Milk froth rises in an aluminum pitcher as a Metropolis Coffee barista prepares orders for Denverites in need of a caffeine boost in the Baker neighborhood.
Around the bustling coffee shop, keys clack on laptops and charger cables dangle off the sides of tables.
Across town along South Pearl Street, some people are dialed into work calls from the outdoor porch of Stella’s Coffee Haus. Inside, students shuffle around textbooks to make room on the table for their early morning latte.
This is just reality in the era of hybrid-remote work. As temps warm up, you're probably looking for some local coffee shops to set up at during the day for a few hours to respond to emails and maybe take a work call or two. Thankfully, Denver has plenty of offerings for such an endeavor.
Here are 11 spots that make good remote work options, including a few where you might catch the Denverite staff:
Metropolis Coffee
Neighborhood: Baker
Address: 1 S. Broadway
Hours: 7-7PM
Second floor bar seating overlooks the barista’s island below as well as the hustle and bustle of Metropolis Coffee visitors. Next to the entrance are seats that face outward for a closer look of cars and pedestrians along Broadway. Full of natural sunlight, the shop is a great place to get a few hours of work done on a weekday. Metropolis Coffee has three other locations around the city: Golden Triangle, LoHi and RiNo.
The Bardo Coffee House
Neighborhood: Baker
Address: 238 S. Broadway
Hours: 6-12 a.m.
For the late-night workers, The Bardo Coffee House is a great option. Offering a mix of patio, table and booth seating, this can be a cozy spot to sink into the ocean of emails one is bound to have to wade into. Wi-Fi time is limited, so efficiency will be key to getting work done at this location. Bardo has two other locations in Wheat Ridge and Lakewood.
Hooked on Colfax
Neighborhood: City Park
Address: 3213 E. Colfax Ave.
Hours: 7-8 p.m.
The basement of Hooked on Colfax is a dimly lit, cave-like getaway from the rush of Colfax Avenue. It's easy to forget the time of day down there. Upstairs is spacious with some booths large enough to lay out multiple textbooks, laptops and coffee mugs. And if hunger looms, a quick pizza slice from next door’s Fat Sully’s is a nice reward after or during a hard day's work.
Prodigy Coffeehouse (Globeville)
Neighborhood: Globeville
Address: 4500 Broadway
Hours: 6:30-4 p.m.
The nonprofit coffeehouse enterprise that offers an apprentice program for young adults, ages 18 to 24, is built in what used to be a motorcycle maintenance garage. The coffee shop has a community meeting space, an outdoor patio, classroom and a Craft Coffee Learning Lab. Its original location is in the Elyria-Swansea neighborhood.
The Sojourners Coffee & Tea
Neighborhood: Virginia Village
Address: 1501 S. Holly St.
Hours: 7-5 p.m. (Monday-Saturday), 8-4 p.m. (Sunday)
A sweet gathering spot in the Virginia Village neighborhood, Sojourner’s has a large selection of specialty drinks and delicious almond croissant pastries that make this a nice spot to work from. Plenty of outlets extension cords are left out to ensure a fully charged working experience.
Middle State Coffee
Neighborhood: Baker
Address: 212 Santa Fe Dr.
Hours: 7-4 p.m.
The sleek and contemporary cafe and roastery is a nice location to work in if you’re in the Baker neighborhood. Natural wood benches and metal tabletops coupled with a variety of coffee, cereal and burrito options as well as some baked goods. A smaller location is in the Highlands neighborhood a few doors down from North Denver’s Panadería Rosales.
Stella’s Coffee Haus
Neighborhood: Platt Park
Address: 1476 S. Pearl St.
Hours: 7-10 p.m.
A coffee house staple on South Pearl Street, Stella’s has been on the block since 1991. Ample seating, Wi-Fi and the company of studious University of Denver college students can make this a friendly location for remote work. On warmer days, a dog-friendly patio can also be a nice alternative to working from an office desk.
Aviano Coffee Cherry Creek North
Neighborhood: Cherry Creek
Address: 244 Detroit St.
Hours: 7-6 p.m.
The upscale, artisanal coffee shop in the Cherry Creek neighborhood offers an airy location to work. Enjoy working from an outdoor patio on warmer days or check out the elevated, stadium-style seating inside. A second location is two streets away on the corner of 2nd Avenue and St. Paul Street.
Convivio Café
Neighborhood: Berkeley
Address: 4935 W. 38th Ave.
Hours: 7-3 p.m.
On the edge of the Berkeley neighborhood this women- and immigrant-owned, Guatemalan cafe opened its doors in November 2022. Owners Kristin Lacy and Vivi Lemus connected through the Southwest Denver local non-profit Re:Vision, creating a menu of lattes, cortados, aguas frescas, alfajores (dulce de leche sandwiches), and ponche scones.
Quince Coffee House
Neighborhood: East Colfax
Address: 1447 Quince St.
Hours: 7-5 p.m.
Step into a real neighborhood home at Quince Coffee House, plotted between Denver and Aurora. Featuring a wrap around porch and half an acre of outdoor seating, this shop is as local as it can get. Quince is owned by LGBTQIA and BIPOC owners that make this a welcoming place to get things done.
Tonantzin Casa de Café
Neighborhood: Lincoln Park
Address: 910 Santa Fe Dr.
Hours: 7-3 p.m. (Monday-Wednesday), 8-3 p.m. (Thursday-Saturday), 9-4 p.m. (Sunday)
Offering an assortment of coffee and atole drinks inspired by Latin American and Indigenous preparations, Tonantzin Casa de Café is a great place to get work done along artsy Santa Fe.
Talk to me what you think about Denver’s coffee scene: What do you look for in a good coffee shop? Are you there for the coffee or the vibes? Or both. How have drip coffee prices fared over the years? What neighborhood needs more coffee shops? Drop me a line at [email protected]
