The bar at Brooklyn's at 4 p.m. on Wednesday was empty. Noah Jackson arrived for his shift, switching guard with the openers. Two chefs hung out at a table, waiting for people to come and order.
They’re expecting a far different scene on Saturday.
Saturday at 2:30 p.m., the Denver Broncos play in the second round of the playoffs against the Buffalo Bills. And Brooklyn’s (also called The Original Brooklyn’s, to distinguish itself from the Brooklyn’s near Ball Arena) sits across from Empower Field at Mile High, where the game is being played.
“Right now, you can see that we're a skeleton group. We were just one bartender at night, just me and a cook,” Jackson said on Wednesday. “Saturday, we'll have about 30 to 40 people (working) here.”
There are three bars in Brooklyn’s: one downstairs, one upstairs and a patio bar. On Saturday, there will be at least two bartenders behind each bar, a far cry from Jackson tending the bar alone on Wednesday.
Preparing for the biggest game in a big season
Brooklyn’s isn’t the only place preparing for the biggest game in a decade. All of Denver is as well. The Regional Transportation District is adding extra train cars on Saturday, and Bronco superfans are preparing for the big day as well.
“It's going to be a long day. I think people are mostly positive. I think that we'd like our chances against the Bills and we're staffed up, ready to go,” Jackson said. “It is my first home playoff game that I've worked here. It should be a good time, but it'll be a lot.”
Jackson said people tend to drink more when the Broncos win, something they’ve been doing a lot of this season, with a conference-leading record of 14-3.
A rising team lifts all bars
In fact, the whole city seems to be making money from the Broncos winning, according to the Denver Metro Chamber of Commerce.
The Metro Denver EDC says there is a potential $60.4 million boost to the city’s economy from the divisional round and the AFC championship games. However, those numbers are far from certain.
The city’s Department of Licensing and Consumer Protection is stepping in to help the city’s bars capitalize on Saturday’s game. Normally, if a business wants to expand its drinking premises, like by adding a patio or tables outside, it must apply 30 days before the expansion. But the department announced it is waiving the 30-day period for the duration of the Broncos’ playoff run.
'It was so ugly to watch'
Jackson has been working at Brooklyn’s for four years and said this year has been more profitable than previous years, “especially compared to the Nathaniel Hackett year.”
“I mean, by the end of the season, people weren't even going to the game anymore,” he said. “It was so ugly to watch.”
The Hackett coaching season in 2022 is considered to be one of the worst eras in Broncos history. The team went 4-11.
Jackson said this is the busiest year he’s seen, and believes it’s the busiest year since before the pandemic. And big days like Saturday have helped keep the 40-year-old bar running.
“They run a pretty smooth operation here. They know what to order. We very rarely run out of things,” Jackson said. “We only have one ice machine here, so we definitely have to pre-think how we get our ice the day before. But they know exactly what it looks like and what to get.”
He said that he doesn’t mind the crazy days like Saturday. He said Broncos fans are “mostly good people. They get rowdy, but it's a classy fan base.”
“Go Broncos,” he added.
