A new western bar is bringing the honky-tonk spirit to the Mile High City
DENVER — Local 19-year-old Colton Patterson sits on a barstool inside Broken Bow, a new western bar and dance hall preparing for its grand opening in the ballpark district. The light from the supersized disco ball casts circular shadows on the unscuffed wooden dance floor, the red velvet curtains behind the performance stage suggesting the fanfare of a true honky-tonk.
Patterson sports a t-shirt with the Broken Bow name and logo on it, a backwards hat and sensible jeans. He answers many of this reporter’s questions with a “yes ma’am” or “no ma’am.”
It’s not hard to imagine someone like Patterson out in the country, but it is hard to imagine someone who can’t even legally drink as the face behind a buzzy new bar.
The bar’s namesake comes from Patterson’s viral Instagram account, where he’s been posting archival western imagery, music and original artwork since he was 16 years old. Boasting 1.1 million followers and counting, his stepfather (an executive at HB Hospitality) approached him a year ago asking if he would consider a brick-and-mortar installation of the online western scrapbook.
“He figured that since I had this core audience of people who were into this style, we could lean on that and create something that wouldn’t require starting from ground zero,” Patterson said. “It was just a real blessing and couldn’t have worked out better.”
Broken Bow, which officially opens its doors Friday at 2201 Lawrence St., will offer dancing, live country music, a retail shop and food (plus a no-frills bar that transports you to a small town saloon).
Patterson attended Columbine High School and started his Instagram account as a way to catalogue all the music and images he loved, honing in on vintage country western aesthetics.
The interest in country culture came from Patterson’s grandfather, a farmer in Missouri, as well as his parents who kept Geoge Strait’s greatest hits album playing on repeat.
“It can be tough to get into country if you don’t have the nostalgia for it,” Patterson said, laughing about how a lot of his early memories with country were negative because of his parents’ obsession with the genre. “I thought it was pretty corny because of them, but once I got out there and saw what else was out there, I realized maybe they had it right.”
Growing up in Denver, historically a “cow town” with country roots, Patterson used the Broken Bow account to celebrate a culture and aesthetic he loved amidst the “noise” of the modern world.
“I just felt like people around me were slipping into bad habits, myself included,” Patterson said. “I remember having a yearning for something that works and something more traditional to make sense of all the noise around me.”
Patterson believes country music is at risk; he described modern country music as being “a far cry” from the tunes he grew up with. An avid fan of country music’s storytelling, Patterson hopes to utilize Broken Bow’s music venue aspect to highlight artists in the genre, big and small.
“A lot of places only want to book acts that sound like what people are listening to on the radio, that more modern pop country,” Patterson said. “So I wanted to create a space for people with a more traditional, older sound to play. It’s very important to give those artists a place to perform so that sound isn’t forgotten about.”
Even if he’s not a huge fan of modern country music, Patterson believes that rising tides raise all ships. If more people get hooked on the genre, more folks will engage with it and the tradition will live on. Broken Bow isn’t the only western joint making waves — nationally, there has been a significant increase in western bars and dance halls, with honky-tonks popping up around the country in places that had never seen a large presence of the genre before.
“I think western culture has gotten a lot more attention nationally lately,” Patterson said. “Now that Yellowstone is on TV everyone wants to get on that trend.”
Beyond bars, cowboy culture has created a massive footprint in pop culture. Major artists have ventured into the genre and there is an increase of western fashion entering the mainstream. Even obscure western sports and acknowledgments of the culture's deep history is becoming more common.
In Denver, venues like The Grizzly Rose and Dierks Bentley’s Whiskey Row offer a taste of the country feel, but according to HB Hospitality, the difference between those spaces and Broken Bow is the spirit of the “true honky-tonk.”
“Our goal was to make it as lively and welcoming as possible,” said representatives from HB Hospitality.
HB Hospitality also owns RiNo Country Club, Jaguar Room and several other Denver haunts.
Patterson points out artwork on Broken Bow’s walls, some of which directly came from his grandfather. Other pieces came from eBay and local thrift stores. Patterson says his underage status won’t prevent him from being inside the venue, he just can’t go behind the bar or order drinks.
It’s not the life path you’d expect of a recent high school grad, who turned down opportunities to go to college to pursue the Broken Bow brand expansion.
“My mom was really supportive, which is the person who you really want on your team,” Patterson said. “But yeah, a lot of people thought it was pretty nuts I was doing this.”
Patterson’s biggest concern about opening this type of space is wanting to do it right, honoring the genre without wading into parody. He acknowledges the responsibility on his shoulders and hopes the space continues to resonate with the community. (According to Patterson, the soft launch went off without a hitch.) He uses his grandfather as a litmus test for everything he does with Broken Bow, asking him, “Would you like this? Would you think this is authentic?” Patterson hopes his grandfather can see it for himself one day, making the journey from rural Missouri to his grandson’s booming business.
“He’s imprinted on pretty much everything in here,” Patterson said. “I can’t wait for him to see it in real life.”
Regardless of one’s stance on country music, it’s hard to not be captivated by the earnestness of the space, as well as the genuine appreciation of the genre from Patterson. Perhaps this honky-tonk will convert some non-believers, reminding the community that Denver’s western roots extend far beyond the stock show.
You can find hours of operation and a schedule of events and concerts here. Artists can also apply to play music at the venue online.
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