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Last Updated: Oct 16th, 2008 - 13:33:17 |
East Colfax Avenue has always had a reputation for providing entertainment. But one seedy section of the street that used to be home to a multitude of pimps and prostitutes has been transformed. The Lowenstein Theater fell into extreme disrepair after closing in 1986 due to a lack of revenue. It sat, empty and rotting, for nearly 20 years before Denver icon Joyce Meskis envisioned moving her Tattered Cover Bookstore in from its Cherry Creek location. $2 million and three years later, Meskis has again proven that her gutsy style gets results: sales are booming.
Single up-and-comers and young marrieds from nearby neighborhoods are flocking to the complex for not only the latest literature, but also to down a falafel burger at the trendy Encore restaurant, listen to the latest world beat at Twist & Shout or cuddle on a couch with a glass of Pinot at Neighborhood Flix. There's no need to go further to spend a great Saturday or Sunday kicking back. Here's how:
Tattered Cover
Get a run in early if you want some exercise; your day starts when the doors open at 9 a.m. at the Tattered Cover. Use the free parking garage, accessible from Elizabeth or Columbine, and order a steaming latte and fresh hazelnut biscotti from the coffee bar before settling down in one of the oak chairs that are scattered in front of Denver's best selection of magazines. Choose from nearly 4,000 titles ranging from the "Guide to Finishing Your First Triathlon" to "The Complete New Yorker" while natural light filters in from windows that stretch over the racks of monthlies.
When your coffee and biscotti are gone, head into the old theater area and peruse the rows of new releases and best sellers, such as Elizabeth Gibson's "Eat, Pray, Love." With more than 150,000 titles at the store, a good case can be made for the pleasure of picking a topic, such as religion or electronics, and scanning the shelves to catch trends and perhaps find a gem to take home. Get comfy in one of the armchairs in the old orchestra pit; the original red theater seats are cool to see but too bouncy to be cozy enough for a read.
Encore
Make the move to the ancient theater lobby-turned-restaurant when your stomach begins to growl. Making its debut late last year, Encore restaurant is the latest venture to claim a space at the complex. Its globetrotting menu tours diners through Morocco, Italy, Mexico and the Americas in a casual atmosphere punctuated by repurposed and recycled materials.
Sit on a refurbished stool from the Aspen Ski Company at the bar topped with rare green stone quarried in Colorado. Order an organic gin martini to sip before your cedar plank salmon arrives, while other 20-somethings trickle into the sleek locale.
Keep in mind that this is a great place to return with the boss. You'll want to pony up for a wine locker and have the restaurant stock it with your favorite Merlot, then reserve the private room across from the open kitchen. The table for six is perfect for an intimate gathering, and heavy doors assure your conversation won't be overheard.
Twist & Shout
With a slight buzz on from the martini, it's the perfect time to saunter over to the award-winning music establishment next door. Who in Denver hasn't been in a Twist & Shout? After your nose gets hit with the incense and your eyes have adjusted to the tie-dyed T-shirts, you realize there's a new reason to be drawn to this music palace. It's all about the vinyl, and vinyl is back.
According to Devon, full-time adviser and cashier in the modern records room (one of two devoted to nothing but the big round discs), more records are sold here today than during their former heydey in the 1980s. Surviving the advent of the clearer CD in 1982 and convenient iPod in 2001, more and more of today's young "in" crowd is gravitating toward the warm resonance created by the needle-on-vinyl connection.
Take your time flipping through 300 to 400 new titles that arrived the preceding week, many manufactured at high-tech factories in Europe and Japan.
Neighborhood Flix Cinema Cafe
It's early evening and time to head one door south to this theater-restaurant combination that beckons with the diversity of its menu and independent, foreign and documentary reels. Although a $3.50 bottomless bucket of popped corn is available at the refreshment stand, the restaurant shines with solid offerings from Indonesian vegetable curry to grilled elk and jalapeno cheddar brats. Better yet, take your meal into the show on a swivel tray designed to nestle into your drink holder. Accompany your entree with a fresh mint mojito from the bar for a truly indulgent experience.
For a more intimate experience, invite your special someone to a romantic showing in the intimate Bistro theater. Order two of whatever your date likes to drink, then slip into a loveseat at the rear of the film room and enjoy the atmosphere.
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