Entry No. 205 — the Denver file — filed under: arcade-play
Wynkoop Brewing Company Billiards Parlor
Wynkoop is Colorado's first brewpub (1988), founded by future governor John Hickenlooper, inside the 1899 J.S. Brown Mercantile Building across from Union Station and listed on the National Register of Historic Places. Climb to the second floor and you hit a billiards parlor with 15 tournament-sized tables under beautifully restored turn-of-the-century woodwork. There's also shuffleboard and darts, plus live improv comedy down in the basement at the Impulse Theater.
The story
In 1988, long before LoDo was sanitized into high-end lofts and sports bars, a laid-off geologist named John Hickenlooper took over a heavy brick warehouse built in 1899 for the J.S. Brown Mercantile company. Opening Colorado's first post-Prohibition brewpub directly across from Union Station was a high-stakes gamble on a neglected rail-yard district, but the real space to see wasn't just the ground-floor brewery. Climb the wooden staircase to the second level, and you step onto a wide floor housing 15 tournament-sized billiards tables, shuffleboard courts, and dart lanes set under turn-of-the-century timber rafters.
The room's dark-wood back bar wasn't even built for this building—it was salvaged from the tasting room of the bygone Tivoli Brewery across Cherry Creek after that operation shuttered. Over the decades, this upper floor has hosted everyone from local pool leaguers to President Barack Obama, who drank a Rail Yard ale and played a game of eight-ball here with Hickenlooper in 2014. If you descend past the main floor into the building's subterranean vaults, you'll find the basement space where Impulse Theater puts on live improv comedy.
What it's like
Bypass the noisy ground-floor pub and head straight up the stairs to find high ceilings and fifteen green-felt tournament tables spaced far enough apart that you won't bump cues with your neighbors. Weekday afternoons offer a quiet room where you can grab a table instantly, but Friday and Saturday nights draw heavy LoDo crowds that fill every rack, shuffleboard table, and dart lane early. If you want to head into the basement for an improv show at Impulse Theater, buy those tickets separately—the billiards parlor upstairs operates on its own first-come, first-served pace.
The move: Grab a couple of house brews downstairs, then head up to the historic pool hall and shoot a few racks on the tournament tables.
📍 Before you go Pool tables are upstairs and can fill on weekend nights; comedy is a separate basement ticket.
- 📍 LoDo
- 💸 $
- ⚡ Big night
- 🌗 Indoors
Where: 1634 18th St, Denver, CO 80202
Hours: Added 2026-06-23 — confirm current hours before you go.
Pair it with
- Wynkoop Brewing Rocky Mountain Oyster Stout — Before heading upstairs to shoot pool, order a pint at the downstairs bar of the brewpub's stout brewed with 25 pounds of roasted bull testicles per batch.
- Crawford Hotel Lost & Found Wall — Walk across 18th Street to Union Station to examine a display case filled with vintage artifacts recovered from inside the station's original wooden waiting benches.
- Oxford Hotel Room 320 — Head one block over to Denver's oldest operational hotel, where room 320 remains notorious for an unplaced murder-suicide dating back to 1898.
- National Ballpark Museum — Take a two-block stroll toward Coors Field to browse an dense collection of seats, turnstiles, and brickwork salvaged from historic baseball venues.
Good to know
What games are available upstairs in the billiards parlor?
The second floor features 15 tournament-sized pool tables, two shuffleboard tables, and two dart lanes set beneath restored historic timberwork.
Do I need a separate ticket for the basement comedy show?
Yes, live improv comedy at Impulse Theater down in the basement requires a separate ticket from pub and pool hall entry.
What is the history of the building?
Built in 1899 as a wholesale grocery warehouse across from Union Station, the J.S. Brown Mercantile Building is listed on the National Register of Historic Places and was converted into Colorado's first brewpub in 1988.
When is the best time to visit if I want an open pool table?
Table availability is highest during weekday afternoons, whereas weekend nights routinely see the second floor fill to capacity.
Plan a visit & invite your people →
Further reading: Official site · coloradoencyclopedia.org · visitdenver.com
last checked: 2026-06-23