Quick Answer: A chauffeur's guide to Denver's Highlands and LoHi nightlife — Williams & Graham speakeasy, Linger rooftop, El Five Mediterranean, Avanti food hall,...
The Highlands — and its lower-elevation neighbor LoHi — sit just northwest of downtown across the Platte River. The vibe here is more residential, more walkable, and more "neighborhood" than LoDo's bar-crawl energy. The restaurants are better (fight me on that), the rooftop views are unmatched, and the cocktail bars feel like they were designed for adults who still know how to have fun. This is where we drop off the most repeat clients, and it's where we'd go on our own night off.
This guide is part of our Denver Nightlife: A Neighborhood-by-Neighborhood Guide. Also explore: RiNo · LoDo · Metro Area
🥃 Speakeasies & Cocktail Bars
Williams & Graham
📍 3160 Tejon Street, Denver, CO 80211 | ☎️ (303) 997-8886 | 🌐 williamsandgraham.com
This is the one. The bar that put Denver on the global cocktail map. Twice named a Top Cocktail Bar in the U.S. and recognized as a World's Top 50 Bar, Williams & Graham is hidden behind a bookshelf in what looks like a small bookstore on Tejon Street. You walk in, pull the right book (or just tell the host you have a reservation), and a door opens into one of the most beautifully designed bar spaces in the country. Dark wood, candlelight, a library of more than 500 spirits, and two menus — one of original creations, one of 60 classics.
There's no standing room. Every guest gets a seat, which means the room never gets that frantic, shoulder-to-shoulder energy that ruins other cocktail bars. The trade-off: you'll wait on weekends without a reservation. They take reservations Sunday through Thursday; Friday and Saturday are walk-in only.
Best for: The single best cocktail experience in Denver, date night, impressing anyone from anywhere.
🚘 Chauffeur's Tip: Tejon Street in the Highlands is residential and narrow. We drop right at the door and circle. For pick-up, have guests step outside and text — we're usually less than a minute away. This is a popular pre-dinner stop before walking to one of the nearby restaurants on 32nd Avenue.
For more speakeasies across Denver, see Agua Bendita in LoDo and Trybal African Speakeasy in the metro area.
🏙️ Rooftop Bars & Elevated Dining
Linger
📍 2030 W 30th Avenue, Denver, CO 80211 | ☎️ (303) 993-3120 | 🌐 ediblebeats.com/linger
Built inside a former mortuary — the Olinger Mortuary, hence the name (they just blacked out the "O" on the old neon sign). That sounds morbid, but the execution is anything but. The dining room layers macabre remnants with posh details — think stained glass and chandeliers alongside subtle nods to the building's history. The food draws from global street food traditions, elevated without pretension. But the real draw is the rooftop.
The rooftop patio has a 1975 GMC RV that's been converted into a bar and a repurposed food truck as a kitchen. Sit up there with a cocktail at sunset, look out over the LoHi rooftops toward downtown, and tell me there's a better view in Denver. I'll wait.
Happy hour runs Monday through Friday, 4 to 6 PM. Brunch on weekends is excellent but packed — go Friday for the calmer version.
Best for: Rooftop drinks, creative food, impressing out-of-town guests, anyone who likes a great story behind their dinner spot.
🚘 Chauffeur's Tip: Drop on 30th Avenue. The entrance is on the east side of the building. Parking is brutal in LoHi on weekend evenings — another reason to let us handle it. Valet is available but slow at peak hours.
El Five
📍 2930 Umatilla Street, 5th Floor, Denver, CO 80211 | ☎️ (303) 524-9193 | 🌐 ediblebeats.com/el-five
Same family as Linger (Edible Beats, the restaurant group behind Root Down and Ophelia's), but a completely different experience. El Five sits on the fifth floor of a LoHi building with floor-to-ceiling windows and an open-air patio that serves up what might be the most unobstructed downtown skyline view in Denver. The menu is Mediterranean — small plates from Spain, North Africa, the Middle East — and it's built for sharing. The space is sensual and understated. Dinner service runs Sunday through Thursday until 9 PM, weekends until 11 PM, which gives you time to linger after the meal.
Best for: Sunset cocktails, date night, groups who want a view and Mediterranean food.
Avanti Food & Beverage
📍 3200 Pecos Street, Denver, CO 80211 | ☎️ (720) 269-4778 | 🌐 avantifandb.com
The food hall concept that started the trend in Denver. Inspired by European markets and food truck roundups, Avanti is a multi-level space housing an eclectic mix of chef-driven concepts — each vendor occupying a small kitchen, serving everything from ramen to tacos to wood-fired pizza. The rooftop bar has panoramic skyline views, the drink program is approachable and inventive, and the atmosphere is the most social dining experience in the Highlands. It's the place where groups of 8 go when they can't agree on a restaurant.
Happy hour runs Monday through Friday, 2 to 6 PM, and all day Sunday.
Best for: Groups with diverse tastes, casual nights, rooftop drinks, families earlier in the evening.
For more rooftop bars, see 54thirty in LoDo — Denver's highest open-air bar on the 20th floor.
🍽️ Neighborhood Restaurants & Bars
Bar Dough
📍 2227 W 32nd Avenue, Denver, CO 80211 | ☎️ (720) 668-8506 | 🌐 bardoughdenver.com
Chef Stefy DeVita's modern Italian kitchen on 32nd Avenue has drawn rave reviews locally and nationally, and for good reason. Handmade pasta, wood-fired pizza, seasonal dishes sourced from Colorado producers, and a wine list curated to complement every plate. The bar program leans Italian-inspired — Negroni variations, Aperol spritzes, and a solid amaro selection. The space is relaxed and open, anchored by the visible kitchen where you can watch pasta being rolled and pizzas being pulled from the oven. Happy hour every day, Monday through Friday, 3 to 5:30 PM.
Best for: Date night, Italian food lovers, pre-Williams & Graham dinner (they're a 5-minute walk apart).
Señor Bear
📍 3301 Tejon Street, Denver, CO 80211 | ☎️ (720) 572-5997 | 🌐 senorbeardenver.com
Latin American food with a creative edge — pisco sours, margaritas, cold brew martinis, and a frozen cocktail that changes daily. The menu hits hard on small plates: crispy pork belly anticuchos, coconut rice croquetas, seafood tostadas. The happy hour is legitimately one of the best in the neighborhood: $9 margaritas, $8 mojitos, $5 lagers, and a selection of $4-12 snacks that could be a whole meal. The space is loud, lively, and unapologetically fun. It's where the Highlands goes on a Tuesday when they want to feel like it's Friday.
Best for: Happy hour, groups, Latin American food and cocktails, a lively bar scene that doesn't require a club.
Highland Tavern
📍 3400 Navajo Street, Denver, CO 80211 | ☎️ (303) 433-1990
The neighborhood's living room. Highland Tavern is the kind of bar where everyone seems to know the bartender, the TVs are on but nobody's watching, and the patio fills up the moment temperatures crack 55 degrees. Solid beer list, unpretentious cocktails, good burgers, and the comfortable feeling of a bar that doesn't need a theme. It's been here for years and it'll be here for years more. When the craft cocktail bars feel like work, Highland Tavern feels like home.
Best for: Locals, casual drinks, sports viewing, anyone who just wants a good bar without a gimmick.
Looking for more Denver nightlife? Explore our neighborhood guides for RiNo, LoDo, and the greater metro area. Or start from the complete Denver Nightlife overview.
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