“In the real world, Halloween is when kids dress up in costumes and beg for candy. In Girl World, Halloween is the one day a year when a girl can dress up like a total slut and no other girls can say anything else about it.”
October 31, a night many dress up in couples costumes, trios like the cheetah girls or the Lorax — this Halloween was no different. I gathered my favorite people and headed into downtown Denver.
Adrift Tiki Bar is a 21+ tropical-themed bar located in downtown Denver. Transformed for the season, you can now indulge in their Nightmare in Paradise experience. With drinks like Frog’s Breath, Death Sentence, and Pumpkin Guts, you’ll surely be whisked away to a spellbinding night. With promises of a spook-filled evening, it was an obvious answer as to what I would be doing Halloween night, but boy was I wrong let’s rewind.
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The Saturday prior I had the bright idea to book a reservation beforehand. Short of a week in advance, a party of four should be able to get a table at 7:30 pm on Halloween at the most anticipated bar of the night. It sounds as ridiculous as my planning. Despite my efforts being too late, this wasn’t the end. Nevertheless, she persisted, they said. So, on the day of Halloween, I sent a text, because surely if you message them nicely and bat your eyelashes through words they’ll magically have a table ready for you.
Need I say what happened next?
“We are unfortunately booked through the night, and unfortunately your best chance would be a walk-in.” Words that my previous attempts caused my reality to sink in. I wasn’t going to Adrift. And that not even my very cool and creative Dryad costume would get me a glass of Pumpkin guts.
If there’s one thing you should know about me that this story solidifies, it’s that I don’t give up.
It was Halloween night, and I was responsible for finding the thrills and chills. So I did what anyone would do: I called in my greatest resource, TikTok.
The first official stop of the night was gorgeously decorated with inspiration taken from Beetlejuice, efforts wasted on the empty room, or perhaps elaborate ghost costumes.
The next stop, a Spirit Halloween pop-up bar, was an easy decision made by a banner that read “beer and tacos,” you truly don’t need more than that.
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The menu was straight to the point with tacos and nachos galore. The show’s highlight, Halloween-themed cocktails like Witches Be Trippin, Poison Apple, and Spider Fire Cider ranged between $12-$14.
Though the music didn’t pick up until later in the night, the crowd didn’t disappoint. Dumb and Dumber, dump trucks and the classic Michael Myers meet-up. While others were partying with T-Pain at Red Rocks, or braving the brisk autumn air to Trick-Or-Treat, I was having the time of my life surrounded by Denver’s finest ghouls and goblins.
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If you needed the courage to not give up on your next night out, this is it. Keep searching and you just may find what you’re looking for!
Until next time.