The Monkey Barrel

From the corner of Tejon in Sunnyside it looks like any other neighborhood building, but inside is a music-and-arcade clubhouse: a Nintendo 64 bolted into every booth, a room full of pinball, and walls of memorabilia signed by Nirvana, the Beastie Boys, Shepard Fairey and more. It's a born-again punk bar — the original got pushed off Platte Street by a developer, and regulars rebuilt it here in 2016 down to the Wreck-It-Ralph shelf from the old spot. Denver officially named it a Legacy Business, which is the city's way of admitting the place matters more than its plain exterior lets on. Thursday open-mic comedy is usually free.

The move: Grab a booth, fire up GoldenEye on the in-booth N64 over Colorado craft beers and a sandwich, then drift to the pinball room — and on a Thursday stick around for the free open-mic comedy.

• 📍 Sunnyside
• 💸 $$
• ⚡ Up for anything
• 🌗 Indoors

Where: 4401 Tejon St, Denver, CO 80211 (Sunnyside; corner building, arcade in the Beastie Boys-muraled back build-out)

Hours: Roughly daily 11am-11:30pm, til 1am Thu-Sat; free open-mic comedy Thursdays (sign-up 7pm, first laugh 7:30) — verify event nights

Plan a visit & invite your people →

Proof: source 1 · source 2 · source 3 · source 4

Verified 2026-06-07.