilkommen, a German-style kolsch brewed with Burns Family Artisan Ales. 2201 Arapahoe St., Denver; greatdivide.com.
Dairy Block
The Dairy Block, which consists of a variety of bars, restaurants and shops split by a bedazzled “alley” with open seating, will throw a backyard barbecue, with live music, new art, a baseball jewelry pop-up and more activities Thursday through Sunday, April 6-9, before the start of each game. Westbound & Down Brewing, which has a small taproom in the alley with a big patio, will host the barbecue with a baseball-themed photo opp, festive decorations, lawn furniture and a new can design for its Mexican Lager featuring Rockies “colors and vibes.”
There also will be Rugby Scott’s Wagyu Mangalitsa hotdog station featuring sauces and toppings created by Chef Michael Diaz de Leon of BRUTØ, located next door. Blanchard Family Wines will be serving purple wine, baseball macarons and cake pops, with happy hour pricing, while Kachina Cantina slings burritos and purple margaritas made with butterfly pea-infused tequila, lime and agave. Need more? Denver Milk Market’s mobile bar will have Jell-O shots and a large grill serving hot dogs, brats and more. 1800 Wazee St., Denver; dairyblock.com.
Ophelia’s Electric Soapbox
For a different kind of party, hit up Ophelia’s, which pulls out all the stops for a Rockies rager running for 13 hours, from 10 a.m. to 11 p.m. The club will serve all-day brunch and dinner menus as well as purple margaritas and drink specials. In the morning, there will be music from HITS 95.7 and DJ J.R., followed by a live stream of the game on Ophelia’s 20-foot screens. Then, at 7:30 p.m., the 10-piece Afrofunk band Atomga takes the stage for a free show. 1215 20th St., Denver; opheliasdenver.com.
