From my perch at the end of the Hard Rock Cafe’s long wooden bar, I’m trying to remember when the rock ‘n’ roll memorabilia chop shop went from being a cool, desirable joint to a played- out tourist trap.
I remember kids wearing their Hard Rock Orlando or San Diego shirts on the first day back from summer vacation. They were cool. They had traveled outside the Four Corners, and they went to this mysterious place of mass-manufactured T-shirts. It’s hardly complimentary to youth mentality, but, in elementary school, those shirts were status symbols as much as I.O.U. sweatshirts, Nikes and Nintendos.
Maybe it was high school when I finally realized the inanity of the T-shirts and the chain conglomerate. I still had never been to a Hard Rock, but I didn’t need to. I was discovering independent Denver eateries, and I was staging protests against my friends eating at Chili’s or the Outback. Hard Rock was no better, right?
As it turns out, I was mostly right. And it never ceases to amaze me, walking by Denver’s Hard Rock outpost on the 16th Street Mall, to see crowds waiting to eat. On this night, my sister Kit and I were looking for a quick drink before the Lindsey Buckingham concert at the Paramount. It was a Monday, but the bar was still packed with out-of-towners and stray men eating burgers, gulping beer and silently watching “Monday Night Football.”
They were tourists. But they were enjoying themselves. And to the Hard Rock’s credit, the product is solid. The food is generic but high quality – the Starbucks of burgers ‘n’ fries. Even the drinks – a Ruby Red for me and a Lemon Drop martini for Kit – were extremely well made.
This was a surprise, but it was one we rewarded with a big thank you and an even bigger tip. Not that these are difficult drinks to make, but they were both fresh and potent, made with a heavy hand but also an attention to detail. It was obvious our bartender was experienced behind the bar.
It was also obvious, however, our bartender wasn’t experienced in the music realm. When we told him we were going to see Buckingham – a legend known for his many contributions to Fleetwood Mac – he replied, “Oh yeah, what group was she with?”
Hard Rock Cafe
500 16th St.; 303-623-3191
Funky: Stop in for a drink. You might be surprised.
Skunky: This is undeniable tourist cheese.
