Entry No. 20 — the Boulder file — filed under: speakeasy
License No. 1 (The Catacombs)
Descend a full floor below street level beneath the Hotel Boulderado — a Victorian landmark that opened New Year's Day 1909, when Boulder was already dry. The basement bar, originally called the Catacombs, began serving legally in 1969 under one of the city's first mixed-use liquor licenses; that same license is still in use today, making this the last original holdout. The 2014 renovation rebranded it License No. 1, sharpening the speakeasy aesthetic: dark wood, leather booths, antique furnishings, and a legendary Otis elevator window peering into the hotel's century-old mechanics. Multiple rooms — a band room for dancing, back rooms with darts, pool, and skee-ball, and intimate sitting areas — make it feel like a found underground world rather than a bar. Historic Hotels of America has named it one of the nation's 25 most historic bars.
The story
Boulder outlawed spirits in 1907—two full years before the Hotel Boulderado opened on New Year’s Day 1909. While the hotel offered Victorian luxury upstairs, the dry city kept the basement relegated to storage, coal heating, and laundry services. Boulder’s local prohibition outlasted the nation’s, stretching all the way to 1967. When hard liquor was finally legalized, the hotel grabbed one of the city's very first licenses and opened an underground bar called the Catacombs in 1969. That exact 1969 permit remains active today, making this basement the holder of Boulder's last original post-prohibition license.
A 2014 renovation dropped the 'Catacombs' name for 'License No. 1' and leaned into the subterranean quirk. Instead of scrubbing away the building's vintage mechanics, the redesign keeps them on display through a glass window peering directly into the exposed, working pulleys of the hotel's original 1908 Otis elevator. Persistent local urban legends insist secret Prohibition-era bootlegging tunnels connected this basement to downtown, and while historians haven't found a single brick of proof, the labyrinth of dark wood booths, skee-ball lanes, dart corners, and hidden sitting rooms makes you want to believe them.
What it's like
Take the stairs down beneath 13th Street into a sprawling underground layout that feels like three separate bars stitched together. Despite the moody dark wood and leather booth aesthetic, the crowd is classic casual Boulder, so leave the formal wear at home. Show up right at 6 pm for happy hour to snag discounted cocktails—like their signature Buffalo Trace Old Fashioned—before the main rooms fill up. If you're coming on a Thursday, reserve a spot ahead of time for the Underground Comedy Showcase because seating sells out fast; on Friday and Saturday nights, live music starts in the band room at 9 pm. The trick to navigating a packed weekend is drifting between the back room pool tables, skee-ball, and quiet corner nooks rather than jockeying for space at the main bar counter.
The move: Start with happy hour cocktails at 6 pm (the single-barrel Buffalo Trace Old Fashioned is a signature), then stay for live music on Fridays or Saturdays starting at 9 pm. The multiple rooms mean you can drift between dancing, a corner booth, and a game of pool all in one night.
📍 Before you go Open Wednesday through Saturday from 6 pm. Thursday comedy shows (The Underground Comedy Showcase, 7:30–9 pm) require reservations and sell out; book ahead. Live music starts at 9 pm on Fridays and Saturdays. Must be 21+. Street parking on 13th Street or the city garage on Spruce. No dedicated hotel valet for bar guests. Happy hour runs 6–7 pm nightly with deeply discounted cocktails.
- 📍 Boulder
- 💸 $$
- ⚡ Up for anything
- 🌗 Indoors
Where: 2115 13th Street, Boulder, CO 80302 (basement of Hotel Boulderado)
Hours: Added 2026-06-11 — confirm current hours before you go.
⚠ Seasonal or scheduled — always check before you go.
Pair it with
- Hotel Boulderado — Walk up the basement stairs to take in the 1909 hotel lobby and its cathedral stained-glass canopy before ducking downstairs for drinks.
- Press Play Bar — Pair one subterranean drinking hideaway with another by swapping License No. 1's dark wood and skee-ball for glowing vintage arcade cabinets two blocks away.
- The Bitter Bar — Contrast License No. 1's sprawling historic basement lounge with a modern cocktail hideaway masked behind an old noodle house storefront.
- Boulder Ghost Tours — Explore Victorian-era downtown haunts on foot before taking shelter in Boulder's oldest continuous basement bar.
Good to know
What are the hours and age requirements?
License No. 1 is open Wednesday through Saturday starting at 6 pm. You must be 21 or older to enter.
What is the history behind the name License No. 1?
Boulder was a dry city from 1907 until 1967. In 1969, the basement of the Hotel Boulderado was granted one of the city's first legal mixed-use hard liquor licenses to open the Catacombs. The bar operates under that exact 1969 license today.
How do I attend the Thursday comedy show?
The Underground Comedy Showcase runs Thursdays from 7:30 pm to 9:00 pm. It requires advance reservations and frequently sells out, so book ahead.
Is there hotel valet parking available for bar guests?
No, the hotel valet does not service bar guests. Use street parking along 13th Street or park in the city garage on Spruce Street.
When are happy hour and live music?
Happy hour runs from 6:00 pm to 7:00 pm nightly with discounted cocktails. Live music begins at 9:00 pm on Fridays and Saturdays.
Plan a visit & invite your people →
Further reading: Official site · 5280 · therooster.com · boulderado.com · Westword
last checked: 2026-06-11