Photo: f11photo/Shutterstock

You Don't Know the Real Denver Unless...

by Tim Wenger Aug 23, 2016

1. You’ve shaken hands with Scotty and Scooter at the Candlelight Tavern.

2. You’ve made the trek down East Colfax to Pete’s Kitchen after last call and seen a potentially liquored up Pete Cantos walking from table to table talking about lamb shank.

3. You can distinctly point out whether that stench around the corner is coming from a skunk or a group of people taking a ‘safety break.’

4. You’ve put down the Vera Cruz at Cherry Cricket and thought to yourself, ‘I like this place. I really fit in here.’ Then, walking back to your car in Cherry Creek North, you’ve become incredibly self-conscious about your outfit and thought ‘I gotta get the hell out of here as fast as possible.’

5. You’ve joined in the mob pouring out of Govnr’s Park after the Broncos win and then joined the rallying cry to go back in for one more.

By the time you got in an Uber you had ordered brunch and dinner plus a late afternoon snack and closed out your tab at least three times.

6. You know where The North Side is and have a photo on your phone of the bullet holes near the entrance of the Berkeley Inn.

7. You’ve had a conversation about those new eco-homes being built in Wash Park West but ultimately decided that you wouldn’t buy one because a) you’re not a transplant with millions of dollars and b) they just don’t have the character that the house next door has.

8. You’ve driven over the I-25 traffic at rush hour and promised yourself you would never tell anyone about the neighborhood route you take home.

9. You understand the immediate appeal of any ski resort accessible by US Highway 285.

10. You’ve got a shelf in your fridge dedicated to hot sauces that were bought or taken from the restaurant where they were produced.

11. You’ve experienced the tasty combination of folky indie rock and tacos, served alongside brewed-in-house beer and accompanying a conversation on how early you need to be at the trailhead the next morning to beat the rush.

12. You are still in awe of the remodeled Union Station, and make a point to take first timers there just so you can tell them that ‘It feels like you’re in an airport!’

13. You’ve spent at least 45 minutes waiting outside the station for the W-Line.

14. You agree with the city’s moratorium on new festival permits because the endless construction alone is enough to kill the traffic flow.

Discover Matador